I removed the rooftop AC from our 2017 177 and replaced it with a fan.

Anyone interested in buying it (and the thermostat)?  Make me an offer.

Removal was pretty straightforward.  This pertains strictly to my Rpod 2017 177 HRE AC removal.

-set AC breaker to off and AC unplugged from the Rpod

-removed inside AC cover (4 screws) and gently pry off from aluminum bracket.

-disconnected AC wiring, thermostat control wiring, and 12v wiring.

-there was a metal outlet box screwed into the plywood which contained the AC wiring.  I removed the box.

-I took my Rpod to a local dealer and had them remove the 180lb AC unit off the roof (($50)

-just prior to the local dealer picking up the AC unit off the roof, I went inside and undid 4 or 5 hex bolts holding the rooftop unit to the aluminum bracket on the inside (to which the internal cover attached).

-at this point, I had an open hole in the roof and I could see where the AC, 12v, and thermostat wiring went into horizontal holes drilled in the roof plywood on the bathroom side.

-I cut off the AC wires so no bare copper was showing and then put heat shrink tubing on each wire.

-I bent the AC wire 180 degrees and pushed it back into the hole so it would be accessible in the future.

-once the fan was centered in the roof hole, I marked each screw hole in the flange with a fine tip marker.

-I then removed the fan from the hole and drilled pilot holes into the roof with a drill bit marked with tape for the correct length of the screws.

-I cleaned the roof with alcohol and then applied a bead of Dicor self-leveling caulk right on top of the drilled holes all the way around the opening.

-I placed the fan into the hole and then "found" the drilled holes with each screw and tightened them down by hand.

-I covered each screw with more Dicor and evened up the Dicor that squished out from the fan flange with a wet finger.

-I had two 12v cables coming out of the hole and testing showed which one was live.  The other one went to several lights.  I used wire nuts to connect both of these existing 12v cables to the fan 12v wires.  I pushed the excess 12v wires back into their hole in the plywood once the fan was installed.

-I had two thermostat wires coming out of their hole in the plywood.  One thermostat cable went to the wall thermostat and the other went to the furnace.

-I soldered the red to red and white to white and covered both connections with heat shrink tubing.

-I pushed the excess thermostat wires back into their hole such that they could be retrieved later.

-I tucked the 12v wiring up alongside the fan housing and the plywood.

-I removed the AC thermostat from the wall and installed a new thermostat.

Honeywell TH1100DV1000 Pro-Digital 2-Wire Heat Only (Amazon)

-I tested the fan, thermostat, and heater operation.

-I held the inside fan cover up on the fan to gauge how much I'd need to cut off and then added 1/4" to that measurement so I'd have a snug fit.

-I had some of the adhesive decorative paper on the roof luan board misplaced by the inside AC aluminum clamp moving around somehow.  I used a hair dryer to gently heat it up and stretch it back into place.  Most of these were covered by the fan cover but I wanted them smooth and flat too.

-I marked, drilled pilot holes for, and screwed the inside fan cover into the ceiling.  The screws went into the aluminum frame so drilling pilot holes was a must.

-I have placed a label over the AC thermostat breaker that says DISCONNECTED.

That's it.  Not too big of a chore at all.

Any questions, fire away.  Sorry, no pics.

Originally posted by marwayne I have a 13500 btu sitting around at home I'll give it away for free.

Now how in the heck am I going to get any money for my 13.5k btu AC if you do this??? 

Thanks for the thorough description.

What I'm understanding is that there were two +12V wires visible within the roof cavity after you removed the a/c unit? One of those was unswitched and the other was powered from the 7 pin connector and went to the trailer lights?  Were you able to determine where the power for the unswitched line came from? Was there a -12V line there as well? 

If you connected the +12V line feeding the lights to the unswitched +12V line at the fan then your trailer lights ought to be on all the time so I might not be understanding this correctly. 

Re your roof a/c, in normal times I'd suggest putting it on Craigslist in the RV section, you probably need to try to sell it locally as it would  probably cost more than its worth to ship it somewhere. 

offgrid,

There were two 12vdc wires (2 conductors each) visible in the roof cavity after I removed the AC.  They were connected together (two +12 conductors connected together and two -12v conductors connected together) and also went to the AC.  One wire was the +/- 12v feed from, I assume, the converter and the other one went to the ceiling lights and maybe the radio, I'm not entirely sure.  Definitely NOT the tail lights.

Yes, it was a +12 and a =12 conductor in the wire.  Standard 12v power situation.

I connected them back together and also included the 12v wires to the fan.  So, I had three +12v conductors connected with a wire nut and three -12v conductors connected with a wire nut.

I hope that's clearer.

 For myself, living in the southeast, I need a/c to sleep too. If I remove mine it will be to replace it with a nice quiet high efficiency residential mini split. The evaporator would go above the head end of the bed and the condenser on the tongue where my batteries are currently, freeing up the roof space. 

I don't know of any rooftop units that don't sound like a jet turbine spooled up for a takeoff roll.  

We camp in the Pacific NW, Canada, Montana, Idaho, etc. where it cools off at night.

And until it does cool off, we use evaporative cooling.

I don't know of a quieter unit.

First, instead of having the fan set to auto, set it to low so the fan runs all the time. Then it will only be the compressor sound added to it. The ear adapts to the constant sound of the AC much better than the intermittent sound.

Second, close the big center vent and just have the side vents open. That will be quieter. Give it a test listen.

Third is to do what I did. Take the inside shroud off and line it with closed cell foam. I used a thin self-adhesive sheet for this. It is much like what would be used to line the drawer of a tool chest to keep tools from moving around. Be careful not to obstruct the movement of any of the vents, especially the large one. If you do this, be careful. There are 8 screws holding the inside shroud, not all of which are readily visible. When you put it up, be careful to tuck the wires out of the way of moving parts and as much out of the air stream as possible. It won't quiet things down much, but every little bit helps.