Wowsers! Anyone else feeling this heat? We have had an pile of bookings over the last few weeks for travellers wanting to get air conditioners installed in their caravans in Toowoomba ready for their next trip.

There's a few options when it comes to selecting a caravan. Here's a few helpful pointers that we've been answering for people recently:

• Pop-Tops: yes you can put a roof mounted air conditioner on a pop-top van. We have a number of light weight options which suit pop-tops just fine. Sometimes we will use a reinforcing bracket on the roof, and generally the gas struts require adjusting to ensure the roof can be lifted with ease.
• Underbunk air conditioners: these units install under a bed or bunker and have a flexible duct that directs air into the cabin. Great for vans where there is no roof space, or roof is inadequate to support an air con.
• Split systems: common in some pop-tops, a lower capacity, but a good option if you have the available cupboard space.
• Reverse cycle: most caravan air conditions both heat and cool, but did you know that doesn't mean it's reverse cycle? A true reverse cycle air conditioner runs the compressor in both cooling and heating modes, and operates very efficiently in both. The cheaper heat/cool air conditioners only run the compressor in cooling mode, and rely on a heating element (like a blow heater) for the hot cycle. These element type heaters are pretty ineffective and in my opinion a bit of waste.
• Sizing: you need to get the appropriate capacity air conditioner for the size of your van – talk to us about the options available. There is no point getting an undersized air con as it will just struggle.
• Generators: yes you can run most air cons from a generator. Most people get away with a 2kVa unit like the Yamaha even for the large 3.2kW air conditioners. You just need to make sure there is nothing else running from the generator while trying to run the fridge. A larger generator like the 2.4kVa Yamaha will do the job a better, but the trade off is they are a physically larger unit (takes up more space) and quite a bit heavier to move about. They're fine if you are mounting them somewhere, but you don't want to be trying to lift them in/out of a vehicle.