AC

[George H260]

What Size AC would be required for a 340?12000 BTU, 16000 BTU?I live in the north east where we get 100 deg days and hot humid nights.Any recommendations on water pump placement, Condensor/Evap Placement, Ductwork runs?What is a reasonable cost? Should a dealer do the job?

 

[Tim Bowers]

A/C question

I have a 340 with factory installed a/c. I believe that the unit the factory uses is a 12,000 btu unit with heat (reverse cycle.) They installed the compressor/condenser/evaporator/ blower unit under the starboard setee in the area under what is used as the nav. station seat.They cut in the return vent in the flat area on the lower front aisle area. The supply registers are located above the nav. station, forward cabin front of starboard hanging locker with the hose routed through the the hanging locker. These should be fairly easy to install, the aft cabin may be a little more of a challenge.On my boat the duct is run from the blower , behind the back of the hanging locker, through the bulkhead, under the head sink and through the wet locker. This may be a lot of work, but if you use the aft cabin, well worth the effort.The through hull fitting and strainer are located in the bilge with the water pump placed along side the compressor unit. Raw water discharge is located behind the mid-cabin hanging locker near the bilge discharge fitting.As my boat is located in the Mid-Atlantic area, I have found the 12,000 btu is good. On the hottest days the unit runs hard to keep up but cools down nicely in the evening. I would stay with the 12,000 btu unit for fear that if it were larger it wouldn't run long enough to provide de-humidification which would make the boat feel cool but damp most of the time.One thing that I would recommend is that if you install the unit, is BUY THE HEAT OPTION. It will make your overnight stays at the dock much nicer in the early spring and late fall.If you should have a dealer install the unit depends on several things. How handy are you? How much work are you willing to do to install the unit and most importantly how much are you willing to pay to have it done for you?While my boat came from the factory with air/heat installed, it is a project that I could have handled. My wife might disagree, because much of the time we spent using the boat would have been devoted to installing things we had installed by the factory. In my case the time to do other things (like sail) was worth the cost.Good luck in your quest!Tim Bowerss/v Moonlight Bay

 

[Wynn Ferrel]

I would recommend 16,000 BTU's on a 340

George,I have a 340 and I would definately get the 16k unit. After two weeks of 100+ degree days in mid-Missouri I'm not sure we could have stayed on the boat with anything less. Also, 16k is barely enough to cool the aft cabin. In respone to the previous post, our boat experiences no dampness or humidity problems. Matter of fact, I think the 16k unit runs too much. And further, when you plug up and its 94 degrees INSIDE the boat and you want it to get to 74 degrees, it is going to take a lot less time time cool the boat down using a 16k unit. Takes several hours as it is. Another tip. We bought some cheap sun blocking window shades and cut some patterns out for the two large hatches and the two small ones in the cabin top. Then we throw a blue foam swim mat over the two "windshield" ports, thereby blocking as much heat gain as possible to minimize the run time on the air unit. One of these days I'll figure out how to get those snap on pieces for the outside of the windshield. I haven't seen anything else to go on the inside that really would look decent.The reverse heat works great, also. I spent one night on the boat when it got down to 26 degrees. You can still feel the cold coming through the hull from the cold water, but the air temp remained warm and generally comfortable.Good luck,Wynn FerrelS/V Tranquility

 

[Johnnie Engesser]

Without question 16K unit

I reviewed the previous two responses and would agree completely with all of Wynn's remarks. We live in Atlanta and have our boat on a large lake north of Atlanta with the same kind of conditions. The unit on our boat is a 16,000 btu Marine Air reverse cycle system and it works fine. However, I wouldn't think of having anything smaller. In any event the cost difference between 12K and 16K is insignificant and they both have the same size foot print.Our unit was installed in the same way it would have been installed by the factory by a professional marine dealer from Florida. The only exception being that we had the vent for the main cabin exit from the vberth starboard hanging locker through the bulkhead instead of in the face of anyone working at the nav station. There is a diagram in the owner manual for the AC layout. My only other suggestion is to have an additional power supply added for the air unit.Johnnie Engessers/v Grace

 

[Wayne]

AC on my 340

I recently purchased al of the materials necessary to install air conditioning with reverse cycle heat. It is a 16,000 BTU unit made my Mermaid and I plan to install it myself this fall. The unit comes with most everything you need to install it. 16,000 BTU is the largest unit you can run on 30 A shore power and should be adequate for your 340 in the NE. As far as placement goes, there are drawings that should have come with your 340 showing general ductwork layout and location of the compressor / exchanger. I would suggest you look an another 340 with AC already installed in order to get an understanding of where everything goes. As far as installing it yourself, it take about 40 hours if you have all of the necessary tools such as 4 and 6 inch hole saw and good mechanical and electrical skills. I am installing the seawater pump and strainer in the bilge area. I installed the required thru-hull last year when the boat was hauled out. Marine Air also makes a good unit and many Hunters have that as original equipment. They have a great web site with lots of good information and installation suggestions. Good luck with whatever you do. The 340 is designed to have the main cabin supply vent and the thermostat control in the hanging locker above the nav station, the forward V-berth supply vent in the hanging locker on the starboard side and the aft cabin supply vent in the wet hanging locker in the head. The return air is via a vent into the setee where the compressor unit is installed. The evaporator/compressor/exchanger is mounted under the starboard setee where you sit when at the nav station. Hope this helps. I have mixed feelings about hauling around all that stuff but the Admiral will enjoy the boat on the hot humid July and August days when there is no wind and too hot to sail. 16,000 BTU is adequate for here in North Carolina where in is hotter and more humid than where you are. There are things you can do to improve the cooling efficience like covering hatches and the windshield with an insulated cover to reduce heat ingress. Hope this information helps.

 

[Robert Dean]

HUnter AC

When I purchased my 1989 HL35 a few years ago it had a 16,000 BTU heat pump installed in the head under the sink. I had to rework the plenium chamber because it had just too many leaks. Used a metal home style AC floor vent from Home Depot, blocked the 4 by 12 inch end with plywood and drilled three 3" holes for the duct piping. I then coated the metal vent and plywood end with that foam insulation stuff. Spray it on, let it expend, sit for a while then you can shape it with water and a wet hand to reduce its size and fill all the cracks etc.For duct work I purchased a set of 3" plastic fittings, elbows, "T"s,"Y"s gate valves, and piping (flexiable duct tubing) from a wood working catalogue. The 3" plastic piping and fittings are used in the work shop for the saw dust vacuming systems: gate valves are tight too. The fittings work great especially the gate valves to reduce flow to little used areas. The ac works great as I have the largest amount of cool air flowing to the main cabin. At night I open the gate valves for flow to the v berth and aft port cabin. Heat pumps are the only way to go. We have many boats in the marina with the external blow in AC types that run all the time and the condensation drips all over the cabin top and deck(s). I would never walk off and leave any electrical unit runing when not aboard - sort of like taking a swim while the water boils. Sail on - Stay coolBob Dean