MOD Louvered cabinet door over driver's seat on Newmar New Aire

[MarkMaxPayne]

For some reason the folks at Newmar don't think that New Aires require louvers to allow hot air to escape from the cabinet all the electronics are contained in over the driver's seat. They do this in other models, but not the New Aire. This mod was relatively easy once I got over the disappointment that my cabinet doors are actually veneered MDF despite what Newmar's marketing and sales materials and people say (that rant in a different post).

I ended up ordering a set of louvers from Newmar parts. I ordered the same set of louvers that are used in the bedroom rear wall below the closet (next to the washer dryer cabinet doors). I had to lightly sand them and revarnish with "Dead Flat" to more closely match the cabinet door I was installing them into. Newer models are using a gloss finish now so newer rigs might be able to skip this step.

I then removed and applied painters tape to the front top half of my cabinet door. I took some measurements to ensure my cut out for the louver wouldn't interfere with the hinges. I also made sure that my cutout was to the inside dimensions of the louver, allowing its face to overhang the opening and mount against the door. Four drill holes and a jig saw cut out the MDF and veneered section I wanted to mount the louvers in.

I installed the louvers upside down for two reasons: Not see the electronics in the cabinet when the cabinet door was closed; create an easier path for raising heat to exit them.

Because the door was MDF vs. solid wood (sorry, still doing the slow burn on that one), I had to use some scrap trim wood to then frame out the inside of the cutout where the louver insert would have left ugly MDF exposed. I tried to stain the trim pieces, but didn't match the original stain. That said, even though it doesn't match, it is a heck of a lot better looking than exposed MDF when the door is opened.

I wish I didn't have to do this project. New Aires should just come with a louvered door over the driver's seat where they put all the 3rd party electronics (routers, satellite dish box, etc.). My next project will be to cut some air holes into the shelf between what was the closed box and the lower box (which they don't use), which has a grill to allow cooler air in.

Best,
-Mark

 

[Boat Bum]

matches perfectly

 

[MarkMaxPayne]

And as a final touch I cut out two 1.5" holes for air circulation given much of the lower cabinet's back wall was a grill to allow air from the front glass area to come in and out and my newly added louvers for the upper shelf, where the electronics actually are installed and reside, now allowed for the same air exchange with the coach. With these latest two holes cut in the shelf between the two levels that should encourage actual airflow into the lower shelf area from the front glass facing grating, up through the back of the shelf via the new holes, and then out the louvers for the top shelf area. I inserted 1.5" plastic grommets (after trimming them down) into both holes and both top and bottoms for a better finish.

Now to see if I should install a fan or not to help encourage the air flow. However, I'll wait to see if no longer trapping heat in what was a closed box and letting the air flow naturally is good enough or not.

Best,
-Mark