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AIR CONDITIONER REPLACEMENT


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Ron P., 2004 Monaco Executive 

I have been traveling since May and now I'm in New Mexico after spending time in Arizona, and Palm Springs/Palm Desert/Indio.   San Diego was cool.

My air conditioners(13,500 BTU) are struggling to keep up.

Has anyone had any experience in upgrading to 15,000 BTU? Any modifications,  etc.

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I you search the posts you will find many concerning replacing A/Cs with lots of options and suggestions. As to the specific question of going from 13.5 to 15K btu, this is often done, especially by those that camp often in southern states in the summer. Fit is generally not an issue. Make sure you a/c wiring can handle the energy demand of the larger unit you are considering. Usually if your current A/C system is protected by a 15 amp circuit breaker and the new A/C is designed to also be protected by a 15 amp circuit breaker you are OK for the switch.

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We have a 2004 Signature.  I replaced the center 13,500btu Penguin heat pump with a 15,000 btu Penguin II heat pump.  40' long coaches have two A/C's and 42' and longer have three. 

Your current wiring will work fine with a 15,000btu unit.  Some of the new 15,000btu units use less power than the older 13,500 unit. 

The issues you need to work through are the original 5 button Dometic Comfort Control thermostat will not work with new units unless you install a retrofit control board. 

Your other option is to replace all your A/C units and also install new CCII programmable thermostats.  So the thermostat version must match the A/C version (or use a retrofit board.)  

Your other issue will be finding new A/C units.  Most places are out of stock.  I had good luck with PPL RV parts in TX.  They shipped directly to me. 

Once you decide to replace all, or just one unit and a retrofit control board the next hurdle is getting them on the roof.  I used a long extension ladder and pulled the box up the ladder with a rope.  After that it's pretty simple.  The four bolts holding the unit down are accessible from inside as well as all the wiring. 

Link to detailed thread: http://www.irv2.com/forums/f115/replacing-a-dometic-ac-heat-pump-on-a-monaco-coach-405503.html

Edited by vito.a
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I replaced a 13,500 with a 15,000. You need to get the model number of the 13,500 and the thermostat that it uses. Send an email or call Dometic and they will tell you the model number for the 15,000 you will need. You more than likely will also have to get a new circuit board which Dometic will give you that part number also so it will interface with your existing thermostat. Be sure and get the dip switches set in correct positions. I also added soft starts to both units.

Some people are changing there units to a Houghton sold by Rev and say it is much quieter plus about 1/2 the price.

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The extra 3000 BTU of cooling capacity will help you, but not by much.   So, making that big investment of ~$3000.00 for new Penguin 15000 BTU AC/Heat Pumps plus installation fees will not buy you much more cooling capacity.

My rig configuration is like yours (2 X 13500BTU Cooling). When I am stationary, I recommend and use this unit that you can vent out our your RVs window:

You will need to fabricate a small plywood partition for the intake and exhaust hoses to utilize your RV window.  I fabricated mine with a 1/4" piece of plywood with a reciprocating saw and painted it to match my rig.

Now the effective cooling capacity is 41000 BTU (13500 X 2 + 14000).  I use this configuration when travelling to Florida in the summer and can easily maintain 65 degrees inside when the outdoor temperature is 110 degrees.

 

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I had two 13.5 Dometic AC/heat pumps, they struggled to keep up.  I was in ND last year when temps were +100F, running wide open the coach got +85F on the inside,  Miserable.  Then my wife took a trip and said the rear AC was making  noise, I knew what it was since the same thing happen to the front, the rubber supports were gone.  So I tore into it and was going to replace the motor but could not find any, every part I searched for was not available.

So decided to bite the bullet and change both AC's.  Went with 15K BTU AC/Heat pumps.  They were on sale at PPL.  $2717 including tax and shipping.  I decided to upgrade to a Easy Touch thermostat, bluetooth/WIFI controllable.   He's a post I did last year.  https://www.irv2.com/forums/f115/replacing-a-c-units-559341.html

 

I took another trip and temps were in the high 80's, I could get by with one AC running.  The Easy Touch thermostat works well, last winter I didn't winterize my coach and monitored the temps from my easy chair in the house. 

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  • 4 weeks later...
  • 7 months later...

I upgraded my old ac with this Dometic Brisk air conditioner unit after my journey in Florida. I like the 15,000 BTU version, it works great. Easy installation by pros and a direct replacement for the earlier model while still using the original thermostat and heat pump. Simple, easy, and oh-so-effective cooling!

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On 6/9/2022 at 1:03 PM, 1nolaguy said:

I you search the posts you will find many concerning replacing A/Cs with lots of options and suggestions. As to the specific question of going from 13.5 to 15K btu, this is often done, especially by those that camp often in southern states in the summer. Fit is generally not an issue. Make sure you a/c wiring can handle the energy demand of the larger unit you are considering. Usually if your current A/C system is protected by a 15 amp circuit breaker and the new A/C is designed to also be protected by a 15 amp circuit breaker you are OK for the switch.

This brings up two questions. What are the manufacturer options for replacement A/Cs? Mine are Dometic Penguin ducted heat pumps. Dometic and Coleman are options, I believe. I think there are at least two new manufacturers, Furrion and one other that I can’t remember the name of. Do they all have the same footprints and attachment design? Has there been any improvement in noise levels from any of the manufacturers? When I need to replace mine I’d like to upgrade to 15k, also.

Ed           
‘05 HR Ambassador 

Edited by saflyer
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I replaced both of mine in 2021, I had already replaced the motor on the front AC in 2015 and started to have problems with the rear in 2021 but could not find a replacement motor.  So decided to just replace both.

