The ComfortPro auxiliary power unit (APU) from Carrier Transicold has been improved with a 1,000-hour service interval, industry-standard R-134a refrigerant, and a 60-amp alternator. This APU provides air-conditioning, heating, and household electrical current for a truck sleeper cab, battery charging and truck engine warming. It offers an all-electric architecture — the Deltek hybrid diesel-electric technology found in Carrier's Vector 1800MT trailer refrigeration units.
Using a larger oil reservoir and new oil filter doubled the oil-service interval, and the new alternator provides 50 percent more power than the original.
Other improvements include a new condenser with a fin-and-tube design, use of a thermostatic expansion valve rather than a capillary tube mechanism, and addition of a low-pressure sensor to protect the unit by shutting it down in case of a refrigerant leak.
ComfortPro APUs reduce idling by up to 90 percent. The energy source is a 4,000-watt generator driven by a diesel engine. For high reliability, the air-conditioning system uses a sealed electric compressor inside the cabin. All ComfortPro APUs come with a two-year, 4,000-hour warranty.
E-mail Anthony D'Angelo at [email protected] for more information.