Little Green Airstream
The green renovation of a vintage travel trailer
When we last left the Armstrong A/C on the Little Green Airstream, we needed to install new capacitors & the fan motor, re-install the existing fan blades on a new spindle, and then test the unit using a new thermostat. This involved electrical connections that were above my experience level, so it was up to my contractor (John Mangino of EKT Universal HVAC) to install. All of these...
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While my contractor, John, was researching and buying parts for the A/C repair, I needed to help him figure out how to power the A/C so we could test it throughout the process. Up until this point, I’d spent the majority of my time working on structural elements and making the interior livable, and had entrusted the systems work to my contractors. Fortunately, I’d purchased some vintage Airstream...
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One of the parts I was eager to see if I could have repaired on my 1969 Airstream was the original Armstrong brand air conditioner, built into the roof of the trailer. As usual, the question was whether it was more cost and energy efficient to repair something original or to replace it with something new. Offhand, my goal was to bring the original unit back to working...
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Having started the polishing process, I didn’t want to lose sight of the more important “quality of life” tasks left on my list. Primarily, anything to do with the existing appliances / systems, addressing water leaks, and making sure that the trailer would be safe & secure. After I’d crashed my parts trailer the previous summer, I’d taken off all of the access doors and the original lock...
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