A/C Unit Delay

[Jasper]

We have a 1991 Jayco travel trailer with a Duotherm A/C unit. The owners manual says that when the thermostat calls for A/C, there is a built in 2 minute delay before the compressor kicks in. Trouble is, during the delay it often gets uncomfortably warm in the trailer. Is this delay in the thermostat or in the A/C unit? Is there a way to bypass the delay? Will a house type thermostat work in an RV?
Thanks for the help!!

 

[C Nash]

A/C Unit Delay

Jasper, I don't know if the delay can be by-passed but, I would not recommend doing it. The delay is there to protect the a/c compressor. Pressures are high ,freon, during cooling and it needs to equalize before starting back up. The compressor motor is not designed to start when they have this high pressure. Could cause early a/c failure (IMO) Good luck

Chelse L. Nash
fulltimer03@yahoo.com

 

[Ed H.]

A/C Unit Delay

I spent way too many summers repairing residential and commercial A/C units. As C Nash said, the delay is there for a good reason. A short cycle (compressor trying to restart too soon) will trip your circuit breaker.......if you're lucky. The compressor is equipped with overload protection, but it is a last line of defence, not for regular cycling. The delay on start allows the fan to help equalize the refrigerant pressure within the cooling system. Trying to start the compressor under load would be like trying to start your rig going uphill in high gear; you might get it to move, but there won't be much left of the clutch.

 

[rv wizard]

A/C Unit Delay

To answer your other question as to the house thermostats working in an RV; No. They use 24 volts and the rv's are setup for 12 volts. Just set your thermostat 1 degree cooler and take some reading of temperatures on and off. This will help you to determine if your thermostat is faulty.