Cruisers Forum
Main Forum => General Discussion => Topic started by: fandj on November 20, 2016, 12:32:45 pm
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This post is intended primarily for those considering ordering a new PC and/or those needing to replace a roof mount ventilation fan.
My previous pull type camper had a 3 speed Fantastic fan that I believe to be similar to the Fantastic unit that is being installed be Phoenix. I found the unit very reliable and provided much needed ventilation. One of the first things I did was to install a cover to allow the fan to be operated during inclement weather.
When we ordered our 2552 I requested 3 Maxxair 10 speed 6200k fans be installed (living/kitchen, bedroom, & bathroom). After about 6 months of use I have found I prefer the Maxxair units for various reasons. First, they do not require an additional cover to prevent rain from entering the coach. Second, they are nearly silent at the lower settings and with three units operating at lower speed moves more air than a single unit operating at a noisier higher speed. Third, the fans can be operarated in either direction when the vent is open or closed. This is helpful during periods when heat is needed and helps circulate the air better thus reducing temperature stratification in the coach. The units are typically lower which has some benefit where solar panels are installed by reducing panel shading. I have also found the thermostat feature useful in turning the fans off when the temperature inside the coach drops. Knock on wood the Maxxair units have been reliable and operated without issue.
I have no vested interest in either brand of fan. I am not sure I would spend the money to change out a properly operating Fantastic fan with rain cover. I only post this for the benefit of those that are not familiar with the Maxxair units and may want to consider it for a new PC or need to replace a defective fan.
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Very nice post.
Thanks,
--Bruce
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Hi fandj,
Are you talking about his fan? If so, I like it a lot.
(http://www.campinglife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/MAXX-AIR-mvc20305h.jpg)
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Ron, yes that is fan model installed on my PC. There is a Maxxair unit available in white as well with similar operational features. Thanks for posting the photo.
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fandj,
How much to swap fans when ordering? Think we paid $250 (before discount) to add one vent cover. Also we were told if we swapped brands of TV antenna would not be covered by PC warranty.
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When I switched out the fantastic fan for the maxxair 6200 fan on the unit I am having built it cost $95 dollars extra.
Dave
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fandj - have you found it as easy to add insulation inside the Maxx Air when cold weather hits? The look of the lower closed profile seems like it would be a plus for travel. Looks like the fan warranty is the same for both companies so that is not an issue. I appreciate your comments on the 10 speeds and the noise levels.
My new unit is about to head down the production line and I am making myself crazy trying to be sure I have considered all the options and made the 'best' decisions. I keep trying to absorb all the options I see folks choosing for their units - probably making Earl crazy - and myself.
Since I am not sure what all the placements are on the roof I will have to rely on the PC crew from some input too - where the solar panels will be and whether the tail on the Maxx Air deluxe creates a problem vs. if the height of the Maxx Air cover over the Fantastic fan would shade the panels, etc.
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Catsaplenty, I have not considered adding insulation to the Maxxair. We have not experienced any below freezing nights so far. On a previous unit that had a Fantastic fan I did use a heavy cloth to block out light on a trip to Alaska. I just attached it at the bottom of the unit using something similar to Velcro. I think something like that could be done to the Maxxair. If more thermal insulation was needed one could use Reflectix either by itself or in conjunction with the cloth. One of the advantages to the Maxxair is it can be used when closed which helps circulate the heat which a cover would negate this option.
I have two 160 watt solar panels which the factory installed just behind the AC, one on each side. If desired in the future there is room to add two more similar size panels along the sides in front of the AC. I have not measured but I would expect more shading potential from the Fantastic unit and secondary cover. I have not noticed any significant shading because of the Maxxair installation.
If you are considering a solar panel install, the two 160 watt panels match up very well with the two 6 volt 230 amp hour batteries PC installs. With the panels connected in parallel if one panel is fully or partially shaded from foliage or whatever and the other is not then the full sun panel can still produce without being affected by the other panel. We have been impressed with the performance our system as it has allowed us to spend several nights in campgrounds without hookups and without the need to run the generator.
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Thank you for that update. i am having two solar panels done at the factory. Thank you so much for your post on this subject and for answering questions. Sounds like I need to send a change order to Earl!
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Done since brand new, something irritating with our standard Fantastic fan of 10 years now, is how the wind catches underneath the cover when it is open, lifting and dropping it. The clunking noise is bad. When closed up, there is no noise.
How well does the MAXXAIR resist that irritating clunking?
