Vault Bed Heat Pump Build (Heating & Cooling) 🥵🥶

[JBee]

When cooling is called for, the BougeRV A/C unit will extract water vapor from vault air.

Humidity build up will be more of a problem inside the vault when outside air temperatures are cold. I've given up on the idea of using the BougeRV unit for heating. It's not designed to serve that purpose. It seems like an electric blanket is the most practical way to keep warm while sleeping, even if the tonneau cover is left partly open for ventilation.

I don't yet have a sense of the amount of air infiltration that occurs normally within the vault. It will be easy to increase air exchange if necessary, although at the expense of additional power draw. I'm not aware of a tiny portable HRV that could work for the vault.

It shouldn't be to hard to jerry rig a air to air heat exchanger with a two low wattage DC PC fans into a HRV big enough for the vault. Would significantly increase the comfortable temperature range of the vault, and add lots of fresh air.

You can actually get small household ones to replace bathroom extractor fans. Lunos does them and you can find versions on Aliexpress as well that are a bit cheaper. Only uses 12W. They also sell them as ERVs.

Mini ERV Aliexpress

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[CyberGus]

There's research that suggests carbon dioxide (CO2) levels rise to dangerous levels in the car cabin when using recirculated air:

https://www.co2meter.com/blogs/news/23987521-high-co2-levels-in-your-car

If you're going to seal yourself in an enclosed space for a protracted period, you should get a CO2 monitor to make sure you're getting sufficient fresh air. There are various models on Amazon for $50-$100 but I've never tried one.

 

[Gigahorse]

There's research that suggests carbon dioxide (CO2) levels rise to dangerous levels in the car cabin when using recirculated air:

https://www.co2meter.com/blogs/news/23987521-high-co2-levels-in-your-car

If you're going to seal yourself in an enclosed space for a protected period, you should get a CO2 monitor to make sure you're getting sufficient fresh air. There are various models on Amazon for $50-$100 but I've never tried one.

Said the same thing, hopefully you have more swing than I do.
Those portable heat pumps recirculate the air at much higher volumes and CO2 / Carbon Monoxide are both possible in a small enclosed area.

 

[Cybergirl]

There's research that suggests carbon dioxide (CO2) levels rise to dangerous levels in the car cabin when using recirculated air:

https://www.co2meter.com/blogs/news/23987521-high-co2-levels-in-your-car

If you're going to seal yourself in an enclosed space for a protected period, you should get a CO2 monitor to make sure you're getting sufficient fresh air. There are various models on Amazon for $50-$100 but I've never tried one.

Thanks, good to know and to take steps to mitigate the risk.

 

[Tinker71]

Heating would be much more efficient and silent with an automatic electric blanket. While my wife throws it ontop of herself. I lay it below me. Makes no noise and has adjustable settings.
I’m running mini splits in the bedroom now and have done away with the electric blanket 3 years ago. . But they are traditional 2 piece units 12,000 btu /1 ton . Real efficient and low energy consumption. I have them in the bedroom only so they only work the room we spend the most time in when you think about it. I have done a friends house with 4 units placed in 2 bedrooms, living room and overlapped the kitchen with dining room. They are the bomb. Infact they are so quiet that when I first installed my first unit, I taped a ribbon to the grill to verify it’s running.
If all you need is cooling, then your unit seems fine. Add the electric blanket and you have a system that should work. Heck, even electric heat tape low wattage could work if you run it in the channels of the bed.
Rick

Yes, without a doubt, electric blankets are the way to go for efficiency in the winter.

 

[Woodrick]

There's research that suggests carbon dioxide (CO2) levels rise to dangerous levels in the car cabin when using recirculated air:

https://www.co2meter.com/blogs/news/23987521-high-co2-levels-in-your-car

If you're going to seal yourself in an enclosed space for a protracted period, you should get a CO2 monitor to make sure you're getting sufficient fresh air. There are various models on Amazon for $50-$100 but I've never tried one.

Really? A CO2 meter manufacturer quoting a study by a CO2 sensor manufacturer?

But not any studies by automotive safety organizations that would usually make a big deal of it?

 

[Cybergirl]

I don't yet have a sense of the amount of air infiltration that occurs normally within the vault. It will be easy to increase air exchange if necessary, although at the expense of additional power draw. I'm not aware of a tiny portable HRV that could work for the vault.

Regarding air infiltration to the vault, there is a pathway for air to pass between the vault and the cabin. There's a 1.5" gap below the back window where the tonneau cover passes to and from its storage compartment. This 1.5" x 59" gap provides 88 sq in for air to pass from the vault through two vents in the back steel wall of the cabin (behind the rear seat) and down to the cabin floor. The blue sections in the diagram below mark the openings in the back wall where air can pass.

