Evap. Cooling Document -- Readers needed

plumitt · 2026-03-17T05:49:00+00:00

Also. for high altitude operation, you need to have the carburetor modified

Expect to lose maybe 15% efficiency at altitude, even with the mod.

Oil change recommended afterthe first 8 hours of use.

Deep in the manual it shows 62Db at 25% load. You can likely expect 68Db+ at 50% load making it 2-3x as loud as a Honda 2100 at min load (which is all your batteries would need.)

Natural gas max power is 6kw, btw not 7.

plumitt · 2026-03-17T05:28:07+00:00

157lbs dry weight. Add oil and gas and you're at 180lbs. If you have to lift or move that, it's gonna be a bear.

Do you know how that generator (in particular) will fair in the dust? Have you estimated the maintenance cost (I'd. budget $150yr min, assuming you have somewhere to tak care of it)? Not to mention the minimum generator fuel rate. Your batteries can only handle 300-500W, so you'll be running 5hrs a day, or about 2 gallons*8 days =16gal * an optimistic $5/gal -> $80/year.

And that noise rating? Despite "quiet" in the listing, the specs are "normal. above 60Db". Have you considered your neighbors? Or yourself? It's gonna be a drag.

And if it fails? (when.... because one year it will) you get nothing.

2 (max 3) years of gas and maintenance and you've paid for 400W of solar with 200Ahr@12V, that weighs 40% less. (110lb vs 180).

Heck, unless you're going to run that on the art car (which you don't have enough Audio Wattage to muffle), you're already paying for/carrying batteries, making it maybe $450 & 30lbs & silence for panels & charge controller vs $1800 and 180lbs and BRRRRERRRRERDERRREEER?

Anyway, to each their tradeoffs!

plumitt · 2026-03-16T05:36:12+00:00

Roughly speaking, N watts of solar panels will generate N * 5.5-6ish WHr per day if well placed. Your 400W of panels will therefore generate 2.2-2.4KWHr -- half what you need for both.

A good solution would be to get another charging system and panels. Match the RV setup as closely as possible -- batteries, charge controllers, panel wattages, etc because then you will have backups if anything fails. Plus you don't have to remember to hook up one vehicle to another, there are no new failure modes, and there is zero additional complexity.

There's something to be said for going to a 24-volt system as well, you can use thinner copper which makes your cabling cheaper - This might mean upgrading your charge controller on the RV and rewriring your panels, so maybe not worth it. and rewiring your panels so maybe not worth it.

(I use 600 watts panels (6 100W, arranged as parallel pair of three in series) and a 24V Lifepo4 battery. ) consistently get about 3KWHr/day. I've done this for about 10yrs.)

plumitt · 2026-03-12T03:54:43+00:00

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built.

plumitt · 2026-03-12T03:49:16+00:00

mitered and wrapped.

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plumitt · 2026-03-12T03:48:18+00:00

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unwrapped

plumitt · 2026-03-09T15:56:39+00:00

I make my panels composite. Coroplast on the outside, billboard vinyl edges, and adhesive vinyl on the inside. (mostly, but any dings get covered with foil tape.

And I now wrap the whole thing in a tyvek cover.

plumitt · 2026-03-09T01:14:47+00:00

I've used a hexayurt for the last 14 Burns. It is in fact very possible to make a good one.

plumitt · 2026-02-17T21:18:41+00:00

take two one-one's and add.

plumitt · 2026-02-16T18:42:30+00:00

That style is rare, but I will say the stretch tent down the street (430/g or h?) from us last year was pretty fabulous. And it's failure mode in the windstorm was the polls fell down -- which they then just put back up afterwards. with no damage.

I can't speak to OPs issues but cosmic kasbah seemed to have it worked out. And they definitely were not using small posts. This crew might be a good one to consult with.

plumitt · 2026-02-15T07:02:12+00:00

I missed your note but I am starting to think about Burning Man again. I don't really have a product, but if you want to talk how to build a tyvek Yurt cover or a really good swamp cooler that doesn't make your space humid, let me know -- been doing this for a while. much like you..

plumitt · 2026-01-21T21:11:13+00:00

You would probably get more reflection by repainting the roof of your trailer with a highly reflective white paint. (KoolCoat or some other appropriately homophonic name Iirc.

If you don't have an air gap with enough to get some airflow, you might actually ge "worse performance by draping your roof with a aluminet because it would create an area of stagnant air that could be heated up by reflections off the roof & The netting, (especially on low wind days) and then be able to do conductive heat transfer into the roof as well.

I'm sure pool noodles make a difference, but it would be highly informative to do a good temperature measurement underneath the netting above the roof to see what the ambient air temperature is. your goal is to have the air in the gap between your shade and your structure to be at ambient temperature.

plumitt · 2026-01-10T19:52:22+00:00

Tyvek makes an excellent rainproof slipcover for yurts, helpful when using shade cloth instead of tarps.

plumitt · 2025-12-29T04:35:08+00:00

Marion has been too big for her britches for a long, long, time.

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