Best reason to chose portable A/C instead of roof mount A/C

[Kharn]

Do the portables have a condensate drain? Is there any reason you would need to regularly access to the back of the machine? I'm thinking about putting a dual-hose portable directly against the wall (or as close to that as possible), using two threaded fittings to make it water-tight while driving.

I'm planning a rear galley, with only the side door to enter/exit the sleeping area, so a window shaker would require cutting a gigantic hole in the side, finding an RV baggage door exactly the right size, etc.

[Wolfscout]

The one I bought from a friend does have a collector but she said she had never had to empty it. she had it for a year. We used it at the Beach for a week running steady and there was no collection during that time and out camper stayed very comfortable.

[David_L6]

Mine are supposed to drain out through the exhaust. This is from Whynter's site:

Patented auto drain function fully exhausts all condensate automatically in most environments.

[k1hog]

Just a thought, could the portable unit it self, be housed in an insulated box, leaving the air open? What that help.

Johnnie

[vreihen]

Just a thought, could the portable unit it self, be housed in an insulated box, leaving the air open? What that help.

Unless you already have a portable unit, it would be *much* cheaper to buy a $100 window-mount AC unit and enclose the back (outside) half in an insulated box with a vent fan to the outside. Or, do like one of the teardroppers did and lay a window unit on the ground outside and duct the cold air inside the trailer.

Buying a decent two-hose portable AC unit will set you back almost as much as a roof-mounted RV aircon unit, and I suspect that the RV unit will work better and take up no floor space.....

[Wolfscout]

A window unit might work better in a smaller tear drop. I found a $100 unit wasnt' enough for mine and went with a portable. In a sunny beach spot with over 100+ degree weather the portable cooled my trailer nicely enough to nap not sweating at all. comfy. Be even better this year as I've coated the roof to help reduce interior heat to start with.