Solar Powered Mini Split Air Conditioner Tour - Everlanders see the World!
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- čas přidán 27. 08. 2024
- How we Solar Power our Mini-Split Air Conditioner in our Overland RV!
I procrastinated making this video because it seemed too simple, "I bought the AC Unit - I plugged in the AC unit - It keeps us cool". But, by popular demand, I answer as much as I can about our A/C unit we've installed in our overland camper.
We have a ForestAir 8000 BTU Mini-Split AC that we power with solar power via our 8 Rooftop mounted solar panels. That power heads down to our Lithium Battery Bank for just a moment and is promptly used by our 1800w Inverter to make the 110 volts needed for the AC Unit.
0:00
0:20 - My testing with a small 450w Window Mount AC unit
1:50 - Finding a small Mini-Split Air Conditioner for our RV
2:36 - How I Installed the compressor
3:20 - How we power this Cooling System from PV
4:00 - How loud is it?
5:05 - No windows for Maximum Efficiency
6:08 - Solar Panels Ventilation and Shade - More Efficiency
7:15 - Power Consumption Part 1 - Duty Cycle
9:00 - Heading Inside to look at Solar Logging Data
11:00 - Tour of the Air Handler unit and ducting.
14:00 - Power Consumption Par 2 - Examining Solar Charts - Data!!
There have been many (removed) comments where this install has been criticized as faked with a power cord plugged into mains power or that it would not last more than a month in the rough conditions of an Off-Road Camper such as ours, but after 3 years and 100,000km - it's still going strong.
And the thing you've all asked in the comments before looking in the description, We got it at Costco:
www.costco.ca/...
Also Available from The Cabin Depot in Canada and the USA
www.thecabinde...
www.thecabinde...
Sadly, I have confirmed that the replacement for the model we have is now 10,000 BTU and the hose is no longer removable. Something to consider if feeding it through a small hole is of value to you.
If you'd like to drop a few dollars in the hat for Fuel or Camera Gear, please consider becoming a member of the channel. For more information on becoming a member, Click Here: www.youtube.co...
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I've done solar work for 30 years, and before that I also built up three different vans and trucks into campers. I've built 5 airplanes, and was off grid for 28 years, now 130% grid tied. BUT, when your panels slide out on the roof, I was floored! Great concept and execution!
Thank you very kindly!
@@Everlanders Can you tell us how you did it?
If watching this video didn't help you, then no, I can't.
@@Everlanders I mean with the solar extension mechanism.
We've made several videos on the topic that will likely answer your questions: DIY Solar Powered RV - Lithium Power LiFePo4: czcams.com/play/PL0uBLqOOwG8hv9HRxGZvnesMBrUVyiQKf.html
That entire SOLAR setup is really impressive!!! And the connection to the A/C unit is pure genius!!! Bravo !!! 👏👏👏👏
Tiltable solar would increase output by 30 40%
Mini split is the way to go for nomads that feel the need for air conditioning....economical and able to be powered by solar/batteries if you have enough
Yup.. Pioneer 9000btu unit pulls a max of 720w. More efficient then this unit while also cooling more.
He is right about the windows. After 18 months of living in my truck camper in Idaho I can tell you that glass, aluminum window frames and metal siding are your enemies. Once, when the outside air temp was 40 deg F, I used a laser temp checker on the metal siding and it was 95 deg F!!! and that was on a January day in Idaho. Then this summer the hottest day was 106F. You can imagine how much I sweated inside that thing. When I build my next one there will be no windows. If you want to see outside, then go sit outside. That is why they call it camping.
seen a great T Shirt "Any Man can start a Beard...A True Man never Finishes one"
Love it! 🔥🇨🇦
I have watched so many many videos on solar / ac / batteries I can cant count to see something like this. Thank you
Thanks for sharing, I completely agree on the no window. I would have an escape hatch and a camera to see all the way around the truck. But no windows, if I want a view Ill go outside.
I love the retractable solar panels!
not often do I run into other Saskatchewanians in CZcams - let alone an instructional one. Nicely done!
Saska what? Is that like a sasquatch? Man, you guys do exist!!!!!
