![]() The Velit AC SLEEP mode is effective and efficient in cooling the sleeping area especially when it is dark (not fighting against the sun). Given the lessons learned from the first cycle, I was looking forward to the second cycle. You will notice that, overall, the first cycle ran net of draining the battery by 20%. Due to an overcast day, the batteries recharged to 76% by 16:48 (~5pm) and actually reached 80.2% by the time the second cycle was started. This meant that The AC could be turned on later in the evening, closer to sleeping time, thus saving some power. Even though the van was quite hot from being closed, the AC cooled the sleeping quarters in 30-40 minutes. Lessons learned from Cycle 1 were applied to Cycle 2. I realized this an hour into the test and turned it off. One mistake I made was keeping the inverter powered which drew watts even though it was idle. By 5:30am the next morning the AC was turned off with 45.6% of the battery remaining. The sleeping area was kept at 75-76 all night. ![]() An hour later it was turned to SLEEP mode. The Velit AC was started in Turbo or Boost mode – its highest output. ![]() Our van has a queen bed elevated ~36” across the back of the van.Īt 17:58 (about 6:00pm) started timed lapsed video. When we started the project of adding AC, it was understood that our van’s layout could be utilized to optimize how much energy we used to cool our sleeping area. ![]() Test 3: 2 Cycles of Sleeping then Regen simulation: Simulating off-the-grid AC during the evening with the Sleeping Quarters curtained off then recharging with solar the next day. The Velit AC uses a twin-rotor compressor which has good efficiency over a wide range while others use a scroll compressor which has similar efficiency at the high end but lower efficiency at lower RPMs. When we were looking at AC units, we were focused on efficiency, not only at full power but also at lower output levels. We also installed the solar system (Victron SmartSolar MPPT Charger + three Renogy 175-watt solar panels) with Rhino Rack front fairing added. We then installed the 12v 8000 BTU AC unit from Velit in the 14” by 14” hole in the back of the Sprinter where the MaxxAir had been. We moved the MaxxAir fan from the back of the van to the front. Here’s a high-level overview of what we did. The improvements and availability of 12v ACs and improvements and form factors for solar panels seemed to make off-the-grid AC (for sleeping) possible. If we were going to add AC, we wanted an off-the-grid system (AC and Solar) which could, in a 24-hour cycle, generate enough solar power to replace the energy we consumed while the AC cooled the van to ~76 F while we slept.įast forward to 2023 and we decided to install air conditioning and solar into our Sprinter. The majority of the roof was free for solar panels. We also went with a Victron 3000-watt inverter/charger - capable of converting 12v supply from the batteries for a 120v AC unit. We installed 4 x 100aH of Battle Born batteries. We have CRL windows behind the driver, on the sliding door and two smaller CRL windows in the rear, one on each side for ventilation by the bed. ![]() All of the interior metal walls and ceilings have Hushmat Ultra foil backed dampening and then 3M Thinslate insulation on the floor, walls and ceiling. Our Sprinter 170 has an Adventure Wagon interior. We use our van for trips where we might likely be off grid but would move the van (recharge via alternator) at least once every 2-3 days. Posted the full review with pictures and data on Sprinter Source. ![]()
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