# habitation air con



## 362bkr (Apr 29, 2013)

Hi all when i buy my motor home in the next week or two (fingers crossed ) i hope to travel to the south of France and spain and i really feel i will need air con to keep the van cool at night.Can anyone recomend a certain type or make ? are they any good ? are they noisey ? Any information would be great Thanks all .


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## jncrowe (Feb 14, 2009)

Dont know about Aircon, but when we went to france (or anywhere hot) we were advised to keep the blinds closed during the day and it was then nice and cool in the evenings 
Good Luck 
Cath


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## aldra (Jul 2, 2009)

We have aircon fitted

It's the Dometic Freshlite , haven't used it a lot but when we have needed it it's brilliant There is some noise but it's never troubled us and we have run it through the night

We also run it if the day is very hot to have a cool place to sit and to keep the dog cool Needed it last year in Italy

Our son takes the van to Spain every August and swears by it We only travel off season and are not always on hookup but if suitable and no one around our Gas generater will run it

Aldra


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## 362bkr (Apr 29, 2013)

Thanks for replies , very useful and very interesting.


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## barryd (May 9, 2008)

Maybe you should go and see if you need it first. I worried about not having Air con when we first started touring but was surprised how firstly we got used to the climate after a few weeks and secondly that the van wasnt as hot on a night as we thought it would be.

There have been occasions though during the day where we have struggled but normally we just go for a ride on the bike and find a river or lake.

Last August in Northern ITaly was bad for a few days when we were near Venice and it was 40 degrees. We were on a Sosta on our own and Michelle wasnt well so needed to keep cool. Thankfully the Sosta had free water and a hose so we just kept hosing each other down! 

We gave up on going to Venice with Michelle being ill and it being too hot and just headed back up into the mountains which were an hour away and 10 degrees cooler!

Thats the thing about a lot of the places we go. Elevation is key and it can be 35 degrees down in the valley but a quick drive up to 5000ft and its 25.

We dont even have Cab air con in our old van. Just open the windows and wear less clothes!


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## aldra (Jul 2, 2009)

I think a lot depends on age and circumstance

Barry is young and can rush up a mountain

I find heat very debilitating and feel quite unwell, hence we only travel off season where possible

So my thing is if you find heat a problem, can afford Hab air con for the times you may need it, tend to be on places with electric hookup ( or when wilding or on aires out of season with a generater ) go for it

actually we use ours to make sure the dog is cool when we leave him for a few hrs, meant we could go into Venice and our lovely nieghbours kept an eye to ensure there was no problem, same in Rome

it's just a question of what best suits

Aldra


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## barryd (May 9, 2008)

aldra said:


> Barry is young and can rush up a mountain
> 
> Aldra


Yeah! Especially if Im chasing you!!


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## aldra (Jul 2, 2009)

no contest

I'd let you catch me   :lol:


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## Rapide561 (Oct 1, 2005)

*Air con*

Hi

We have a Dometic B2200 mounted on the roof. We would not be without it.

Russell


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## AClassHymer (Apr 30, 2013)

When we bought our first motorhome 10 years ago we had an aircon unit fitted. It was good but we hardly used it in France ( down as far as Auvergne) and Germany. We ran it overnight sometimes - was noisy and we worried about neighbours. If you are on an electric meter could be very expensive!

Depends where you want to go. High up at night is cool.

We learnt to park in shade as caravaners - you can get warm, but not cool.

Now have cab aircon which is brill! Just park in shade up a mountain!


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## Gretchibald (Jul 22, 2011)

What he said -have it but hardly use it , noisy and needs lots of elec.
If the van you're buying has it that's a bonus but personally I would feel it's a huge waste of money to get one fitted later.


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## aldra (Jul 2, 2009)

well ours it not noisy

Maybe a newer modal

Things have improved

Aldra


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## ThursdaysChild (Aug 2, 2008)

Years of working in the tropics taught me to install a/c units one size bigger than you think you need. You can always turn a big one down. A small unit being forced to run at max power will be costly in maintenance and electricity and may still not do the job.


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## spence (May 25, 2008)

After last week in France (North East) it was the hottest in the van at night we have ever had. Over 30c at night and really uncomfortable.

We kept the shades down all day with roof vents open but it was just as hot outside.

For us, aircon will be the next investment.

Spence


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## Citysafe (Feb 5, 2006)

Check out - cool my camper- a temporary and inexpensive split unit. Half inside - compressor outside. You need only set it up when you need it - it weight less than 20kgs. About 500 pounds. Better than more weight up high on roof - pop it in a locker when not in use or take out of van when not required.


