A/C performance during this heat wave

[cotonymopar]

I'm in the camp of not noticing any issues with my AC system, but I get that it can be subjective. Still, I'm usually pretty sensitive to underperforming AC systems, as I can't stand the system that's in my wife's BMW X5. The one in her car is terribly ineffective here in Houston.

By the way, I also have ventilated (cooled) seats in my RAM. Do ventilated seats run off the same AC system? Just curious if anyone experiencing issues with their AC also has ventilated seats, and if so, does the issue cause problems with both? It may be a stupid question, but could be good to know if there is any correlation between people having (or at least noticing) insufficient cooling from their AC and whether or not their trucks are equipped with ventilated seats.

I have ventilated seats, and do not feel a problem... but the ventilated seats are a lot better than the ones in my 12 ram

 

[SpeedyV]

I'm in the camp of not noticing any issues with my AC system, but I get that it can be subjective. Still, I'm usually pretty sensitive to underperforming AC systems, as I can't stand the system that's in my wife's BMW X5. The one in her car is terribly ineffective here in Houston.

By the way, I also have ventilated (cooled) seats in my RAM. Do ventilated seats run off the same AC system? Just curious if anyone experiencing issues with their AC also has ventilated seats, and if so, does the issue cause problems with both? It may be a stupid question, but could be good to know if there is any correlation between people having (or at least noticing) insufficient cooling from their AC and whether or not their trucks are equipped with ventilated seats.

To my knowledge, the ventilated seats are just fans...no A/C components. That said, I’m a big fan of those fans

 

[Brisoup1]

Well, the results are in on my Ram with the things I started doing today to combat ineffective A/C. They DEFINITELY helped! The truck sat in the sun with a high outside temp of 97 degrees.
I parked the truck at work and put up the sunshade at 4am- about 2 1/2 hours before sunrise.
At 3:53 pm, I auto started the truck.
At 4:00 pm, I entered the truck. The A/C & ventilated seat was on full blast. The temperature inside wasn't ice cold, but I would describe it as comfortable. I didn't feel the need to open the windows to expel heat out of the cabin.
I started driving. Hit two red lights before I was able to drive consistently @ 40-45 mph. As soon as I did this, the A/C started getting noticeably cooler. After 4 miles it actually felt like the A/C was doing it like it's supposed to. After 2 more miles, I was home.
If I haven't done any of this, I would of had to drive the first 3 miles with the windows open to get all the heat out. The overall temp inside the truck wouldn't be nearly as cool when I pulled into my driveway.
The A/C was on LO and in recirc mode during the whole ride.

Today was the hottest day of the year so far and the windows stayed up the whole time. So as I said, all of this definitely made a difference.

 

[SpeedyV]

Well, the results are in on my Ram with the things I started doing today to combat ineffective A/C. They DEFINITELY helped! The truck sat in the sun with a high outside temp of 97 degrees.
I parked the truck at work and put up the sunshade at 4am- about 2 1/2 hours before sunrise.
At 3:53 pm, I auto started the truck.
At 4:00 pm, I entered the truck. The A/C & ventilated seat was on full blast. The temperature inside wasn't ice cold, but I would describe it as comfortable. I didn't feel the need to open the windows to expel heat out of the cabin.
I started driving. Hit two red lights before I was able to drive consistently @ 40-45 mph. As soon as I did this, the A/C started getting noticeably cooler. After 4 miles it actually felt like the A/C was doing it like it's supposed to. After 2 more miles, I was home.
If I haven't done any of this, I would of had to drive the first 3 miles with the windows open to get all the heat out. The overall temp inside the truck wouldn't be nearly as cool when I pulled into my driveway.
The A/C was on LO and in recirc mode during the whole ride.

Today was the hottest day of the year so far and the windows stayed up the whole time. So as I said, all of this definitely made a difference.

Small point of clarification: The ventilated seats only come on at the “lo” setting with a remote start. Are you saying you changed yours to “hi” after getting in?

 

[Billet1500 4x4]

in the high 90s here in Colorado, black truck, no sun shade, and within a few mins, we are cooled off... wonder if it has to do with the amount of humidity? we have low humidity compared to a lot of places...

Humidity is a huge factor for AC performance. The higher the RH the higher the saturation temp. Basically what happens when the water vapor (humidity) reaches the saturation temp it condensates when the water vapor changes state into a liquid it releases heat, so on top of the AC system trying remove heat from the air it also has to remove the heat released by the water changing state so less work goes into cooling the air. We use something called a psychometric chart to determine these values and size AC systems according to where they are located, easy to to do for buildings, more difficult for cars that will see every type of climate. So a one size fits all AC system works much better in places with low RH%.

To my knowledge, the ventilated seats are just fans...no A/C components. That said, I’m a big fan of those fans

Like speedy V said they are technically considered ventilated seats not cooled seats. The AC is not directly connected to the seats but there is a small ac duct that runs under the carpet below the front seats and blows cold air under the seat. The fan sucks the cold air up and blows it through seat. If it weren't for the ducting they would just below warm air from under the seats which would truly suck.

