Staying cool and power

[Nwcid]

We are looking at getting a ~40' toy hauler of some kind in the next year or two. I am leaning toward Grand Design, but others are still options.

We plan on doing a lot of boondocking and we do a fair amount now. My current unit is a 36' car trailer with 14' of LQ. The LQ has a 15,000 BTU AC in it which will keep it cool even in 100* heat. The LQ has "foil" type insulation and the garage has none. The garage gets impossibly hot, but there is only a single roof vent it in.

On the 5ers we have been looking at they have 3 AC units, but only come with a 5.5kw generator. At best this will only provide enough power to run 2 AC units and not much else. In theory some of these can be upgraded to 7kw units, but that is still not enough power to run 3 AC units with the way they are wired.

It looks like the 10kw diesel will easily accommodate 3 AC, size is only slightly larger then the 5.5 or 7kw units, but the weight is a massive 2.5 times more. Nice thing is the diesel is quite and more fuel efficient then what I have now.

So am I over thinking the need to run 3 AC units in a nice, fully insulated RV?

[okcnewbie]

I'm with you. I would want the option of running all three.

[MikeyFlippy]

Yep. Even if you don't NEED to run all three, you can. I used to sell pretty high end car hauler trailers (stackers) and the one thing I always told people was it is far cheaper to order the trailer the way you want it, than to retrofit the stuff you should have had to begin with.

The difference in weight, while significant in theory is less than 500lbs which when you consider the total weight of the trailer, is really not a big deal.

The other thing to consider is when you go to SELL it, having a 10kw genset will be a huge selling advantage, especially over like units with a 5.5kw unit.

JM2C

[Cowpie1]

Install a Micro-Air soft start on all the AC units and you can comfortably run all 3 easily with a 5.5K genny. The problem is surge amps when a A/C kicks on. Surge is typically 5-6 times the actual running amps. A 15K BTU A/C only uses around 11-12 amps to run, but requires 60+ amps to start up. That high surge amp requirement for start up is eliminated by the Micro-Air. And you can run all the other hotel loads in the RV at the same time as you are running all the A/C units, and do so on a 5.5K genny.

https://www.microair.net

[twogypsies]

You could find higher elevations to stay then you wouldn't have to run any.

Fantastic fans work great for boondocking. Situate your RV depending on the sun direction. Close the window coverings on the hot side and open the shady side windows slightly - no need to open them all the way. Window awnings also add coolness.