Good Alternative for APU

Hes on fire today boys! :smt075

 

8,000 BTU is rated to cool a 300-350 sq. ft. room. Grant it a truck isn't insulated well but it's roughly 70-80 square feet.

A 5,000 BTU is rated for 100-150 sq. ft room. Many people buy AC units that are too big thinking they'll do a better job. The problem is being too big they do a poor job pulling the humidity out because the compressor doesn't run enough. One needs to find the perfect match. Removing the humidity is important to feeling comfortable.

Part of the calculation is whether the room is in a sunny area add 10%. Since it's a truck let's add 20%. You are still looking at 100 sq ft to cool. A 5,000 BTU should do the job. Have you tried one?

I would think like bstadele posted and a 6000 BTU would be more than adequate.

 

Bait still on the hook, but I will do the following for your entertainment mate
Yep, I tried one as a matter of fact. I also went of the calculations online, which rarely beats good old fashioned experience, but did it anyways for my first AC unit. Comparing a truck to a house, and in particular a single room in that house to a truck in an unshaded parking lot, is kind of backwards in my eyes, but like I said I tried one anyways.
Here are some facts from actual use and ownership.....
There is no issue at all with a 8k BTU not running enough, it ran its butt of trying to keep a good temperature maintained. So that is out the window so to speak. Strike one.
The (little) directional cool air control is not enough for a truck. Put it blowing up front, sleeper is sweltering. Face the vents to the sleeper, the drivers seat becomes unbearable. Strike two.
The heat on the outlet hose counteracts the AC big time. Yes you can put a section of oil pipeline in there to beat the heat, but who the hell wants to mess with it inside a truck? Strike three.
They take up space when not in use, and when in use block at least one window/door with the outlet hose. Making one door useless when it's running.Strike four.
In humid areas, they wont go more than @5-6hrs before they shut off and need to be drained. Strike five.
They are far from convenient to use for just a few minutes of AC when grabbing fuel etc. It's a fact folks, the easier something is to use, the more you will use it. Strike six.
Need I go on?
For the rooftop AC, facts again.
The 13,500BTU that I have used on my last two trucks cycles. This means that it is not running all the time unlike the 8k BTU one, to maintain the interior temperatures. Still pulls moisture out of the air excellent, as evidenced by the stream on the side of the truck when it's running in humid climates. Never froze up, which is another sign of incorrect sizing etc.
Air control is a non issue, seeing as some basic rules of physics apply with that type of installation. Cold air falls, hot air rises. If the cold air is above you, it can do nothing but keep you cool. And with the interior ADB, the air is multi directional to boot.
Heat from the discharge isnt an issue, it's all outside up top.
A rooftop will take up ZERO interior room. Nothing under the bunk, nothing shoved in a corner, and so on.
So convenient to use, I have pushed the remote generator start button when I pull up to a fuel island and turned the truck off, and the rooftop ac just starts up and does it's thing. There is nothing to set up, move, hang out a window, etc. Very handy when exterior temps are way above 100 degrees.
All water is outside already, so no drain tank to empty.
Just a few facts from owning both, which I know may counteract what Google says and all...Thus why I normally only comment on topics I have direct experience with and don't go around quoting the internet etc when someone may be spending hard earned money on a recommendation.
As I have said more times to remember, you dont "have" to do what I did by any means, but do SOMETHING to save the fuel.
All I can recommend is what works for me, as well as speak the FACTS of owning both the portable and the rooftop AC units. Neither is "perfect" if cutting a hole bothers you, but if I did it on a brand new Western Star after trying the portable one in here as well as my last truck, maybe it will say something to someone with an open mind.
By all means do what makes you happy, but I would personally hate to see someone waste even a few hundred dollars on buying something that isn't up to the job.
Thus why I post from experience and not a Lowes/Home Depot calculator made for recommending AC requirements for a house not a truck.....
Maybe this long winded explanation will show one or two I have indeed tried other alternatives, and didn't just grab one idea and try to defend it without the experience to back up my personal decision.
Anyone interested in a 8K BTU portable AC unit? One owner, plywood templates for FL and WS, and so on?
Just my .02

Martin

 

Nope, just the normal routine. Attempting to state facts and not Google.
Now where did I leave that French Supermodel?

Martin

 

You can add another 20% for dark colored truck compared to a white or light colored truck.