 

[SpeedyV]

Humidity is a huge factor for AC performance. The higher the RH the higher the saturation temp. Basically what happens when the water vapor (humidity) reaches the saturation temp it condensates when the water vapor changes state into a liquid it releases heat, so on top of the AC system trying remove heat from the air it also has to remove the heat released by the water changing state so less work goes into cooling the air. We use something called a psychometric chart to determine these values and size AC systems according to where they are located, easy to to do for buildings, more difficult for cars that will see every type of climate. So a one size fits all AC system works much better in places with low RH%.


Like speedy V said they are technically considered ventilated seats not cooled seats. The AC is not directly connected to the seats but there is a small ac duct that runs under the carpet below the front seats and blows cold air under the seat. The fan sucks the cold air up and blows it through seat. If it weren't for the ducting they would just below warm air from under the seats which would truly suck.

Good explanation, except for the psychrometric chart...as opposed to the study of psychology

 

[Billet1500 4x4]

Good explanation, except for the psychrometric chart...as opposed to the study of psychology

Lol, missed the "r" my bad.

 

[SpeedyV]

Lol, missed the "r" my bad.

My autocorrect wanted to do the same!

 

[Edwards]

Humidity is a huge factor for AC performance. The higher the RH the higher the saturation temp. Basically what happens when the water vapor (humidity) reaches the saturation temp it condensates when the water vapor changes state into a liquid it releases heat, so on top of the AC system trying remove heat from the air it also has to remove the heat released by the water changing state so less work goes into cooling the air. We use something called a psychometric chart to determine these values and size AC systems according to where they are located, easy to to do for buildings, more difficult for cars that will see every type of climate. So a one size fits all AC system works much better in places with low RH%.


Like speedy V said they are technically considered ventilated seats not cooled seats. The AC is not directly connected to the seats but there is a small ac duct that runs under the carpet below the front seats and blows cold air under the seat. The fan sucks the cold air up and blows it through seat. If it weren't for the ducting they would just below warm air from under the seats which would truly suck.

Where's the duct blowing into the seat intake? I've looked under there previously and didn't see that. Out of town at the moment or I'd eyeball mine again.

 

[Billet1500 4x4]

Where's the duct blowing into the seat intake? I've looked under there previously and didn't see that. Out of town at the moment or I'd eyeball mine again.

It doesn't blow directly into the intake it just blows air out under the seat. If you look from the back side of the front seats you will see three small rectangular ducts in a row

 

[Edwards]

It doesn't blow directly into the intake it just blows air out under the seat. If you look from the back side of the front seats you will see three small rectangular ducts in a row

Aren't those the rear seat heater ducts? I don't see how those would get any airflow under the seat, just to the back seat. Also, don't know how they are plumbed, but think they should only be connected to the heater ducts, not the dash vents like the rear seat AC vents.

 

[Tundralag]

A little warm here today in Hellpaso

 

[SpeedyV]

Aren't those the rear seat heater ducts? I don't see how those would get any airflow under the seat, just to the back seat. Also, don't know how they are plumbed, but think they should only be connected to the heater ducts, not the dash vents like the rear seat AC vents.

Makes sense. Logically, you wouldn't blow cold air on a passenger's feet/ankles (other than possibly in bi-level mode). The floor would also be the coolest air location already (since warm air rises), so it would make more sense to use these as an air return than supply when running A/C.

 

[ChadT]

A little warm here today in Hellpaso

So I came into this thread to cry about it being in the mid to high 90s here, to say the A/C was "adequate"...
I saw this post aaand I will be showing myself the door.

Hellpaso indeed!

 

[Brisoup1]

Small point of clarification: The ventilated seats only come on at the “lo” setting with a remote start. Are you saying you changed yours to “hi” after getting in?

Yes, that's what I meant.

 

[_StangPGH]

There must be 6 or more AC threads now. Valve / clamp it and done. Remove before service work.

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

 

[ColoradoCub]

There must be 6 or more AC threads now. Valve / clamp it and done. Remove before service work.

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

Bingo! All this fancy tint, windshield reflectors and auto start won’t make 43 deg at the vents, the valve/clamp does!

 

[Tundralag]

So I came into this thread to cry about it being in the mid to high 90s here, to say the A/C was "adequate"...
I saw this post aaand I will be showing myself the door.

Hellpaso indeed!

Yep it was hot. My ac has no issues. You can’t expect the ac to cool that huge cab in minutes. Today mine cooled off before I got two miles down the road. Like an idiot I grabbed my sunglasses from the top dashboard cubby. Damn near burned my ears off when I put them on

 

[sticker500]

Yes, that's what I meant.

My seats are on HI when remote start, and after I get in and press the Start button they change to the lowest setting.

 

[LWC850]

Florida here. High 90s with a heat index over 100. My truck sits all day in direct sun at work. It’s warm when I get in but not as hot as my Camry. The truck cools down fairly quickly and I consistently set a higher temp on my 30 minute drive home. In fact, today I even set it at 80 for a while because it was too cold.