The BEST Battery Powered AIR CONDITIONER For Van Life?

I installed a 12v air conditioner in my sprinter van and it is 👌. It's powered completely off the batteries and will run almost infinitely once I have solar panels! We also cover pros and cons between roof mount and under mount air conditioners to. Hope you enjoy!

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Timestamps:
00:00 - 00:20 Intro
00:20 - 1:20 AC Comparisons
1:20 - 2:40 AC Unit Overview
2:40 - 4:25 Mounting Each Component
4:25 - 6:00 Electrical Connections
6:00 - 7:00 AC Lines
7:00 - 7:45 Venting
7:45 - 8:40 Drain Lines
8:40 - 10:50 Charging w/AC Coolant
10:50 - 14:20 Does it work?
14:20 - 15:31 Outro

[Amsoniac]

Can’t stress enough how good your videos have gotten. You and dual ex have inspired me to make my first van build. It’s coming along great! Keep up the good content

[reddbeard]

The "Mad Scientist" of Vanlife.
I saw a vid about this AC install and they also added a small metal deflector for to help with road debris.
Might want to consider it since off roading in the zombie apocalypse will, no doubt, have random debris and body parts on & off road, lol. 👍🏼

[coastalcop]

You May want to think about insulating the ducting as the humidity differential can cause condensation and dripping, love both builds so far, great job sticking with it ( former NIST guy here)

[nathanchildress]

I agree with people saying you should do some heat shielding between the exhaust and the condenser, like a divider with some gold heat shield tape. Also you can line the cabinet with some heavy vinyl to deaden the noise of the fan. Keep em coming though, Savage, love the build!

[Max]

This is the definition of properly in my eyes. A HUGE ass battery bank + proper A/C setup, nicely done! I often see these super pretty fan builds, but they lack an A/C.

[nixhixx]

People in the comments act like this product has never been tested at all for an undermount. It looks good to me, you made your informed choice. It looks good to me! Get those front window covers quick!

[blobinski]

One thing I might recommend is soft mounting the noise generating AC components on the shelf. Using rubber, silicone or another soft material can help decouple the noisy parts from the shelf and quiet it further.

[johnbrizendine]

Split units are obscenely efficient compared to packaged units. I built a custom tow-behind BBQ competition trailer for a buddy and I custom built a split heat pump for it so he can use it as a camper/trailer when not doing BBQ competitions in it. I set it up so that even with everything running full-blast it only pulls 15 amps at 120 volts, so he can run it on a super small generator, or any camp site power outlet or even solar power. The trailer is insulated pretty well and has a 12, 000 BTU split heat pump system and a hidden drain hose that drains directly to the ground. I am also an HVAC technician, EEE, and Network Engineer so I was able to install and build the whole thing myself with assistance from my buddy. I am super proud of how it turned out, and he absolutely loves it. He was able to run his trailer at a super small camp ground in south east Kansas that only had 15 amp 120 volt outlets. The system is not a 12 volt system, but it is an inverter compressor system so it can even run on a modified sign wave power inverter or really poor quality 120 volt power source. (inverter compressor system takes 120 volts and converts it to about 90 volts dc then to 3 phase power to the compressor motor, similar to the way electric skate-boards or electric scooters power the motor from lithium battery packs) It is really easy to convert an inverter compressor heat pump to 12 or 24 volts just by modifying the power converter part of the control board to skip the a/c to d/c conversion and put d/c from the batteries directly to the motor controller part of the heat pump controller board.

[morrowr]

Great video. I didn’t even know that model you got was an option. I got their 24v system in my van. Chris is awesome. His shop is 5 minutes drive from my house in Arizona. Talking to him about his systems, history behind them, and how they function, absolutely amazing. Well worth the price.

[joehoffman]

Love your style of filming and explaining. Incredible battery bank, AC, and toilet. I look forward to the rest and you actually using the van.

[OffTheClockNow]

Nice to see some people can afford these high ticket items. Van life is cost conscious for a reason; this shows it doesn't have to be.

[CED.Dweller]

Nice overview of the installation process. This is the first video that the YouTube algorithm pushed my way since your 80/20 rack framework setup video. Yeesh!

[rowdysgirlalways]

The thought an engineering you put into each element is amazing!

[cferdinandi]

Thank you for getting right to it! So many of these van AC videos are loaded with filler or skip the install details entirely.

[the_cometman]

Hey bud! Love the videos! I have the HD-12L installed in our sprinter and I quickly found out that in humid environments the evaporator will sweat A LOT. So much that it will actually leak into the van and weep through the drain holes. Chris (who is an awesome dude!) also sells a stainless steel tray that you can mount the evaporator on.

[constitutionalcheckpoint]

I can barely spell pHd but, I feel like I'm getting one. Thank you SEVENO

[Handleyman]

Your exhaust pipe is going to get pretty hot while you’re driving. Radiant heat from the exhaust may melt the cowling around the fans. I suggest you install a stainless steel divider vertically between the exhaust and the fans to stop that from happening.

[kennethalmond]

Me - I'm a mini-split fan. You get cool + heat and can do simple vacuum yourself with ones that are pre-charged. I understand its a challenge to mount the outside unit... (maybe on a door on the back) but efficiency + silent operation are very strong pros for me. I have a Senville 9000 BTU on my 7 x 14 cargo trailer conversion w/1" insulation all around - takes about 4-5kwh / 24hrs to keep trailer cool at 100-105F outside and warm down to 25-30F outside - and then less power if the temps are inbetwenn those extremes. .

[capncrunch]

Nicely done. Watched many of your vids and did not realize you were so close to me (Cloverdale!). Would love to see your build first hand and maybe get more local resource info. Just beginning build on 2018 Transit 350 high roof ext. dually. Similar purchase experience as we flew from Santa Rosa to SoCal to pick up in Fontana. Love how your build is coming together.

[GregBurghart]

I installed a Cruise N Comfort HD-12L system in my Sprinter last October and have been very happy with it... especially with the temp hitting 106 degrees in parts of N. Cali last weekend!

With 1, 120 watts of motorized tilting solar, I can run the A/C on max throughout the daylight hours and not touch any of the 600Ah of lithium in reserve until nighttime (rarely needed at night in the SF Bay area).

I didn't have any previous HVAC experience, but just bought a cheap set of guages on Amazon and added the freon myself. Pretty easy, actually.