Can we build a CHEAP Off-Grid AC system in the Astro Camper van?
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- čas přidán 25. 08. 2024
- There are so many different AC options you could do to cool down your van off grid. However, you have to get creative if you want an AC system cheap and budget friendly off grid.
Today, we explore some ideas on the Astro Van
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Sources:
Window AC Unit: • How to install an air ...
Portable AC video: • portable a/c in a camp...
Cooler AC Video: • Homemade air condition...
I like to make stuff: • The BEST DIY Off Grid ...
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I came up with another brainstorm. How to keep cool in a van that does not have AC?
How about you take the door off a bed size freezer and make a bed out of it. Plug it in, set your temperature and be cool for the night. During the day you can put a cushion over the top of the opening and use it as a cool couch. I got this idea from the young women that used to be all dressed up in southern attire at Cypress gardens. Looking so beautiful but they were sitting on cooling benches in the hot sun.
If you want cold air blowing on your face then your cooler idea will work. But it will never cool down that van in Texas heat. If I were you I would mount a 5000 BTU AC through the floor face up. You can adjust how much sticks out of the bottom of the van with a spacer. Mounting the AC this way will allow the back of the AC to be in the shade all the time and also drain right onto the ground through the heated coil making it highly efficient. An energy saving small ACs only use 450 watts when the compressor is running.
Also rely on I’ve never truly off grid either
i did vanlife in california jan 2017 to july 2020, bought a small power inverter and 12 inch fan from walmart, it did the job. but if i did it again id def get a portable ac box
Love the A/C idea. Seen some creative implementations of an install on the rear driver side door that don't look too terrible. Some even hide the a/c with paint matching the van and then a custom tire or gas tank mount. You could also use painters poles and a tarp as a make shift cover to keep your van in the shade too.
I never though about trying to hide the unit, thats pretty smart. Ill keep that in my back pocket if all else fails. Direct sunlight is killer, perhaps I can think of an awning system that can do just that
I used my rear door window as a mold and made a fiberglass panel and its installed with the same window hardware to replace the glass, installed a 5000 btu window unit I have 4 ,100 amp hour battery's 3000watt pure sine inverter along with 4, 100 watt solar panels on the roof , with a mini fridge and I can run the a/c for 4 hours a night ,its stock interior was remove super insulation installed and the stock interior put back except the floor ,it has insulation, 1/4" plywood and oak hardwood flooring is it's a very well insulated van , and I'm in Florida most of the time ! And I can hang meat in my van !!!!!!! The a/c gets removed if not being used for camping,.
That is a solid setup! 4 hours has to be long enough with a well insulated van. Where do you have the batteries places?
@@ImChrisDeDecker between the frame rails behind the rear axel , and for the last year I've had no spare tire ! I had VW bus at one time and the spare was on the front of the van , I haven't figure on where to put the spare ?????
This idea is workable, but probably will not cool the whole van. It should cool you down if you point it directly at yourself or if you make a "blanket-fort" on your bed and aim it into that small space as you sleep. (Small space is easier to cool)
First, get a tube-shaped transmission radiator from Amazon, along with a small submersible pump, tubing, and a small USB fan. Radiator costs $30.00. Fan runs under $20.00.
Drill a hole into the cooler large enough for the tubing to carry water out of and back into the cooler, as well as the power cord from the pump.
Connect tubing to the radiator. Make a tunnel from Reflectix or cardboard large enough to surround the radiator.
Cold water from cooler should pump from the cooler, to the radiator, and back into the cooler. Place the USB fan at one end of the tunnel you made so the wind flows over the radiator before coming out the other end and onto you or into your blanket fort.
Instead of using ice to cool the water, I'd try those blue plastic blocks that freeze solid in a freezer. If using 5 of them at a time inside the cooler, I'd recommend getting 10 or even 15 of them so the next set of 5 is frozen in the freezer, ready to replace the ones in the cooler when they no longer cool the water. (Switch warmed ones for freshly frozen ones to keep the water in the cooler cold.)
Use power stations to power a 12V freezer, the pump, and the fan. Add solar to charge the power stations if no plug and extension cord are available.
So, that's how I think it should be done. Good luck.
Check out "backpack mini split" It's a 12 or 24v mini split where there are two versions. One where there is a smooth, curvy plastic casing, and one where it's just the condenser and fan. For the later, you can mount that under your van for stealth, then u only need holes in your van to pass the piping, and you mount the blower inside your rig. Pretty darn efficient. GL!
You mean those $800 units that use a crap ton of juice? 'Sides he already built this. What's he need a second one for?
@@ObamaoZedong you mean only the OP reads the comments, not hundreds of others considering options for AC in their rigs? 🤔
Its a multistage evaporative cooler. There are drop in units which could be extended on, i dont recall the name, but they use them lots on trucks. They dont cool any 45degrees as i recall. Its possible to extend the heat capacity using dessicants like Lithium Bromide in the cooling water which as i recall will make possible 20 deg per stage. I havent seen them attempt to cool in hot climates because the heat moving capacity is not high enough. Now, where evaporative cooling shine, is in combination with ac. That gives great results.
Idea is great. But I'm done rigging. Although I've tried a few designs for keeping a window unit in my Express, because I don't want mine poking out either... and it hasn't worked yet. I'm still determined to get it working. My advice to you would be to get more batteries, because it's still cheaper than rent. But if you aren't full time like I am, then experiment on.
I really enjoy experimenting. However, I am not an engineer, so I lack a lot of fine details.
I found this on Amazon: amzn.to/3MJzyK9
It is 120v and does not stick out nearly as bad as a standard unit. I contacted the company hoping they would send me out one for a video.