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## Citysafe (Feb 5, 2006)

http://www.coolmycamper.com/


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## Grizzly (May 9, 2005)

Can't add anything to above on the pros and cons but might be as well to bear in mind that you are adding 30 to 40 kg of extra mass to your van. If you are close to the limit then this could tip you over the edge or limit what else you can take or bring back.

G


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## salomon (Apr 20, 2011)

We have a Bycool . If I remeber correctly, this is not true aircon and ill only drop the internal temperature by about 8 degrees. We leave it running all day for the dogs and night if necessary. It is not noisy and does the job without using much power. Battery had dropped by 3percent after running all night.


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## 362bkr (Apr 29, 2013)

As it was me who started this thread I am very happy to say that I was able to buy a motorhome with a Easycool air con unit already fitted and although we have not even left the uk yet it has been a godsend in the last couple of weeks . We are very pleased with it.


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## Christine600 (Jan 20, 2011)

AClassHymer said:


> We ran it overnight sometimes - was noisy and we worried about neighbours.


That is what I am thinking about too. It's not very noisy but you can definately hear when the compressor runs from time to time.

I'm not very campsite savvy so I do not know what is acceptable and normal use. On the other hand the a/c is much less noisy than the generators some people use on aires. :wink:


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## BritStops (Mar 3, 2011)

Our new van had a frostair unit already fitted when we bought it. We thought it took up too much space as it filled up one double under seat storage area, and we'd probably never use it cos if it was nice, we'd sit outside under the awning.

Anyway, I think it was 36 degrees in Germany yesterday, and seems just as hot in the Czech Republic this week, so as we are on a camp site with leccy, we thought we'd give it a bash. 

Took quite a while to bring the temp down, but we had been driving in the heat all day, and we were conscious of the noise of the unit. However, as Christine600 says, it's nowhere near as noisy as a genny!

So all in all, the jury's still out in the Brit Stops van re aircon. We even had our cab aircon regassed before leaving, and have to say it doesn't seem to be blasting out the cold air as we hoped. It does drip water over the passenger footwell now though..

Still, if you're gonna have aircon, surely this is the summer to have it!? (can't go back to 1976 again, no matter how much I'd love to...)

Steve


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## BritStops (Mar 3, 2011)

So, from about 6pm to 10pm in Budapest where the official temperature was bl**dy hot, we ran the aircon back at the van while we enjoyed the sights of the city.

It was quite cool in the van when we got back, but not as cold as we were hoping. It was set at 16 degrees, the lowest it will go. However there was a nice puddle of cold water on the hab floor next to the aircon unit, which was cool on bare feet. :roll: 

I seem to remember getting into cabs years ago in places like Hong Kong, where the aircon made it like being in a fridge!

Steve


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## dlball (Apr 24, 2013)

We bought a little 12 v fan from e-bay ( £13.99 ). Brilliant, used it in the cab when driving then put it in the back when sleeping. Make sure you read the reviews though, lots of them had cr*p reviews, this one everyone raved about.


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## richardjames (Feb 1, 2006)

All habair units need to run regularly otherwise the seals dry out - samre goes for car units. We installed habair for our dogs which has been very good this week (outside 41C - inside 30C). Everything must be shut up and blinds down to achieve best results though


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## dlball (Apr 24, 2013)

Sorry, not e-bay, Amazon vktech ( £12.50 ) 69p postage.


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## NeilandDebs (Aug 28, 2008)

*aircon*

Aircon that is right.....it is a con! We had one on the van when we bought her. After 1 year junked it, had a window put in instead.
The aircon took 16amps to run was noisy. More importantly, it 
weighed an absolute ton. We saved a huge amount in weight which we
used carrying important things.

You just have to look at m/h's on the continent. In my experience relatively few have aircon. I have seen a higher percentage of Brit
vans with aircon than johnnie foreigner. I think that it is a con that
dealers try to get you to buy into.

We full time in our m/h and spent 2 6month periods in Sicilly. Did not
miss the aircon at all.

Save your money, use the extra weight gain for things that matter.

Thats my opinion anyway.

Neil


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## Jeannette (Aug 7, 2012)

We have a roof mounted unit on ours fitted at great expense. I have yet to turn it on despite touring though France, Andorra and Spain this year as well as the UK. It was a must have purchase that appears was not actually must have!!

We have found closing the blinds during the day and having the windows open at night with the insect screens has been plenty. 

Now the Sat Mark dome is another matter, its been worth every penny! Even worked in Barcelona!!


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## hogan (Oct 31, 2006)

We had a easycool roof mounted aircon in our last motorhome.had the van for 5 years and only used the aircon in anger max 4 times and this was only to cool our poorly dog down. 
Not overly noisy
Would I fit another on this van? No


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