Richard you are on top of things, the front 2 ton unit will be easy, the rear unit I'm scratching my head on. I can get half way easy through the old duct used for the old system but getting from the kitchen to the bedroom is going to be a bear. You have any thoughts please share!
Have you thought about using the removing the curved trim piece at the transition between the wall and the ceiling? There is a chase there that Newell uses for all kinds of wiring on both sides of the coach. It’s a little tricky to find the screws holding it in place but you seem to have mastered the Newell jigsaw puzzles by getting the slide room apart and back together.
You could come straight up behind the passenger chair in that cavity that currently houses the air discharge for the front AC unit. I think that cavity be your best shot at getting the line for the TV location unit also.
Second idea, is to use the back of the existing air return plenum to get into the center line in the basement of the coach. Snake the lines down the center until you get to where you want them to exit and go straight up. You might have to pull the washer dryer to access behind there, but that would be the place to come through the floor if you are putting a ducted unit over the W/D.
I say all this not having run lines in those areas, just thinking about the possibilities out loud.
If you try the passenger side in the basement the steps are in the way.
Keep in mind anytime you go through the floor, you have 3/4 plywood then 10 or 12 inches of solid foam, then another layer of 3/4 wood, and then possibly some sheet steel depending on where you are such as a wheel well or the bay where the generator blower is located.
Are you going to use the AC equivalent of shark bite fittings, or are you silver soldering?
Richard and Rhonda Entrekin
99 Newell, 512
Maverick Hybrid Toad
Inverness, FL (when we're home )
I found the path. Picture are worth more than words. Not for the faint of heart, my hat is off to whomever built the ducts at Newell this is airplane quality if not the space shuttle.
After removing the duct from underneath the galley in one of the bays I went and removed the largest duct coming through the TV stereo shelves in the bedroom stuck my headlight down in the hole and took these pictures it looks to be a very large duck going back which should give plenty of room for the tubing to the bedroom. Now I'll have to order the line set for that length.
Forest I've used that on my last RV, I hung the compressor from the back door but didn't want to loose the function of the door, its wonderful stuff! I built a custom box to cover the compressor, the box cost more than the mini split system.
Richard I silver solder, no shark bite for me. The main duct going through the coach will be my chase for the lines going to bedroom and over the top of the refrigerator, the other line going up front will go straight up from the HVAC area to that duct that runs along the wall under the little table behind the passenger seat, then up through that fancy Colum and then behind the passenger speaker to the dog house. I don't foresee a problem with drainage of the condensation except the one in front, I will have to use a condensation pump for that one. The art cool just might end up in front of that little granite table behind the passenger seat.
24000 btu compressor showed up today but thats it, nothing else till Friday.
Went to the hardware store and bought some of this 4" black plastic corrugated drain tubing to run the lines through without getting hung up on screws and such, took 25 feet to go from the bedroom to the area below the kitchen sink. I do the same in the original duct work as there are many screws there also.
The ducted unit which will go over the refrigerator has been in FEDEX in Lowell AR (21 miles from my home) for over a week, every day I get a notice its going to be delivered and every night I get the message its delayed. The line sets have all shown up along with the 2 ton compressor for the front 2 condensers, so I installed the 2 ton multizone compressor and the shortest line set. Today Asia freight company will deliver the 1.5 ton for the bedroom bath area so I can start installing that unit.
We had a Chinese diesel heater in our class B and it was wonderful so I installed a 8k btu in the front of our coach with two outlets and its nice to be warm while working inside. We ran a couple plug in heaters but still running all night long it would only get the coach up in the 50s, this thing will bring the temp up from the 40s to 72 in no time. I had to cut the old duct work out to run the line set to the front so that opened up the area for the diesel heater.
The compressors blow out toward the door but I have 4 opening in the bay 2 on each side, if you noticed I raised the compressor over the top of the opening under it, that will be air intake, both sides are the same. Then there is another opening in front of the compressor and the vented door. After everything is installed and tested I will use that double sided aluminum sign board (that I used on the main salon ceiling) to seal off the area around the front discharge and force all the outgoing air through the bottom screened opening and the door. There will be some mixing of air under the coach I'm sure but hopefully not enough to matter, if it does I'll close off the vent in front of the compressor going under the coach.
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