Protecting air con in an RV!

[Leahpatra]

Well folks, after truly burning at the Burn in a hot tent, we quit our jobs, bought an old but beautiful RV and plan to christen it at Burning Man this year.

We'd love to find a way to stop dust getting in through air vents/the air condition system. What do we do, knowledgeable peeps!

Thanks so much!
Pffffft

[Captain Goddammit]

RV rooftop air conditioners don’t pull in outside air, they recirculate your existing interior air. You don’t need to do anything with it.

As for all other vents, access hatches, window frames, etc, painters tape is your friend.

If you do the standard Burning Man RV trick and cover your windows with reflectix, the super-advanced procedure is to cut it big enough to cover the windows AND the window frame. The metal window frame gets hot as hell and conducts right into the interior.

[Token]

And no matter how hard you try, your RV will get dust inside.

On your hair, cheeks, shoulders, belly, hips, other cheeks, legs, feet ...

... and all other body parts we ain’t gonna talk about.

But do search on these boards as this has been asked and answered dozens of times.

Burn Bright!

[gaminwench]

It's also wise to have a bin outside the door, where you stow shoes and coats; those things get reaaaally dusty and don't need to be inside.

[Leahpatra]

Thanks so much, fam!

Any advice about protecting the engine air intake thingy?

[Leahpatra]

I'm not really sure what to look up on the forums!

[gaminwench]

Eh, just close all the air intakes before leaving the asphalt, change air filters post playa (early in your drive to your next adventure), and once you've dropped anchor in the post playa world, get a good power wash of the undercarriage.

[Captain Goddammit]

This is a call for Captain Dust Fighter!!

It is in fact possible to have a nearly dust free place at Burning Man.
Ask anyone who’s visited mine.

There are two things that are a big help, besides painters tape over EVERY access hatch vent window seal and opening of any kind.

The trick is not to just depend on keeping it out, that is a losing battle, you need a way to get it out.

The best thing is go to someplace like Harbor Freight it maybe Home Depot and buy a small 120-volt air compressor, hose, and blow gun. It’s the best thing in the world for knocking the playa dust out of clothes, rugs, and generally everything.

The other thing is to find an old Rainbow vacuum on Craigslist.
It uses a bowl of water as the filter.
Use that to vacuum and it will actually filter the playa dust out of the air.

I’ve been doing this many years. It seems the best you can do.