Air conditioner

[Don Reider]

We are considering buying a Mermaid 16,500 BTU air conditioner. Have people had a good experience with this unit compared to other makes? Also, we are considering venting to just the saloon since it will be located under a settee in the saloon and we don't want to give up a lot of storage to run hoses to the V birth and quarterbirth. We will circulate the air using fans for which we have installed 12 volt plug outlets both forward and aft. Has anyone done this and felt it was successfull?

 

[Ed Schenck]

Did exactly that.

On my H37C the Mermaid(12K) I built a new shelf in the bottom of the quarterberth cabinet. It is a right side discharge so I cut a hole in the bulkhead that exits right under the nav table. A nice teak grate completes the installation, no ducts. In fifteen minutes it takes the temp from 90 to 80 in the main salon. Takes longer to circulate to the v-berth and quarterberth of course. I took the boat out early this season so have no experience with the heater.And I did this with one new hole, the discharge through the bootstripe. Used a 'T' valve on the engine water inlet since I cannot run the engine and the A/C at the same time anyway.

 

[Joe Dickson]

A/C

We have a Cruise-air system installed in our port settee. The intake is in the side of the settee and the duct runs through the settee, then through the bottom of the hanging locker across from the head, to a duct box made from teak, that runs up the aft side of the port bulkhead. The teak duct then continues up through the shelf that makes up the top of the hanging locker.There is a 6" vent mounted on the teak duct that comes through the top of the locker, which faces into the salon. A 4" vent is mounted on the v-berth side of the bulkhead, opposite the salon vent. The salon and the v-berth cool off quickly and stay very cool as well. The quarter berth however takes a while to cool down. A small oscillating table fan helps immensely...

 

[John Mavrovich]

Happy with Mermaid

Don't hesitate to call them to discuss your boat and planned installation. I found them to be very helpful. They suggested unit location and venting. Three seasons w/o a problem.

 

[Alex]

Mermaid 12000BTU does fine..

..for my 37 footer ( and my friend' 40 Footer..)for saloon and V-berth front cabins, even in our hot Mediteranean summer..I installed the unit under a saloon berth , which inside walls I covered with 2.5 inch thick good quality noise insulation/absorbent material.It cut the noise 50 % or more !!.From my-and friends- experience , -on any brand- the bigger the units , the noisier they get..My advice -if you intend to use it with one (main saloon)outlet, to buy the smallest unit that can do.. Make sure to buy their "Condensator" unit (not included in standard kit), it's magic , and it empty the excess water tray( from humidity) by venturi effect .I would advise it to ANY brand of Air condition ;cheap, simple ,no pump no electricity.. Mermaid have -by my experience- good service and advice , before and after . I don't have experience with other marine A-C brands.