I haven't been called a Sasquatch in a long time, but I take it as a compliment... 😜
@@Everlanders Good sense of humor!!!! Love Canadians, good people!
Becareful around 3:40 your mind will be blown away. That sir is bad ass. Good job.
Many Thanks!
I'm impressed with you answering each question so thoroughly. So here's one you don't have to answer. Just wanted to express my appreciation for this video. I'm going to re-do my AC this summer and this is exactly the kind of info I was looking for. Was considering making the window unit work but never thought about the drain being level. Even if you were level, the first turn or bump could dump the drain pan into the vehicle. Thanks again.
Yeah, To be clear, I'm not 100% against window shakers... With enough effort you could probably dismantle, insulate & seal the hot side from the cold side and then try to improve the distillate collection tray to drain nicely. But I tore apart that LG unit and it was so cheap and flimsy I felt I'd need to rebuild it with a better frame and side panels. Further the time and supplies that go into such a project add up... It didn't seem worth it to me.
Wow! Your build and analysis are next level! Finally someone that understands showing current and average watts matters, as well as your solar power generation!!
Thanks alot! 👏
OMG! When you deployed the other 4 panels, the first words out of my mouth were..
"...Holy Sh**! That's AWESOME!"
GREAT JOB!!!!
Those were the first words out of my mouth too!
Its funny what different folks need for comfort/enjoyment; I know my wife would gladly do without an indoor toilet but she would never agree to no windows. I could go either way on either.
Jaw dropped after saw your solar slide out setup. Genius concept!
We need to be careful when giving people tours in person, don't need any dislocations...
if they made a 400W 3000BTU mini split it would sell like crazy to van dwellers. They used to make a dog house AC unit that was 350W but it isn't made anymore.
Major bonus points for the Strongbad reference and the Luke Skywalker arm pointer. Lol
Wow ! I'm impressed with your tech skills . You really have a great monitoring system and great devices hooked to it . Smart !
I've always wondered why you solar slide out isn't more popular it makes so much sense
I wonder that too! 😄
Which would be more efficient, eight panels that slide out or four that tilt to be perpendicular to the sun's rays?
Cost efficient? 8 that slide out...
Amazing video and great info! I'm sold on the ForestAir 8000! Just ordered one for my 30 footer. That roof beast is going the way of the dodo, and getting replaced with a Fantastic Fan for cooler days (and FAR less weight bouncing around up there!).
I have dreamed about powered slide out solar panels and there it is! Excellent’
Here's the updated system:
czcams.com/video/lcck1ejlXt8/video.html
Very Inspirational. I want AC too.
Very cool system. Very interesting realisation of mounting solar pannels.
Strange! This is what I had imagined without being able to realize it.
Congratulations for doing it.
Etrange ! Voilà ce que j'avais imaginé sans être capable de le réaliser.
Félicitations de l'avoir fait.
Glad to inspire!
Very nice very unique it's refreshing to see somebody do their own thing
Instantly Liked! When I saw panels slide out on the roof!!!!
Good luck crossing Canada in this thing!
Already done Canada my friend, through the Yukon, NWT all the way to the Arctic Ocean, South through the USA, Mexico and waiting for the borders to open to cross into Guatemala! (Currently closed due to Covid-19)
Man...that is a cool setup!
Hi Everlander, First time viewer and now Subscriber.. Great Video ... Going to watch from now on and old ones too . Thank You
Thanks for joining in the fun!
Everlanders Thank You Very Much Everlander 😊
Thanks so much for making this video, it's really helped me make a decision based on your data collection!
I'm so glad my Dude!
Such an underrated channel. Amazing engineering sir.
Thank you kindly! 🙏
Thank you..I installed a Mr.Cool 9000btu 115v mini split a/c with heat pump. Pre charged..easy to install...I installed a 4000 -8000watt pure sine wave inverter and a 40watt solar controller with 540watts worth of solar panels..
Excellent!
@@Everlanders I was hesitant about it at first but figured..ahhh..what the hell..
