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05-22-2021, 06:16 AM
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#1
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New Member
Join Date: May 2021
Posts: 1
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Combating the Summer Heat
Hey all. Wondering if anyone has any tips for keeping a bus cool during the summer? I bought mine partially renovated and it only has insulation in the walls. Unfortunately at this point it's too late to do any major renovations. I've tried playing around with AC units and fans, but the heat still seems very difficult to combat. Most of the heat seems to come through the windows and the roof. I've seen other skoolies with insulation paint on the roof but am a bit hesitant as I feel it probably wouldn't help a whole lot. Anyway, just wondering if there's other alternatives I can try out there. Thanks for any advice you can provide!!
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05-22-2021, 06:31 AM
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#2
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Bus Geek
Join Date: Jan 2019
Location: Philadelphia
Posts: 7,033
Year: 2003
Coachwork: International
Chassis: CE 300
Engine: DT466e
Rated Cap: 65C-43A
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A layer of paint is much too thin (1/30" at best) to provide any significant insulating effect, claims of "insulating ceramic beads" notwithstanding. All paint can do is to reflect the direct sunlight that will heat a vehicle much hotter than the ambient air temperature (the worst I've measured in my bus was 135°F when it was 95°F outside), and any white paint will be as effective as any other white paint. In other words, don't waste your money on Tropi-Cool unless you want it for its purported waterproofing benefits (which may also be fictional).
All you can do is 1) park your bus in the shade, and 2) cover up as much of the uninsulated parts of your bus (like the windows, the front etc.) with temporary insulation as you can.
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05-22-2021, 07:24 AM
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#3
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Bus Nut
Join Date: Dec 2017
Location: GA
Posts: 611
Year: 1998
Coachwork: Amtran RE
Chassis: International 3000
Engine: T444e 7.3L
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Agreed with the post above. I also installed a generator and air conditioning. Before that, I opened the windows and used a box fan.
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05-22-2021, 11:44 AM
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#4
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Bus Crazy
Join Date: Oct 2017
Posts: 1,222
Year: 1999
Coachwork: BlueBird
Chassis: TC1000 HandyBus
Engine: 5.9L 24V-L6 Cummins ISB
Rated Cap: 26 foot
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Some friends of mine live off-grid in S.Oregon in their non-mobile bus. They put in a window A/C unit, but said it didn't do much. Then a friend helped them set up a tarp 1-2 feet over the roof for shade. That helped a lot, they said. It was still hot in July/August, but not sweltering inside.
__________________
Look at the Sky; look at the River. Isn't it Good?
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05-22-2021, 03:01 PM
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#5
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Mini-Skoolie
Join Date: May 2013
Location: Northern Wyoming
Posts: 63
Year: 2002
Coachwork: Thomas
Rated Cap: 78
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We just take it up in the mountains where it’s cool. 
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05-22-2021, 04:03 PM
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#6
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Bus Geek
Join Date: Sep 2017
Location: Swansboro,NC
Posts: 3,160
Year: 86
Coachwork: Thomas
Chassis: Ford B700
Engine: 8.2
Rated Cap: 60 bodies
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you can buy or make magnetic edge screen to cover your open windows and doors and a real good fan for airflow.
save your A/C for when done?
i aint really the one to give advice for this because i was raised a texas cattle farm boy.
joined the marine corp and went to the desert for years and since 96 have been a steamfitter, welder, boilermaker since.
i live in leather jackets and long sleeve shirts in 130 degree plus rooms.
in the summer once you get saturated it feels like A/C when you walk outside and in the winter its constantly pull your winter gear when you walk in and have to put it back on just to go to the porta john or lunch or whatever?
gotta see the faces of the delivery people in the summer when we order pizza to a central plant and open the doors and its hotter in there then it is outside?
they are in tank tops and shorts and we are full leathers or longsleeve and squishing our socks out or changing them and boots at lunch?
get some airflow going and get sweaty
wear gloves and safety glasses for anything you do.
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05-23-2021, 06:02 AM
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#7
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Skoolie
Join Date: Jul 2019
Location: Houston
Posts: 105
Year: 1997
Engine: Cummins 8.3
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One option that may not be totally out of thr question would be a full rooftop deck. Where white paints do their best to reflect the heat away, a deck can put your bus in perpetual shade on top. For the rest, hanging a tarp from the deck and/or painting it all white may be pretty effective.
Windows are definitely going to be terrible for keeping any cool air in provided by an AC. There is always the option of sealing over them completely, but then you can’t open them at nights where the added cool breeze is desired.
People like to joke about moving the bus with the weather, to avoid hot environments. I guess that’s technically an option.
You could set up a water sprinkler to mist on the bus when it’s really hot. Obviously that has its drawbacks, but is a serious option if your water comes out the tap at <70 degrees.
As far as fans go, evaporative coolers are effective ways to get a drop by tens of degrees without quite the power draw of a full AC unit.
