Soft Start

[Bvm6143]

Has anyone installed a Soft Start on their Coolkat air conditioner. Have heard great things about them. Is their claims truthful?

Barry
2009 RT 210 Versital

[hbn7hj]

I installed the MicroAir EasyStart. Works very well. Not much of a change in generator sound when the compressor kicks in whereas it used to make one wonder if the generator was gonna quit.

It is not an easy install as the Cool Cat must come off the roof. MicroAir will send you a schematic on how to wire it up and they may even send you the pictures I sent them on how to do it.

[mikeehlert]

The soft start really works. Reduces starting current surge from 54 amps to 24 amps on a 15k AC. Head over to RVtravel.com, Facebook RVelectricity page, or Mike Sokol on YouTube for the testing and results.

[MarCorpsMustang]

I have. Works good.

[Bvm6143]

Thanks for the help. Will require 2 people to pull the koolkat?

[hbn7hj]

Originally Posted by Bvm6143

Thanks for the help. Will require 2 people to pull the koolkat?

Two people and two ladders unless someone has another technique.

[wny-pat]

Originally Posted by hbn7hj

Two people and two ladders unless someone has another technique.

Yep, a Sikorsky S-64 "Skycrane" helicopter. But a much smaller helicopter would be just fine. Or a cherry picker crane or bucket.

[MarCorpsMustang]

We have a Dometic A/C, and I did the work myself (one person). The SoftStart installation manual and product support are both excellent.

[Road Toad]

Originally Posted by hbn7hj

I installed the MicroAir EasyStart. Works very well. Not much of a change in generator sound when the compressor kicks in whereas it used to make one wonder if the generator was gonna quit.

It is not an easy install as the Cool Cat must come off the roof. MicroAir will send you a schematic on how to wire it up and they may even send you the pictures I sent them on how to do it.

As relates to my 03C190, does the AC unit come off upwards or out back, or forward and inside (as I saw on an RT 01D190V YouTube)?

[hbn7hj]

Originally Posted by Road Toad

As relates to my 03C190, does the AC unit come off upwards or out back, or forward and inside (as I saw on an RT 01D190V YouTube)?

Out the back. Held by the four small screws at the back and nothing else. You need to do nothing from the front. You will have to remove a panel at the top to disconnect the AC line. There is also a 12 volt control and power connector.

[engnrsrule]

I just installed the SoftStartRV on my Roadtrek and it works great.

I have a Dometic/DuoTherm roof AC, and those models apparently have significant variation so there was not a preset wiring diagram on the SoftstartRV.com website. However their very knowledgeable service tech walked me through it on the phone. They can do this for virtually any make or model.

I can now run my roof AC (which is on a 20 amp breaker) with my shore tie hooked up to a 15 amp household outlet. Looking forward to superior comfort this summer!

Another piece of advice that I like was to use only the terminals they provide, because they allow you to return your system to original configuration if something ever goes wrong. You don't remove any original wires or parts, this just adds on and basically installs between the starting capacitor and the compressor. Easy Peasy.