I upgraded from 13.5K BTU to the 15K BTU high capacity Dometic heat pumps.  They were on sale for $1163 each at PPL >>> ~$2700 including tax and shipping.  Unfortunately the same AC  is now ~$2300, almost double the price, YIKES.  https://www.pplmotorhomes.com/parts/rv-appliances/air-conditioner/air-conditioners-coleman-dometic/penguin-heat-pump-high-capacity-polar-white-_651816HXX1C0

At the time AC's were hard to find, I spent several days trying to find replacements, so beggars can't be choosers.  PPL had a good sale on them so I called PPL and talked to a knowledgeable person and he confirmed that they would work and the need to upgrade the thermostat.  I only bought the AC's from PPL and upgraded to the MicroAir Easy Touch thermostat, which works great with both a Bluetooth feature and WIFI feature. 

The install was pretty easy, when I build my garage/workshop I have storage on top of the workshop and have ramps that provide easy access to the top of the RV and used a dolly to move the new and old AC units off and onto the roof.  The new AC's came with a connector that won't work unless you buy it's mating portion to wire into the RV, so I just cut the connector off and hardwired the units in.  The previous owner of my coach had already installed a standard outlet in the rear location and added a male plug to the 120 volt AC wire, I believe he did this to be able to power the AC with an extension cord through the window although I've never done that.  I decided to do the same thing with the front AC, it makes the wiring a little easier, I just mounted a metal box up under the drop down filter housing and put a plug on the AC.  Just had to connect the 12 volt and furnace wires and the communication cables and it was good to go. 

I did notice that the new AC had a slightly wider hole spacing for the long bolts that come up from below.  I was hard to get the bolt aligned and I actually misthreaded one, what a pain to fix.  So be careful there, my suggestion is to put both bolts in the rear of the AC and then go onto the roof and force the AC all the way back to allow for better access to the front, hand thread the bolts to get them fully into the AC unit before tightening.

The higher capacity AC's work great.  In July of 2021 I was in +100F temps in SD and my two older AC's could not keep up, temps in the RV climbed to ~85F.  In Nov when I took a trip to TX the temps were in the high 80'sF, I left the RV in the morning and forgot to turn the AC on.  ~1 PM I decided to check with the WIFI and the temp in the RV had already risen to +80F so I turned the front AC on.  When I got back to the RV the temp had already dropped to ~72F and the one AC could easily catch up. 

Not sure on the noise level, they had changed the design on the fan enclosures, not sure if it resulted in lower noise.  But being able to run one AC most of the time means I can run the rear AC when in the front during the day and visa versa at night. 

Edited by jacwjames
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If your planning on changing a roof mount a/c as a diy and alone I have a hack uou might find helpful. Usually the hardest part of a roof ac change is getting the unit on and off of your roof. At around 100# it can be quite cumbersome. Investing in a small 12v winch with a remote (you can often find a 2500# unit at harbor freight for under $100) use it and an extension ladder or similar ramping devise to slowly and safely lift the unit from the ground to the roof and Visa versa. I saw this done by the mobile tech that changed ours and was amaized.

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See my earlier post from march/April of 2022 on my experiences changing our 2 Dometics for 2 RecPro (Horton) heat pump a/c. Both are 15k btu on a ducted system though we do have exposed interior. The RecPro units do not use a central thermostat but internal thermostat with a remote control.

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Guest Ray Davis

I pulled mine up a ladder with a rope, still in the box, actually pretty easy.    As Jim stated I found the bolt spacing slightly different.  I drilled the holes they pass thru larger, then use washers.  This can make you crazy, especially when like Jim & I you mess up the threads inside the AC unit, thought about throwing it off the roof.

A local RV shop has an interesting method.  They have an overhead mezzanine where they store the ACs etc, it's just the right height to pull an RV next to it then they have a hinged gangplank (walkway)  between the 2.  

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Replaced the 2 Carrier units with Dometic 15K Pengiun II's with heat pumps last fall.  A new CCC thermostat replaces the 2 Carrier remotes.  So far so good!  Heat pump, AC and jump over to propane furnaces perfect, have better temp control than the Carriers and the noise level is comparable.  Only problem was that the Penguins do not come standard with condensation collection/discharge through the Monaco installed plumbing...surprised when water was running off the roof.   They forgot when to order the optional kits...oops!  Back to Veurinks in April to get them installed....

Adam 2010 HR Neptune 37PDQ 

 

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On 6/9/2022 at 11:46 AM, powersltc said:

Ron P., 2004 Monaco Executive 

I have been traveling since May and now I'm in New Mexico after spending time in Arizona, and Palm Springs/Palm Desert/Indio.   San Diego was cool.

My air conditioners(13,500 BTU) are struggling to keep up.

Has anyone had any experience in upgrading to 15,000 BTU? Any modifications,  etc.

There are AC's out there that you can replace your existing with that eliminate your existing thermostats. They use remotes to control and have the added feature of a built-in soft start. Also are less expensive than Dometics. Problem is I can't remember what the brand name is.. Good Luck! 

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37 minutes ago, klcdenver said:

I think he is referring to the Houghton 3800. You can get them from Recpro.

 

37 minutes ago, klcdenver said:

I think he is referring to the Houghton 3800. You can get them from Recpro.

Thanks Kenneth, that's what I'm taking about! 

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FYI

when I replaced my units last year I called Dometic to get a clear understanding on the units. The Rep. told me they do not make a true 15k unit. Their 15k Penguin II is actually a 13.5k unit with a bigger blower motor.  I did end up buying their 15k units as I wanted the max output. I did consider other manufacturers also but I ended up with the Dometics for the lowest profile. 

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