Coach a/c

[cadillackid]

Originally Posted by bry899

I have been following this (Coach A/c) Thread and others.
I have an E350 Super Duty Shuttle Bus (12 P, 1WC). With dash & Rear Air working off the engine mounted compressor, & underneath condenser.

This might be a stupid question, but is their any way to incorporate a Mini split Compressor/Condenser to work with the bus rear Inside unit?
Maybe with some switches and some kind of electric valves to switch from either when the vehicle is running or when it is parked.

In other words all A/C would operate as normal when engine is running.
When parked the rear A/C could run off the Mini split Compressor, with valves closing so the freon cannot go to the engine compressor & Condenser, but loop back to the Mini split.

I love the idea of the mini split, but then I would lose Full A/c when driving

this is not feasible at all... the Coach A/C is R-134A, the mini split is R-410A, the 2 operate at wildly different pressure / temperature characteristics...

Semi Truck APU;s are a possibility but are small.. again due to power concerns.. those engines are small and typically generate electricity to run an electric compressor.. I think some of them used to drive a compressor with a belt, 12k-15k BTU is what you get.

it *IS* possible to run a mini split on different hardware.. I do it in my house.. my indoor units are non existent.. I used a mix of the original coils and my own coils.. and then kept the electronics active from the indoor unit.. mainly the 3 sensors for the inlet, middle, and outer coil temps.. and then I carefully control the CFM of air modulated by my Zone dampers and variable speed blower.. theres a build thread from 2009 on refrigeration-engineer where I built this system and still use it to this day...

what you cant do is have valves and such and mix the refrigerant circuits.. you wil end up with oil in places it doesnt belong, mismatches in capacities of parts, etc..

I guess im not understanding the issue.. if you plan to keep the coach A/C, but also want shore A/C why not just slap a rooftop unit uptoip for being parked and be done..

a cutaway van will be tough to find a spot for a mini split condensing unit, unless you are going to back-porch it.. a full size bus has good clearance underneath for the unit..

dont over-engineer this stuff... sometimes simple is best.. road A/C for the road, electric A/C for the shore..

-Christopher

[bry899]

Thank you for the helpful answer. I should have researched it better.
Sorry for the stupid question.

You are right the roof air would be the simplest.
with the roof A/C (I can run off a generator) I wouldn't need the coach (Rear) A/C but would definitely want the dash A/C.
But not sure if I am willing to remove the rear A/C & underneath condenser & add a new unit in the front grill. (maybe later on)

Thanks again for taking the time & giving me the helpful info

[cadillackid]

Keeping the dash air is often done while removing the rear, junkyards are a great source of ac parts for vans as rarely are they bought so often had cheap. In fact you could prObably pull the lines and condenser from a regular single air van and then yank the rest of your stuff out. The factory parts are rarely modified for the rear air. The van chassis are shipped with a body builder ac prep package that usually just includes the dash controls and evaporator.. sometimes the compressor.

If you want To make your own lines burgaflex and burgaclip are the easiest way to make your own,

You can also have a napa with a machine shop crimp standard fittings on as well.

I've built quite a few ac systems for hotrods and a couple school busses using burgaflex and never had a leak.
Christopher

[bry899]

Originally Posted by cadillackid

Keeping the dash air is often done while removing the rear, junkyards are a great source of ac parts for vans as rarely are they bought so often had cheap. In fact you could prObably pull the lines and condenser from a regular single air van and then yank the rest of your stuff out. The factory parts are rarely modified for the rear air. The van chassis are shipped with a body builder ac prep package that usually just includes the dash controls and evaporator.. sometimes the compressor.

If you want To make your own lines burgaflex and burgaclip are the easiest way to make your own,

You can also have a napa with a machine shop crimp standard fittings on as well.

I've built quite a few ac systems for hotrods and a couple school busses using burgaflex and never had a leak.
Christopher

Wow I didn't think it would be that easy, I would definitely look into that.
That would also free up weight and storage with the rear A/C & underneath unit gone.
thanks again for the help