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05-23-2021, 12:13 PM
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#8
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Bus Crazy
Join Date: May 2017
Location: Athens, TN
Posts: 1,573
Year: 1999
Coachwork: Amtran
Chassis: International RE
Engine: International T444e
Rated Cap: 76
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A tarp awning to keep the sun off the side of the bus could help. Makes for a nice outdoor area to work in too.
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05-23-2021, 12:29 PM
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#9
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Bus Nut
Join Date: Aug 2020
Location: Mesa, AZ
Posts: 805
Year: 1993
Coachwork: 44' Newell Coach
Engine: 8v92T Detroit
Rated Cap: 2 adults and two pigeons
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I saved my rooftop A/C unit as it is only 6 years old. We upgraded to a 19seer variable speed Bosch unit. I had the A/C company put my old unit onto a trailer I had sitting around. I will duct this into the bus if it gets too unbearable to work on when the temps hit 110º. Of Course, at that point the metal interior will be closer to 175º
I also have a 2 ton portable A/C unit but doubt it will counteract the intense heat load.
__________________
--Simon
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05-23-2021, 03:51 PM
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#10
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Almost There
Join Date: Mar 2020
Location: Dallas suburbs
Posts: 75
Year: 1999
Coachwork: Amtran
Chassis: Shorty 6 window handicap
Engine: Int 444e
Rated Cap: 21
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Don't know about Tropicool being the best or some miracle but I do know my inner bus ceiling is never is HOT to the touch anymore since I put 3 coats of Tropicool on it.
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05-26-2021, 10:27 PM
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#11
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Skoolie
Join Date: Jul 2019
Location: Houston
Posts: 105
Year: 1997
Engine: Cummins 8.3
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From what I’ve heard, Tropicool performs pretty close to the level of other white paint. The main benefit being that nothing sticks to it, so it won’t be as susceptible to getting dirty over time, which would darken its color and cause it to absorb more heat as it ages.
The downside to tropicool is, well, also that nothing sticks to it. So if, at any point in the future, you have to repair a mounting bracket on your roof, you might have a tough time sealing it properly because the sealants will peel off.
So pick your poison.
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05-27-2021, 12:27 AM
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#12
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Bus Crazy
Join Date: Oct 2020
Location: Florida
Posts: 1,857
Coachwork: Integrated Coach Corp.
Chassis: RE-300 42ft
Engine: 466ci
Rated Cap: 90
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That's some good stuff above. It certainly helps to keep the steel cooler.
We had plenty of sunny UV & IR heat coming through the glass, even with factory tint on all passenger windows.
We added removable window clings to half of some in the back, (by Velemax) which blocks 100% UV & IR rays.
Also darkened the tint on some others, as well.
Made insulated wool curtains for the front.
Added tint to the drivers slider and the winshield, which blocks 38% of infrared heat, 84% of UV rays, and is 50% light blocking. Drivers paradise.(F@$k da po-lease).
Redundant A/Cs w/ well cleaned/combed cooling fins.
We always try to park in the shade and wear only what we must.
The glass didn't seem like a "down the road" project. Why work hot? (Florida)
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05-30-2021, 12:05 AM
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#13
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Bus Crazy
Join Date: Feb 2018
Location: Golden Valley AZ
Posts: 1,130
Year: 1993
Chassis: ThomasBuilt 30'
Engine: need someone to tell me
Rated Cap: me + 1
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Quote:
Originally Posted by musigenesis
A layer of paint is much too thin (1/30" at best) to provide any significant insulating effect, claims of "insulating ceramic beads" notwithstanding. All paint can do is to reflect the direct sunlight that will heat a vehicle much hotter than the ambient air temperature (the worst I've measured in my bus was 135°F when it was 95°F outside), and any white paint will be as effective as any other white paint. In other words, don't waste your money on Tropi-Cool unless you want it for its purported waterproofing benefits (which may also be fictional).
All you can do is 1) park your bus in the shade, and 2) cover up as much of the uninsulated parts of your bus (like the windows, the front etc.) with temporary insulation as you can.
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I agree about Tropicool. However, not all whites are created equal, check the reflective index/properties of any paint that you are considering. BTW, if its 135 in the bus, you are doing a ppoor job of ventilating the bus. Even pulling that 95 degree air in and blowing the 135 air out will bring down that 135 degrees down.
If you have sufficient electricity, suck in that cool night air all night and turn off the fan when the sun comes up. This will cool down all of the materials in the bus and take advantage of what ever thermal mass you have and allow the materials to soak up some of the heat during the early part of the day and delay the need for cooling a little later in the day. If you are parked you may want to consider adding some temporary thermal mass inside of the bus. Anything heavy will work although large containers of water is commonly used because of the ease of filling the containers and dumping them when ready to move. Turn the fan back on once it is cooler outside than inside. Reverse this cycle to heat in the winter if it gets warm enough outside.
The ancient pharaohs of Egypt used to have slaves haul massive stones out into the desert every night to cool down and then bring them back into the structure every morning to absorb heat to keep the structure cool. Same thing except we move the air instead of the stone.
