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Writer's pictureReuben Diachenko
May 19, 20214 min read

YouTube Weekly VLOG | EP21 | Airstream Heat Pump Struggles - Air Quality & Filters - ViAir Portable

Updated: Oct 8, 2021

LOCATION

On contract in Fort Defiance Arizona (staying in Gallup, NM)



CAIRN TRAVELER VLOG | EP 21

Life has been kind of off-track since coming back from South Carolina (I went straight into another run of 5 nights at work and somehow never got caught up on sleep), so this week was a bit low on adventure as I used the days off to try to get life back to some sort of consistency. I thought you might be interested in the limits of the Airstream Dometic heat pumps so I talk about that. I’ve also found a high degree of dust in the air conditioning system and just blowing around the rig so this week I reinforce the intake filters with another layer and hopefully increase the air quality. I have also finally ordered an internal Clear Source 3 stage water filter due to the poor water quality here at the campground and hopefully that install will be next week. After having a low tire pressure alert this week, I demo the awesome ViAir 40047 400P-RV Automatic Portable Compressor Kit that I keep in the truck. Finally, just some talk about long term financial goals and pursuing your dreams.


This is actually last week’s VLOG - sorry it’s posting late - hopefully I’ll get back up to date shortly.

Be creative and find your adventure this week!! ✌️😎



Airstream Heat Pump Struggles

I've found that for the most part the built in Dometic heat pumps can keep up farely well though at night, they can falter in the 30-40s range. This can create a bit of a distraction while trying to sleep because it also kills the fans (which are otherwise on all the time for the whitenoise). If the heat pumps fail for long enough the automatic setting on the thermostat will ultimately switch to the propane furnace (which prevents your plumbing from freezing). And I do miss the wonderfully toasty floors of the propane furnace (the heat pumps spread hot air from the A/C vents) but I'm not paying extra for electric so it makes more sense to use that resource when available.


Air Quality & Filters

I vacuumed out the dual A/C air intakes and noticed a good bit of dust up in the intake (having got past the meager RV air filter under the metal cover). I also noticed quite a bit of dust clinging to the ceiling around the air vents themselves, leading me to realize that the A/C was just blowing a lot of dust around (I’ve also noticed an intermittent dry cough while in the rig) - between me and and dog and being in the desert this is not unexpected. I started looking for any solutions for air filters which would be closer to a residential-style insert. I wasn’t able to find a residential style filter to fit the Airstream vents but I was able to find some register vent material which I was able to place behind the RV air filters to hopefully reinforce the filtering process. I will plan to change these every month when I detail clean the air intakes. I’ve already noticed a reduction in both the dust coming out of the air vents and in the cough I had.


ViAir Portable Air Compressor

While I don’t use this very often, it is an amazing RV item to have handy. Unless you’re on the tractor trailer side of most gas stations, the traditional air pumps only go up to about 60 PSI, which is fine for vehicle tires but RV tires are typically over 60 PSI. This compressor has a working PSI of 150 so should cover almost all RV tire needs. It conveniently works off your D/C vehicle batteries and is super handy for being able to refill tires independent of finding an air pump or gas station. The extension with this kit allows you to easily reach your RV tires while still hooked up to your tow vehicle battery.



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PRODUCTION NOTES

Audio: RODE VideoMic PRO+, RODE Wireless GO, Apple AirPods Pro, and Device Native Mics

Editing: Adobe Premier Pro (Creative Cloud)

Music: Epidemic Sound, MUSICBED, Soundstripe, YouTube Music Library


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