2 A/c Units in Trailer

Well, I think the kind folks here at RF have successfully convinced me to move away from that all-steel trailer.  I think my wallet will thank me for it, too.
 
I'm looking at an 8 x 24, maybe an 8 x 20.  The first trailer place I got a quote from recommended two a/c units.  I know that you can only cool down a trailer to tolerable levels, but is there any real benefit in having two air conditioners on board?  Ideally, they'd be placed away from the grill area.
 
Thanks and Happy Thanksgiving!
Steve
 
 
 
 

Steve, I don't have a/c in my trailer, but I don't really see the benifit /cost for a/c.... as soon as you turn on thr hood fan, all that air goes out the exhaust.... maybe useful after everything is off and you are cleaning up or doing prep.
2 units would also put quite a draw on your generator.

As chefbuba stated all the A/C cooled air would be exhausted by the ventilation hood and hot air will be drawn in from the outside thru the serving windows and door.  Any hope for cooling air would require a large oversize A/C.  ... A more practical & economical cooling may be achieved by a "swamp cooler" which draws air from the outside replacing the air exhausted thru the hood and creates a slight positive pressure at the serving window to prevent hot outside air from coming in.   Swamp coolers work well in most areas of the country and should keep the heat to manageable level during the hottest days with a cool breeze thru the trailer.
http://www.consumerenergycenter.org/home/heating_cooling/evaporative.html

Swamp coolers do not work well (or at all) when the humidity starts to climb. I know my daughters swamp cooler here in NM works great except on the rare occasions when they have a high humidity day. Swamp coolers do not work well in high humidity areas. We have never had one. I grew up in FL without an AC unit and in NC we had an AC unit but rarely used it. I know our RV's AC unit poured water when we were living in S GA, NC & TN  mountains due to the high humidity. Also when we lived in SC upstate, we would often have humidity levels in the high 90's. A swamp cooler wouldn't work there either.

lornaschinske ..... That is true and the temp difference is shown in the link above.  It works best in dry humid areas.   But since a swamp cooler is basically a fan blowing air thru a wet air filter, it can still be better than nothing even with a 3 or 4 degree temp drop and help blow the hot air out of the kitchen trailer.   It's power cost is about 1/4 that of a electric sandwich press (200 -300 watts).

I appreciate the input!  Either way, it's going to be HOT during the summers, so I'd better prepare myself for that.

I thought of putting an AC unit in my little trailer but ran into two problems. When the BTU output of my steam table and griddle are added up, I would need a monster sized unit to keep up on a hot day. Problem two was powering the thing with my little 2000 watt Yamaha generator.
 
My plan is to just knock off early on the REALLY hot days next year, around 2pm, or just take the entire month of July off period and be done with it. I wound up in the hospital this past July sucking juice out of an IV bag. I could not drink enough fluids to keep up with the heat in my wagon, it was running 130+. I guess I am not 18 any more.
 
Mike

A small AC would be good while doing prep work or cleaning and the cooking equipment is not on.   Also the AC could cool the trailer at night so as to be an over sized refrigerator/cooler to keep vegetables & perishables from ruining.   But when the grills & range are working on hot days, you need fans or blowers to blow the hot air out.   The inside temp should not be any higher than the outside temp.    ... When the outside temps are 100 deg plus, working conditions are dangerous and fast moving air from fans will only add to the problem by drying you out faster.

Argh!  So, what the heck do you guys/gals do to keep cool?  I'm in Virginia.  Our summers can get very hot, and they are always humid.  I'd rather not end up in the hospital.  That I do know.
 
 

Fans !!!  .... do not work during the hot part of the day in the hot summer,   work mid-morning thru lunch & late evening. Look for shady locations; ... your customers would like it too!
 
Make sure the vent hood is exhausting the hot air from the equipment.   This will draw air in from the outside and it would take 2 or 3 ton AC just to cool. This air is wasted thru the vent and is why AC's don't work in a kitchen trailer.
 
As I suggested, a swamp cooler will help except during the hottest & most humid days of the summer.

We have seen several concessions units here in Georgia with roof top air units. If you can power them then it would be nice to have a little cooling capabilities. Most seem to be mounted away from the exhaust hood so that you can at least get a cool breeze on you. We don't cook in our trailer so we don't have the same problem as you guys. The main problem we have encountered this year is getting enough power at the festivals to run it.

sheetserr


Argh!  So, what the heck do you guys/gals do to keep cool?  I'm in Virginia.  Our summers can get very hot, and they are always humid.  I'd rather not end up in the hospital.  That I do know.

 
I don't see staying cool as an option on a hot humid day. You just need to push the fluids and work during the cooler hours. The fan idea is good in principal, but what I found was that the fan (my exhaust fan over the griddle) just sucked in more hot air, turning my wagon into a convection oven.  
 
One thing I think you will find, is that during the real hot hours of the day in most areas sales will drop, as it is just to hot to eat. That was my experience as sales dropped right after noon on the really hot days. On a normal temp day, sales dropped around 1pm, but I still had steady sales right up till 3 to 4pm then it would take off again until 6pm or later as people got out of work.
 
I wish I had a better answer or even a solution that was cost effective and or doable that would keep a trailer at a steady 70 or 80 degrees on the hottest days, but I just don't see it happening. One thing that helps is soaking towels in a bucket of iced water, wrap around your neck to cool your brain, it helps.
 
Mike
 
 
 

We have noticed that the food carts in Albuquerque are out only at night. We don't operate at night unless for an event. But we also don't have big griddles, etc heating up the cart. And we try to keep the cart in the shade. The Snow Roof coating we put on the roof makes a BIG difference as the roof on our cart is only a single thickness of plywood. The sun is just a tad fiercer here than in NC!  But it's a DRY HEAT.. just like an oven! 

Like the old saying goes "If you can't stand the heat ..."
I have a 24ft with 2 ac's and I rarely run them. RV ac's are just not designed to try to cool in extreme heat situations. Here in West Texas summer it's common for the temperature to be 120 inside the trailer so we use high velocity fans, cooling towels and when you can, just step outside and get some air. On the electrical side one ac pulls about 15 amps so you are looking 30 amps just for the ac's.

Thanks for the feedback, folks.