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Old 10-28-2020, 01:31 AM   #1
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Mod I am considering to help balance heat in 29m

My 2020 29m has 4 heater vents. The strongest 2 point directly into the bedroom and blow what I would estimate to be 2/3 of the output into that area.

The other 2 vents longer runs with twists and turns. One exits under the kitchen cabinets and the other between the theater seats. These vents put out very little air compared to the two blowtorches venting straight into the tiny bedroom.

I had considered just blocking off one of the bedroom vents, but I’m worried that might put too much strain on the system (perhaps this is unfounded - I’m new to this) but I really don’t have any desire to burn down my RV

So after pulling the grate off in the pic below, the only thing behind it is the duct work for the 4 vents.

See my notes on the pic attached. Could I not just take me of the bedroom vents and reroute it out the grate hiding the ductwork? This would pull half the air out of the bedroom, and aim it into the main coach and at the bathroom.

Any safety issue with this I could be missing, aside from the normal hazards of the job?
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Old 10-28-2020, 01:39 AM   #2
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Your plan sure seems sound.
Take lots of pictures of the project for us.
Good luck!
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Old 10-28-2020, 02:18 AM   #3
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The “grate” is probably the return air to the furnace. Your plan should work well though perhaps some of the newly warmed air immediately will be sucked back in. Likely you won’t notice though.
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Old 10-28-2020, 02:29 AM   #4
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Anyone know why Thor would put the two strongest vents right on top of each other and blow them into the bedroom? Am I just suffering from an unusual imbalance, or is this common in the 29m?
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Old 10-28-2020, 02:34 AM   #5
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https://www.amazon.com/Valterra-A10-...3852422&sr=8-3

I bought these and they allow regulation or a complete close.
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Old 10-28-2020, 09:59 AM   #6
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yes, purchase the adjustable vents shown by Duckface. Do not close off completely. It's called "Balancing" the system. Just like at home.
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Old 10-28-2020, 10:01 AM   #7
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Originally Posted by mburns884 View Post
Anyone know why Thor would put the two strongest vents right on top of each other and blow them into the bedroom? Am I just suffering from an unusual imbalance, or is this common in the 29m?
check to see if both are supply vents. My 5th wheel had one like that that fed down to the basement. It does not need much air flow.
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Old 10-28-2020, 12:29 PM   #8
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It’s going to be all about airflow - discharge area and return area. The Atwood furnace installation instructions have a minimum duct work discharge area and CFM as well as a minimum return air area. If they are not met then the unit can overheat. Since your furnace looks to be in the slide there are only so many locations to get the required airflow hence the 2 ducts in the same location. I would be careful taking away any of the return area by moving a duct on the return grill.

IMHO the damper vents are your best bet.
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Old 10-28-2020, 01:14 PM   #9
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I recently took mine apart and it was all messed up. If I were you, I would pull the return grate off and inspect each of the 4 lines. One of mine wasn't even connected to anything and my really long run over to the couch has 4 holes in it. Also, the runs are longer than they should be. I pulled about 4 feet of duct work out of there.

After inspection you might have other ideas on what to do or how well it works. Personally I had planned on getting the closable vents that were mentioned above.
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Old 10-28-2020, 03:44 PM   #10
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I have a different coach with very similar layout, however my vents are in the floor.

Since my furnace is at the rear of the coach, the 1st two vents get the most heat. 1st in BR but pointing toward the main cabin ( it is actually on step off the floor to the bed), the 2nd is actually in bathroom; so if door is shut it can really get warm in there ( which we like when we shower) the 3rd and 4th vents are on floor behind the driver and passenger swivel chairs.

We notice the imbalance ( about 3 degrees) based on both thermostats, but generally it is not a problem for us to be cooler up front than when we are in bedroom at night. Of course it can really get cold up front if you have traffic in and out of the door?

My thought and I have not tried this; if I was really concerned would be to try to turn on rear bedroom fan on Lo while the Heat is on? Heat is controlled by Thermostat in main cabin. Since our ACs are ducted, we generally have most of air directed up front. In fact, some of bedroom AC vents are closed.

Maybe someone can shoot down this theory, but possibly the AC fan might help recirculate the heated air near the rear to move toward the front?

FWIW, my underbelly also benefits and gets heat from the heated floor vents.
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Old 10-28-2020, 04:59 PM   #11
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Many thanks for all the input. My worry with the dampening vents would be that they would restrict the air flow too much in total. Doesn't sound like that has been a problem, so I'm going to order two of those for the bedroom vents and start there.

