Installing AC in a Hunter 31

[Len7182]

AC for Hunter 31

Thanks RJ for the response. At this time we only plan to use the AC when plugged in at the dock. When anchored out on the river it does cool down nicely in the evening.I have spoke about this topic with other sailors and we all have the same opinon that you would need to toe a dingy full of batteries around behind the boat to use it when under sail or motoring somewhere. Your trip to Mexico sounds great. We would be interested in how it turns out.Len

 

[Len7182]

We have recently purchased a 1987 Hunter 31. I would like to install a Marine AC unit in this boat and am looking for some suggestions and pointers (dos and don't) as to what brand, and where to put the unit. Also, what is a good BTU size to purchase? Would like to hear from anyone.Thanks from the heat and humitidy capital of the country.

 

[RJ9757]

A quick question...

Are you planning to use the AC when under sail, or only when hooked up to shore-power? Finding a unit to operate on shore-power will be easy and relatively cheap, with compact portable AC powered air conditioning units readily available for less than a grand. On my 87 H31, when I was berthed in So. Cal., this was the easist solution. I've been looking for something to install for a trip down to Mexico, and so far, here's what I know: for air-conditioning when underway, a water cooled system such as the 'Cool Mate' won't draw an excessive amount of power, relatively speaking, but it's a bit more expensive, takes a while to install, and you need to find somewhere to place the thing, which is 11" x 16" x 8". There's plenty of room under the starboard lazarette, though. But it's kind of a hassle to work down there, and you need to route the conditioned air from the unit into the cabin somehow, through a hole below the ice box, possibly. 5000 BTUs draws 3.6 amps, 10000 BTUs draws 6.8; in St. Louis I'd think you'd need 10K, plus an inverter, of course, and a REALLY good house battery to be halfway comfy.

 

[RJ9757]

Cheap? No.... but frugal, sometimes.

Well, you might consider this a bit tacky, but every time I get anything designated 'marine' there sims to be some sort of 'sin tax' associated with it... somehow we get ripped off because we have sailboats. Anyway, after sending you my earlier post, I went to pick up some stuff for my car at Pep Boys, and there was a 7500 BTU portable air-conditioning unit there for less than half what I paid for my 7000 BTU unit a few years ago. Not that I'm cheap, mind you... well, actually I guess I am, sometimes... but you might check it out before you buy something through a marine supplier.$399, and it looks like it would fit nicely in my H31. One note, however.... I find that high amp loads tend to trip my AC power breaker, and you might need to bypass the boat's AC wiring when you plug in a high draw unit... at my marina I can run an extension cord directly to the shore power source, if needed. For example, I can't run the microwave and the heater simultaneously, but maybe that's just a glitch with my boat. Hasta luego - Rick

 

[Tim Welsh]

King Air

I have a King Air system on my boat. I don't know how many btu's it is but does a fine job down here a little south of you. A friends hunter 34 has a 10,000 btu system and it is a little on the small side for his boat so I am guessing mine is larger than his. or he has a problem with his. I have one vent in the v birth and one in the galley area, works well and I can run a tv, microwave, charge batterys for misc tools and the a/c at the same time without tripping any breakers. Tim Welsh H34 AKA Cabo Wabo

 

[Tim Opt Holt]

Mermaid unit

I have a 12,000 BTU Mermaid unit that I installed under the starboard lazarette. It vents into the saloon and keeps the cabin comfortable at night. I'm able to maintain a 6-10 degree temperature differential. If it's 86 outside, I'm able to cool the cabin to 76 before the unit freezes-up, because it runs so long to maintain a greater difference. The v berth tends to get stuffy, so I sleep with the dining table down or aft.

 

[Ed Schenck]

Mermaid also.

My H37C probably has about the same interior volume as your newer H31. The 12K Mermaid does the job on Lake Erie. But unlike Tim I installed mine so that it draws its intake air from the cabin. It will drop the temp from 90 to 80 in less than an hour. We keep the main cabin and v-berth at around 74 even with an outside temp of 90+. The cooler waters of Erie have a lot to do with that.Like Tim we did not run duct work. We felt that the loss of storage space was too high a penalty. Those ducts take up a lot of room. The unit sits in a cabinet in the quarterberth and blows out under the nav table. A fan in the galley directs cool air into the q-berth where the thermostat resides. Otherwise it gets too cold before the unit shuts off. Fifth summer and never a problem, knock on teak.And we can run the unit on our Honda 2000W generator(requires a good inverter for startup). But like you said there is rarely a need since it is generally cooler at anchor.