[VAL] New AC

["Don Hardman" <donhardman@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

I finally make the decision to replace the old Armstrong on my 1976
Sovereign. It was still working but when temps got over 90 degrees it was
jut not cooling.

I decided on the Carrier Air V - HC 15,000 BTU unit. I was able to buy the
AC here in Houston at PPL on sale for $525. I also had PPL install the unit
for an additional $261. They had some experience with working on other
Airstreams and could install a fitting to the carrier to connect the
existing drain line in the Airstream so that the condensation would not just
run down the sides. More on this later.

The install job was to be honest not all that good. They had done nothing to
compensate for the flat interior AC cover and the curved Airstream ceiling.
After getting home and removing the cover I found that the 4 lag bolts
holding the unit on the trailer were at best on hand tightened.You could
actually see daylight between the exterior gasket and the roof in places. I
found out why, if you tightened the bolts it would pull the interior
mounting up flush with the ceiling and then the cover with its flat side
would not fit correctly on the mounting. Son in effect they had to leave the
4 lag bolts loose so that the mounting would hang lower  just a bit so that
the cover could be screwed on.

Oh well at least hey took off the old Armstrong and disposed of it and
lifted the new Unit on top with no damage to the roof. So now my task was to
come up some means to secure the unit properly by being able to tighten the
4 lag bolts according to the instructions until the exterior 1 1/2" gasket
had been evenly compressed to 60%.

My solution was to built a "gender mender" so to speak that would have a
curved side to match the ceiling and a flat side to accommodate both the
interior mounting and the cover. I made a pattern of the curved ceiling from
one of the Airstream light covers and then traced the outside line of the
cover on a large sheet of paper. I built the gadget from wood stock bought
at home depot and the end came up with a light weight that was slight wider
and longer than the cover with a 14" opening to match the opening in the
trailer I painted it to match the off white/tan color in the Airstream which
was also about the same color of the AC cover. I matched up the 14" opening
and secured it to the ceiling with screws. Now I had strong secure platform
to allow me to tighten the lag bolts a needed and then attach the cover with
no tell / tell gaps since it was placed on a flat surface. It not only looks
good but now the unit is also securely installed.