Ray Kimsey
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Posts posted by Ray Kimsey
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We have hull #676 with the Norcold 3-way refrigerator and usually have no problems. We do freeze blue ice to take with us to keep lunch cold. The only time we have had problems with the refrigerator cooling is when we are parked in the sun with very higer temps (90+). To solve that I added to fans in the upper vent to pull air up through the refrigerator as @dhaig mentioned. I also used the same fans as he mentions. For wiring I just connected to 12 volts and ground wires below and open the lower vent to turn it on or off. I have thought about wiring it up to the panel on the wall at the door, but so far I don't turn it on or off that much so I haven't bothered.
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You might try hooking up a hose to the city water and test for leaks that way. Maybe be prepared to turn off the water quickly. If you don't see leaks, then run the water from a faucet and see if it gets rid of any air pockets? Sorry I am not coming up with any other ideas at the moment.
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One more correction. Our Ram is 2WD. Otherwise it is good.
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Thank you.
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10 hours ago, jd1923 said:
Good work Ray! 🙂
You'd be surprised what only a little foil tape will do to close off wrong paths, keeping the cold air going where it's supposed to go. I've been into a couple of these, and after being a professional installer back in the day, it depresses me to observe the average installation these days. I spend hours correcting shoddy work on everything I own (now that installs are now more a hobby).
Work ethic is needed, but not found less often today. Can't wait (kidding) to tear apart the A/C on our Oliver someday (1-2 years out). Thinking, did OTT seal the 14x14" standard opening, or does air flow into the area between the fiberglass shells. 🤣 I hope not, but we'll see soon.
I used this tape for prior RV A/C installations and several other projects since (like for the exhaust duct on a Jenn-Aire down-draft gas cooktop). Love this tape, when you need an air-tight seal: amazon.com/3M-Metallized-Flexible-Silver-109-6/dp/B00A7I5Q0E/ref=sr_1_3?crid=1OW71NIMMYN48&keywords=3m+foil+tape+3350&qid=1697936285&sprefix=3m+foil+tape+3350%2Caps%2C176&sr=8-3
And PLEASE do yourself a favor and do NOT save a few pennies on ANY tape, or most glues for that matter, that is not 3M (Yay! Minnesota Mining & Manufacturing)!
The purpose of the flexible ducting that descends down from the fan and connects to the ADB (1st photo) was to keep the cool air from flowing into the area between the shells. I left it in place and just put the styrofoam inside it in the picture. It would allow me to remove it all and put it back together like it was originally in case this project did not work out. Like I mentioned before, I may redo this now that I think it is worth redoing. It would allow me to make a neater installation if the flexible ducting was removed.
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1 hour ago, MobileJoy said:
Ray, just curious, did this mod seem to quiet the unit outside the trailer?
No, I don't think so. I didn't really test it because mine has never been what I would think as abnormally loud outside.
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22 hours ago, Coastal Aggie said:
this was something i had been thinking about laying in bed a few weeks ago listening to the AC. it really seems like the compressor itself doesnt make an unreasonable amount of noise at least to me with the soft start. the main issue is with the air blasting like a jet engine against the interior panel. my brother has a 3d printer and i have some CAD experience from college so i think im gonna try and design something to smooth out the airflow and hopefully quiet it down some.
I would be interested in hearing how this turns out.
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21 hours ago, Gliddenwoods said:
What holds the styrofoam in place?
Currently, for me the friction, foil tape and the grid that you see in the picture. I started this really intending to put in the new Freshjet. When I saw the flexible ducting, then I decided to see if there was a way to make it quieter. I did not actually think it would make as much difference as it did. Now I am thinking, maybe as others toss out ideas it might just work to go this route. I probably will rework it some and improve upon what I did. Or maybe I will go back to the Freshjet option. The improvement is very discernable, but not nearly as quiet as some of the newer A/C models.
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18 minutes ago, John E Davies said:
Very cool. FYI moving air doesn’t like squared corners at all. At the downstream side especially you get low pressure and turbulence, which decreases the flow rate and makes extra noise.
Try putting nice smooth curves wherever possible, for example use a 1” or larger router bit, followed by hand sanding. Tape all seams and openings.
Any reduction in area in a duct will reduce the airflow cfm, so it is important to have the shape be as aerodynamic as possible.
John Davies
Spokane WA
Will do, I really like the idea about the rounded corners with the router bit. I started this yesterday not really expecting it would amount to any significant change. Now that it seems to be a possible solution I will probably rework what I did, but I wanted to get some other ideas before I start. So thank you very much for the tips. I thought closing all cracks and crevices with the tape should help. The varying thickness of the foam board was to come straight down from the sides of the fan opening.
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We have just returned from our month long trip out West and was beginning to put together a list of what I wanted to order to replace our Dometic Penguin II A/C with the Dometic Freshjet (see following article:)
I pulled down the interior plastic air distribution panel to get a picture of the exact model number and verify that mine could be replaced before I put together a list to order. My son-in-law and I were going to do it. What I discovered was some flexible ducting that the jetstream of air was being routed through that had to be vibrating, rattling, creating all sorts of air disturbance. So I decided before ordering maybe it would be worth it to try and see if I could do anything to make a difference. The worst I could do would be to break something, then I would have another excuse to order the Freshjet.
