As mentioned in a previous post (RTB rear lounge), we are fast approaching our order date for our new RV. We did look at the Coachmen B Class Galleria and Beyond, both of which had the ProAir 20K BTU 12 volt A/C units. Apparently, these draw about 600 watts which will run about 10 hours on their 600 amp Lithium package. It seems like this is, perhaps, a little more 'off the grid' friendly than the standard LTV offering. Has anyone swapped their stock A/C for one of these or any other 12 volt model?
I have not, but it will be a very strong candidate if I ever have I replace the Dometic Penguin II. It's too bad that LTV uses so many products by a company that makes poor products and has even worse customer support. A good example is the Fantastic Fan, which was owned by a small independent company that not only made a solid product, you could call them and actually talk to someone if you had a problem. Now, you can submit a form for the privilege of never hearing back from anyone now that Dometic bought out the company as they attempt to monopolize the industry.
GM
As an aside, you will be very happy you went with LTV. While Coachmen uses very innovative design when it comes to energy, the overall build is about as cheap and poorly designed as it can get. I drove about 4 hours to a dealer to see one before we ordered our WonderRTB. It took all of 30 seconds inside one to see how cheaply they were put together. The dealer had 7 new units sitting on the lot; apparently, so a lot of people must have felt the same way, unlike they do for an LTV, and be willing to wait a year or more to get one. There's a reason for that.
I looked into this recently. The Coachman uses a 12 volt AC made by ProAir LLC I reached out to them and they provided a quote of $2000.
The big question, is it quieter?
Hopefully it is more efficient then runninhg the 110 standard AC on Lithiums.
It is a little less than twice as efficient than the Dometic. Plus it can be used with the Firefly system.
The Coachman 12 Volt DC is considerably quieter. We were inside the Coachman have a conversation and I was impressed that it was very quiet.