Trav-L-Cool air conditioning system
Like a number of old vans (and possibly some new ones!) our Hymer B544 came to us with a Trav-L-Cool air conditioning system installed. These are ‘evaporative’ coolers so work differently to compressor driven air conditioners like you would find in cars and offices everywhere.
Compressor based air conditioners work on exactly the same principle as a domestic fridge but are configured to remove heat from the air in your room (or car) and transfer that heat to the outside air, as opposed to transferring heat energy from the inside of the fridge to the outside of fridge. Evaporative air conditioners work by the principle that when water evaporates it removes heat from it’s surroundings, the same effect that causes your skin to feel cold if it is wet and you blow on it.
Being an engineer I felt compelled to take the Trav-L-Cool apart to see how it works, and decided to give it a once-over while I was at it………….
The Trav-L-Cool system consists of two main units, the roof mounted box and an internal tank/pump.
This is the roof mounted unit, which sits on a cut-out in the roof with vents & controls on the inside of the van:-
This is the outlet vent and controls mounted on the inside of the van directly underneath the main unit:-
In our van the tank and pump are mounted inside the wardrobe:-
The basic principle of the system:
Water is pumped up to the roof unit where a fan draws air through a stream of water (to cool it), through a filter (which is also wet) and down into the van. Excess water is returned to the tank. The system is not sophisticated but it is reasonably effective, with the main benefit over compressor based air conditioning being that it does not use much electrical power – the whole system runs off 12V so it can be used when mains electricity is not available.
The system can also be used as a big extractor fan – the fan is reversed and the pump stopped so air is simply sucked up out of the van and discharged out of the roof unit.
One thing to be aware of is that compressor based air conditioners remove moisture from the air as they operate, whereas the Trav-L-Cool system actually adds moisture to the air, so it is not as effective if it is very humid outside and you need to have a window opened slightly to allow air to circulate, otherwise you could end up with condensation forming on the inside of the van if you run it for many hours.
Stripping and cleaning the unit:-
The top of the unit is held on with a few screws, simply remove these and the cover lifts off (you will find a tube connecting the top to the rest of the unit, you will need to pull this off to remove the top completely) revealing the filter unit within:-
The metal disc you can see on the top of the filter is attached to the fan so spins when the unit is operated, the water that is pumped up from the tank is sprayed onto this disc which then flings it off in all directions! The filter is the big bit under the white disc, sat in a large black plastic bowl thingy.
This is the underside of the lid, you can see the tube mentioned earlier and the nozzle that sprays water onto the disc. The water coming off the disc in caught by the back plastic bit and then runs down into the bowl that the filter sits in (kind of like a mini waterfall surrounding the filter)
The result is that the air drawn through the filter passes through this waterfall of water, cooling it down. The filter also absorbs water from the black plastic bowl so it is kept constantly wet while the unit is working.
After a few years of use the filter will be full of junk I took it out to clean it. To do this simply remove the three screws holding the metal disc in place and put the disc to one side. You can then remove the screws from the white plastic disc on top of the filter and lift the whole filter assembly out. I cleaned the filter by blowing the dust out with compressed air and then thoroughly rinsing the filter in clean water.
With the filter out you can see the fan itself (the small component connected to the red wires is a resistor that drops the voltage to the fan motor when low speed is selected):-
There was a reasonable amount of silt that had collected in the bottom of the bowl, and a lot of general grime everywhere. A quick clean up had it looking like this:-
The mesh that stops insects etc getting into the unit is fixed to the housing with rivets, and on inspection a few had failed leaving gaps around the mesh:-
Some small nuts and bolts quickly fixed that:-
After that it’s just a case or reassembling everything in the reverse order and the unit is ready for another few years of good service!
All of this is very easy to do with a few simple hand tools and an hour or so of time, so if you have one of these on an older van it is probably well worth the time to give it a clean out…….
Any questions, please leave me a comment below
If you want to know more about Evaporative coolers generally, Wikipedia has some good information here:- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evaporative_cooler
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July 16, 2019 at 6:16 pm
très interressant mais à quoi sert le bouton pompe sur l’appareil quand j’appuie dessus cela gargouille . point
j’ai exactement le même trav L cool
je viens d’acheter ce camping car l’ancien me dit ne jamais sans servir ?
