scs basement air unit replacement

[dave]

Is there a replacement unit available anywhere that would fit in the rear A/C bay just aft of door? some modifications would be acceptable such as duct tie in. My board looks like victim of loose wire syndrome. (#10 wire) bus is 17 years old, I fear I will be spending much time in that compartment, capacitors, compressors, fan motors etc. I don't like the look of roof air. The unit is a 27,000 BTU/H and has worked well since last serviced at Newell factory (at quite a hefty price) just before I bought it about 2 years ago. Somewhat of a tectard don't know how to post my info. correctly I have a 1996 45ft Newell tow 68 Bronco half cab my e-mail is dsr1948@icloud.com Thanks for any help Dave in Chelsea Michigan

[Ron Skeen]

Dave,
More than likely the only thing that is bad is the board and connections. Newell has the boards and Russ White might be able to fix yours. I have a 96 and have replaced the board in both basement units. This is a very common problem. All other component are pretty bullet prof. I have two spare units that came out of Steve 97 coach but no boards. The board change is a pretty easy do it your self job.

[Chester B. Stone, Jr.]

SCS-Victory RV & Truck Climate Control Repair Service is who I used to have mine rebuilt. You can Google to get their address and phone.

[NewellCrazy]

Dave,

If you have a bad board as a possible suggestion please contact this company.

SCS-Victory RV & Truck Climate Control Repair Service

They can repair or replace your basement AC board.

[dave]

Thanks Ron; I put a different capacitor in front unit last night. I went from 30 uf to 45 uf that I scavenged from my rear non working unit because compressor was humming and not kicking in. It held for several cycles through the night upon starting this morning it began humming. Humming 2 or three times before kicking in. Do you think its a failing compressor or maybe weak used capacitor? Was reading 150 and 35 degrees on gauges now blowing plenty cool but hard starting. Wife is on the way to Grangers to get right capacitor. I've got the rear board out was thinking of soldering black and white thhn or tw wires directly to board then wire nutting pig-tail to supply voltage and output load leads to eliminate loose wire reoccurrence. The rest of the board looks good. When working, the rear air cooled the whole coach nicely in Fla. at 90+ degrees. Thanks for the reassurance on scs was about to sell the farm and buy a 2 ton coleman unit, 10,000/20,000 btu for about $3,600 delivered

[Neweller]

Others I have spoken with have mentioned buying the Coleman units as they are used in several other box coaches. At least they will probably be around for another 20 years we hope. But nothing is more cost savings then the DIY method of repair. Sounds to me Dave, you have a knack for a good ole' soldering gun, so you are already miles ahead.

[dave]

Thank you Sean if the board is bad I'll give them a call tomorrow I'm bushed from trying to pack my belly into that narrow bay for the front air and standing on my head adjusting my glasses and getting my arms at the right length to see the slots on the screws to pull the back board. Ahhh the golden years

[dave]

I soldiered both ac inputs to the board, being careful not to let the soldier run together. Replaced the capacitor, Installed new one on second compressor just for insurance, checked for shorts and continuity. I ran it all day yesterday and everything seems to be working fine. It has been unseasonably cool so I am waiting till Wednesday high predicted of 86 degrees before buttoning up panels Thanks to all for the valuable input and reassurance. I am finding out that this forum is the best place to look before tackling any issue with my Newell. The more I work on it the more I love the coach. Regards Dave

[Neweller]

Great news Dave! Let's all keep our fingers crossed that it continues to work properly when the temps rise. Dave, you didn't by chance think of taking any pictures of the process of soldering the defective capacitor? I need to dig in and try a little more of that kind of repair. I have a couple of those soldering guns with the temp controls and need to try one out. I was thinking of practicing on a computer led monitor board that is defective from the Asus. This is my greenest ability area. lol

[dave]

Sorry Ken I did not take photos I first removed the existing connectors, carefully cleaned out the vacant holes by hand with a 1/16th drill bit, stripped about 3/4 inch off a one foot piece of wire and started clipping strands off until it fit snuggly into the hole. I then used two pieces of 1 inch Styrofoam pipe insulation 6 inches long ( the kind with a slit down one side) inserting the end edges of the board into the slits thus standing the board on its side so I could work on both sides at once but still had to rely on my wife to steady the board while I applied pressure with the gun on the top side and solder on the bottom I clipped off the excess wire on the bottom then reversed the gun and solder to firm up the top side connection. I repeated the process on the other three wires I then cut off about half of the wire, stripped the ends, installed the board and connected the #10 solid wire to the #12 stranded wire with wire nuts. So far so good but another problem has popped up in the front heater Thanks for all the advise and support Dave

[dave]

Ken I used #12 thhn but I think a softer more pliable wire with finer strands may work better??? Dave