Moving More Air

When your RV’s air-conditioning system can’t keep up with high outside temperatures, a well-positioned portable fan can make a big difference in comfort.

During the “dog days of summer” one of the last things you really want to discover is that the enclosed space you’ve elected to spend at least some of your days in — your RV — has become something of a thermal magnet. There’s a reason why the roof is white — to reflect solar heat to reduce heat buildup inside. It mostly works, but when it’s near triple digits outside, your RV’s air-conditioner may have a tough time keeping up.

One way to help the A/C system is to employ good old-fashioned, strategically placed fans. We know — fans don’t actually cool the air. But by displacing the warmer air around us, they improve the air’s ability to evaporate sweat from your skin. Technically, it’s called “convective heat transfer” — but all you need to know is, yes, a fan can and will cool you down. And portable fans can do a great job of moving air.

One that I’ve relied on for many years is the Atwood Endless Breeze, which apparently has been discontinued, but there are other choices.

A fan that has mustered quite a bit of attention on social media is the Mengnessly USB Mini Ceiling Fan, which can be mounted just about anywhere, including over your head in the bedroom. Its svelte size with 6-inch blades drops down only 7.9 inches, making it easy to mount on the ceiling with the built-in hook. You have to use some creativity when mounting; a number of people hooked it to Command-brand hooks, Atomic Tape and hook-and-loop fasteners. Power is provided by a USB connection via a 69-inch cable.

Perhaps the best part about these “mini fans” is their price. For example, Amazon sells the basic Mengnessly fan for only $17.80; if you want to spring for $28.80, you’ll also get the speed and time remote.

If you need to move some air around, the O2 Cool 10-inch fan can be powered by the internal rechargeable batteries, 8-D cell batteries or via adapters for 120-volt AC and 12-volt DC service. It’s perfect for boondockers or when a little help is needed distributing cool air from the air-conditioner(s). It sells for $74.99 at Camping World.

Yet another fan that seems to have promise is the RoadPro RP8000 (you can find it on Amazon), a 10-inch indoor/outdoor unit, which also runs on either a 12-volt DC connection or 8 D-cell batteries. There are a lot of other choices — search for “12-volt fans” on Google or Amazon, and you’ll be amazed at the results.

If you want to stay cool on hot days, one thing that can help immensely is to start the cooldown process early in the day — it’s easier for an A/C system to maintain the set temperature rather than battle with higher initial interior temps — and experiment with running the individual air-conditioners. Of course, power availability dictates the use of multiple air-conditioners but experimentation with RV placement on different sites, the use of sun/heat deflection materials (especially on windows) and judicious placement of portable fans will keep the dog days of summer more comfortable — at least inside.