I'm Chitose Saito, a photographer and writer. I live in Chitose, Hokkaido, and enjoy the outdoors, mainly traveling in a camper van with my family of three, including my two-year-old son, to photograph Hokkaido's stunning scenery and wildlife. At OUTDOOR GEARZINE, we're the "QOCL (Quality of Camping Life) Improvement Committee," and we'll be sharing our impressions of camping gear, home appliances, high-tech gadgets, and more
The item we will introduce in the second installment of this series is the "Spot Air Conditioner QL03" from "Tansu no Gen."
This is the second installment of the series, and many of you may be thinking, "Spot coolers? This is OUTDOOR GEARZINE, after all?" However, if you want to improve the quality of your camping experience in a camper van in Hokkaido, where I live, spot coolers are an extremely important item. First, I would like to explain the circumstances surrounding this
Tansu Gen's Spot Air Conditioner QL03 is easy to install at home, and one of its major advantages is that you can install and move it yourself
table of contents
- What is Tansu Gen's "Spot Air Conditioner QL03"?
- Detailed Review: Why retrofitting a spot air conditioner is recommended for camper life in Hokkaido
- I'm sure you can add air conditioning to your camper van for just 30,000 yen!
- It can be installed in most luggage compartments that can be accessed from both the inside and outside
- In fact, the installation on the camper was completed using only 100 yen items
- It cools better than I expected and is quieter than I expected, so I'm very satisfied
- Summary: The Spot Air Conditioner QL03 is great for use at home when you're not camping
- Details and purchase information for Tansu Gen's "Spot Air Conditioner QL03"
What is Tansu Gen's "Spot Air Conditioner QL03"?
The Tansu Gen QL03 Spot Air Conditioner arrived at my house. Shipping is free, but please note that additional shipping charges apply to Hokkaido, Okinawa, and remote islands
Tansu Gen's "Spot Air Conditioner QL03" is a compact spot cooler measuring approximately 32cm wide x 31cm deep x 69.5cm high and weighing approximately 20kg. It can cool, dehumidify, and blow air, and dissipates heat through a 15cm diameter waste heat duct on the back of the unit. It consumes 650W (50Hz: Eastern Japan) or 800W (60Hz: Western Japan), and is compatible with a maximum area of 7 tatami mats (approximately 100 sq ft) at 50Hz for wooden buildings and 9 tatami mats (approximately 100 sq ft) at 60Hz for reinforced concrete and prefabricated buildings. Note that spot coolers do not significantly lower room temperature, and the recommended area is only a guideline. The "Spot Air Conditioner QL03" can be considered a portable, simple air conditioner, but its actual price is very reasonable at under ¥30,000 with free shipping. I decided to try out the "Spot Air Conditioner QL03" to see if it would be enough for campervan camping during the extremely hot summer months
Recommended points
- Free shipping and very reasonable price of under 30,000 yen
- It lowers the room temperature more than I expected, making it really comfortable
- Can be installed in a camper or at home without any major construction work
- The maximum power consumption is 800W, making it easy to use in camper vans etc
- Approximately 32cm wide x 31cm deep x 69.5cm high. More compact than you'd think
- The operating noise is about 65dB, which is not unbearable
Points that interest me
- It weighs about 20kg, so loading and unloading it from a camper is quite a job
- It takes some time for the effect to be felt throughout the room
Main Specifications and ratings
| item | Tansu Gen "Spot Air Conditioner QL03" |
|---|---|
| Size | Approximately 32cm wide x 31cm deep x 69.5cm high |
| Weight | Approximately 20kg |
| Power consumption | 650W (50Hz)/800W (60Hz) |
| Electricity cost (per hour) | 50Hz…approx. 16.97 yen / 60Hz…approx. 20.88 yen |
| Maximum dehumidification capacity | 22L/day (50Hz)/25L/day (60Hz) |
| Operating noise | ~65dB |
| Air volume | 2 stages |
| mode | Cool air, dehumidification, ventilation, sleep |
| On/Off Timer | 1 to 24 hours (in 1-hour increments) |
| cooling capacity | ★★★★☆ |
| Installation convenience | ★★★★☆ |
| Ease of travel | ★★★☆☆ |
| Comfort | ★★★★★ |
| Satisfaction | ★★★★☆ |
| Cost Performance | ★★★★★ |
| Quiet | ★★★☆☆ |
Detailed Review: Why retrofitting a spot air conditioner is recommended for camper life in Hokkaido
I'm sure you can add air conditioning to your camper van for just 30,000 yen!
