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Given the numerous posts and prior experience with a Dometic noisemaker air conditioner, I have contemplated replacing the A/C unit on our brand new Oliver with an Atwood Air Command heat pump. I had done this previously on our MBS based motorhome and we were extremely pleased with the results. That being said, I was aware of one Ollie owner who has an Air Command A/C factory installed in his Ollie and he indicated to me he wasn't thrilled with the noise level from it either. So we agreed to take measurements using the same iPhone app and although not scientific, I am hopeful the results are different enough to warrant the change to the Air Command. My results are listed below and I expect John will weigh in at some point when he is able to take similar measurements on his Ollie. Since I'm not sure I can attach an Excel file, the list will be in this order - Location, Baseline measurement, Low Fan, High Fan with compressor running (all measurements "A" weighted DB) Front dinette seat (phone on table) - 35, 68, 71 Rear dinette seat (phone on table) - 34, 71, 72 Left bed (phone on bed at aft end) - 31, 70, 74 Right bed (phone on bed at aft end) - 32, 70, 73 Standing under A/C (phone held at 5') - 32, 76, 78 Looking forward to the comparison with the Atwood.

Just searched for keyword "earplugs" one word and this came up:

I cannot find the "Got Earplugs" thread. I really need to figure this out. Thank you so much.

It's hard to provide an answer to this question not knowing how you connected the Honeywell thermostat to the existing wiring and whether or not you kept the Dometic control relay box in place. Lots of good info in previous posts - maybe start with the "Got Earplugs" thread I started a long time ago. Many users have posted how they converted to the Houghton from the noisy Dometic. In my case, I only use the remote control for the Houghton heat pump and still use the factory Dometic thermostat and control box to run the Suburban furnace. As I recall, the factory wiring from the thermostat to the relay box may have been digital, so there weren't enough wires to convert to a more traditional analog wiring scheme for both the Houghton and the Suburban. I also don't think there was any way to connect to the Houghton with an external thermostat (at least the model I used).

Thanks SeaDawg, I appreciate your help and quick response! Of course, you're not here and cannot see what's going on, but I don't think it is the remote, unless the IR output of the remote has failed. The remote is extremely clean, no dust around the buttons, like it has hardly been used at all. Every button works, and as you click the various buttons the large LCD screens respond in changing the icons and numbers up and down as it should. When we got home, it was the first time I used the buttons on the fan to control it. I was wondering if there is something I could have done, in working the main controls to disconnect the fan from the remote. Is the remote not sending the IR signal, or is the fan not receiving the IR signal? I get no fan control from the remote, but it makes the changes on the screen, and I get no fan beeps in using the remote. I've read some issues here with the control board of these fans. I'm going to try a fan reset. Though, it is 95 degrees here today at 5400 ft in Prescott AZ, so I will have to brave out and run the "got earplugs" AC for a while first! Not sure a reset will change things. I'll pull the fuse too. Keep you posted and other ideas are certainly welcome from all! Thanks again.

From what I understand from your sound tests, the RecPro/Houghton seems to be at least as quiet as the Truma Aventa Eco. Got Earplugs? In addition to the much lower price and heat pump function, it will run off of a typical 2000W generator (i.e. Honda EU2200i) or inverter. I have read that the Truma Aventa Eco requires a 3000W generator or inverter to operate, but not 100% sure about that. There are pros and cons to either option, no perfect solution.

Correction: ThecRecPro Houghton 13.5 is a heat pump, does not have a heat strip. I re-read the lengthy thread “Got Earplugs” and there was some confusion and mis-reporting over heat pump vs. heat strip. The heat pump function is a significant benefit over the Dometic Penguin II, will save a lot of propane when on shore power.

Mike…I made some notes for myself as this is on my future mods list. RecPro Houghton 13.5 is quieter, uses less power, and has a heat strip. Moves as much air on Low as 9.5 moves on Medium or High. More practical than 9.5 BTU in Elite 2 size. Got Earplugs?

Yes, but having to turn the A/C off or wear earplugs while dining, watching TV, listening to music is not acceptable in my view. If this works for you, that's great. I live in Georgia and really like having an A/C I can use in our heat and humidity without having to wear earplugs. The upgrade was very worthwhile to me.