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Ron, we have never noticed any clunking from the Maxxair units resulting from wind when parked. We drive with the cover closed and never noticed any sound coming from the fans. We have been fortunate not to encounter strong wind while parked so I can't say it wouldn't happen at higher wind velocity. I would guess wind direction would influence this as well.
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how the wind catches underneath the cover when it is open, lifting and dropping it
We have a Maxxair in our bedroom area of the 2551 and find it to be an excellent product for all the reasons that Fred mentioned. We have the standard bathroom vent in in the bath area and from day one installed a vent cover over it so we can use it while raining. It works great for a bathroom fan.
In the galley area we have the Fantastic fan. We did a modification on it so that it has bidirectional air flow. This works great. We were always forgetting to close the vent cover and then stress about rain. We did not want to order the Fantastic vent cover for two reason, one because it requires drilling into the roof of the PC and two it was a bit pricey. Since the cover over the bathroom room fan works so great we ordered one for the Fantastic fan. This is the one we ordered https://www.amazon.com/Camco-40721-Aero-Flo-Cover-Smoke/dp/B0006JLU22/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1480375925&sr=8-6&keywords=camco%2Bvent%2Bcover&th=1. We ordered it in white so as not to darken the galley area. It does not allow the fan cover to be opened fully but actually you can open the cover even more so then the Maxxair. It has air flow on all three sides of the fan and it stops the wind from catching underneath it thus eliminating the clunking noise as Ron mentions. Plus, no more stress about leaving it open in the rain.
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Hi Barry-Sue,
Thank you for sharing your experience with the Camco aero-flo product. The lady in the video HERE (http://www.etrailer.com/RV-Vents-and-Fans/Camco/CAM40421.html?feed=npn&gclid=CjwKEAiAyO_BBRDOgM-K8MGWpmYSJACePQ9CwwT9LV2QqG8Tai2UmaH2ruM84MvYJwkgHp7nII44iBoCLm7w_wcB) mentions it is 9" tall. On Amazon it states 7" tall. It looks quite tall when watching the video. Height is a big concern for me because of our low garage door opening. If the Camco aero-flo stands any taller than our Duo-Therm A/C unit, it won't work.
Assuming yours is mounted at the highest point in the center of your roof, how does it compare to the height of your Duo-Therm A/C unit? I'll need to measure the height of our A/C unit, but am concerned the spec'd dimensions don't consider the air gap between roof and the product.
Given the curvature of the PC roof and our Fantastic Fan at the top-center, is there any concern over the excessive gap between the sides of the Camco aero-flo and the roof itself? Do you feel any need to stabilize it better, or is it very solid with all the air turbulance while driving down the highway?
Thanks again,
Ron Dittmer
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Ron,
Just did a visual inspection and it looks to be at least an inch lower than the AC. I'll pull out the ladder tomorrow and take an actual measurement. Don't forget, we are on a 2551. The vent cover on ours sits in the front of the AC.
We have had no problem with high winds. The only reported problems I've heard were from people who stored their units in the sun year round. They say after about 5 years the sun weakens the plastic and they've had to replace them. But at $23 it was no big deal to them.
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Oh, Thanks so much for that quick check. I would love to hear about your more accurate comparison. I look forward to your evaluation tomorrow or whenever you get around to it.
I love the affordable price 2o2, but I would hate to special order this big monster from Walmart just to return it. I know they would place it on a clearance shelf and take a loss. I don't want to do that to any retailer.
I can understand that the UV light will weaken the plastic, making it brittle with extended exposure. I am not worried about that matter given our indoor storage. Yet good to know.
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Barry-Sue
Can you share the details on your modification to the Fantastic Fan that allows for bi-directional operation? That would seem to make it more comparable to the Maxxair.
Thanks
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Captain Al
Here is a link to the original posting:
http://forum.phoenixusarv.com/index.php/topic,2078.msg16376.html#msg16376 (http://forum.phoenixusarv.com/index.php/topic,2078.msg16376.html#msg16376)
Switch is not on Amazon now but can be found on several other sites.
Here is a link to Dyser : http://www.dyersonline.com/advancedsearch/result/?q=Atwood+K9001-09+
Barry
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Ron
Got my tall ladder out and climbed on the roof. Here are the measurements: Height of AC - 11 inches above the roof. Height of Vent cover - 9 inches above the roof. I think the discrepancy between the 7 inches and 9 inches is that the base of the vent cover is 7 inches and then the removable cover adds 2 more inches. I would call it 9 inches for our purpose.