My camper van doesn't have an air conditioner, but if I install the "Spot Air Conditioner QL03", I should be able to keep the inside of my camper van cool when camping in the middle of summer
"Hokkaido-spec" sounds good, but the camper van I normally drive doesn't have a cabin air conditioner powered by a sub-battery. It didn't have one when I bought it used, and Hokkaido is relatively cool at night, even in the summer, so I thought it wouldn't be a problem... But starting this season, my two-year-old son has started to seriously participate in summer camping
A couple can tolerate a little heat, but with a two-year-old son, it's not so easy. At the very least, when we're parked at a campground or RV park, we need to use the cabin's air conditioner to cool the interior
That being said, in Hokkaido, where I mainly work, I only really need an air conditioner for a period of one to two months at the longest, or even just a few weeks in midsummer. I don't have the financial means to retrofit a dedicated air conditioner to my camper van just for such a short period of time. I've read articles that say a camper van air conditioner plus installation costs can easily cost hundreds of thousands of yen, approaching 500,000 yen, but unfortunately, that's completely out of my reach. So I'll install an air conditioner in my work room first
With this in mind, the Tansu Gen website for car camping items when I came across the Tansu Gen QL03 Spot Air Conditioner. It costs about 30,000 yen including tax and includes free shipping, which is less than one-tenth the price of installing a dedicated air conditioner in a camper.
It can be installed in most luggage compartments that can be accessed from both the inside and outside
The non-drain type "Spot Air Conditioner QL03" does not collect water when dehumidifying, and can be installed in most places as long as the exhaust heat duct can be routed outdoors
The Tansu Gen "Spot Air Conditioner QL03" measures approximately 32cm wide x 31cm deep x 69.5cm high. This size is important, as a unit measuring approximately 30cm x 30cm will fit in the hallway of the cabin of a camper. It doesn't need an outdoor unit, and as long as it can vent the hot air through a 15cm diameter exhaust duct, it should be fine. The duct is extendable and can be adjusted to a length of approximately 24-150cm
Many campers, including my own, are equipped with a luggage compartment that can be accessed from both inside and outside the cabin. If you can fit a heat exhaust duct snugly into the opening on the inside of this compartment and extend the duct to the opening on the outside to exhaust hot air, you can basically install the QL03 Spot Air Conditioner inside the camper
Of course, you'll need a household AC power source to actually operate it, but if you have access to power at an RV park, car campground, etc., there's no problem. Also, while spot coolers don't have the effect of significantly lowering room temperature, the Spot Air Conditioner QL03 can be used in prefabricated rooms up to 8 tatami mats even with a weaker 50Hz power source, so it will be effective enough in the smaller interior of a camper
Incidentally, one of the reasons I like the "Spot Air Conditioner QL03" for campervans is that, although its cooling capacity of 2.0kW (50Hz) / 2.3kW (60Hz) is enough to cool the cabin of a campervan, its power consumption is low at 650W (50Hz) / 800W (60Hz), meaning it can be easily used with an electrical capacity of around 1000W. This is an important point for campervans, which have many restrictions regarding electricity
In fact, the installation on the camper was completed using only 100 yen items
I was able to find all the items I needed to install in the camper van at just 100 yen shops. The compass cutter was very useful for drilling precise holes
In the case of my camper, the Yosemite Sports, the luggage compartment, which can be accessed from both the inside and outside, is located at the very rear of the vehicle. To prevent insects and other pests from getting in, I attached a board with a hole exactly 15cm in diameter tightly to the inside opening, and this hole allows hot air to be exhausted when the outside opening is open
Unfortunately, I don't have the dexterity or skill to process wood or metal plates, so I decided to use an easily processed board such as styrofoam as the core, wrap it with cloth duct tape to reinforce it, and then secure it to the inside of the luggage compartment door with fastener tape. Most of the materials looked like they could be found at a 100 yen shop, so I went to my local Daiso
In the end, I ended up purchasing one "A2 size foam all-purpose board," four "adhesive zipper tapes," one "compass cutter," two "yellow adhesive cloth tapes," and one "thick wide gap tape (gray)," for a total of nine items, worth 990 yen including tax
I used a compass cutter to cut a 15cm diameter hole in a foam board (A2 size), wrapped it with adhesive cloth tape (yellow), and then used adhesive zipper tape to secure it to the inside opening of the luggage compartment, as shown in the photo below. I only actually used two pieces of adhesive zipper tape, and the thick, wide gap tape (gray) I bought to fill the gap ended up being unnecessary because the exhaust duct fit so snugly. Therefore, the total cost of materials was 660 yen including tax
When I actually tried installing it, I was surprised at how easy it was to install. The whole process took less than an hour
It has a simple structure, consisting of a core of polystyrene foam reinforced with cloth tape and attached to the luggage compartment door with adhesive zipper tape
It cools better than I expected and is quieter than I expected, so I'm very satisfied
The exhaust duct is attached to the luggage compartment door at the rear of the camper, as shown in the photo, and directs hot air from there to the outside
I was pleased to find that installing the Tansu Gen Spot Air Conditioner QL03 in my camper was much easier than I expected, so I immediately conducted an experiment to see how well it cooled the room
The temperature inside the car was measured every 15 minutes from a temperature of 32.2 degrees Celsius using a thermometer placed in a location that was not directly exposed to the cool air from the "Spot Air Conditioner QL03."