Actually there is a lot more that you can do, but I don't have the time or desire to detail them. Passive ventilation and cooling techniques have been developed all over the world for thousands of years. Its only been in the last half of the last century that we have become dependent on insulation, hydrocarbons, and electricity. A lot of the older people that are still around had no air conditioning when they were young. Ask them what to do. And yeah, a lot of us grew up in shacks with metal roofs. Wall paper was our caulk/foam/air seal and it covered the cracks and made the boards look prettier than paint did.
The RV/tiny home, aka the tepee, used by many American tribes, used a flap/door and a flap at the top of the tepee to control ventilation. Of course they positioned their RV/tiny home to take advantage of wind, sun, and shade.
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05-30-2021, 06:54 AM
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#14
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Bus Geek
Join Date: Jan 2019
Location: Philadelphia
Posts: 7,033
Year: 2003
Coachwork: International
Chassis: CE 300
Engine: DT466e
Rated Cap: 65C-43A
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Quote:
Originally Posted by kidharris
BTW, if its 135 in the bus, you are doing a poor job of ventilating the bus. Even pulling that 95 degree air in and blowing the 135 air out will bring down that 135 degrees down.
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To clarify my statement, the roof of my bus measured 135°F with an infrared thermometer, measured from inside before I put in the ceiling insulation and ceiling paneling. The air inside the bus was not that hot because I had the windows open and a fan on. With the insulation in place (and windows, doors and hatches open - the arrangement I'm basically building my bus around), my ceiling now measures only a few degrees above the ambient air temperature with the bus out in direct sunlight.
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05-30-2021, 07:43 AM
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#15
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Bus Crazy
Join Date: Mar 2017
Location: arkensas
Posts: 1,109
Year: 1997
Coachwork: bluebird
Chassis: chevy
Engine: 3116 catapillar
Rated Cap: 71 now 2 humans 1 cat
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i used a 16 inch 12 volt radiator fan with a reversible dc speed control i mounted on a piece of plywood on hinges. i can unlatch the plywood swing it open then open my hatch. since its reversible (as most rad fans are) i can suck air out or in. all this was just shy of 50 dollars on ebay. best fan i found for the hatch
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05-30-2021, 07:44 AM
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#16
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Bus Crazy
Join Date: Mar 2017
Location: arkensas
Posts: 1,109
Year: 1997
Coachwork: bluebird
Chassis: chevy
Engine: 3116 catapillar
Rated Cap: 71 now 2 humans 1 cat
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on high it can replace all the air in a minute in a 71 passenger bluebird
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05-30-2021, 07:45 AM
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#17
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Bus Crazy
Join Date: Mar 2017
Location: arkensas
Posts: 1,109
Year: 1997
Coachwork: bluebird
Chassis: chevy
Engine: 3116 catapillar
Rated Cap: 71 now 2 humans 1 cat
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works really great on taco tuesday
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05-30-2021, 11:27 AM
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#18
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Bus Crazy
Join Date: Feb 2018
Location: Golden Valley AZ
Posts: 1,130
Year: 1993
Chassis: ThomasBuilt 30'
Engine: need someone to tell me
Rated Cap: me + 1
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mmoore6856
i used a 16 inch 12 volt radiator fan with a reversible dc speed control i mounted on a piece of plywood on hinges. i can unlatch the plywood swing it open then open my hatch. since its reversible (as most rad fans are) i can suck air out or in. all this was just shy of 50 dollars on ebay. best fan i found for the hatch
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Sounds like a good idea. Cheap and reliable. How is the noise?
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05-30-2021, 11:46 AM
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#19
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Bus Crazy
Join Date: Feb 2018
Location: Golden Valley AZ
Posts: 1,130
Year: 1993
Chassis: ThomasBuilt 30'
Engine: need someone to tell me
Rated Cap: me + 1
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Bus'n it
I saved my rooftop A/C unit as it is only 6 years old. We upgraded to a 19seer variable speed Bosch unit. I had the A/C company put my old unit onto a trailer I had sitting around. I will duct this into the bus if it gets too unbearable to work on when the temps hit 110º. Of Course, at that point the metal interior will be closer to 175º
I also have a 2 ton portable A/C unit but doubt it will counteract the intense heat load.
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For the record, those rooftop A/C units are called "self contained units" (because the evaporator and condenser are in the same box, like a window unit)
Are you going to put a generator on the trailer?
I'm wondering if anyone here has taken the original bus system, combined it all into 1 box using a small gas engine to drive the compressor?
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05-30-2021, 06:00 PM
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#20
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Bus Crazy
Join Date: Mar 2017
Location: arkensas
Posts: 1,109
Year: 1997
Coachwork: bluebird
Chassis: chevy
Engine: 3116 catapillar
Rated Cap: 71 now 2 humans 1 cat
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Quote:
Originally Posted by kidharris
Sounds like a good idea. Cheap and reliable. How is the noise?
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on high it sounds like a rad fan is a bit noisy but does clear paint or weld fumes quickly after you dial it down to 75% or less it is as quiet as a box fan
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