Anyway, I left the tubing in place and lined it with styrofoam blocks I cut out on my table saw and band saw (they work so much better than trying to cut with a box knife). My goal was to seal any cracks and make the path for the air to be as straight and clear as possible to prevent air turbulence. I included pictures of before and after below.
So the results are not as great as what I expect you would get from the Freshjet, Houghton, or Truma, but I was surprised what a difference it made. Now I am at least going to wait another year and see how this works out. I forgot to get a picture of my phone of the sound before, but it was averaging between 74&75 dB. Afterwards under the same conditions (vent openings the same, phone in same location and orientation, and no background noise) the sound level had dropped to 67 dB which you could easily tell an audible difference. I am not sure how my phone app would compare to a real dB meter, but I suspect the 7 dB drop is not that far off. The other thing that was eliminated was the vibration the A/C seemed to have.
If you have questions, feel free to ask, and if you have other suggestions, please do so. I am not a sound engineer and I started this just playing around so I am very open to other suggestions.
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1 hour ago, GeoffChapman said:
@Ray Kimsey That would get that booster on the rear camera switch. Great idea, Ray! I’ve worked with those wires when I installed my new rear camera, so I know right where they are. I suspect the added distance would not be a problem.
GeoffIt works fine for me from that location. Good luck!
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I did this, but I connected the TPMS booster in the rear overhead cabinet. I removed the whiteboard on the right to get access to the cables then connected the camera wire with the booster and ground wire to the ground. Worked without a problem.
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@dhaig, @CRM, @topgun2 Thank you all and others I may have missed. The additional pictures help a lot. I actually have the same Beech Lane fans so I was especially interested in how they did that. I will work on it tomorrow! We are heading to Colorado, Utah, Arizona in a couple of weeks so that will be a good test for it. Thank you again!
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Thank you Topgun, I have a 2020 and as far as I can tell there was never a fan installed. That is why I put in the 2 3.5" fans. Running on propane in the summer was not a good option for food safety. The picture does give me some ideas though. Thank you!
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I have a set of 3.5 inch fans where I did a very similar install. My question is how were you able to secure the 5.5 inch fans? I would like to use the larger fans, but cannot figure out a way to do it. I secured the smaller fans to the upper vent cover, but the larger ones seem to prevent me from closing the cover. Maybe you could post a close up picture of how they are mounted. I can't tell from the first picture. Thank you!
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6 minutes ago, taylor.coyote said:
I have hull number 124 produced in 2016. The spare tire size is 215 70 16. Apparently this tire size only comes as a 4 ply with a max weight limit of 750 lbs. This tire is pretty much is maxed out with a loaded LE II. The question: Will a full sized 225 75 16 trailer tire fit inside the fiberglass spare tire cover?
I have a 2020 LE2 and my spare is a 225 75 R16. It is the same tire as my other four.
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Ours did the same last fall, but we were out of warranty at the time.
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Hi Eric,
I cannot speak to the Sierra, but I have a 1500 Ram (5.7 liter and 3.92 axle ratio) with payload very similar to yours, 1665 lbs. I use the weight distribution hitch and having been pulling our 2020 LE2 up and down the east coast without issues. Our typical trailer total weight is around 6,000 to 6,100 lbs and a tongue weight of 650-660 lbs. I do keep a close track on the payload. The bigger truck would definitely make things a lot easier though. Hope this helps.
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Hi Dave, I agree the forum search feature leaves a lot to be desired. You can use the Google search feature and limit to the forum with the following search string.
truma decalcify site:https://olivertraveltrailers.com/forums
You enter your search criteria as normal and the site: option allows you to limit the search to only the following site. Hope this helps.
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Fredericksburg is the home of the Pacific War Naval Museum also. I thought it was well worth seeing.
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I am not sure on the heater issue, but the best way to search the forums is to use Google Search with your terms for searching and also include: site:olivertraveltrailers.com/forums
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6 minutes ago, Dave and Kimberly said:
Ok... that is going to be embarrassing! I didn't know there was a fresh water drain valve! Where is that darned thing located??🤣
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I have a 2020 LE2 also and I changed out the power board. It was not that difficult, just take your time and be careful. Mine died and was still under warranty, but getting someone to fix it was not possible in the two days before we left on a large trip. I just bought the board from camping world and it seems it was less than a $100 then. I have attached some Norcold pdf service files I found when I did it in hopes they may be helpful.
Norcold Service Manual.pdf 525376907_Norcoldpowerboardchangeout.pdf Norcold board diagnostic.pdf
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It seems I had this same error code once when boondocking. When I connected to city water the next day it resolved itself. Maybe there was and air bubble or something that kept the water from entering the Truma when using the pump. Once it was resolved, it worked fine even when I disconnected the city water and used the pump. Not sure if that will help.
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Cracked Door Panel
in Mechanical & Technical Tips
Posted
I agree with Stephanie and Dudley. That is not normal. I have never seen anything like it either. My question would also be about the installation of the aftermarket window in the door first, then some other damage done to it.