Air conditioners for trucks are essential for business-related transportations that need to travel for a long time. Although not everyone realizes it, making truck drivers cool and convenient contributes to the overall safety of the entire journey. One way to do this is to install specialized vehicles with a truck DC air conditioner.
What Is a Truck DC Air Conditioner?
This type of air conditioner is also called a portable truck air conditioner. It is heavy-duty that can thrive in difficult situations and possesses awesome features, such as anti-vibration, strong cooling capacity, and high reliability. It can also run on batteries so drivers can keep cool even when parking.
A truck DC air conditioner is both portable and powerful. It uses a DC compressor, which is ideal for heavy-duty vehicles, trucks, off-road vehicles, and even electric cars. Since it runs on batteries, it is handy and can be brought anywhere.
For its air compressor, you can choose the one that runs on 12-volt, 24-volt, 48-volt, 60-volt, and 72-volt. If you only use it for light applications, such as filling your tires, it’s recommended to go with a 12-volt truck air conditioner. Meanwhile, for complex jobs, such as fixing suspension parts, a 24-volt truck air conditioner is the best solution.
Furthermore, this type of air conditioner is a parking cooler. This means that you can use it to keep a comfortable and cool environment when you need to rest overnight in a truck cabin.
The Advantages
The main feature of truck cabin air conditioners is to provide a convenient and cool working environment for drivers. Along with that, these devices also have other essential advantages. Some of them are:
- Fast and easy installation that doesn’t require touching the engine
- Simple mounting
- Completely runs on electrical power
- Operates efficiently regardless of whether the engine is running or not
- Promotes comfort, contributing to the overall safety of both the driver and the vehicle
- Battery-operated, reduces the problems of CO2 emissions
- Less maintenance
- Fewer fuel costs
- Eco-friendly
The Common Features
To provide the most comfortable and efficient cooling solution to trucks and other heavy equipment, truck DC air conditioners are equipped with advanced features. Let’s take a closer look at them.
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Lightweight and Small
They are portable and takes less space, about 0.7 cu ft. space, making them suitable for compact vehicles as well.
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Easy Installation
When you purchase a portable air conditioner, it will come with a user’s manual that consists of a guide on how to install the unit easily. Even if it is your first time, you can install the air conditioner with no difficulties.
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No Fuel Required and No Noise
Since it is battery-operated, it does not require any fuel to function. Therefore, it can help save fuel up to 3,000 gallons annually. Moreover, it does not produce any sound, and only generates little shocks, providing a pleasant working environment.
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Removable Filter Screen
The filter screen of these cooling systems are removable, so you can clean them easily on a regular basis. The design is intended to make it convenient and easy to maintain, so users can enjoy fresh and cool air at all times.
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Can Function When Engine Is Off
Also known as no-idle air conditioners, these truck cooling systems can run effectively even when the vehicle is not running or the engine is turned off. This is to ensure that even when taking a rest from a long drive, drives can still enjoy a cool temperature.
The Applications
DC air conditioning units for trucks are used in a variety of applications. These include:
- Tractors and other agricultural machinery
- RVs/EVs, minibusses, and vans
- Forklifts, sweepers, and mining trucks
- All types of truck cabins
How to Maintain Your Truck’s Air Conditioner
It is essential that you clean and maintain your truck’s air conditioner to ensure it functions optimally at all times. This is also to help prolong its service life. Here are some tips on how to do this:
- Clean the condenser regularly. This is to prevent the pressure of the condenser to go up as well as keeping the refrigeration capacity to go down.
- Clean air supply channels once a month.
- Clean the evaporator. Remove the fan or protect it with plastic. Then, cover the return air mouth and electric control box with plastic. This is to avoid water from going into the truck. Clean the evaporator with water as well as the sundries. Do this every month as well.
- Inspect from the liquid mirror and see to it that the refrigerating liquid is sufficient. If the liquid is clear and there are no steaming bubbles, the refrigerant is fine. However, if thee are many steam bubbles present, it may mean insufficient refrigerant and must continue to inject.
- Inspect pipe joints occasionally as well as the screws and bolts.
- When the aircon is running, check if there is an unusual smell or if there is any ringing vibration. If these are present, stop using the aircon right away and have it checked by a skilled professional.
- For the compressor lubricant, run the aircon for twenty minutes and turn it off. Then, inspect the oil level from the compressor window. If the level is less than ¼ of the observation window, you have to add more lubricant. Similarly, inspect the color of the oil. If it is bad, cloudy, or dark, you have to replace it right away.
- Check the compressor shaft seal for any signs of leakage.
- Lastly, check the compressor belt.
