[p]With our 2013 16 DB and the roof top AC unit we had it did not have this option and these (if they post) are pictures my brother took of our unit at Livinlite's factory. In the picture of the 13.5K BTU roof top AC unit the knobs show cooling and optional heat. So my questions are is the unit wired for heat? Need to be wired for heat? A module purchased for heat? A missed upgrade? Or is it just a pretty button with no functionality?[/p][p]
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[/p][p]Sean's Flickr tutorial way[/p][p]
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(https://flic.kr/p/tgcPDh)Untitled (https://flic.kr/p/tgcPDh) by Robert Jenkins (https://www.flickr.com/photos/133352110@N03/), on Flickr[/p][p]
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[/p][p]Fasteddieb's cut of BBCode[/p][p]
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Some rooftop A/C are just cooling, no heat. Some have a heat strip that is used for heating. Some, but I don't know of any are heat pumps- the compressor both cools and heats.
So it depends on your A/C.
David
The 13.5K unit in my 2013 21BHS is a bit different; but it is cooling only. There are some functions on the controls labels that aren't actually available.
I was wondering this myself with my 9.2K coleman mach something AC. This manual says you can equip it with a heating element, but that it is for taking some moisture out of the air, not really built to heat the whole camper. A quick google search revealed a coleman mach xxx AC heating element you can install for $55. For that price I 'll stick with a plug in ceramic heater if i don't want to run the propane furnance.
I purchased and installed the auxiliary heating element in our Coleman-Mach 9200 unit. There is an electrical connection plug and mounting holes already in the rooftop unit so the element is "plug and play". You only have to remove the inside trim (4 screws). When installed, the "Low Heat" setting on the controls becomes active and the thermostat knob works for heating in addition to cooling. We've used it a couple of times now and it's great. Very convenient and easily heats the trailer to 70+ degrees even when in the 30s outside. The only downside is the fan is running on low, so it's noisier than a small separate heater. On the other hand, it's the same fan as the AC uses on low, so I'm fine with it. I assume the same type of element (maybe even the same part number?) is available for the 13.5K unit.
http://www.campingworld.com/shopping/item/coleman-mach-mach-8-electric-heating-element/69629
Thanks for the reply Merlin. I'll get into it deeper once I get my hands on the camper.
Our Coleman Polar Mach 13,000BTU rooftop unit has a 5460BTU heating strip. We have such a small camper, a small bathroom type heater is all we use down to the 20s.
[quote source="/post/11748/thread" timestamp="1432995161" author="@sandroad"]I purchased and installed the auxiliary heating element in our Coleman-Mach 9200 unit. There is an electrical connection plug and mounting holes already in the rooftop unit so the element is "plug and play". You only have to remove the inside trim (4 screws). When installed, the "Low Heat" setting on the controls becomes active and the thermostat knob works for heating in addition to cooling. We've used it a couple of times now and it's great. Very convenient and easily heats the trailer to 70+ degrees even when in the 30s outside. The only downside is the fan is running on low, so it's noisier than a small separate heater. On the other hand, it's the same fan as the AC uses on low, so I'm fine with it. I assume the same type of element (maybe even the same part number?) is available for the 13.5K unit.
http://www.campingworld.com/shopping/item/coleman-mach-mach-8-electric-heating-element/69629
[/quote]Thank you for sharing this, I will look into it and probably will get it!