@@ImChrisDeDecker Yes, the battle for cheap AC in a van continues. I'm not open to admit defeat yet. But I'm sticking with the cheap window units, because they're still cheaper to replace when they break than anything else, hands down.
@@ImChrisDeDecker actually, just watched a video:
Camping AC for shiftpod, tent or trailer
/watch?v=vKhiFVyMFQ4
I haven't tried this yet, but seems plausible. You could outfit a window AC like this and then strap or bolt the AC in under your van floor. This has to be the answer I was looking for. I don't know if it would work with your clearance under the Astro. But it should with my Express.
You can use an Ice box. Same principle. As a normal dorm ice box is very small. Then run the external cooler outside with the fan blowing on it. As these dorm ice boxes run on 50 watts when running. You can run 50 watts for 30 hours. On a 100ah lithium battery...
Did you sell your ride? I think I saw this van on fb marketplace! 🤔
Try using peltier cooler to make close loop system
That’s used cheap fridge inside
I’m trying to making but no time this summer
The 12v fridge i am looking at uses that method. Ill create the closed loop system going into that fridge. If it works, but not good enough, I will then upgrade to a larger module and see what kind of results I get. But first, I will try with just the cooler.
I have a 5000 btu AC unit in my Astro van. August in Colorado it barely keeps up on the 95 degree days. I would not be surprised if the same size unit in the Texas heat came up short. For me just accepting the sound of a small Honda generator was better than being hot. In the summer I just get use to the droan of the generator and it becomes background noise I can sleep through.
I am surprised! Is the unit hanging out the window or installed inside the van? I watched a few videos where they were installed in small campers, roughly the same size as the Astro and it kept up.
you need better insulation
@@Tehkneekz insulation really is everything
@@Falcodrin 100% i lined the entire cargo area with spray foam and used foam board, also replaced all door gaskets. my astro is vacuum sealed you can hear it when the max air fan is running and you crack a window. 90 degrees the other day and it was 76 in my van with the fan on, parked in the sun. ive also camped in 20 degrees with no heater just warm it up with the engine and keep the heat sealed in. window covers also help alot.
All you to do with a window unit is take the shroud off. It's just there to keep the rain off and animals out of it.
never ever put ac on teh floor unless you can vent it to the roof
I was thinking if making my own small scale a/c but implemented into the van structer to save space.. Would need a battery bank & maybe some solar panels but it would be substantially less power requirements & last longer
Are you meaning using the vans AC compressor or fitting it in the spare space underneath the van?
@@ImChrisDeDecker No, that wouIdn't work much different than just running the van for a/c.. I mean basically for example taking apart a small window unit, using a smaller more energy efficient a/c compressor from like, a small ice cream maker & retro fitting the components in the most applicable places of the van (inside/outside/underneath) hooking it all up to a battery bank that is hooked up to solar/alternator.. Would require alot of tweaking but I'm pretty sure it could be done & would be most ideal.. Basically a mini split system that could be recharged using those a/c chargers in autozone & stuff
Ice cream trucks uses a compresser its plugged in at night and they have these metal plates that gradually spew out the freon keeps all that ice cream frozen for a 12 long hour day at work this kind of system would be great for long term cooling before having to be recharged with shore power or a generator or solar if you choose to spend the big bucks on that system. My brother in law was a air condition man he built one of these systems from a junk yard score for my uncle who used it to transport shrimp from the gulf to arkansaw
Thats really not a bad idea and very innovative. My father worked in AC as well. Even the AC system truckers use would not be a bad idea, however, probably less efficient.
Hey are u in the dfw area? I need some pointers
Have you tried this small ac unit called the… 1100W Window Desk Air Conditioner Cooler Heater Cooling Heating Remote Timer Kit?
Haha, almost looks like a bot made this comment 😂
No, I have not! Never heard of it until now.. going to do some research and see what people say about it. Have you used it???
@@ImChrisDeDecker no, not yet but looking forward to trying one out soon, peace.
@@phuckindrummer5537 just looked into the unit and it take 220v. Just something to consider
Airspool?
I have been digging deep into the meat that rests behind my skull trying to figure this AC solution. What are your AC ideas?
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please make more videos on ingine please
My engine is pretty healthy atm, if something pops up there will be a video. I am planning on swapping rear AC with front AC at some point
How did your last idea work
I have yet to go through with the idea, but I will soon. Ill have a video about it too
Make the intake come from inside the van, no reason to try to cool hot air when not cool air is easier to cool.
If the intake is sucking from inside the van, it will force hot air through all the cracks throughout the van, like the door jams. That’s a large issue many folks had
@@ImChrisDeDecker you crack a window a tad to offset pressure.
@@nonegiven3814 not a bad idea actually
Cómo siempre dando muy buenos consejos para tener un buen confor en esa buena camioneta y sobretodo ese ingenio que tienes para Acer las cosas yo tengo una astro mod 2000 y me apoyo en tus videos para acerle varios reparaciones a mi chula muchas felicidades desde la CDMX
Much love my friend 🙏
Why dont you use the AC of your car??
many many reasons mainly gas. And it doesn’t blow to the back of the van.
@@ImUniqueBella hi pretty
Check out this video before you do anything. It might help. 😃
czcams.com/video/Ngm4Ct1O_Xc/video.html
The EcoFlow is pretty amazing. I have seen a few reviews trashing it, however, they had the exhaust tubes running all over the place. I would love to have one but they are a bit pricey. As there will be more R+D, there should be more companies coming out with more portable and efficient unites at an affordable price.. Hopefully.