Air Conditioner condensation
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URL: http://www.rpod-owners.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=5382
Printed Date: 30 Apr 2024 at 2:07pm
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Topic: Air Conditioner condensation
Posted By: crayzie4dogs
Subject: Air Conditioner condensation
Date Posted: 01 Oct 2014 at 8:38pm
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I am sure you all love newbies! LOL I did read up on the air conditioner being very loud. Read one thread that talked about turning on the fan and leave it running while the air conditioner is on auto. That way the fan is making the noise and when the compressor kicks on it will be minimal in a sound change. Which it works a lot less noise change and less awakening from the compressor. We did this at night and awoke a while later to find that water was dripping from the air conditioner...a good bit of water. One thing that was also noticed at this time and not sure if it has anything to do with it or not. I had left the bathroom vent open with the fan on. I closed the vent and shut off the fan. The water dried up and no new water was dripping from the air conditioner. Does anyone have any idea why it did this. Oh,,,,and I did go outside and made sure water was dripping down the back of the r-pod. Thanks in advance! Jerri
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Replies:
Posted By: Podster
Date Posted: 01 Oct 2014 at 10:20pm
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I'm a newbie as well so I have not yet been up on the roof of my 178, but, I think there should be a drain up on the A/C unit like any other A/C unit. It may be plugged and, therefore, overflowing into the POD? ------------- Cliff & Raelynn Ranger 4.0/178 (1/2 ton 5,800lb tow capacity) |
Posted By: techntrek
Date Posted: 01 Oct 2014 at 10:31pm
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We were all newbies at some point! One thing to try is to tighten the mounting bolts, the seal on the roof may not be tight enough. You must remove the cover inside (about 8 screws), then crank the 4 mounting bolts down a few turns each (just a few). Something else which was a problem with mine, you may have the "heat strip" option, which is a condensation magnet. It requires going up top and is a bit more involved to remove. ------------- Doug ~ '10 171 (2009-2015) ~ 2008 Salem ~ http://www.rpod-owners.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=1723 - Pod instruction manual 
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Posted By: kymooses
Date Posted: 02 Oct 2014 at 5:08am
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Also with leaving the fan running, sometimes when you leave the fan on all the time it can cause unit to ice up some, the fins up top just stay so cold with the constant air blowing on them that ice can sometimes build up instead of water just dripping away. It's been mentioned in the past that the High speed setting is better than the low setting. If set to low then when your AC does run it runs on the low speed setting instead of the high speed setting of which it is normally supposed to run. So High is the way to go. A lot of owners though, myself included and more than once in my Pod's lifetime have had to have the mounting bolts tightened to end some dripping. ------------- https://calendar.google.com/calendar?cid=cnBvZC5zcG90dGVyQGdtYWlsLmNvbQ - RPod Rallies https://www.google.com/maps/d/embed?mid=1W1foQXGtrjf8aYly1uh0b-bHPfI&hl=en_US - RPod Owner Map |
Posted By: Budward
Date Posted: 02 Oct 2014 at 8:03am
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Not sure what you mean by "when you leave the fan on all the time it can cause unit to ice up".... The unit cannot ice up unless the compressor is running, just the fan running cannot form ice. As for high vs low- I personally don't see a noticeable performance difference, just a whole lot noisier on an already overly noisy unit  ------------- 2014 179 Towed by a 2015 Ford Transit Diesel Supervised by a German/Aussie mix and a Labradoodle! |
Posted By: Seanl
Date Posted: 02 Oct 2014 at 9:41am
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When I first got mine I had this issue. The AC was Icing up. Turned out the sensor on the AC that is supposed to sense when the coils are icing up did not work so the coils would ice up and start dripping inside. with mine the AC would eventually shut down. If your AC is not shutting down check to make sure the drainhole for the AC is not plugged. ------------- Sean, 2011 Rpod RP-173,2009 Jeep Liberty Rocky Mountain Edition 