Hello from Hull 275, an Oliver Ellite ll 2017. I have been wanting to replace the Dometic air conditioner because my wife HATES the noise even when using earplugs. So I went to last week to D&N RV service located in Guntersville and asked to order me the Houghton H3400 caravan air conditioner. They placed the order and 3 days later they called me to tell me that it had arrived. Today, Monday August 23, I took the trailer at 8 am and they had it installed by 1 pm. This unit is a game changer, it is so quiet that my wife and I can have a conversation and watch tv within the horrendous noise we used to have with the Dometic unit. The remote control is great as I can have it on the nightstand and change the temperature without getting up. It doesn’t need the soft start as it has a ramps up without it. The only drawback was that they could not drain it with the drain that the Dometic use that drains the water down below the bottom of the camper but I will be installing a gutter so it doesn’t run down the window. Best ever. By the way the RV tech is name Brandon and he has won twice the National Championship of RV Techs. This was his first time installing this type of unit and he loves the unit. So it you are in the Guntersville area and want to have them exchange your unit, give them a visit.

Sorry to "hear" about your less than comfortable night. Our experience was similar, although a set of foam earplugs allowed me to survive the noise. My spouse is not nearly as light a sleeper as I am and she was fine. There will be no need for earplugs or ANR headphones with the Houghton. As to the disposal of the Dometic jet engine - I'll try to sell it in my neighborhood first. These are pretty good units to put into a utility trailer or similar since the noise level really doesn't matter. I did that with the Dometic from our previous MH and a neighbor bought it. If there is an Ollie owner in the Atlanta area and you want a spare, let me know. I'll sell it cheap. I'm working on completing the install this weekend. I'm modifying the Dometic CT thermostat relay board to fit it into a much smaller relay box. This is probably the most time consuming part of the modification and could be avoided by changing thermostats - but I'm trying to keep the existing Tstat in place to control the furnace. As previously discussed, the Houghton has a touchpad on the ceiling diffuser and a remote for control of the heat pump.

If you have the stock Dometic Penguin A/C - it will be noisy. Quite a bit of discussion and some solutions posted in this lengthy thread I started a couple of years ago - https://olivertraveltrailers.com/forums/topic/4517-got-earplugs/#comment-45539

wolfdds-- As I wrote about my upgrade, my RV tech did all of the work, but I DID pass along this information from Minnesota Oli, who apparently got it from katanapilot. I hope it helps. Here's a paragraph from Got Earplugs by katanapilot from My version of the Houghton AC install posted May 27. As a sidenote halfway through the install I thought of a different way of doing the wiring for the thermostat. If a person replaced the LCD thermostat with a older manual style you could do away with the LCD relay board. If you look at the first picture that shows a group of wires that are in a black sheath, these are the control side of the wiring for the AC. In that group of wires there are two blue wires one with a white stripe. The one with the white stripe is hot 12 volts DC and the solid blue is the wire that goes to the furnace relay board. So re-allocate the existing thermostat wires by doubling them up ,two of them hooked to the solid blue and the other two hook to the blue with the white stripe. Then at the wall hook the two thermostat wires that are hooked to blue with white stripe to the power in on the new manual thermostat and the other two to the power out. The reason I would double them up is because of they're small gauge. This would do away with having to pull wires and using the LCD relay board. Also save you having to toggle through the unusable modes (heat strip, cool) on the LCD thermostat to get to the furnace mode. By re-allocate the existing thermostat wires and doubling them up ,two of them hooked to the solid blue and the other two hook to the blue with the white stripe. Now you are able to utilize wires that are already there saving you having to run new ones. Simply switch out the thermostat with one that does not need a control board.

Minnesota Oli Members 67 Author Posted September 24 Here's a paragraph from Got Earplugs by katanapilot from My version of the Houghton AC install posted May 27. As a sidenote halfway through the install I thought of a different way of doing the wiring for the thermostat. If a person replaced the LCD thermostat with a older manual style you could do away with the LCD relay board. If you look at the first picture that shows a group of wires that are in a black sheath, these are the control side of the wiring for the AC. In that group of wires there are two blue wires one with a white stripe. The one with the white stripe is hot 12 volts DC and the solid blue is the wire that goes to the furnace relay board. So re-allocate the existing thermostat wires by doubling them up ,two of them hooked to the solid blue and the other two hook to the blue with the white stripe. Then at the wall hook the two thermostat wires that are hooked to blue with white stripe to the power in on the new manual thermostat and the other two to the power out. The reason I would double them up is because of they're small gauge. This would do away with having to pull wires and using the LCD relay board. Also save you having to toggle through the unusable modes (heat strip, cool) on the LCD thermostat to get to the furnace mode. By re-allocate the existing thermostat wires and doubling them up ,two of them hooked to the solid blue and the other two hook to the blue with the white stripe. Now you are able to utilize wires that are already there saving you having to run new ones. Simply switch out the thermostat with one that does not need a control board. Paul https://www.recpro.com/rv-air-conditioner-low-profile-13-5k-quiet-ac-with-heat-pump-remote-non-ducted/