Cordialement
July 16, 2019 at 7:02 pm
Hi Claude – the pump button on the device turns the electric pump on to pump water from the reservoir up to the roof mounted cooler. The gurgling noise will be water being pumped. The fan will run without the pump but if you want the cooling effect you need to have the fan blowing into the van and the pump running. Hope this helps! Cheers, Dan
July 16, 2019 at 7:03 pm
Bonjour Claude – le bouton de pompe de l’appareil allume la pompe électrique pour pomper l’eau du réservoir jusqu’au refroidisseur monté sur le toit. Le gargouillis sera de l’eau pompée. Le ventilateur fonctionnera sans pompe, mais si vous souhaitez un effet de refroidissement, vous devez le faire souffler dans le fourgon et faire fonctionner la pompe. J’espère que cela t’aides! À la vôtre, Dan
August 1, 2019 at 12:17 am
Hi there… great to hear of someone who actually knows of this product. We have this unit fitted to our S555 and are in dire need of a filter. any ideas would be vey much appreciated.
August 2, 2019 at 8:48 pm
Hi Roger – thanks for getting in touch. I doubt original replacement filters are available for these anymore but it would be easy to make a replacement by cutting a sheet of filter material into a rectangle of the correct size and then bonding the ends together (the old filter could be used as a pattern if required). Have a look here for some options on filter material:-
https://www.par-group.co.uk/general-consumables/filters/reticulated-air-filter-foam/
https://www.ramair-filters.co.uk/shop/scooter-moped/panel-filter/ramair-universal-large-foam-pad-300-x-200-diy-make-your-own-air-filter/
Cheers, Dan
November 13, 2019 at 5:16 pm
Hi Dan, Thanks for response. Had a few health problems since my enquiry.
Hope you wont mind me picking up the point again.
I have no existing filter to copy ….. Need to see one.
Don’t know if it fills the whole bowl area inside…… ????
Best wishes Roger.
November 21, 2019 at 11:11 am
Hi Roger – apologies for the delay in getting back to you, and I hope the health problems aren’t serious. I’m afraid I don’t have a picture of the filter out of the unit but about half way down this article there is a photo where you can just about see it in place under the large white plastic disc that sits on top of it. The filter is basically a large tube of foam that sits vertically in the bowl and is held in place by the white disc sitting on top of it – hopefully this helps?!? Cheers, Dan
August 2, 2019 at 7:14 am
thanks for the very handy advice
May 23, 2020 at 6:02 pm
Only just found this and it encouraged me to go service outs, do you a copy of the manual?
May 23, 2020 at 8:31 pm
Hi Grant – I’m afraid I don’t have a manual (I never managed to find one). I just resorted to working out how it works by taking it apart! 🙂 Cheers, Dan
May 24, 2020 at 10:53 am
Hi Dan…….. again, sorry for long delay.. Thanks also for your thoughts. It is a bit of an ongoing problem made worse by the situation as it is now . Hey ho, I just have to wait.!!!
Still not solved the filter problem yet. I have now looked properly at the picture in your original response. I don’t remember having the white disc. Will get up on the roof later today. Now also a bit difficult to get out to view anything.
BUT we can only keep smiling…. Best wishes to you… keep well.
Best wishes Roger
May 24, 2020 at 4:53 pm
Does anyone know the flow rate of the pump as I need a new one.
May 28, 2020 at 2:24 pm
Hello,
I have the same system mounted on the used motorhome I bought, except it is not working. The fan does not work and the pump doesn’t run either.
I removed the panel with the switches and saw three cables : one + going to the + of the auxiliary battery, and two (- and pump) going to the pump.
Do you know if the wiring is similar on your unit ? Or maybe an idea on what is wrong with mine ?
There is not much info on this on the internet, due to its age.
Thank you very much,
Rémi
May 31, 2020 at 12:53 pm
Hi Remi – You should have at least a ground (-ve) connection also going to the Trav-l-Cool unit (though it may not go switches) The fan and pump are then switched from the roof unit, via a resistor for the low speed setting. If neither the fan or pump are working on your unit I would check the incoming power first – make sure you have 12v and a good ground to the roof unit. If not, trace the wires back and look for damage, disconnection or a blown fuse. Hope this helps, Cheers, Dan
May 31, 2020 at 1:29 pm
Good advice Dan, well done. Good luck to Remi. Still have not been able [physically] to get on the roof yet…… Best wishes Roger.
