DIY Camping Air Conditioner | Tear Drop Camper | Stay Cool while Camping

We show you how we converted a 5,000 btu window air conditioner into an A/C for camping in a Teardrop Camper or Tent.

[@emagowan]

Greets from down the road in Pensacola. Nothing to add, I'm watching a bunch of these to give me ideas for my rooftop tent.... though we'll probable go with a teardrop / squaredrop next year. It's just too miserable to camp without AC in summer here. Went to AC school at Locklin in Milton but ended up working in a different field. Icing is, as you noted, pretty much always related to airflow.

[@FlomatonFamous]

Awesome! Thanks for stopping by!

[@kbkennethbeck]

If you make the front of the box larger and bring the return in from the side so its not blowing in one spot on the coils it should solve your icing problem. Thank you soo much for this video. I've been beating myself up trying to solve how to add air to our teardrop. You are the first one I've seen that moved the controls inside. So easy but somehow it eluded me. Thanks again.

[@FlomatonFamous]

If I ever redo it, I may try it from the side, hank you and thank you for watching.

[@TheLaLaFarm]

Cool build. Now in our 50's we have graduated over 30 years of camping with our children from tents. Tent camping in FL was not fun during the warm months. This would have been a really great solution. We have AC (thank goodness) in our 5th wheel!! - Rick

[@FlomatonFamous]

You just can't camp in the south without A/C lol

[@jamessawyer6891]

AC Tech here. Nice job but, on your plenum box, the mold is caused by condensation. Wood isn’t a very good insulator and your box is very shallow. May want to consider adding insulation board inside the return air side. Your return air is still conditioned and wood just loves to absorb heat so when heat hits cold you get moisture.

[@FlomatonFamous]

That's very helpful. I just might rebuild it. Thank you.

[@jimicrab]

This is so neat. Thanks for the video. I will be making one of these for my bunk room on my slide out.

[@FlomatonFamous]

Cool! Don't forget to watch the video on fixing the freeze-up problem

[@bsc26]

Awesome build. Thx.

[@FlomatonFamous]

Glad you like it

[@barrybarkman6480]

Had same problem with coil freezing. I put temperature probe back on evaporator. Fixed. I then salvaged a thermostat from an attic fan switch to switch compressor on and off.

[@FlomatonFamous]

Very interesting I would like to see more on this.

[@jeffreykopf1589]

Agreed! That temp sensor is to keep the coils from freezing.

[@ryanjohnson1761]

Great video. Working on something similar to this. I love how you did the front of it and the connector for extending the wires. Mine will be built into the tongue box of the trailer.

[@FlomatonFamous]

Glad it was helpful! Thanks for watching. Let me know if I can help.

[@spehowic97]

Thank you so much this has solved my camping problems with AC

[@FlomatonFamous]

Awesome! Glad it helped!

[@mlangfordoutdoor]

Good to see you again

[@docink6175]

very interesting set up.. Ive seen a good number of tent units that only duct the cold air and let the unit suck in the outside air, it probably effects the over all cooling but not a lot. You could keep your small return and just add more holes to allow the unit to breath which should alleviate the mildew and minimize the freezing or go with a 6" retuen.. you can buy insulted ac duct in tubes they look a lot like dryer vent wrapped in fiberglass and foil, I dont remember if the smallest is 3 or 4 inches... BTW thats GORGEOUS finish on your camper and hitch box!

[@FlomatonFamous]

Definitely a few things to think about, thanks for the insight. Thank you for watching.

[@timamyett]

Moving the controller fixed the dilemma for me . I have school bus with plenty of room underneath for the a/c. I'll use you plenum idea as well. just with larger ducting . Thanks.

[@FlomatonFamous]

Awesome! Glad it worked for you! Thanks for the feedback.

[@sillysillytom]

Brilliant! thank you for sharing this.

[@FlomatonFamous]

My pleasure!

[@rever7610]

Nice install. I just got through with the same upgrade. Ran into the same icing problem and tried a 4” in-line blower with 100scfm but it wasn’t enough. I ended up using the same one that you had. On my install I purchased a wireless remote control switch where the remote is the thermostat ( sensor and control). I removed the capillary thermostat and wired the switch where the capillary switch was. I just leave the fan on high and control the temperature with remote ( no wires). Hope to catch up with y’all soon!