To ventilate the vault to reduce humidity and CO2 buildup while sleeping in the vault, all that's needed is an exhaust fan on my Lexan panel to draw air from the cabin into the vault. The air can be temperature controlled by setting Camp Mode in the cabin as long as some loss of battery energy is acceptable. The only question is the size of the exhaust fan needed to achieve a healthy air exchange. That can only be determined by experimentation.

The first step is to measure the humidity and CO2 buildup in the vault while spending the night with the tonneau cover closed. I'll monitor both using an Aranet4 CO2/humidity sensor, if the CO2 level rises to an unhealthy level a warning will sound to wake me. I'll report my findings.

 

[swinefeaster]

Wait, then you don't need a separate heat pump? Just circulate air with the cabin through those two blue sections of you can bore through them with a couple fans and the truck a/c on?

Also, why not use this one?

EF ECOFLOW Wave 2 Portable Air Conditioner, Air Conditioning Unit with Heat, Air Portable AC for Outdoor Tent Camping/RVs or Home Use (Battery Not Included) https://a.co/d/ayqP9PW

 

[Cybergirl]

Wait, then you don't need a separate heat pump? Just circulate air with the cabin through those two blue sections of you can bore through them with a couple fans and the truck a/c on?

Also, why not use this one?

EF ECOFLOW Wave 2 Portable Air Conditioner, Air Conditioning Unit with Heat, Air Portable AC for Outdoor Tent Camping/RVs or Home Use (Battery Not Included) https://a.co/d/ayqP9PW

It turns out that those two openings in the back wall of the cabin are covered by fabric that limits the amount of air that will pass between the cabin and vault.

The reasons I chose the BougeRV over the EF ECOFLOW Wave 2:

1) No way to connect vent pipes to the Wave 2

2) The Wave 2's 5100 BTU is more than needed to cool the 54 cu Ft vault

3) I don't need a battery powered unit (CT provides power)

4) Price

 

[swinefeaster]

It turns out that those two openings in the back wall of the cabin are covered by fabric that limits the amount of air that will pass between the cabin and vault.

The reasons I chose the BougeRV over the EF ECOFLOW Wave 2:

1) No way to connect vent pipes to the Wave 2

2) The Wave 2's 5100 BTU is more than needed to cool the 54 cu Ft vault

3) I don't need a battery powered unit (CT provides power)

4) Price

1. They do have pipes that you connect
3. It is able to be plugged in
There's videos on Amazon that show both of these points, but yeah I guess it might be too expensive. How quiet is the bouj RV?

 

[kpanda17]

Was waiting for this BUILT!
Careful running it in your garage overnight as there can be some funky things if your pumping heat into an enclosed space with a heat pump so maybe park outside or leave the garage door open a little.

LET US KNOW How it goes, especially the energy consumption overnight and temps outside/inside the vault!

I think I will still remove my window so I can crawl from the vault to the cab in an emergency or if I am in a bad area, but your setup looks great.

Nice looking build!

please describe what can go wrong using BougeRV?

 

[CyberGus]

Regarding air infiltration to the vault, there is a pathway for air to pass between the vault and the cabin.

It looks like there are paths through the vault floor to allow water to escape...? That would also provide air passage if using a fan to create positive/negative pressure.

You should fill the fault using a smoke machine, induce a positive pressure, and watch where it goes hahaha

 

[Cybergirl]

1. They do have pipes that you connect
3. It is able to be plugged in
There's videos on Amazon that show both of these points, but yeah I guess it might be too expensive. How quiet is the bouj RV?

The Wave 2 seems like a really nice appliance. It has more capability than the BougeRV that I chose. It works as both a heat source and a cooling source, and I like that it has a phone app. You're right about the ducting, somehow I missed that aspect in my initial review.

Having said that, the Wave 2 is sized to handle a much larger space than the CT vault which is only ~54 cu ft. The max output is 5100 BTU vs 2899 BTU for the BougeRV. Oversizing a heat pump will result in more on/off cycling of the compressor with higher energy consumption and shortened life span. There's also a weight and size advantage for the BougeRV over the Wave 2. The BougeRV weighs 26 lbs vs 32 lbs. for the Wave 2 (without a battery), and the Wave 2 takes up twice the space of the BougeRV.

I also took into account the product rates on Amazon. The Wave 2 was rated 3.5/5 (122 ratings) while the BougeRV was 4.5/5 (1200 ratings).

 

[Crissa]

This is nonsense. The vault air is pulled over a heat exchanger coil and pushed back into the vault. There is no combustion of any sort involved that would produce carbon monoxide.

Yeah, the only way there'd be CO is if there was a generator or another idling vehicle nearby.

-Crissa

 

[swinefeaster]

Bougerv is heat only? I definitely want ac too for the summer so that won't work for me then

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