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Ron
Got my tall ladder out and climbed on the roof. Here are the measurements: Height of AC - 11 inches above the roof. Height of Vent cover - 9 inches above the roof. I think the discrepancy between the 7 inches and 9 inches is that the base of the vent cover is 7 inches and then the removable cover adds 2 more inches. I would call it 9 inches for our purpose.
Thank you so much for the measurements. 2" below the height of the Duo-Therm is perfect! I am putting this one on my To-Do list this winter. Like you, I worry about leaving the vent open when out for the day, and also desire to resolve the clunking lid in windy conditions. But our biggest benefit will be when Irene is cooking up a storm during a rain storm, we'd like to open the Fantastic Fan to blast out the smoke, but can't because the rain comes in. Her Greek cooking is just too much for the range hood vent to handle at particular moments.
We can't beat the price for the benefits received.
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Barry-Sue
Many thanks for the info on reversing the fan flow. Kit ordered.
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Barry,
Did your 2551 come from the factory with the fan installed in the galley area? Our 2552 has no fan in that vent. I've been assuming that there is no practical way to add a fan there.
After reading your posts here, I'm wondering if our rig was actually wired for a fan that was never installed.
Do you think there is a way for me to look for any wiring there without doing damage to the ceiling or roof?
--Bruce
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Bruce
We ordered our fantastic fan when it was being built. I do not know what type of vent you have in your galley. If it is a similar frame/trim like the vent/fan in the bathroom, I would remove the four screws that are holding the inside trim piece and look to see if there are any wires stuffed between the roof and the trim piece.
If you have wires then you'll have to check for power. Our fans are wired in with our lights.
Barry
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Barry,
Thank you for the info. Our galley area vent looks just like the vent in the bathroom, except no fan.
I'll take your advice and remove the trim piece to look for wires.
--Bruce
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I removed the ceiling vent trim piece as Barry suggested and see no wires.
It might be possible to push wires between the roof material (some type of wood?) and the ceiling material (some type of padding) from the vent opening over to a light fixture located about two feet away. But, there is a seam in the ceiling material midway on that route that will likely block easy passage there.
The factory employees had left for the day when I called there for advice on this, so will try again next week.
Maybe someone here has experience installing wire under the ceiling material?
--Bruce
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Our 2552 had no fan in the forward vent. I had my local RV guy replace the vent with a Fantastic Fan and he picked up power from the ceiling light just forward of the vent. I think he had to dig a trench from the light to the vent.
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I talked to Kermit yesterday on how to get power to the forward vent on our 2552. He said it could be done fairly easily by using a long drill bit to go thru the layer of foam in the ceiling and thru a structural tube up there (they are placed each 24" of length of the coach).
That sounds too scary for me to try at the moment.
--Bruce
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That sounds fairly manageable to me. If you are uncomfortable in trying it, first take an extra long nail or long fine screwdriver to pierce through the Styro-foam until you hit something hard which would be the beam, then accommodate the hollow square beam by adding 2" to the drill bit. That would tell you how long of a drill bit you will need. I assume you would need to go through just one beam to get to the adjacent ceiling light for power. A 1/4" dia. drill should be big enough. If you decide to take the next step and drill, as best you can drill in the center of the foam thickness and drill horizontally, not at angle, and you will do fine. Once drilled, use a straight coat hanger to continue pushing through the foam on the other side of the beam to reach the area of the light fixture.
Keep in-mind that I have not actually done it myself. It's what I imagine is required.
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Actually each light is below a square beam, that's how they get the wires to the light.
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Ron and John,
I think each of your comments are correct. Thanks for your encouragement.
I originally hoped that it would be easy to add a fan. Turns out to be too much for me presently, but may tackle this issue later.
Actually it's not extremely important to us because of the way we use the rig--usually stay in moderate temperature areas and have only wished to have the extra fan a few times in the previous three years.
Will post again if I get the time and courage to proceed.
Happy Holidays to all from Bruce and Sharon
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Hi All,
I picked up the $23 internet-ordered vent cover from Walmart. Just as Barry-Sue says, it's about 2 inches lower than the A/C cover, so there are no worries about clearing our tight clearance garage door opening. Thanks again Barry-Sue for that information. Now I wonder if I should get a second one for the bathroom vent.
Ron
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/695/31148653690_792931822b_z.jpg)
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/603/31519913535_def3169734_z.jpg)