[@FlomatonFamous]

Ok, great info! Thanks for sharing!

[@FlomatonFamous]

Rick, I this you?

[@Weekendsoffoutdoors]

Great idea, did the moe go away?What was your solution?

[@FlomatonFamous]

Yes mold went away, I encapsulated the wood in epoxy resin

[@Weekendsoffoutdoors]

@@FlomatonFamous very cool, thanks for the reply, im going to make mine a bit bigger and have the return on the side like one of your comments say.

[@sdutango]

I love the latch idea, easier to clean

[@FlomatonFamous]

I think so too!

[@sdutango]

@@FlomatonFamous what kind of connector for the remote you recommend even though mine may be a little different than yours, also how do you rewiring the thermistor, did you wire it with the connector so it's one piece? thanks!

[@FlomatonFamous]

@@sdutango This is the connector set I ordered. www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08ZNPVW5T/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

[@sdutango]

@@FlomatonFamous thank you for quick response!!

[@markjackson6829]

Very nice job, thanks!

[@FlomatonFamous]

Glad you liked it!

[@traveling_with_sunny]

Nice setup! It was a bit hard to see you drill holes on that beautiful wall though. 😎

[@FlomatonFamous]

Thanks, I actually put it off a few days because I didn't want to drill the wood lol

[@brenokobayashi7689]

This is awesome!

[@luckylindamexico]

Thanks for the directions! I'd like to know if you have any updated info on this build. 03/10/2024

[@FlomatonFamous]

I did away with this box and built another just like it out of cypress then covered it in epoxy resin because the other box started to mold from constant moisture

[@hinch-man482]

I want to know what type of fan you used to keep the air going. The other extension for the controls is fantastic. Brilliant setup!

[@FlomatonFamous]

I bought it from Amazon, 4 Inch 195 CFM Duct Inline Ventilation Fan Air

[@chrisv6008]

Just curious how long will that inline fan last do you think being wet like that? Great idea though

[@FlomatonFamous]

Good question, I had my concerns. The condensation is only on the outside. There is zero condensation on the inside. Nothing seems harmed. If anything changes, I'll post it. Thanks for watching.

[@johnryan4971]

Nice work! Pretty envious. Do you still have the amazon link?

[@FlomatonFamous]

For the inline fan?

[@seb42]

Do you think 6inch hose would be large enough? I don't want to restrict airflow but I'm worried. That would be about 28inch square surface area which is much smaller than the surface area of the original intake for the AC. I'm thinking maybe 8 inch hose would be the way to go? I'd like to hear your thoughts.

[@FlomatonFamous]

yes, that would be enough, the 3" hose that I use is enough. if you are concerned about it icing up, that has been fixed. Look for my second video on how I fixed it.

[@rustythomason3894]

curious on how you did the bottom of the box.

[@FlomatonFamous]

Painted it. Probably needs a better water resistant solution

[@luckylindamexico]

Since the unit is outside, why use inside return air? Better to use the cooler air?

[@FlomatonFamous]

Just keep cooking the same air, don’t want to keep cooking fresh air, it will never get more than 5 degrees cooler than outside air.

[@luckylindamexico]

@@FlomatonFamous ooh 5deg, not so much - thanks and thanks for your well put together and useful video!

[@FlomatonFamous]

@@luckylindamexico cooler not cook, sorry

[@stephaniehaines7956]

Just curious but what did you use to put on the outside ply wood to make it water proof?

[@FlomatonFamous]

On this build I painted over pressure treated wood. Since this video was made, I have remade the box from cypress and used epoxy resin to water proof it.

[@jakeparker1220]

I'd bet if you did 2 returns and 2 supplies the freezing problem would cease. Plus more cold air in the cabin.

[@FlomatonFamous]

I agree but I have my control wires routed through my return

[@kimarmstrong6190]

Great video. What gauge wire did you use on the extention?

[@FlomatonFamous]

It's 14 guage, thank you for watching. 😊

[@JDMOZART1]

What generator would you recommend to power the 5000 btu unit?