The 500 is enough with the 40amp solar controller to keep the 8d battery charged and running the A/C with the pure sine wave 4000- 10000 peak inverter in full sun in Florida.. and the other two 20 watt mini solar panels keep the two 1150cca batteries isolated and charged individually so I have a spare and a designated engine battery.. on Marine switches so if I need more power sent in either direction..just a flip of the switch and I'm good to go.. luckily I grew up on boats and worked for a commercial/residential electrical company when I was in Highschool..But even with the education, I had never tackled a project like this and you gave me that added nudge to "get errrr done!!' and I am seriously grateful!
Nice share sir👍
All of the thorough and detailed explanations are great- thank you
You're very welcome!
the most useful video ive watched
hahaha great pointer hand!!! awesome - remote panel control GENIOUS - ac on trailer nice! you should insulate that pvc line though it might help even more - 3d printed vent , not to shabby lol
Good video 📹👍
Nice idea with sliding panels!
Nice! Caught the Strong Bad reference! :)
strongbad_email.exe. Do you have the skills of an artist? If so, what can you draw?
🙄 I can only draw in the 3rd dimension...
nice system and very good explanations
Sliding panels is a great idea!!
You can capture all the water from the ac also to drink. Its pretty much already done just a filter and enjoy the free things in life. Great to drink and cook or water your dogs with.
I would advise against this, this is how people end up getting Legionnaires' disease. It picks up all the bacteria from the air and so the water would need to be treated before use. And clean filtered water is readily available for $0.50/Liter - To cheap to bother... If it was life or death we could, we do have the 4 stage filter with UV - But for now we're watering the cacti.
This is a cool video, literally. I love it when you go full nerd on us, Jason. 🤓👍🏻 Please continue the nerdylicious series with your monitoring systems. I started playing about with an RPi, Ardunios and ESP8266 to send/receive data over MQTT to/from the RPi then displaying it using Node-RED, with the hope of monitoring our upcoming Unimog. Seems you’ve got something tastier going on there behind the scenes..?! I’ll get the popcorn...!
Hey, great video. HVAC tech here….your indoor unit/air handler is called an evaporator. The condenser and compressor are in the box outside.
Correct 💯
Thanks, I've been waiting for this video. Very thorough, informative and entertaining as usual. I've really enjoyed watching your channel grow.
I don't think they sell that model at our costco for the states.
It seems there are other venders that sell it too, but please confirm that the new 10,000BTU version has the disconnect if that's something you need. www.thecabindepot.com/products/forestair-mini-split-10-000-btu-portable-3-in-1-air-conditioner
I have since confirmed that the 10,000 BTU version no longer has the disconnect, so you'd need to cut a large hole or make a doorway just to pass it through...
Man, you are the coolest channel in the space in a long time. Thanks so much for your knowledge homie
Idea! For your AC vent that is not directing air to where you want it: Buy and AC duct elbow and attach over vent OR temporarily use some cardboard or a cup and cut so you have an elbow.
I made a directional vent here: czcams.com/video/XxJkS1qbwVY/video.html
Thank you for the awesome review.
Especially thank you for showing the quick connect fitting! That is fantastic for installation.
This vid was awesome 😎
Great job.
Thanks for the visit
thanks for uploading this! by the way, I'm on the states right now, but I'm from Mexico, and if you're traveling down there, I highly advise you speak to the local people, find out which are the areas that are "hot", not all drug cartels respect tourists, some drug cartels stick to their main business which is just trafficking drugs from south america to the US and Canada, but other newer less well financed cartels will assault you on sight, and you can't rely on the police, they are criminals themselves, that is some nice rig you got there, it is bound to attract attention, so there are areas in the country you DEFINITELY want to avoid, just be very well informed about your route, and I hope you are conceal carrying , may God watch over you. I love Canada by the way, did my highschool over there, amazing nation! amazing people!
Note: The inside unit is called evaporator and outside unit is the condenser :)
Correct! 🏆
Only in cooling mode...
The jobs reverse in heating mode...
So best described as the compressor section and the air handler section.
The condensate pump can be cleaned with a solution of condensate pan treatment tablets dissolved in water, dribbled into the tray.
