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Old 12-06-2015, 06:28 PM   #1
truesdac
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Default Reducing Height of 3124KS in open/deployed position

As background for this question. I once owned a 1995 2720SL. I eventually sold it when it became too much of a maintenance problem due to rotting wood and sagging walls and because we were moving to a subdivision that did not allow driveway storage of a trailer. Now we are in a new house that has a nice garage. Near the coast, it is an elevated house with two garage doors (9' wide x 8' high) and 52' lanes (overhead ceiling 112").


I am in the market for a 3124KS that I intend to park in the back of the garage. I would love to be able to open the Trailmanor in the garage to load and tinker with in. Otherwise I would have to move it to the driveway where, technical, I'm not supposed to have it overnight. According to specs, the 3124KS is 102.5" tall + air conditioner. The factory a/c looks like it will make it at least 117" tall. This is a problem. Ironically, the old Trailmanor I had was equipped with a side-mounted A/C and would have fit fine.

The question is has anyone retrofitted a lowered profile air conditioner which will add less than 10" to the height of the Trailmanor?

Thanks,
Charlie
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Old 12-07-2015, 12:43 AM   #2
BrucePerens
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Crank down the stabilizers until all weight is off the wheels. Take the wheels off. Crank up the stabilizers, stopping before you lower any pipes, etc., into the floor.

If it wasn't bad for the tires, you could just let the air out. But you can safely only get an inch or two before this becomes bad for the tires.

Some homes have enough space between floors that you can cut a hole in the plasterboard ceiling for the AC to rise into. Note that it swings up, so the hole has to be longer than the A/C. Use plasterboard to seal the opening on the sides, so that it doesn't become a place for rodents to enter the framing.
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Old 12-07-2015, 06:50 AM   #3
scrubjaysnest
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The newer TM's already come with the lowest profile AC unit out there. If you go Bruceperens route check your stabilizers out as mine are not rated to lift the TM.
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Old 12-07-2015, 08:52 AM   #4
truesdac
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Thanks for the replies. I agree that taking the wheels off and lowering it on the corner jacks will probably work and I will probably go with that solution initially. I was looking for an easier way.

Short of buying a TM without an air conditioner (not practical in the South) or buying an older model without the side air conditioner, I was looking into the difficulty of replacing the factory unit, which adds 14-1/2", with a new low profile or ultra-low-profile unit.

Two examples are the Dometic Penguin II, which claims only 9-1/2" above roof line or the Coleman Mach 8 (http://www.rvcomfort.com/rvp/products/rooftop/mach8.php), which claims only 8" above roof line. The inside part of these (using 2" into the trailer) may be the limiting factor. Any experience with these?

Charlie
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Old 12-07-2015, 11:05 AM   #5
rtcassel
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Default One owner's solution

http://www.trailmanorowners.com/foru...shed#post72555
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Old 12-07-2015, 11:13 AM   #6
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Just having two bare wheels and two wheel dollys could provide both manoeverability and be a few inches (8" ?) lower.
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Old 12-07-2015, 11:24 AM   #7
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I don't see a problem as long as the new unit needs a hole in roof that is the same size as the old one. If the new unit needs a smaller hole, you'll get involved with shimming and braci g, which may be a pain.

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Old 12-07-2015, 11:30 AM   #8
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Tim,

Thanks for the link. Very interesting. While I'm not quite ready to cut slots in my slab, the link provided some good pictures. Now I can see why the low profile air conditioner adds 14-1/2" due to the roof platform its mounted on. Not sure what the purpose of that is but I'll guess I'll wait and see when I have a TM in the flesh.

Charlie
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Old 12-07-2015, 11:37 AM   #9
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Padgett, Thanks for the link to the wheel dollies. It looks like they will be useful to move around the TM without putting the wheels back on as long as sitting the hubs on them still provided the needed headroom.

Bill, I've looked at a few of these RV roof A/C's and there seems to be a standard to have a 14" x 14" opening. I will need to verify this with an actual TM.

Thanks,
Charlie
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Old 12-07-2015, 12:21 PM   #10
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Now am curious. My '06 has a Coleman Mach III and while the AC is not very high it is sitting on a 2" spacer. Anyone know what the spacer is for ?
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