[@FlomatonFamous]

I use a 2000 watt yamaha inverter generator. Any inverter generator should be fine.

[@pzedrick1]

Did you make a drain hole in the bottom for the condensation?

[@FlomatonFamous]

na, the bottom isn't sealed, it just runs right out over the edge.

[@hinch-man482]

Love this video. I’m in Pensacola. Mind if I buy you a beer or lunch to ask about my project?

[@FlomatonFamous]

Cool. What’s your project.

[@hinch-man482]

@@FlomatonFamous I’m making a bicycle teardrop. Your channel is a goldmine for all the guidance I am looking for regarding this subject. I was really stumped on what to do about the AC and you’ve given me hope. I really didn’t want my AC hanging out of the camper. I started going down a rabbit hole thinking about getting a system out of a you pull it yard. I have a bunch of question I’d like ask you concerning my build.

[@FlomatonFamous]

@@hinch-man482 I work in Pensacola at NAS. Maybe we can get together. What side of town do you live on?

[@hinch-man482]

@@FlomatonFamous I’m right next to you then. I live over by the Navy Hospital off of 98 near, Blue Angel. That would be great! I’m in the cardboard model phase of the project. (Aka wife has a right to be upset about the mess in the living room phase)

[@FlomatonFamous]

@@hinch-man482 hahahaha. I’m available during lunch times. Just let me know when you want to meet.

[@FoodForestPermaculture]

Very Cool

[@FlomatonFamous]

Thank you for watching

[@curtissfoudray4663]

What fittings do you use for the outside in

[@FlomatonFamous]

I ordered the fittings from Climateright they are the 3" fittings

[@TechShopNC]

Just wondering why you didn't just have the whole front of the unit inside the camper. Build a box like a standard window frame and just slide in the unit? I've seen this type of setup and the have the part that sticks out outside boxed into the galley area.. this eliminates all the cool hose and the return hose along with you don't need to really take apart the AC unit and extending the controls?. Then you just need to use a good sealer for that area and have a plastic AC drain pan with a hole drilled into floor so water just drips out the bottom of camper just like a car does. Just some ideas and very good video,

[@FlomatonFamous]

We thought about all the ways of doing it we just didn’t like the looks of the A/C or a hole for the A/C

[@markreichenbach4604]

Thanks for sharing.

[@FlomatonFamous]

Thank you for watching

[@rustusandroid]

You have the return air in a box... Open that bottom up to get fresh air. Don't worry about returning the cold air from inside the teardrop back to the unit. It'll work fine.

[@FlomatonFamous]

I was wondering about that. Thank you.

[@ralphrivera9521]

@rustusandroid so you’re saying he does not need to run the return air back into the front of the box?

[@rustusandroid]

@@ralphrivera9521 Nope. I have the same setup with no return air from inside for years on several campers. Cools great will never freeze, but you will have a lot more water draining off the unit.

[@ralphrivera9521]

@@rustusandroid got it thanks. I think I’ll run same setup except I’ll run return air through the side of the box and not straight onto the coils only because I still need to run my power and temperature dials anyway. I’ll also add some vents to the front of the return air box/tray so it can breath. Thanks @flomaton Famous for this video. I am wrapping up my a/c box build for my custom built trailer and this video and community has helped tremendously!!

[@Dlgeis]

Fluid (air in this case) traveling through a hose that is corrugated like your sewer hose is very restricted. The use of smooth ducting will dramatically increase the flow. Making turns in air ducts also dramatically reduces flow.

[@FlomatonFamous]

You’re right we will probably upgrade

[@mrrustygray]

Basically, Central HVAC in a Teardrop. Genius.

[@FlomatonFamous]

Yes, thanks for watching

[@cic-jakevanddalgeemyers.2739]

Cleaver

[@warrioratthewall1969]

vee-voh-sun

[@FlomatonFamous]

What does that mean?

[@ralphrivera9521]

What thickness did you use for the wooden box?

[@FlomatonFamous]

It was made from the leftovers of the camper build, I happened to have 3/4" plywood that I used for the box body. the front cover for the hose attachments is 1/2".