BTW, the temp difference between back and front is 15-20 degrees. and that is with the pocket door OPEN. We often sleep with that door closed and we travel with two kids and a 140 pound English Mastiff. The dog is supposed to sleep on the converted dining table/bed, but if given the chance, his favorite spot is the bed with the adults! He does not fit, to say the least.

If I do move the vent I think I would be OK on return air. My reasoning being that I may be losing space on the grill (where the new output will be located), but I will leave a cover on an open hole in the bedroom, which will allow inbound airflow.

For the record both vents in the bedroom are outbound ducts. Not return air. There is a huge air flow out of both. If one was meant to be return air, it was installed incorrectly.
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Old 10-28-2020, 05:20 PM   #12
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Originally Posted by mburns884 View Post
BTW, the temp difference between back and front is 15-20 degrees. and that is with the pocket door OPEN.
Wow 15 - 20 degrees difference , have you taken back to the Dealer and if so what did they say? Or better yet called Thor directly. It is 2020; I wouldn't touch a thing until they fix as that can't be by intended design?
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Old 10-28-2020, 05:36 PM   #13
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Wow 15 - 20 degrees difference , have you taken back to the Dealer and if so what did they say? Or better yet called Thor directly. It is 2020; I would touch a thing until they fix as that can't be by intended design?
Dealer says that’s how it is intended to work. I’m not buying that, but I bought this unit because it was the exact one I wanted (last year of the V10 - no interest in the V8 until it’s been around a few years) and there were only two in the country I could find left that were new. This one was $10,000 less than the one I found in Florida.

I plan to deal with Thor directly as much as I can rather than this dealer. I have reached out to Thor. Left message. No return call yet. I won’t do anything until I hear from them. but I’m going to have a plan and honestly even if something is covered, if I can fix it I will. My day job is numbers and forms all day. I love putting my hands on things and fixing them.
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Old 10-28-2020, 06:59 PM   #14
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It’s about air flow. The furnace needs a minimum of 36 sq in of discharge area. Three ducts would be the minimum number required, you have 4. You could try to block one of the bedroom ducts and the air will look for another path - into the kitchen and lounge area. If the furnace doesn’t cycle more than usual you are good. However, you need to make sure the other duct runs aren’t kinked or too long like someone else mentioned.

I had similar installation in my 24F. Two ducts in the kitchen area on the side and front of the same cabinet. Guess where the cat slept. Our bedroom had very little air coming in due to a long duct run, a few kinks and the duct was 2 not 4 inches - a nono according to Atwood. I replaced the 2 inch with 4 since there was room and blocked half of each kitchen duct. I have 36 sq in of discharge as required. Cat sleeps wherever she wants now.
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Old 10-28-2020, 08:25 PM   #15
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The OP reported he has the DFM35 model and that requires min. 48 in² according to the manual; that is 4 - 4" ducts. It also says to have min. of 65 in² of return air area. So if he can finagle the vents to accommodate the requirements...
One thing that was mentioned is to look for collapsed or extra length of ducts that could be shortened.Many report problems with ducts.
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Old 10-28-2020, 08:31 PM   #16
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Discharge chart
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Old 10-29-2020, 11:25 AM   #17
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Originally Posted by OldWEB View Post
The OP reported he has the DFM35 model and that requires min. 48 in² according to the manual; that is 4 - 4" ducts. It also says to have min. of 65 in² of return air area. So if he can finagle the vents to accommodate the requirements...
One thing that was mentioned is to look for collapsed or extra length of ducts that could be shortened.Many report problems with ducts.


I apologize - I missed the reference to the DFM35.
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Old 10-29-2020, 12:20 PM   #18
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I took the slotted vent cover off and found that one of my ducts was disconnected from the heater so the hot air was filling that cavity below my refrigerator. I resealed using aluminum duct tape.

Paul
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Old 10-29-2020, 02:04 PM   #19
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Originally Posted by jimbo12 View Post
I apologize - I missed the reference to the DFM35.
No apology req'd, I had actually PM'd mburns884 and asked for it instead of doing it on the forum, do not know why I did it that way, excludes all of that info.
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Old 10-29-2020, 02:12 PM   #20
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I took the slotted vent cover off and found that one of my ducts was disconnected from the heater so the hot air was filling that cavity below my refrigerator. I resealed using aluminum duct tape.

Paul
All duct work should be inspected, even the A/C and THIS is the right type of tool to do it. Many other possibilities for one of these cameras.
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