Here's a paragraph from Got Earplugs by katanapilot from My version of the Houghton AC install posted May 27. As a sidenote halfway through the install I thought of a different way of doing the wiring for the thermostat. If a person replaced the LCD thermostat with a older manual style you could do away with the LCD relay board. If you look at the first picture that shows a group of wires that are in a black sheath, these are the control side of the wiring for the AC. In that group of wires there are two blue wires one with a white stripe. The one with the white stripe is hot 12 volts DC and the solid blue is the wire that goes to the furnace relay board. So re-allocate the existing thermostat wires by doubling them up ,two of them hooked to the solid blue and the other two hook to the blue with the white stripe. Then at the wall hook the two thermostat wires that are hooked to blue with white stripe to the power in on the new manual thermostat and the other two to the power out. The reason I would double them up is because of they're small gauge. This would do away with having to pull wires and using the LCD relay board. Also save you having to toggle through the unusable modes (heat strip, cool) on the LCD thermostat to get to the furnace mode. By re-allocate the existing thermostat wires and doubling them up ,two of them hooked to the solid blue and the other two hook to the blue with the white stripe. Now you are able to utilize wires that are already there saving you having to run new ones. Simply switch out the thermostat with one that does not need a control board. Paul

I’ve said before that one of the few things about our Oliver that desperately needs improvement is the AC situation. We rarely use it only when we have to. To sleep with it on, we use earplugs. The position right over the beds makes the noise worse with air blowing on you all night. I’m watching these replacement threads closely for the right unit. Thanks to all who post. Mike

IL_Travelers, several owners have replaced the Dometic with a RecPro Houghton unit. There's a pretty nice thread with a lot of information in it on the model numbers, noise levels, etc.: https://olivertraveltrailers.com/forums/search/?q=earplugs&quick=1 We have a Houghton and it's very quiet. Haven't used it a ton yet, but so far so good.

I have the Attwood Air Command, the 16K BTU model, which uses two small variable speed motors instead of one monster motor. It starts and runs fine off my Yamaha 2400 watt generator without needing an Easy Start, and it pulls about 11 amps running. It runs fine off a 15A circuit if there are no other large loads. It is EXTREMELY quiet outside, whisper quiet, amazingly quiet. Inside is another story, the fan is obnoxiously loud and the fan stays running when the compressor kicks off. I saw no mention of this in their advertising...they claim “2X quieter, as low as 66dB” . http://www.atwoodmobile.com/images/air-conditioners-brochure.pdf I don’t see any way to avoid the high noise, you are living several feet from the high-speed moving parts and rushing air flow. A ducted system, or a unit mounted as far forward on the roof as possible, makes more sense to me, rather than having it right over the sleeping area! This is an interesting article. .... http://www.beginningfromthismorning.com/mini-split-ac/ I am not aware of ANY small RV certified unit that would work reliably in our small trailers and withstand the rocking and jostling without fracturing the copper freon lines. There are DC coolers out there but they consume an enormous amount of battery power. .... https://expeditionportal.com/forum/threads/finally-a-real-12v-air-conditioner-indel-sleeping-well-cube.142600/ I keep a large bag of earplugs for the very rare ocassions I have to sleep with the AC running. John Davies Spokane WA

This is so cool, we are located in a great big empty field at the end of a dead end dirt road, half a mile from the downwind end of the runway, we can hear the band playing, and we are kicked back in our recliners, under the shade of the awning, with the spotting scope and binoculars handy. I have the generator ready in case it gets blistering hot and we need to run the AC, but right now there is a light breeze and it is about 80 degrees. Also have earplugs but I suspect they will not be needed, since most of the afterburner stuff will be further away. The show starts in half an hour. Pics to follow, I hope to get a pic of Mouse with looping smoke trails above. Or maybe a Thunderbird doing a knife edge turn.... I love this trailer. We are learning that we don't have to camp overnight to enjoy using it as a mobile club house. We will head out late afternoon and be home in 20 minutes. Woohoo! John Davies Spokane WA