What do you recommend for AC?

[Gypsy108]

Block Ice and a fan ?

 

[nature lover]

I think I would try solar powered multiple fans and window shades. You’d have to experiment with the thermometer but if you’re careful about where you park it could work.

 

[garlicbread]

Not trying to be nosey but how often will you be visiting a doctor? Think about having a friend watch the cat for an hour or two when you have an appointment, or maybe drop-off the cat at a groomer....either for actual grooming, or a simple 2 hour boarding service...some groomers will do that for a small fee.

There are other options. You can rent a motel room, the night before, that takes pets (bring fluffy's litter pan) have a nice shower, get a good nights rest,  then schedule your doctor appointment for 8 am, and if check out time is say, 11 am, this should give you time to visit the doctor and be back in time to pick up fluffy and check-out of the room. Yeah, it will cost a few bucks...but still cheaper than spending thousands on some fabbed up A/C system hanging out your window with a genset running on the back bumper.

And BTW...such systems are not 100% reliable, even if you could hang a residential window A/C unit in a small SUV window.

Good ideas. Thank you.

 

[treesprite]

I also have a concern about being able to keep my cats if I have to live in the van full time - I will probably have to give them up, which is my biggest fear.

Any system for keeping the vehicle cool could fail. It only takes a short time when the weather is really hot. I know someone personally who allowed a dog to die by just doing what she called ,"running in the store for a few minutes".

If people see an animal in a car unattended, they might call the police. In some areas, good samaritan type laws will extend to people who break into cars to rescue unattended pets. Then, not only will you lose your pet and face legal problems, you will also have to pay to repair the damage to the car.

I really hate to admit it, but in many cases, it's more humane to find a new home for the pet than to risk it's life, well being, and mental state. Shelters are the real issue, because most will kill pet animals that aren't taken by new human caregivers. We can't be selfish when it comes to the lives of our furry loved ones.

If you have medical issues, you could try to get one of those doctors to do paperwork to allow you to have a service or emotional support animal, so that you can take the pet anywhere (keep in mind that cats don't generally qualify as service animals, and other than in rental housing, businesses don't have to allow emotional support animals that aren't designated specifically as service animals).

 

[Pavel]

I don't know much about this topic, but I thought that there were propane ac's? Is that not the case?

 

[Malamute]

I had to deal with this with my dog several years ago, I had to travel in the summer, which was new for me, and leaving the dog wasnt going to happen. I researched all the cheapo ways that didnt work like ice in a cooler or bucket with a fan, swamp coolers, which dont work well compared to AC and not well at all in high humidity, solar, and came to the conclusion the overall most effective, safest and most reliable way to get coldness instantly and on demand was a window AC unit and a Honda generator.

 Theres lots of hillbilly outfits pictured on google searches, and some clean ones. RV and boat people figured this all out long ago, window AC units draw way less power than rv rooftop units and are way cheaper. I did a basic description on another forum and expanded on it here in the past, I dont know exactly where but a search of my posts will show it. Link  https://bushcraftusa.com/forum/threads/full-hillbilly-window-ac-in-a-vehicle.228995/

 I added a hard start capacitor, that allows the ac compressor to reliably kick over when the generator is running on eco mode to save fuel and run quieter. They cost 12 bucks and are simple to install. my other post describes it. the whole thing is super simple, works very well, and I cant for the life of my figure out why theres so much difficulty just doing it. it works. Yes, the gen cost a bit, but they are very useful items to have.

 

[Malamute]

Im on my little travel computer and accidentally posted before I was done so rushed getting some added to it before my edit time was over. If anyone thats interested finds my other posts here and has questions, just ask. My cutoff point for taking my dog without ac is 65 degrees, With the ac, I take her any time, I often just start the gen at the first stop and let it run as I do town stuff so I dont have to monkey with it. I check and top off the gen fuel before going out, dont rely on memory of how much youve run it since last fill up, just flipping top it off and be done with it. I top off my spare two one gallon plastic cans when I fuel the truck up. if theyve been sitting a while I put them in the truck and refill with fresh gas.

I sometimes buy non corn liquor gas, but the gen doesnt seem to care either way. I try to run pure gas in it before taking it out in the fall, but havent drained it or even run it dry and its been fine so far for I think 3 winters, it takes maybe 6 pulls to start in spring, and mostly one or two any other time.

 

[Camper]

There are pet sitters in almost every town, even for an hour or two at the time. Google Pet sitter.

 

[Zmann]

Dry ice ... is a good start

 

[mdoverl]

I might become homeless soon and I don't want to lose my cat.

You may not want to hear this, but have you considered giving your cat to an animal shelter?

Years ago when I became homeless, I had to send two cats, two dogs, and multiple pups to an animal shelter. I knew there was no way I could take care of them at the time on my own.

 

[Zmann]

....hot air... it's a plentiful ...

 

[EmmuWisl]

[size=small]Mini-air conditioners with a compressor show maximum efficiency. They really cope with their task, but they necessarily need heat removal. Also, a regular 12-volt battery will not "pull" it, or the power of the device will be low. Mini-water air conditioners can lower the air temperature by several degrees, but excess evaporation can become a source of mold and mildew, as the humidity of the air increases. Other models that are positioned as air conditioners are simple fans. They are only able to blow you with a cool breeze. You can refer to https://www.marvellous.sg/. They will help you to decide. You can trust them.[/size]

 

[mpruet]

Camp where you don’t need AC…

 

[highdesertranger]

Yes mpruet that is the answer. Highdesertranger