What is best marine Air conditioner brand?

Coleman offers a roof top unit for salty weather use and is labeled Marine use. it is fully sealed for all weather conditions both inside and out.

 

mini marine ac AC/DC

We found a compact Mini 4200 BTU, available in 115V, 230V 12V or 24V DC, at the Fort Lauderdale boat show, after running several hours the Luhrs 40 open salon dropped from 92F to 76F !! we were told that this unit was equipped with a 20 years rated CuNi condenser, reversing valve , hP switch, freeze protection, Supper high velocity high static pressure blower, stainless base, supper quiet R134a compressor, color display, vimar compatible bezel, life time warranty on the compressor, anodizer evaporator, sliding filter, for just $1750 list, was operating out of a 1000W portable Honda gen set in econo mode!! the pump was DC with a PM motor, the fan was also DC, the total Amps 2.8A including the pump on 115V was very impressive.
The test on 12V DC came out also the same: the system was able to switch over from AC to DC automatically, on AC power was charging our batteries, 48A smart charger, we love that product, too bad they were sold out and we were only able to buy one for our demo boat.


them

 

The most important is reliability, most old units used to last 15 years or more, now most last only 5, here is why:


Durability: B30 coils not B10 like most CuNi 70/30 compared to 90/10.. B30 will last at least 10 years, B10 5 years
Efficiency: to create an efficient unit long lasting anti-mold/ bacteria Copper Fins and copper tubes, size of the tubes, compressor, size of the condenser to minimize the water flow and avoid calcium buildup, control digital time delay, auto mode fan, high static blower pressure.
Quiet: By design some units no not create too much vibrations or compressor noises, make sure you ask for demonstrations or visit Youtube videos.
Ease of install; compact rectangular configuration, rotatable blower, smallest foot print!!
Best integration to electronics: must be reliable, non loss memory, time delay compressor starting, low water flow, low air flow, freezing protection, low voltage, high voltage. network cable plugin, remote air return sensor.
Price of unit: not only the lowest, but available on Amazon, Ebay, Online Stores with excellent reviews
Warranty: No question asked, technician service call to your vessel, not just parts, live time compressor.
Availability of parts: All parts must be in stock.
The Ideal international Voltage: 230 units are 50/60HZ compatible.

 

Few Images of Self contained units.. most are efficient, quiet, but not all are equipped with anti-micrbial copper coils, nor B30 CuNi raw water cool coils.

 

Few choices lately but the most impressive is a Marine self contained 5000 BTU running on 12v and consuming only 25 amps, same unit adjust to a 3500 BTU at set point to run on 12v 20 amps, all components are state of the art 12v, permanent magnet variable speed Blower, Reversing valve, variable speed brushless Compressor, touch screen control.. the only problem is that the complete package including control, Vimar chrome bezel, 12V brushless pump and power supply to run this unit on 115V or 220V is $2400
Search 12V marine AC with heat.

 

Military marine self contained AC units are the best, the cost is about the same, they are very compact, quiet, the evaporator is made out of bronze antimicrobial fins, their blowers are stronger, heat, touch screen, stainless.. I do not understand why people buy garbage when they can get a MPS for the same price, they carry life time warranty on their compressors,
Best units offer very small sizes for small cabins, with heat, DC 12v variable speed, able to cool it but only drawing 20 amp@12V DC, used by police center consoles and coast guard vessels.. they also offer very large units made out titanium..

 

Mabruteam,
What brands are your recommendations

 

talking about old ones lasting longer, mine was new in 1971. 16k btu cruisair with 2 remote evaporators.
in 1992, compressor was replaced.
in 1998, I bought the boat.
It got rusty, but I took it apart couple times and sealed it in a layer of polyurethane and paint. went through and verified everything and added a large supco suction filter to dry and filter refrigerant going into the compressor.

I also run the thing on R290, which is pure propane. cools fine too. Charged to 70-75 psi low side and superheat of 10 to 16 *F. ONLY use the small torch bottles, they are dry and clean propane, not a wet mixture of propane, butane and other things like is filled into a gas grill cylinder. These marine units have a high pressure safety off switch, so when hi side gt to 400 psi, the compressor is turned off. My high pressure runs about 220 psi.

I have never had any serious failures. What tends to fail are start and run capacitors and start relays. Some years ago made a new compressor support plate from 1/8" aluminum plate.

Here it is repainted, I put it back in this month. Took it out to do some work in the bilge, and repainted the unit.

These use KING valves, they are back seated, mid seated , full seated. There is a small adjustment packing nut, your supposed to loosen before turning the valves.

To charge you open the valve by turning clockwise about a 1/2 turn. (mid seat)
After charge you shut them by turning counter clockwise (back seat)

Now a lot of dumb people mess up these valves using vice grips and fail to loosen the packing nut. DONT do that. I use a tap wrench, the collar squeezes down tight on the stem.

You never have to full seat them. That is used in transporting a new fully charged unit to the boat.

 

Installed a CTM Marine 16000 BTU unit earlier this year. Met the owner at last year's Ft. Lauderdale boat show, nice guy, explained to me about the units.

Quality materials, like the titanium coils (won't rust) and good price as well. The unit's comparable to the higher end dometic models. I had a dometic turbo go bad after a few years, and was able to swap it out with the CTM myself pretty easily. It was compatible with all of my dometic's cables and controls.

The unit ran throughout the summer like a champ, and I've used the reverse cycle heating on a couple of occasions already so far, works well CTM CT-16 Self-Contained Marine A/C 16,000 BTU's, 115V, 50/60 Hz https://citimarinestore.com/en/ctm-marine-air-conditioners/11908-ctm-ct16-16000-btu-marine-air-conditioner-115v-24101c.html

 

Has anyone seen a water to water variable speed hydronic unit? With modern scroll compressors? For marine use?

 

the most efficient carry inverter technology variable speed compressors, the ones with dual coil are quieter without vibration. Amazing power consumption, we tested a 7000 BTU 12V at full speed 27.8 amps including the permanent magnet brushless pump = to about 2.8 amps on 115v and 1.4 amp on 230V 50/60hz , those units are perfect for solar applications 12v, shore power 115V 230V 50/60hz applications, alternator 12V, also available 5000 and 12000 BTU

Very few carry copper coils with antimicrobial copper fins, this advantage also brings a better efficiency, no electrolysis between dissimilar metals, last longer. the water cool coil made out of Titanium, CuNi B10, CuNi B30.. after testing all of them for over 40 years the best that was proven over the years with Cruisair made in Richmond VA was the B30 70:30 CuNi, we see Hatteras form the 70s with turbo tech coils still doing going, the B10 is just plain garbage, and titanium welding in my opinion is not compatible with the rest of the unit, leaks are often reported after few years.
Drain Pan: Plastic composite, metal, I like a good chassis to hold all the components during heavy seas, the best results over the years is 316 stainless steel. drain must be designed to keep a minimum of water to avoid water splashing all over the place. Fan Blowers are just as important as compressors, some carry a high static pressure to supply air to multiple vents, some carry ceramic bearings to avoid frictions and failure, some are PM motors brushless to be quiet and strong static pressure.

smallest the better, removable blower, rotatable blower, L shape base, remote electrical, 15FT network cable, remote temp sensor, remote control non volatile memory, fault memory achieves.. are all a must.

keep is simple, a good color touch screen with auto fan speed, easy to read and operate, if you need a manual to figure out how to lower the temperature, this unit is not for you

if Price is a factor try to insist on water cool condensers made out of CuNi B30 70:30, stay away from the economical CuNi B10

A good unit doesn't need many parts over the years, but if eventually you need them Reviews are open books.