Things to Remember When Buying a Marine Air Conditioner

There are few things nicer than going from a really hot environment into a nice, cool air conditioned room. The great thing is that you don’t have to leave this wonderful feeling when you leave your house and head out to sea on your boat. You can have an air conditioner installed on your boat so that you can escape from the heat. However, there are some things that you should consider when you are shopping for a marine air conditioner.

The first thing you should consider when you are shopping for an air conditioner for your boat is size. You need to know how long your boat is and how much of it is going to be cooled before you go out and buy a unit. Once you know how long your boat is, it is much easier to figure out how big of an AC unit you will need. Don’t get one that is too big. You don’t need a 24,000 BTU unit for a 25 foot boat. It will only be a waste of cool air and power.

Speaking of power, you need to make sure that your boat is outfitted for the unit you buy. It would be a shame if you bought an air conditioning unit for your boat only to find that you couldn’t power it. If your boat only offers DC power, then you need to avoid units that require direct current (DC). Become very familiar with what kind of electricity your boat will have available. You will avoid a lot of trouble that way.

You also want to figure out where you want to install the unit. This is important because different models discharge the cool air in different directions. Some units discharge it out of the top; others discharge it to the left or the right. Keep this in mind when buying a unit so that you can make installation a lot easier on yourself.

Once you have bought your air conditioner and installed it, you need to make sure that there are enough air ducts for it. Imagine your unit pumping out all of that cool air but only having one duct for it to escape through. You would waste a lot of cool air and your cabins won’t be evenly cooled. If your boat doesn’t have enough air ducts, then you should take some time to add a few and run all the duct work. Usually, the more ducts, the better the air is distributed.

Finally, you may want to consider heat when you are buying your air conditioner. Many AC models have a reverse cycle that will work a lot like a heater. If you really don’t think that you’ll ever need it, then don’t worry much about it. But it is always nice to have the option just in case you do need it. You never know when a really chilly night may come along and leave you shivering.

So, when you are shopping for an air conditioning unit for your boat, remember to:

• get the right size unit
• a unit that will work with the kind of power your boat has
• a unit that discharges cool air in a convenient direction
• have enough air ducts so the air can be distributed evenly
• get a unit with an alternate heating option

Remember all of these things and you will have a unit that will leave you cool and happy.