DA62 First Ever RAAC Retrofit

Any DA62 related topics

Moderators: Rick, Lance Murray

User avatar
NDCDA62
3 Diamonds Member
3 Diamonds Member
Posts: 197
Joined: Thu Aug 02, 2018 3:15 pm
First Name: Nigel
Aircraft Type: DA62
Aircraft Registration: DINDC
Airports: EDRY
Has thanked: 83 times
Been thanked: 117 times

DA62 First Ever RAAC Retrofit

Post by NDCDA62 »

Due to operational requirements, very recently, I retrofitted the Diamond RAAC air conditioning unit into my DA62 which was carried out by DAI Weiner Neustadt, Austria.

A truly fabulous neat job which was on time and I am extremely happy with the result.

Also took the opportunity to retrofit the Garmin satcom system.

Great work!! 👏👏👏
Attachments
RAAC Control Unit
RAAC Control Unit
B749F764-3AEB-4BAC-9771-909F42862F5E.jpeg (42.36 KiB) Viewed 1754 times
New Cowling fitted
New Cowling fitted
F0C53791-13E8-4E93-9A4A-9830663EE14F.jpeg (23.45 KiB) Viewed 1754 times
RAAC additional Alternator fitted to LH Engine
RAAC additional Alternator fitted to LH Engine
8AE8C396-9055-45C1-9F09-3E9A992AE231.jpeg (37.44 KiB) Viewed 1754 times
RAAC Unit Fitted in rear of DA62
RAAC Unit Fitted in rear of DA62
3D8ECB9F-8C4D-4A70-B91F-3F08BD504018.jpeg (30.13 KiB) Viewed 1754 times
User avatar
UTMark
3 Diamonds Member
3 Diamonds Member
Posts: 53
Joined: Sat Oct 03, 2020 6:28 pm
First Name: Mark
Aircraft Type: DA62
Aircraft Registration: N100DA
Airports: KSPK
Has thanked: 12 times
Been thanked: 33 times

Re: DA62 First Ever RAAC Retrofit

Post by UTMark »

Does it still only provide a single AC vent for the 2nd row of 3 seats?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
KSPK, Spanish Fork, UT
N100DA DA-62 62.078
User avatar
NDCDA62
3 Diamonds Member
3 Diamonds Member
Posts: 197
Joined: Thu Aug 02, 2018 3:15 pm
First Name: Nigel
Aircraft Type: DA62
Aircraft Registration: DINDC
Airports: EDRY
Has thanked: 83 times
Been thanked: 117 times

Re: DA62 First Ever RAAC Retrofit

Post by NDCDA62 »

All vents are serviced.
User avatar
photoSteveZ
4 Diamonds Member
4 Diamonds Member
Posts: 321
Joined: Wed Dec 23, 2020 4:10 pm
First Name: Steve
Aircraft Type: DA62
Aircraft Registration: N62DZ
Airports: KEIK Erie CO
Has thanked: 387 times
Been thanked: 226 times

Re: DA62 First Ever RAAC Retrofit

Post by photoSteveZ »

NDCDA62 wrote: Sat Apr 02, 2022 8:42 pm All vents are serviced.
“How many vents are provided for each seating row?” is I think what UTMark was asking.
User avatar
NDCDA62
3 Diamonds Member
3 Diamonds Member
Posts: 197
Joined: Thu Aug 02, 2018 3:15 pm
First Name: Nigel
Aircraft Type: DA62
Aircraft Registration: DINDC
Airports: EDRY
Has thanked: 83 times
Been thanked: 117 times

Re: DA62 First Ever RAAC Retrofit

Post by NDCDA62 »

1 for each pilot, 1 in centre for Row 1 and 1 in Row 2
User avatar
laserpilot
2 Diamonds Member
2 Diamonds Member
Posts: 22
Joined: Wed Mar 23, 2022 12:51 am
First Name: Jaap
Aircraft Type: OTHER
Aircraft Registration: N2864
Airports: KBWD
Has thanked: 40 times
Been thanked: 4 times