| Time (min) | Temperature (℃) | Humidity (%) |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | 32.2 | 56 |
| 15 | 30.7 | 50 |
| 30 | 28.7 | 50 |
| 45 | 27.7 | 53 |
| 60 | 27.0 | 54 |
As explained on the official website, "spot coolers do not significantly lower room temperature," but they do lower the temperature over time. It certainly doesn't feel like the room temperature drops rapidly like a fixed-unit household cooler with an outdoor unit. However, the inside of the camper's cabin is cooler and more comfortable than the thermometer, placed out of the direct reach of the cold air, indicated. I was confident that it would definitely work for cooling the camper's cabin. I was worried that the operating noise would be quite loud, but the specs state that it's about 65dB at maximum, and my measurements showed it was about 60dB, so while it's not unnoticeable, it's still tolerable in exchange for the heat
And just the other day, I was blessed with the opportunity to actually use it at a campsite. Forever Camping Paradise is conveniently located about 10 minutes from New Chitose Airport, where I regularly take photos, and I enjoyed a leisurely camping trip with my family, which is unusual for me. It was the beginning of July, and the weather was rainy and humid, yet hot, making for muggy and humid conditions that are unusual for Hokkaido. Wi-Fi and household power outlets are available in some areas of Forever Camping Paradise, so I decided to test the Spot Air Conditioner QL03 in the area where power was available, even though it cost an additional 550 yen per day.
Since the Spot Air Conditioner QL03 does not rapidly lower the room temperature, we first set it to one of two high settings to cool the room and reduce humidity, then, once the temperature reached a moderate level, switched to low to maintain a comfortable temperature. After playing outside under the tarp or near the campfire, we returned to the camper, and it was noticeably cooler and more comfortable. We wouldn't want to go camping in the summer without the Spot Air Conditioner QL03 again. Having a place to escape to in the cooler temperatures and humidity of the camper is a valuable tool for preventing exhaustion and enhancing outdoor enjoyment. My two-year-old son thoroughly enjoyed playing outside on the spacious grounds of Forever Camping Paradise, and he not only slept soundly in the camper, but also during his afternoon naps, staying in a good mood throughout the day. It was reassuring to know that the inside of the camper was cool enough to prevent heatstroke for my child. We were very pleased with the results
The white tube on the far left of the door to the luggage compartment of the camper is the heat exhaust duct. It has a diameter of about 15cm. This is where the heat is exhausted
Summary: The Spot Air Conditioner QL03 is great for use at home when you're not camping
When I'm not camping, I keep the Tansu Gen QL03 Spot Air Conditioner in my bedroom at home, and it's useful even when I'm not camping
Hokkaido, where I mainly live, is a place where it gets cool at night even in the summer, so it's hard to justify installing an air conditioner in a camper van when you hear it will cost hundreds of thousands of yen. Also, when you start thinking about cost-effectiveness, such as how many times and how many days you'll be camping in Hokkaido between mid-July and mid-August, when you really need air conditioning, retrofitting a camper van that didn't have one when it was new can be quite a challenge
The Tansu Gen "Spot Air Conditioner QL03" retails for less than 30,000 yen, and while its durability is questionable, even if I include the cost of fabricating the parts I used to install it in my camper van using 100 yen store materials, it still only costs around 30,000 yen. Even if it's only for a few days a year, if it keeps the whole family comfortable on summer camping trips, it's definitely a great value for the money
What's more, the Spot Air Conditioner QL03 weighs only about 20 kg, so when you're not planning on going camping, you can remove it from your camper and use it at home. By using the included window panel, the hot air exhaust duct can be attached to windows over 65 cm and up to 226 cm in height (excluding windows between 66 and 81 cm and 116 and 119 cm), making it suitable for use in many rooms
In fact, I use the Spot Air Conditioner QL03 in my bedroom on nights when it's really hot to sleep. Although it's a bit of a hassle to load and unload, it's great value for money and works well even when you're not camping
Since it is not very airtight, it is questionable how effective it will be, but if you want to, you can use it inside a tent, so if you are looking to do something about the heat while camping in the summer, it might be worth considering using it in something other than a camper van
Details and purchase information for Tansu Gen's "Spot Air Conditioner QL03"
For more information about the product, please see Tansu Gen's "Spot Air Conditioner QL03."
Photography cooperation
Photography cooperation: Forever Camping Paradise
Saito Titoce
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