"Air Conditioning"

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celtic_mist

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I'm getting the boat ready for "someplace warmer" next year ( I have had enough of this cold ,damp weather ) & am looking at fitting an Air Conditioner - The fixed compressor type
Has anybody bought one of these in the UK ?
 
i would definitely suggest that airco units are gonna be cheaper in that warmer place, and even if they aren't, it will be a zillion times beter to fit airco in a place where you're going to hang out for a while - and use the airco a fair bit. That way you're a valuable customer owed a duty of care etc by the local airco bod, rather than a worthless pain in the bum if it goes wrong.
 
tcm said:
i would definitely suggest that airco units are gonna be cheaper in that warmer place, and even if they aren't, it will be a zillion times beter to fit airco in a place where you're going to hang out for a while - and use the airco a fair bit. That way you're a valuable customer owed a duty of care etc by the local airco bod, rather than a worthless pain in the bum if it goes wrong.
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I hadn't thought about problems & Getting it fixed
My problem is that i have time to get things done now ,But once i move the boat it will be a week out onboard / back to work so i don't want to be trying to get things fitted
Thanks for your suggestion anyway
 
No big deal

Have a look at the through roof type fitted to caravans, simple to install and remove if it needs repair.

Have one for 4 years now, even gets used at sea with the generator running.

Avagoodweekend......:rolleyes:
 
oldsaltoz said:
Have a look at the through roof type fitted to caravans, simple to install and remove if it needs repair.

Have one for 4 years now, even gets used at sea with the generator running.

Avagoodweekend......:rolleyes:
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I have looked at these , They certainly are a cheaper option
I think the compressor ,Hidden type would be better though
 
I fitted two units 2003 one in the aft cabin under bed the other mounted under the stairs blowing into main saloon and forward cabin.
I bought units in america shipped to rome and fitted.Time to fit 3 days worked very well. But it would have been better to have fitted before i left home then i would have fitted unit in engine room with either twin vents or rad coolers. Unable to give you details of units as i am at home at moment back on boat in 5 weeks. Try Hfl they are advertising a low voltage unit.
 
Yes, bought the stuff in the UK and did a DIY in Spain. This was the most economic when the pound was riding high let alone at todays miserable pound-euro rate. I bought an Italian unit (Climma) from a company called Panda (I think it was). The only reason for me is that their unit dimensions fitted under the saloon seat.
In the Costa Brava I find one 9000btu unit is fine for my 37ft Sports boat (we don't go in August), any further south then you will need a second unit to bring you up to 14000btu's.
 
celtic_mist said:
I'm getting the boat ready for "someplace warmer" next year ( I have had enough of this cold ,damp weather ) & am looking at fitting an Air Conditioner - The fixed compressor type
Has anybody bought one of these in the UK ?
Click to expand...

I would agree with tcm if the price of the equipment and labour were the same in the UK as in your chosen (Med?) hotspot but I've found that prices of both marine equipment and labour is significantly higher in the Med, even in so-called lower cost countries like Spain. It's definitely worth comparing a UK supplier with a Med supplier. As for service, if you choose well known equipment (eg Cruisair, Condaria, Marine Air) you wont have any difficulty finding service in the Med. One further possible advantage of having the work done in the UK is that you might be able to claim the VAT back (ahem!)
If you think you will be using the a/c a lot, then a central system with the compressor in the engine bay and blowers in each cabin is much quieter than fitting stand alone units in each cabin
 
Get it done in the UK in my opinion, you speak the language to get problems sorted, and prices are probably lower due to med rip off prices and euro/gbp rate. Also there are far more crooks in the med IMO.
 
hey there

you should consider a small 9000btu or so portable ducted unit, often refered to as Monoblocks; preferably one which pumps the condensate over the condenser so you dont have to even worry about that, they are so cheap these days that you dont have to worry about spares or repairs, i picked about 30 or so up within the uk for £65.00 + vat each, practically throw away, but i havent even had one fail!

(sorry this is my first post ..yey)
 
Thanks all for your suggestions
I was not to sure on how many btu's i needed ,But 15000btu sounds good

Deleted User : Thanks for those brands of air con .
The Med is where i hopefully will end up
I intend on leaving Ireland in the Spring & heading to the channel islands / Northern France
After that who knows : )
 
calculations

A rule of thumb for sizing these, and it is a rule of thumb it 125/150w per meter squared, this is a standard building material so id probably use 185 watts per meter squared for the boats construction.

15000btu's = 4.4kw this would cover a 24 square meter room (6mx4m) in uk conditions bassed on 185w meter squared, if you have the full dimensions of the boat i have a computer program which will take into account everything down from air change rate, consrtuction and peak load times depending on where you are in the world.

1 watt = 3.412btu's

remember to look at the COP (co efficient of performance) for the units as you dont want anything less than 3.0 in my opinion if you have to run it, even easier if it has an energy rating on it.

the COP is calculated by divding the duty by the power imput ie; what you get out for what you put in!

hope this helps
 
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