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Posted By: kymooses
Date Posted: 02 Oct 2014 at 12:21pm
Dometic and Forest River both provide this information about it icing up on low fan speed if left running all the time. ------------- https://calendar.google.com/calendar?cid=cnBvZC5zcG90dGVyQGdtYWlsLmNvbQ - RPod Rallies https://www.google.com/maps/d/embed?mid=1W1foQXGtrjf8aYly1uh0b-bHPfI&hl=en_US - RPod Owner Map |
Posted By: kymooses
Date Posted: 02 Oct 2014 at 12:32pm
And let me rephrase that, the fan is not itself causing it to ice, but ice and frost can form on the evaporator coils under many circumstances, at that point keeping the fan setting on low is not letting the coils warm up enough to melt off this beginning frost. On your next AC cycle it builds up more and repeats. And again setting it to low runs the AC fan at low when the compressor is running as well. It has been suggested during Forest River seminars and by Dometic on these units that the low speed can contribute to the above scenario more often. ------------- https://calendar.google.com/calendar?cid=cnBvZC5zcG90dGVyQGdtYWlsLmNvbQ - RPod Rallies https://www.google.com/maps/d/embed?mid=1W1foQXGtrjf8aYly1uh0b-bHPfI&hl=en_US - RPod Owner Map |
Posted By: techntrek
Date Posted: 02 Oct 2014 at 1:31pm
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I've always used the low setting and have to disagree that it is the problem based on my own experience. I tried high and it didn't change (and was just noiser, I agree). I think the #1 culprit is the heat strip option. It hangs directly over the intake vent but right in front of the evaporator (cooling) coils. Condensation that freezes up on the evaporator will melt into the drain pan, with no chance of it dripping into the cabin (unless the drains are clogged, then it is going to leak inside eventually no matter what). Condensation that freezes up on the heat strip immediately melts once the compressor cycles off - and it doesn't have a drip pan below it, just open air all the way to the floor of the pod. This problem is compounded by the small and air-tight construction of the pods, which means little air volume to absorb the water coming off of 2-4 people, multiple liters per night, and that is what freezes inside the A/C. At one point I had major water dripping issues. Over a few hours you could hear the water start to "gurgle" in the air stream and you knew it was coming. Whether the fan was on "on" or "auto", once the compressor cycled off water would start dripping heavily through the intake vent. Next time it cycled off, same thing. Another kick in the pants is the heat strip is one of the major reasons the A/C is so loud, due to the extra air turbulence. Once I removed mine it became quieter. ------------- Doug ~ '10 171 (2009-2015) ~ 2008 Salem ~ http://www.rpod-owners.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=1723 - Pod instruction manual
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Posted By: rcamper
Date Posted: 02 Oct 2014 at 7:22pm
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warmer air meeting cooler air . thanks for the tip ------------- gone camping |
Posted By: crayzie4dogs
Date Posted: 07 Oct 2014 at 7:59am
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Thanks for the reply's. Will check the mounting bolts and then sending idea about heat strip to hubby. I am sure I will be the one on the roof checking the drain plug. LOL Have a great day! Jerri
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Posted By: rokndrumr
Date Posted: 07 Oct 2014 at 8:10am
Thank you guys for all the great ideas. And yes honey, I'll get right on that heat strip thingy.  ------------- Sean & Jerri |
Posted By: techntrek
Date Posted: 07 Oct 2014 at 11:21am
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lol. If you are up on the roof with the first cover off to check the drains, you might as well take the 2nd cover off and see if you have the heat strip option (and then remove it if you do). Also push all the wiring out of the way if it is routed through the middle of the air intake. ------------- Doug ~ '10 171 (2009-2015) ~ 2008 Salem ~ http://www.rpod-owners.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=1723 - Pod instruction manual
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Posted By: rokndrumr
Date Posted: 08 Oct 2014 at 9:29am
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Okay Sir. Thank you all for the help. ------------- Sean & Jerri |