What are some APU alternative setups??? its getting hot!!!

Same, but with solar. Under less than ideal sunlight or at night, might still idle an hour or two here or there. Ultra efficient mini split sells for under $1000 and isn't rocket surgery to install.

 

Not a bad set up. It is clean and works pretty good I bet. I would do that if I went back to a running apu

 

Same thought I was thinking instead of motor. My next truck I will do something similar with some better batteries so can run for a day or night without starting truck.

 

Thermo King for the win. Worth every penny.

 

Thermoking is best imo. Have to service it yourself to save money as TK dealers are crooks just like rest of them.

 

I just used a 12” fan. For the four nights a year that it was really hot, I got a motel.

 

I Use to run a honda and hated it.. Always had to make sure you parked at a truck stop so you can get gas. Worst part was walking in pouring rain to get gas from the back of the lot. When my carrier compressor goes im just gonna use that generator from the carrier and run a mini split works WAY better lol

 

Right now I'm running a set of Northstar (Batteries Plus Power X2 rebrand) hybrid gel truck batteries and running off that. 25% more capacity and 2X or more lifespan for the money over regular AGM's from the dealer or parts store.

Some day when I have the funds free and time to do it, or on the next one, I'll do two things differently:

1. Use more, smaller PV panels. Those big ones I used didn't lay out smoothly. Hard to handle, and my roofs has a compound curve I didn't expect to cause an issue with. That is, they not only slope down toward the front, but also a slight curve side to side. Smaller panels would not be as problematic, and increase coverage opportunities.

2. Mount a pair of 200Ah LiFePO4 house batteries in the under bunk storage, connected to a battery isolator to charge when the engine is running. Panels and inverter would be connected to those. Maybe even fish out the factory power harness for the bunk section and tie in to the house batteries too, leaving only the cab and engine running on the truck batteries.

#1 would be a major undertaking on my current truck and I don't have the time to do it.
#2 is a maybe. I'd guess under $2,000 additional items and supplies and maybe a day to get it done, working slowly and carefully. Right now idling an hour or two on less than ideal parking times hasn't been a big deal. Now that summer is around the corner I may re-think that priority.

With the upgrades, I'm still under half the cost of a new diesel APU, and it's silent and maintenance free. I'll never spend on another engine powered APU solution.

There are "E" APU's on the market for those that favor a manufactured, no-touch, package install solution. I opted not to do that because I was unimpressed with the design/operation of those, liked the challenge of getting it together myself, and being cheaper too.

My trucks were ordered with diesel bunk heaters from the factory, so the heating problem was already solved. Mentioning this, as some who might consider doing this may not have that already in place.

 

I got a Predator 9500 inverter for home backup power. It's a really nice genset. How is that 3500 holding up on the truck?