Community Forums

jma24 · 07-17-2013, 07:00 AM

Just completed our first trip in our new Ultralite Camper 197. Great experience, love the camper. Only issue is how loud the 13500 Coleman Max air conditioner is. There is Low Fan, Low Fan, High Fan, Low cool, High Cool. It works great, but can't have a pleasant conversation in the trailer with the AC on. I suspect the second low fan setting is a misprint and should say medium. Regardless, there is almost no noise level differance between the settings. The noise level just did not stand out when we were looking at trailers, and when we did our walk through, it did not seem that loud. Is the noise level normal?

**CLIFFTALL** · 07-17-2013, 07:05 AM

Welcome to irv2. They are loud and do require more effort to have a conversation and the TV needs to be a little louder but it shouldn't be deafening. I would have the dealer look at it since its new and under warranty.
Cliff

RustyJC · 07-17-2013, 08:02 AM

It's not unusual to have wasps build nests in the squirrel cage blowers of these A/Cs. If a fan is out of balance, it will make it MUCH louder, in addition to wearing out the bearings prematurely. Might be worth pulling the cover on the roof and taking a looksee.....

Also, if the hold-down bolts are overtightened, it can overcompress the foam gasket between the A/C unit and the roof. If this gasket is overcompressed, the gasket is much less effective in isolating the noise and vibration of the A/C unit from the roof. Another thing to look at.

One of the compromises of an ultralight trailer is that they have thinner roof decking and less insulation in the roof than a "normal" TT or 5th wheel, much less a full-time unit. Thus, the same roof mounted A/C will be louder in an ultralight than in other non-ultralight RVs.

Rusty

jma24 · 07-17-2013, 08:43 AM

Thanks for the comments, but I should clarify. It is the fan that is loud. When I step outside and listen, it is quieter than inside. The noise levels on low and high are almost identical.

Is that normal?

RustyJC · 07-17-2013, 08:53 AM

I don't know that I can say what is or is not "normal" without hearing it. I've owned 2 Jayco Designer 5th wheels and can't say that I considered the A/C's to be abnormally loud, although they were louder than our current A/Cs on our DRV Mobile Suites for the reason mentioned above - thicker roof decking and more insulation.

If the fan is louder than it was during your walk-through, then something has changed. If that's the case, I'd check for the wasp nests that I mentioned or anything else that would throw the fan out of balance.

Rusty

wa8yxm · 07-17-2013, 03:51 PM

There are two types of RV Roof Air Conditioners, Ducted and Non Ducted.. Ducted are not as loud. (That is where the air comes out vents in the ceiling a distance from the noise maker, the duct acts as a muffler).

However on both types there are a few things that affect the noise level

Size (of course)
How dirty they are.. Sometimes insects will "nest" on the fan blades or blower blades and cause an imbalance and more noise.
How dirty the filters are (Dirty = more noise) this includes the condenser coil up on the roof.

And lastly if the bearings are worn out.

jma24 · 07-18-2013, 01:27 PM

Thanks for the input. Called the manufacturer and feel satisfied with their answer. With the 13,500 BTU Coleman roof air that we have, it is just a forced air issue. The good news is that it does a great job cooling off the trailer, so we will live with the noise and be grateful for the cool air. Happy Trails!

jerichorick · 09-01-2013, 02:39 PM

jma24 what I don't understand is why 'normal' so noisey? We have to crank our TV, and conversation is a real struggle. On our 3 ducted roof units we were told that they have the 'new and improved quieter' fan blades. The force of the air from the vents when on low is significant and running on high is a hurricane. I know the noise is from the force of the air from the vents and these are about the largest I have seen in a RV. Personally, I feel that the design engineers have never tested their designs in real life. What we have is what we can have, by design. How sad that 'green' is not to be for RVers.

TXiceman · 09-01-2013, 04:27 PM

The bigest problem is the size of the fan and the air passages. In order to make a small fan move a lot of air, you have to run it fast and that is more noise. It is a double edge sword. To reduce the noise, you need a large and slower blower. There is not room in the RV A/C unit for the fan or noise attenuation equipment.

Ken

Mossy cat · 09-02-2013, 02:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TXiceman

The bigest problem is the size of the fan and the air passages. In order to make a small fan move a lot of air, you have to run it fast and that is more noise. It is a double edge sword. To reduce the noise, you need a large and slower blower. There is not room in the RV A/C unit for the fan or noise attenuation equipment.

Ken

My AC cycles every minute or two in the night. There's no fan only switch; only slow med and fast. It's loud when it clunks on and off

TXiceman · 09-02-2013, 07:57 AM

There should be a selector for the fan for AUTO and Manual or On.

Ken

jesilvas · 09-02-2013, 08:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mossy cat

My AC cycles every minute or two in the night. There's no fan only switch; only slow med and fast. It's loud when it clunks on and off

The clunk is the compressor turning on/off.

jerichorick · 09-03-2013, 06:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mossy cat

My AC cycles every minute or two in the night. There's no fan only switch; only slow med and fast. It's loud when it clunks on and off

I have had this same problem. I found that one of my vents was blowing on the temperature sensor. Once I corrected that things ran better. But there could be other problems like a dirty coil.

bruceisla · 09-03-2013, 07:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mossy cat

My AC cycles every minute or two in the night. There's no fan only switch; only slow med and fast. It's loud when it clunks on and off

Are you sure about the "every minute or two" ?? You should actually time it ... 2 minutes is the typical delay from the controller ... 1 minute is short. In either case, that's indicative of a "short cycle" which is a problem. If it's actually longer (say 5 minutes) it's probably a different issue. You probably need to be precise to get a suggested troubleshooting process.

What kind of A/C?