Stay Cool: Things to Know When Adding an RV Air Conditioner

Your makeup is melting off your face.

What’s going on with your RV air conditioner?

How did it get so hot in Florida?

Just a few shorts weeks ago, you were laughing at your friends freezing in the North. Now twenty degrees decrease in temperatures sounds like a dream.

Before you get started on a project to add an air conditioner to your RV, there are some things that you need to know. Continue reading to get the information you need before you get into your RV upgrade project.

Things to Know Before Your RV Air Conditioner Upgrade

With RVs from $6,000 and up, more people are hitting the road. With more RV dwellers, there is more need for information about RV living like you’ll find on this blog.

Whether you want to go off-grid for cost savings or you want to go off-grid so you can save the planet, RV living is an option more people are thinking about.

Let’s continue on to the A/C issue. If you’re somewhere hot, you do not want to be in an RV without it.

Adding Your Second AC

Adding a second AC in your unit is no walk in the park. There is plenty to think about when you get started and it is more than the cost of the extra unit.

Every RV has a different situation. You’ll have to make sure you’re balancing the extra weight properly. You’ll also need to keep the extra energy load in mind and keep an eye on your RV’s battery.

If you upgrade your RV to two air conditioners, you may need to upgrade from 30-amp to 50-amp hookup. 50-amp hookups can be hard to find if you’re somewhere in peak season.

Before adding your AC take all of these things into account and contact someone that has experience with your specific RV.

While you wait for their response, here are some great tips for staying cool.

Other Tips for Keeping Cool

If you get into the research even deeper and find that an extra AC isn’t won’t work for you – have hope. Here are some simple ways you can stay cool while you’re still in the sun.

Start With the Best Setup Possible

If you haven’t purchased your RV, start with the best set up possible. It’s much easier to buy an RV with a second AC than to try to install one. If you change anything major on your RV, you’re going to have a nightmare when you go to trade it in.

Look for RVs that have built-in blackout shades. You also want to get an RV with tinted windows.

While these RVs are going to be more expensive, it will save you all of the work of doing the upgrades yourself.

Black Out Window Shades

If you didn’t opt for window shades when you bought your RV, this is one of the first things you should do to keep the sun out. It’s going to get hot in the RV and you don’t want the sun to bake you.

Blackout window shades will keep the sun’s rays from coming through if you get high-quality shades.

Window Foil

Don’t want to spend a lot of money on blackout window shades? Window foil is another good way to go.

It’s cheap and you can measure to see what size you need it to be so you can get the perfect fit. While window foil is cheap – it is annoying because you won’t be able to see out. If you’re in a beautiful camping spot, you don’t want to miss all of that beauty because of the hot sun.

Park in the Shade

This might sound like an easy tip, but parking in the shade makes a world of difference. If you can keep the direct sunlight off of your RV, you’ll notice an immense difference.

RVs aren’t always great for fighting off the heat so give them some help by finding a friendly tree to park by. Park so you’re going to get shade in the hottest part of the day to get the most benefit from your shady spot.

When you go to park in the shade, make sure you park far enough away from trees so you can still put your awning or other shades out. If you have slides on your RV, you also need to make sure that you can open it without hitting any trees or any hookups that you might have such as electric, water or sewer.

Enjoying Your RV Trip

When you’re RVing, you don’t want to be miserable. More people are opting out of camping and opting into glamping. If you’re a glamper, you don’t want to burn in the sun.

Figure out the best ways to hide from the heat and still have the experience that you want to have. There are plenty of great things to see but if you’re burning up even when you’re inside, you’re not likely to want to explore.

Don’t forget to drink plenty of water when it gets hot so you can remain safe while you’re out exploring.

Continue Your Learning Journey

Learning about your RV air conditioner is great, but what else can you learn? There are plenty of great DIY projects that will make your life better.

We have articles that we crafted especially for you so you can take your DIY game to the next level. Read our building blog section for more great ideas.