Community Forums

baraff · 08-04-2016, 04:01 PM

Our air conditioner (RVP Coleman) quit working. The fan and compressor kick on but does not cool. Worked fine the last time we used it in late June.
Are these things worth repairing or are they basically disposable? What does a 15,000 ducted system cost, installed?

asuperheat · 08-04-2016, 05:13 PM

Pretty much disposable, not worth paying someone to repair it unless you know someone in the ac trade that will do it as a favor.

buzz57 · 08-04-2016, 05:49 PM

Don't dismiss it so easy. If the compressor is indeed ON and stays on, then it is a duct/door issue. The compressor will not run if the freon is low and if there is a plugged line it will usually trip off due to high temp or amp draw.

keymastr · 08-04-2016, 06:34 PM

Get on the roof and remove the cover, clean any debris and clean the condenser. You can find videos on line that show how to clean the condenser and filters.

Texasranger · 08-04-2016, 07:45 PM

Better to replace whole unit. Top part the same, ducted or non ducted.
Just 4 bolts hold them down. Around $6-650. Shipped.
I'm 69 and can do it. Just get helper to slide up a ladder. 30 min swap out.

Coleman 48204C866 Mach 15 White 15 000 BTU RV Air Conditioner | eBay

RVNewbie55 · 08-05-2016, 05:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Texasranger

Better to replace whole unit. Top part the same, ducted or non ducted.
Just 4 bolts hold them down. Around $6-650. Shipped.
I'm 69 and can do it. Just get helper to slide up a ladder. 30 min swap out.

Coleman 48204C866 Mach 15 White 15 000 BTU RV Air Conditioner | eBay

Agree, but be sure to check if your present unit has a heat strip then order accordingly.
Bob

baraff · 08-06-2016, 05:54 AM

Actually, this is a heat pump unit. We never use that feature, as we have a portable heater and supplement it with the gas furnace when needed.
I would probably just replace it with a a/c only ducted unit and save a couple hundred.

barmcd · 08-06-2016, 08:24 AM

I just replaced our Penguin heat pump-A/C unit. Everything was working fine, but the air coming out wasn't cold enough to keep the coach cool above 90 degrees. I cleaned the coils with coil cleaner to no effect. Even at the cost of a Penguin II, it wasn't worth trying to revive the old unit and even if I had been successful, how long would it have lasted?

The best price on air conditioner units I could find was PPL and I used them to get close to the price with a local RV shop. They charged me $225 to do the install and said they would do it for that price if I bought from them or brought one in.

minibike · 08-06-2016, 09:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by baraff

Our air conditioner (RVP Coleman) quit working.
Are these things worth repairing or are they basically disposable? What does a 15,000 ducted system cost, installed?

This week, Camping World quoted me a sale price of $1100 and some change for a 15K Coleman. Installed, new face plate, w/ heat strip. The new faceplate and heat strip were optional and added about $150 each (parts & labor) to that total.

Tha_Rooster · 08-07-2016, 05:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by minibike

This week, Camping World quoted me a sale price of $1100 and some change for a 15K Coleman. Installed, new face plate, w/ heat strip. The new faceplate and heat strip were optional and added about $150 each (parts & labor) to that total.

Amazon has a 15k for $700 bucks. 15k heatpumps for $900.

Dr4Film · 08-07-2016, 05:29 AM

Depends on what the problem is that is causing the A/C not to function correctly.

You first have to determine the cause then make a decision as to how much it will cost to repair versus installing a new A/C.

Dr4Film ----- Richard

TQ60 · 08-07-2016, 09:46 AM

If compressor is running then it is working...period.

They have a built in sensor or protector that kicks out on a bad compressor (usually) and if fan is running too then the basic stuff is all good.

Just do some basic troubleshooting.

First is it a heat pump?

Do yiu have a thermometer?

Get an ir thermometer as they are great for things like this.

First steps.

Turn unit on and measure temperature delta through the unit.

If it is heating (if you have a heat pump) a common issue is the selenoid coil on the valve goes bad or loose wire or stuck valve.

This valve reverses the flow of the "magic gas" to cool the outside while heating the inside.

Next use a match or lighter to test air flow as blocked air flow can restrict the cooling of the unit.

Last is get the exact model number of your unit which is usually on the bottom where you can see it with the cover removed inside and get a copy of the manual so you can see and follow the troubleshooting guide.

Service guys charge near 100 bucks an hour so consider your time worth that amount in savings to do same thing they will.

Old Scout · 08-07-2016, 09:58 AM

Think the general rule if that electronics [eg capacitors and motherboards] are worth checking before replacing units but hard to diagnose sometimes--Colman seems to be hard on start capacitors but doesn't sound like your issue. Any leaks in the "Freon" loop [134a, 410a, etc] is a "death sentence" for these roof units...IMHO.....

Nickdalzell1 · 08-08-2016, 07:02 PM

One of my previous campers and a friends next door had the infamous Duo Therm SunSetter roof units that tended to spontaneously dump their freon when overloaded (instead of having a high pressure shut off switch) and they were from like the '70s.

not sure if Coleman had similar issues but it sounds like it. When it happened to me, instead of shelling out 1,000 dollars plus, I went and got a free one from a junkyard RV ( they used the engine for a race car and were crushing the rest aanyway so they let me have the unit)