May 31, 2020 at 1:56 pm
trav-l-cool manual can be found here, it’s in German but quite easy to understand or translate with google. Good luck
https://www.libble.eu/industrial-electronics-trav-l-cool/online-manual-597115/?page=0006
May 31, 2020 at 3:21 pm
Hi Grant – good find!, Thanks for the link! Cheers, Dan
June 11, 2020 at 6:52 am
Hi Dan, very nice article. Thanks for that!!
I also bought a B544 with this cooler and will clean it up as you suggested.
Notice that when I turn on the pump on the cooler it splashes a bit of water. Is that normal or should I replace the filter?
Plus, there might be a electric problem because for any reason sometimes when turning on the cooler the pump fuse on the main unit of the camper burns out.
Any advise will be very welcome. Cheers. Hugo
June 11, 2020 at 11:41 am
Hi Hugo – there shouldn’t be any water splashing when the system is operating – is this coming out of the roof unit or from the pump/water reservoir? If it is the roof unit you should be able to identify the problem once the top cover is removed – you can run the system and see if any water leaking out of somewhere it is not supposed to!
Regarding the electrical issue it may be that your pump is partially seized, so is presenting a high electrical load when switched on. Does the pump fuse supply just the Trav-L-Cool pump or also other circuits on the vehicle?
Hope this helps, Cheers, Dan
June 12, 2020 at 7:59 am
Thanks Dan. Thanks a lot for your help. I’ll figure it out and let you know if the problems persist.
Cheers
June 12, 2020 at 12:14 pm
Hugo, the water return from the cooler works on a Venturi effect. If there is even a small blockage in the scavenge pipe it will allow the water level to increase so make sure these are all cleaned.
Mine was also blowing the hab fuse, turned out to be my pump was on the way out and drawing too much current. I tried various pumps before sourcing an original and approx 3-4 lpm worked ok, any less and the Venturi effect wasn’t enough to draw water bank to the tank.
There should be a few drain holes in the bottom cover that should prevent water ingress into the camper, these can become blocked so check.
June 12, 2020 at 12:24 pm
Thanks again for the advises. I’ll be back to you soon. Cheers
July 14, 2020 at 4:28 pm
Hi my motorhome trav l cool pump out of order and ı cant find some pump in Cyprus can ı used another pump thanks
July 14, 2020 at 6:28 pm
Hi Ali – I see know reason why you couldn’t use another pump, providing you can find one with similar flow/pressure to the original, a diaphragm type fuel pump from an older car might work if you can find one large enough, but I don’t know how these would cope with water in the long term.
Hope this helps, let us know how you get on!, Cheers, Dan
July 25, 2020 at 5:26 pm
Alguém sabe onde posso arranjar um filtro para este ar condicionado? O meu está a ficar desfeito e preciso de um novo. Obrigado
April 12, 2023 at 1:53 pm
Hello, good article I’m glad to have found it. I recently purchased a van fitted with one of these units. I’m having a a little issue. The first time I tried it, water was pooling on the roof and a little dripped through the aircon vents and into the van. So I decided to take it off and clean it, now I have my top cover off I’m testing the water and only the reservoir fills up and no water is going to the the hose which leads to the spray bit. I’m assuming it should go straight through to the spray pipe? I’m trying to clean it blowing things it’s quite tricky in places. I’m trying to figure out how it actually works, I feel like the white pipe should take water away from the reservoir not fill it up? I also have a manual in English I could take photos and share. Cheers Craig.
April 13, 2023 at 8:03 pm
Hi Craig – thanks for the comment. You are right that the water should be pumped up to the spray bar at the top of the unit with excess water returned to the tank. There are a few valves in the pipework (not sure what the exact purpose of them is!), It may be that the valves have failed and now water is being directed to the wrong part of the apparatus? Hope this helps – please let us know how you get on with the fix, any information for the community is always useful!
