Portable cruise air versus central air.

[Christian Sailing]

We have a 28 ft irwin and the wife has agreed to do some extended cruising but cool air is a condition of terms with the home schooling aspect.
I would like to hear the pros and cons of central versus portable.
Thanks.

 

[Ed Schenck]

"Extended cruising" means time away from the shorepower. Cool air is going to be at a premium regardless which way you go. But central air is much more efficient because it is water-cooled. It is also smaller, lighter, and not something that has to be moved and stored. And, naturally, it is nearly double the cost.

My own Mermaid occupies the bottom of a small locker. I did not want to use storage space for duct work. It simply blows out under the nav station.

 

[Cayennita]

You can not possibly carry enough battery power to use an a/c without shorepower. If you plan on being at a dock then a built in is nice. I used a deck hatch unit for many years on my Hunter Legend 35 when I lived aboard in Annapolis and also when we moved it to the Virgin Islands. When I bought a 51 footer I kept the unit to cool the main salon until 2 a/c units were permanently installed. I would chose the portable unit for your boat because of space constrictions. Unless there is a locker you are willing to sacrifice. I you want a built in, I would install a unit either at the bottom of the hanging locker or under the quarter berth. 3 rd choice would be against the bulkhead in the lazareth.

 

[Bill Roosa]

AC can be had while off of shore power but you need a dedicated genset and all the assorted stuff to connect it to the AC, fuel storage......
The other option is a MOMBO inverter and alternator and run the engine all the time the AC is on.
both of these defeat the idea of a sail boat as you have to listen to an engine run to have cool air.
OR
you could invest in a fan-mister (squirt bottle of water with a fan attached to the cap) which work when the relative humidity is below 70%ish. Above that they don't work so well as the water can't evaporate and take the body heat away.
also consider sun screens for the decks. i use these and they do make the cabin about 10 degrees cooler when the sun is shining. Don't do a dang thing when the sun goes down and the night is hot though.

If you spend a sufficient amount of time in hot weather you eventually get used to it
FWIW

 

[RECESS]

Cruisair makes a permanent AC unit that is only 8 inches high that would cool your boat. It is a 16,000 btu unit. It is called the Breeze Low Profile. It is more expensive than a portable but probably more of what you are looking to achieve. It is what I would like to have on my Oday 25. I do small cruises so the portable works for me. If I was going to be a live aboard cruiser I would pony up the $2500+ for one of these units.

http://www.dometic.com/enie/Interna...-Self-Contained/products/?productdataid=93808

 

[srhummer]

ditto all the comments about AC shile cruising. If you are looking for AC at the pier I have tried a used carry on top hatch unit that I got in Annapolis - it did NOT keep the boat cool, only the Vberth where I had it in the hatch. Salon was warm and the after cabin was HOT so I returned it. I used a window AC in the companionway hatch for the rest of last summer and while it kept the boat cool it was a PITA to get in and out of the boat with it there. I got a 7K quote to put a central AC unit in, so I bought a 11000BTU Reverse Cycle AC kit (had everything I needed except the wiring to the AC Pannel) from Defender for 2300 this winter and put it in my self - a little bit of $ and work but well worth it. Nice and cool in all spaces, will even be better if I can get the 3rd air duct ran to the after cabin. Will also provide heat when it starts getting cold. The posts on the site (several) helped me with the size and placement for the AC and for the ducting. Best of luck with whichever way you chose to go.

 

[Ross]

How do you find a difference between central air and a hatch unit on a 28x8 foot boat? How many staterooms do you have on that boat?

 

[BillyK]

i have a portable unit i'm selling if you're interested.. i'll let it go cheap to get it out of my garage..

 

[srhummer]

The H34 has 2 cabins - one foreward and one aft of the main salon. So yes you can tell a difference.

 

[berner73]

Cruisair makes a permanent AC unit that is only 8 inches high that would cool your boat. It is a 16,000 btu unit. It is called the Breeze Low Profile. It is more expensive than a portable but probably more of what you are looking to achieve. It is what I would like to have on my Oday 25. I do small cruises so the portable works for me. If I was going to be a live aboard cruiser I would pony up the $2500+ for one of these units.

http://www.dometic.com/enie/Interna...-Self-Contained/products/?productdataid=93808

Dave, do you have any personal experience with this unit or are you just going by the product description? It's intriguing but looks to be for much smaller spaces than the below decks of a 25-28' sailboat.

 

[Tonto's Revenge]

BillyK....how much? I've got a friend in Cape May that can pick it up for me.