Small portable Airconditioner

benchmark

benchmark

Well-Known Member
Joined
21 Apr 2017
Messages
328
Location
Denmark
Visit site
I have been hunting for a small air conditioner for my 30 ft boat. All i need is something with a real aircondition compressor ,that can cool my small owners cabin at the bow which is at most 5 cubic meters Air volume, where my double berth is located.

2 years ago i bought a used Dometic marine air conditioner removed form a yacht , this is still sitting in my shed mainly because it is very heavy for my already overloaded tub , not to mention that it requires extra seawater plumbing and installation og a new ducting system which i am to to excited about .

I considered getting a mobile/portable Compressor air conditioner to take with me on trips but these are relatively heavy to carry around and many models are kindda bulky

I recently stumbled upon a product that was just released within the last 2 yrs after a very succesful kickstarter campaign and i wonder if anyone has had any experience with it.

it runs on 12 V , uses 15 A , can run on a battery , is transportable with one hand and weighs almost nothing. 1100 BTU is not much , but more than enough to cool 5 cm3 of insulated cabin space.
I can easily make a smal hole for the exhaust air and drain out to the toilet of my boat where the window can be open.

Short video: https://youtu.be/8_OLUAQH9r4

Longer user review: https://youtu.be/lJM8u-Chjrw

What do you guys think?
 
I'm afraid real aircon units are just not compact - and I suspect never compact enough for a 30ft boat.
Peltier units are subject to poor output and very high power consumption, as if a conventional aircon wasn't power-hungry anough. You certainly won't be able to run a satisfactory aircon from batteries, you'll need shore power or probably a 3KvA genny running full-time for that - at least.
 
A 'minimum' cooling load would be around 125w/m2. 1100 btu/hr, assuming that's the sensible not total cooling capacity, it roughly equates to about 322W, so would only cool a space in the order of 2.9m2. In reality probably nearer 2m2. If that's the total cooling capacity, applying a 0.7 sensible to latent ratio, that would only cool 2m2.

Any air leakage would also bring in a ventilation load which also needs to be factored-in.....
 
This sounds like a project to remove the guts of the AC vent system from a car including the Sanden compressor, but this would need to be engine driven, which is going to be less than ideal.

But the car AC condenser and evaporator should work, and could use R513A which is becoming cheaper than R134a.

Perhaps to a trip to the local scrapyard.
 
Lots of things to consider. What are you going to run the a/c on 12v battery seems to be a better option. Need a decent battery and recharge in the morning. Will it be a 240VAC compressor system cheaper but less efficient on power but then good when shore power is available.
The system will need salt water cooling for efficiency and less noise. Air cooling would need a condenser outside and with a fan. I wonder just how much cooling power you could get from a danfoss compressor and evaporator with a fan. You might have to be prepared to have the system evacuated and regassed. Your quest is not common so you will have cobble together at best. ol'will
 
In the words of Robert Heinlein, TANSTAFL. (There ani't no such thing as a free lunch)

BTUs are proportional to watts. You can't get enough watts out of a battery to carry a meaningful load all night. And as others have pointed out, 1000 BTU isn't enough for a big locker, let alone a V-berth. You'll get more cooling with an open hatch and a fan.
 
These were being marketed at both the London and Southampton boat shows this year:
https://transcoolgb.com/

I have no experience of them in practice but they did get my interest on the stand. I don't have much need of aircon in Brighton but I was thinking ahead...
 
In desperation ( One hot summer in the French canal system) we fitted one of those 'portable' Compressor A/C units £150 at Brico Mart. We were lucky in that it fitted the site of the companionway steps which were modified to accommodate and retain the unit. The hot air is exhausted into the engine compartment and a provision made to vent that hot air from the engine compartment.
The difference is massive, on very hot still days we lock up and retire below for the midday period for a read or siesta!
This is a 220volt unit and we would not consider trying it on batteries as ( I guess it would flatten our batteries in an hour!)
We had considered a split unit with the compressor outside, the compressor would have to be removed when not in the Marina so storage and reliable re-useable connectors for the gas connections
would be required.
 
laika said:
These were being marketed at both the London and Southampton boat shows this year:
https://transcoolgb.com/

I have no experience of them in practice but they did get my interest on the stand. I don't have much need of aircon in Brighton but I was thinking ahead...
Click to expand...

We have one. Very nice to sit below for lunch with the vents blowing on us but it could not be considered an air conditioning unit.
 
Most upmarket caravans in Oz now days have a refrigerated unit mounted in the roof. So evaporator is inside condenser outside. 240vac of course but quite powerful. Evaporation aircon is popular in oz in houses but is hopeless with a humid day. (just when you need it) Certainly a boat on the water is always going to experience humidity higher than on land so don't even think of evaporative a/c. Inevitably a/c is going to use a lot of power. My small units at home are rated at 750w (240vAC) so only usable on shore power or ac generator. ol'will
 
laika said:
These were being marketed at both the London and Southampton boat shows this year:
https://transcoolgb.com/

I have no experience of them in practice but they did get my interest on the stand. I don't have much need of aircon in Brighton but I was thinking ahead...
Click to expand...
The Transcool unit is an evaporative cooler and not a true air conditioner. I wrote about such a device and its eventual rejection here.
 
Barbican said:
Anybody tried one of these? At 3250btu might help in a small cabin.....

http://www.espar.co.uk/Images/PDF-Cube-brochure.pdf
Click to expand...

Rather like a portable version of what we have installed and which I described earlier. ours is 9000btu and cools our saloon.
They are a great cheap alternative to the more expensive marine systems but getting rid of the heat via that flexible duct is an issue.
We were lucky in that we found a good ac position with direct output for the excess heat. Most yacht installations would struggle to find a good position.
 
Yes, 9000btu would be better. this thing is only meant for a truck cab but it would be interesting to know if it would make an impact...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Share this page

Top