Allow it to soak and the microbial growth dies and breaks up.
H Mandeel :
The condenser is not oriented correctly on the truck 🚛. The fan axis must be perpendicular no the wall, not parallel.
On the other hand, if the condenser were placed on the roof, the air flow of the moving truck will cool the coils. No need to turn on the fan unless the truck is at zero speed or very low speed.
The electric ⚡️ fan of the car radiators (engine cooling) are turned off by the car computer when the car travels at high speed to save gasoline ⛽️.
Alejandro Rivas I have installed a LOT of these systems... parallel to the wall is the norm...
I was thinking of a solar array exactly like that for when I build mine, crazy that someone has already done it
Very nice video! That's an interesting unit.
You are AWESOME!
It is so fun watching your videos. Your rig is really we'll thought out and meticulously executed. Really cool and inspiring to see all that you have done! Keep the videos coming!
Excellent video post-op new subscriber and actually happy I found your Channel. Looking forward to the next one.
For those who use mini splits that use lead acid batteries these units produce one and a half gallons of distilled water per day. Using the drain hose. Good for making drinking water or coffee water and battery water. It comes from dehumidifing your room. Nobody ever mentions that.off grid for 30+ yrs now.
I think nobody does it because of the legionnaires disease.
Good vid. The whole A/C process just seems to simple and too good to be true. I suppose that is due to the well designed solar system!
Interesting about bonding the bracket on the back as well. I know bonding is strong as heck, but the lack of mechanical fasteners always stresses me. Obviously after three years on the back, bonding works!
I like these guys. Great work and channel!
If I could only tap your knowledge and skills. I hope to see you on the road.
Great idea with the those slide out panels! 😃👍🏻👊🏻
Thank you! Cheers!
Make all four slide to the right and you'd have a nice awning.
I ran stress analysis simulations on the slide structure and deemed it too risky.
@@Everlanders True. Folding legs or braces would be necessary..
Awesome setup in combination with your solar and battery system.
When I worked for a company that designed HVAC systems they tried to not use 90° ducts as it restricted airflow more than 2x45° or rounded ducts. You might see better cooling if you did that if you end up doing any revisions.
Thanks, I've since moved to two 45° elbows and increased the diameter to 4in, doubling the area... Still works great, but is a bit quieter.
Awesome 2.0!
You must have previously worked in Aero Space. Your knowledge of heat transfer, and Air Flow are impressive.
New subscriber. Such a work of art everything you did to that rig. Looking forward to seeing more
Great information on the mini-split. Thanks
Great video! Thanks for breaking it down to the duty cycle level. That helps a lot.
Strongbad reference is much appreciated.
Thanks, we've peppered them throughout our videos over the years...
Incredible Jason you really have it down to a science. 👊👍😎
This channel is a gem
You are a gem!
Nice Strongbad reference.
Nice pointer
Greetings from Brazil.
Been watching a lot of your videos, and amazed by the way you explain everithing its so pleasant to watch. Makes us dream about building something like this one day.
We are very close to Brazil now! 🌎
@@Everlanders I know some parts of brazil that i traveled in a motorcycle. Dont miss Jalapão in state of Tocantins, if you are going to this region. If ever need any information that i can help send me messages.
I'd like to take this opportunity to thank the person that invited air-conditioning, thank you ! Please anyone who builds those sliders ready to in stall I'm a customer waiting for delivery please leave message ,thank you very much and have a nice day 😊
Great video as always
I would love to see a deep dive video on the software you've made to monitor your batteries and solar system. We have a basic off-grid solar system but our monitoring is very lacking. Your setup looks fantastic and I can't really find much clear information about them (other than off the shelf very expensive system)
Add a Opolar USB fan (2.5 - 5 watts) to your room to circulate air for comfort also to bring warm air back to ac. Super efficient , found on Amazon. You can use a phone charger or powerbank as power source. They also sell rechargeable fans .
Why? It's unnecessary...
Thanks for that idea on the slide out solar rack
Great video. Lots of solid info to help others with sizing!