Cheers, Dan
August 14, 2020 at 10:33 pm
Hi Dan I have just removed the cover on my trav-L-cool unit and found the remains of a pump in the unit up on the roof and removed it, I have a small tank and float in it as well, do I need to look for a reservoir tank inside my camper (25 years old ) with another pump inside, I have only got this camper a few weeks ago so I’m new to this, all the controls inside seems to work as it should, any advice would be very grateful, thanks Jeff
August 15, 2020 at 11:11 pm
Hi Jeff, Is the system working currently?, or is the pump you’ve found unservicable?
There is normally a small reservoir somewhere in the van with a pump mounted nearby (mine is in the wardrobe, plastic tank of about 20 litres).
I have also heard of installs taking water from the main tank but I wouldn’t recommend this as excess water is returned to tank from the roof unit – and it can get quite dirty on the round trip!
Enjoy the new van 🙂 Cheers, Dan
August 28, 2020 at 11:43 am
Hola Dan, gracias por tener este hilo sobre el Trav-L-Cool,
Tengo una AC con este sistema y quería resolver los problemas con quien me vendió la AC, yo entiendo que el climatizador y la bomba tiene que estar vertiendo agua siempre, durante el tiempo que este funcionando el climatizador, el estima que NO, que cada 3 minutos o similar le tengo que activar la bomba para que humedezca el filtro, el problema viene porque el desagüe no desagua y como a todos nos entra agua en el habitáculo con el problema que es agua en interior.
He pensado que debería llevar una bomba en el retorno, asi no tendriamos problemas de acumulacion de agua en la cazoleta superior de cubierta.
Quien me vendio me dice que le de cada 3 minutos a la bomba y se queda tan agusto. El efecto venturi no lo hace por si mismo el desagüe, si absorbes desde la bombona, desagua perfectamente, pero no es lo correcto.
Gracias y seguiremos todos a perfeccionar el climatizador.
August 28, 2020 at 11:48 pm
Hi Jose – the system in my van runs the pump continuously, operating it every three minutes would probably be sufficient but there should not be a problem with running it continuously. My system also drains back to the tank without the need for an additional pump, if you are getting water ingress into the cabin from the trav-l-cool it is likely you have a leak in the pipework or roof unit itself? Cheers, Dan
September 4, 2020 at 7:15 am
Gracias por la respuesta, he estado estudiando el sistema y los esquemas de tuberías de aguas y he visto que por medio del sistema venturi el agua existente en la cazoleta superior se desagua al deposito interior de la caravana, el problema es que en mi caso no tengo los codos con el sistema, en algún momento se partió uno de ellos y esta montado diferente, por lo cual creo que debería instalar una bomba similar a la de impulsión y de este modo recoger el agua superior.
Claro esta que si se quiere tener el sistema funcionando al 100% se necesita recoger el agua de la cazoleta para no tener desbordamientos y no funcionar cada tres o cuatro segundos el sistema bomba.
Me gustaria saber cuanto es capaz de bajar la temperatura en verano en el interior de la caravana y si siempre dejas ventanas o claraboyas abiertas.
Gracias y seguiremos en contacto.
September 8, 2020 at 9:48 pm
Hi Jose – in our van the cooler can lower the temperature a few degrees – not as effective as a high-power compressor driven air-conditioning system, but very welcome and very efficient considering the small amount of electrical power it uses. It is important to keep windows/skylights open a small amount to allow proper airflow while the system is working, but they don’t need to be open very much. Cheers, Dan
September 14, 2020 at 3:19 pm
Muchas Gracias
September 22, 2020 at 9:48 pm
Hello there. can you tell me where i get a top cover please,,thank ing you,,
August 28, 2022 at 3:35 pm
Hola, me podriaa decir las especificaciones de la bomba? La mia se ha quemado y no se el caudal que tenia ni los amperios. Gracias
August 31, 2022 at 4:26 pm
Hi there, I’m afraid I don’t know the specs of the pump but I recently had to strip mine down to service it, and it drew about 700mA while pumping water under no load (so maybe a bit more when pumping water up to the roof unit). The closet pump I can find online is this:- https://www.comet-pumpen.de/en/products-rv/pumps/diaphragm-pumps-12-v/bi-comet.html
Hope this helps, cheers, Dan
September 21, 2022 at 11:19 am
Dude…”Being an engineer I felt compelled to take the Trav-L-Cool apart to see how it works, and decided to give it a once-over while I was at it…” My wife laughed out loud when she saw this….this is me all over. Just finished stripping this down before I saw the product name on the pump and googled it and found you. Great write up….and useful. It looks like mine was installed by a summer student….stripped screw heads, dangling wires….not soldered wire joins etc Thanks
September 21, 2022 at 7:00 pm
Hi Duncan – thanks for the message. I recently had to strip mine down again as it had gotten bunged up from being sat over winter – I made the mistake of using an airline to blow through the hoses from the roof unit downward and sprayed grey smeg all over the inside of the wardrobe! 🙂 Lesson learnt…………Cheers, Dan
January 31, 2023 at 3:01 pm
Hi Dan…So I have a leak on my unit when it rains…I need to take the whole unit off and reseal…before I jinx the whole thing any tips on breaking the seal…not the plastic! and have you ever taken it completely off..best wishes from the south of france…its a lovely day so what else to do?