Re: DA62 First Ever RAAC Retrofit

Post by laserpilot »

Is the airconditioning worth the money? If read some mixed reviews.
User avatar
photoSteveZ
4 Diamonds Member
4 Diamonds Member
Posts: 321
Joined: Wed Dec 23, 2020 4:10 pm
First Name: Steve
Aircraft Type: DA62
Aircraft Registration: N62DZ
Airports: KEIK Erie CO
Has thanked: 387 times
Been thanked: 226 times

Re: DA62 First Ever RAAC Retrofit

Post by photoSteveZ »

The RACC is underpowered, but does help keep cabin temps bearable until you get to altitude. Combined with Jet Shades, it's *almost* adequate.

In the DA62, the weight of the unit installed in the aft fuselage also helps keep your loaded CG within the forward limit, particularly when you have only two people on board. I.e., really expensive ballast.
User avatar
CFIDave
5 Diamonds Member
5 Diamonds Member
Posts: 2678
Joined: Wed Nov 07, 2012 3:40 pm
First Name: Dave
Aircraft Type: OTHER
Aircraft Registration: N333GX
Airports: KJYO Leesburg VA
Has thanked: 231 times
Been thanked: 1473 times

Re: DA62 First Ever RAAC Retrofit

Post by CFIDave »

photoSteveZ wrote: Wed May 04, 2022 8:11 pm The RACC is underpowered, but does help keep cabin temps bearable until you get to altitude. Combined with Jet Shades, it's *almost* adequate.
It might cool better in US western states with low humidity, but here in eastern mid-Atlantic states (e.g., VA and MD) it doesn't seem to do much more than attempt to de-humidify moist, humid summer air. (It even drips out the air vents.)
Epic Aircraft E1000 GX
Former DA40XLS, DA42-VI, and DA62 owner
ATP, CFI, CFI-I, MEI
User avatar
MackAttack
4 Diamonds Member
4 Diamonds Member
Posts: 261
Joined: Thu Jan 23, 2020 6:20 pm
First Name: Joel
Aircraft Type: DA62
Aircraft Registration: N251JM
Airports: KIWS
Has thanked: 8 times
Been thanked: 160 times

Re: DA62 First Ever RAAC Retrofit

Post by MackAttack »

That’s the one thing about the DA62 that I’m not super excited about here in very humid Houston… but it’s better than nothing for sure.
User avatar
ultraturtle
4 Diamonds Member
4 Diamonds Member
Posts: 300
Joined: Fri Mar 31, 2017 2:46 pm
First Name: Rob
Aircraft Type: DA62
Aircraft Registration: N62KZ
Airports: KAAF
Has thanked: 64 times
Been thanked: 180 times

Re: DA62 First Ever RAAC Retrofit

Post by ultraturtle »

I think that the misconception of how air conditioning works in general is amplified when applying it to an aircraft with massive canopy plexiglass exposure, and heat soaking.

At best, a residential air conditioner will cool about 3 degrees F per hour in a well shaded environment.

An aircraft with a lot of plexiglass exposed to the sun heats up tremendously when sitting static, so one might expect such an aircraft with a terrific air conditioner to take roughly 7 hours to cool a heat soaked cabin from 95 degrees to a comfortable 74 degrees. Not realistic, yes, and most (including the DA62's RACC) beat that metric by a lot.

I crank the engines and air conditioner within less than 10 minutes of pulling my beast out of the hangar, and have no complaint whatsoever about its ability to cool while taxiing with the doors closed. On the rare occasion I fly low due to winds, the system is more than adequate to keep the cabin comfortable for the entire flight.

My guess is that most complaints about cooling effectiveness come from folks who heat soak their aircraft by parking them with sun exposure and expect miracles from a non-miracle providing system.
Post Reply