Mini split systems are the way to go. Just make sure you choose one that has a 20+ seer rating and a heat pump option. More seer is more efficiency and less wasted solar energy. The heat pump will be useful when you want a heater out of your ac unit( it reverses the flow of coolant to bring the heat inside your unit) make sure you buy one that is 115v. And most of them will disconnect the line before the unit is flooded with coolant for installation.
omg ! thank you for doing this, you are realizing my design ! except that my solar panel design is slide out the top panels, where yours is slide out the bottom panels.
Sliding the top had too many problems...
yeah probably the heat build up problem like you mention, thanks for the info !
Thanks. Great details.
Thanks for posting this. It's almost the same thing I am planning for cubevan I plan to build out. I will have 1,200 watts on the roof.
Also remember that you'll likely only get 2/3 of the rated power from those panels in the real world. I did a video on this some years back.
@@Everlanders thanks for the reply. I watched the video when You posted it, your channel is always informative and interesting. The box on the van is a 7 x 14 with a 84" ceiling height. I will have R10 for insulation all around. I will start with 300 amp hours of lithium batteries and hope that will be enough.
Great Stuff..!
Great job
Good info! Duty cycle and conversion loss are often overlooked in calculations! The volume (sound) difference between these and what we are using is true. You also have to seal a window unit on the inside in the Winter as they aren't insulated very well. We may save a little power, but there are definitely dis-advantages!
Mini splits don't really have a duty cycle. That would imply it has a on and off time. Mini splits use inverter based compressors that stay on the entire time and ramp up or down based on the temp in the room. It will stay on the whole time while only using 30% of its rated power/capacity output. This makes these units even more efficient since they don't have huge surge power loads in order to power the compressor on.
Great video with great information!
Awesome rig! Where I’m from (Australia) 31C degrees is a nice day. 48C is getting a bit warm though. Cheers
...It would still work fine in Australia - although we have no intention of taking this Rig there. We're on our way to Panama now, in the humid rainy season no less...
This is amazing!!!
Very informative and good video. Found it very interesting
Dude, nice beard and you're smiling while talking :-) Nicely done amigo. We'll make you a sports commentator yet!
BUT there is a little critter on your chest and it’s crawling toward your beard, looking for a nest...
But how was the sound quality?
I have been considering this way of cooling my home for sometime and I have been slowly buying the solar panels. My final purchase for my cooling solution is the choice of what mini splits to get. I have never heard of Forest Air in my searches for compact mini splits.. Thank you for showing us the one you are using. It might just fit into my plan.
Muy bonito,gracias,primer video ya me subscribi
Decent setup, the only issue I have is heat and solar panels over 100 degrees you panel generation degrades considerably 105 even more, speaking from experience from panels on my house they can get up to 130 degrees plus on a hot sunny day here in California, thats why on my rig i have a generator single power source is a fail point. i enjoy your videos great work!
Losses due to heat are accounted for, We simply got a few more panels. the extra solar cost far less than the generator and ongoing fuel costs.
I remember a few years back I was looking into doing a small small house (bigger then a "Tiny Home", about 16 ft x 40 ft or so) and my goal was to make efficient enough to be off grid for the whole house, due to this I was doing research into A/C's and I found one that was actually Straight DC powered so you didn't have to go through an inverter or have a grid connection.
Yep, they're even more common now, but usually 24 volts and/or many times the cost and size. Not ideal for our application.
I like the rig not having windows, if you want to enjoy the view outside then go outside no problem
A commenter after my own heart 💓!
If you have windows, just cut some foam to a fit slightly smaller and cover with a soft fabric and a couple of fabric handles that you can pop in and out. Makes all the difference in the world. I think 90% of heat loss/gain is through the windows.
You guys need to do a video about that beard! It is simply epic!
Thank you so much for sharing all theses videos. Exactly what I was looking for for inspiration to begin planning my build.
Thanks Sean! So glad they're of help to you.
love the solar setup - great rig
Fantastic design. I would hold the expensive batteries at 80% charge and reduce 100% charge cycles. 30 to about 3. This would double the life of the phosphate batteries.
And another place to be able to dump any power that may not be getting utilised is to have your hot water DC element heated...