January 31, 2023 at 5:08 pm
Hi Duncan, I’ve never had to remove the whole unit from the roof, only ever had to open the top unit or take the interior cover off to service/repair. Are you able to see where the leak is? – you may be able to add sealant to the problem section without removing the whole thing? Hope you are enjoying the South of France, we are also based down here nowadays 🙂 Cheers. Dan
January 31, 2023 at 5:23 pm
I have a feeling it is coming in at the back of the unit…where there is an undercut as it were….so the option is to remove the unit and reseal it all. If I put the Van on ramps at the front when it rains there is no leak so it is pooling somewhere and coming in…its going to be on of those that just takes patience. I have thought of sectioning off the roof and flood testing with beetroot dye!
May 14, 2023 at 4:53 pm
Dear
I have this system on my camper.
Coud the travel l cool use during the moviment? Or can it use only when the camper is stopped?
May 14, 2023 at 5:03 pm
Hi – I don’t know what the manufacturer recommends but I don’t see any reason not to use it during movement – we use ours while driving! Cheers, Dan
May 16, 2023 at 11:41 am
Hi there
Is there somewhere to source a replacement pump from as mine is completely rusted.
Thanks
May 17, 2023 at 2:25 pm
Hi Dean – I’ve never found a supplier for the exact pump but there are lots of similar diaphragm pumps available online (AliExpress is a good source for cheap parts like this) – there’s no reason I can see that a replacement pump has to be identical. If you find a suitable part please can you post a link here? – it will be useful to others in the same situation. Cheers, Dan
August 7, 2023 at 11:05 am
Hi Dan thanks for the write up, like others I have recently bought a van with a travlcool, the fan is working well, found the water container which had a 12v submersible pump in the tank, the type used for campervan water systems, the pump was totally seized, I had a similar pump from a previous van, connected it up and off it went, so electrics seem to be all good, do you think that any of these units would have bee fitted with such a pump or was it just an ad hoc replacement, I wonder if such a pump is capable of continuous use? The container also has a float valve, the pipe on mine has been cut, so I take it there must have been a connection to the main water tank but how would that have worked, perhaps a switch to operate the main tank pump with the float valve cutting off the supply, but it seems a bit pointless. It seems like a useful thing and I would like to get it working properly.
August 7, 2023 at 2:05 pm
Hi William – thanks for the comment 🙂 It’s interesting that your system has a submersible pump (much cheaper and easier to get hold of than the diaphragm type pump mine is fitted with) I guess it would be OK on continuous use but it will be interesting to see how it holds up over time. I guess the only drawback is that if you let the tank run dry a submersible pump is likely to seize, but as long as you keep an eye on it you should be fine?. I’ve never seen a system with a float valve before but I guess this is a good way of keeping it topped up. I wouldn’t have thought you need a separate switch as whenever the pump in the main tank is operating (you are running a tap etc.) there will be water pressure in the pipework and if the float valve is open some water will be diverted to the travlcool tank…..Anyway, good luck with it all and keep us posted on how you get on! Cheers, Dan
September 11, 2023 at 6:36 pm
Does anyone know how much throughput the pump needs to have? I mean how much water a minute or hour is pumped?
Or has someone a working pump and can post the technical specifications?
I bough a mobile home and the pump … was missing!