How Long Can You Run An RV Air Conditioner?

Van life is something that has become increasingly popular in recent years. But no matter whether you are living in your RV full-time, or simply spending time in it during the weekends and holidays, you will probably be familiar with how hot an RV can get.

RVs can heat up pretty quickly, especially when it’s warm out. So, if you want to spend time in your RV, you will need a good AC unit. Thankfully, a lot of RVs will come with built-in air conditioning units, and there are lots of units that you can fit into your RV yourself.

In order for your RV’s AC to run, it will need energy, and this energy will generally come from batteries. So, you might be interested to find out how long you can run your RV’s air conditioning without encountering any issues. In this guide, we are looking at exactly that.

Read on to find out all about how long you can run your RV’s air conditioning.

If you are spending time in your RV during the summer months, then you will need an air conditioning unit. RVs heat up really quickly, so the air conditioning unit is essential if you want to be able to comfortably spend time in your RV.

But how long can you run an RV air conditioner?

The majority of air conditioning units will be connected to generators. Generators are essential for RV living, so you will probably hook your air conditioning unit up to a gas-powered generator.

As you run your AC, the generator will use up the gas. Most of the time, 2 gallons of gas will get you around 8 hours of constant air conditioning.

So, during the hottest hours of the day, you will generally be able to run your RV for the whole day without having to top up the generator.

Of course, you can run your generator for longer than this. However, you will need to use more gas if you want to keep it running. Working on the premise that 2 gallons of gas will get you 8 solid hours of air conditioning, will allow you to calculate how much gas you will need to run your air conditioning unit for longer.

Can An RV Air Conditioner Run Continuously?

Yes, you can run your RV air conditioning unit continuously. However, you will need to use a lot of gas in order to do this. For every 8 hours of air conditioning, you will burn through around 2 gallons of gas.

So, if you wanted to run your air conditioning for a solid 2 hours, you would need to have 6 gallons of gas at your disposal.

Running your air conditioner in your RV continuously is doable. However, it is also expensive. That is why most people would only run their air conditioning unit during the times when it is really needed.

The most important time to have air conditioning in your RV will be during the hottest hours of the day.

Most people who live in their RV full-time will conserve energy by only running their RV during the daytime through the evening. Often, you will not need your air conditioning first thing in the morning, simply because it isn’t that warm.

But, you will need it during the afternoon because this is usually the hottest time of the day. As it comes to the evening, the climate will generally cool and using your air conditioning unit isn’t necessary.

That is why most people won’t use their air conditioning unit continuously, even though it is possible to do so.

What Happens If The Air Conditioner Runs All Day?

If your air conditioner is connected to a generator, then there generally isn’t any reason why you wouldn’t be able to run your air conditioner all day.

So nothing will really happen if your air conditioner runs all day. Except for you burning through a lot of gas, of course.

If you haven’t got enough gas to power your generator to run the air conditioner for the whole day, then your air conditioning unit will simply run until your generator runs out of gas.

Once the generator runs out of gas, the AC unit will cut out and your RV will no longer be air-conditioned.

In the circumstance when you haven’t got enough gas to power the generator (and in turn the AC unit), you should switch the generator off. Leaving the generator running until it burns through all the gas is potentially dangerous.

So, either give the generator enough gas to run all day, or switch the generator off when it is running low on gas.

Can RV AC Overheat?

Finally, let’s take a really quick look at whether, or not, your RV air conditioning system can overheat. Like anything that is powered by electricity, there is always the potential for your AC unit to overheat.

In order for your AC unit to overheat, it would normally have to be run continuously. However, as we have said, very few people actually do this.

While you might leave it running for the entire day, you will usually switch it off in the evening as the climate gets colder. So, your AC unit will always get a break.

So, yes, there is a risk of your AC overheating. However, most of the time this will only happen if the system is not given a break.

Summary

In short, your RV’s air conditioning unit will need energy in order for it to work. Most people will connect their RV’s air conditioning to generators, and the energy from the generator will power the air conditioner.

If you are using a gas-powered generator, then you will typically be able to get around 8 hours of RV air conditioning from a generator powered with 2 gallons of gas. So, if you need to run your RV for longer, you will need to have a lot of gas at hand.

Thanks for reading!