Camco Arctic White AC Cover for Coleman Mach I, II, III

If you store your RV outside, the rooftop air conditioner takes a beating. Sun chalks the shroud, leaves and pine sap pile up in the seams, and grit works its way into the housing over a long off-season. This Camco Arctic White cover slips over the top of your Coleman Mach unit and takes that abuse instead, so the air conditioner underneath stays clean and ready for the next trip.

It's cut to fit Coleman Mach I, II and III TSR models. One important exception: it does not fit the Coleman Mach model #7100, so check the label on your unit before you order. If you're not sure which generation you have, the model and series are usually printed on a sticker inside the shroud or on the ceiling assembly's paperwork.

The cover is made from vinyl in an arctic white finish that blends in with most RV roofs and reflects sun instead of soaking it up. A locking draw cord runs around the bottom edge. You pull it snug and it cinches the cover down over the shroud so wind doesn't get under it and flap it loose. That draw cord is the whole trick to a cover like this. Get it tight and the cover rides out a breezy storage lot. Leave it loose and you'll be re-seating it after every gusty night.

Here's the one rule you can't skip: take the cover off before you run the AC, and take it off before you drive. A rooftop air conditioner pulls its air in through the top and sides of the shroud. Cover that up with the unit running and you choke the airflow, which is hard on the compressor. And at highway speed a cover left on can tear loose and go flying. Camco prints "do not operate vehicle with cover installed" right on the packaging for exactly that reason. This is a storage cover, not a driving cover.

First-time install is easier with two people. One person up top to walk the cover over the shroud and line up the front and back, one to feed and hold the draw cord. Once you've done it once you'll have the routine down and it's a five-minute job each fall. If your unit sits under trees, it's worth a look every few weeks through the winter to knock off heavy leaf buildup or snow load so the cover isn't carrying weight it wasn't meant to.

The cover also helps keep cold drafts from sneaking down through the AC when you're parked in cool weather but not running the unit. It's a small thing, but a rooftop air conditioner is basically a hole in your roof with a fan in it, and a snug cover over the top cuts the draft that comes down through it.

Look after the cover and it'll last you plenty of seasons. When you pull it off in spring, shake out the leaves and grit, wipe it down if it's dirty, and let it dry all the way before you fold it. Vinyl that gets folded away damp can hold moisture and start to smell, so give it a day in the air if it went on wet. Store it somewhere dry and out of the sun and it'll be ready to go back on next fall.

Who's this for? Anybody who parks a Coleman Mach-equipped rig outdoors between trips, in a driveway, a storage lot, or a seasonal site. It's a cheap piece of insurance against UV damage and debris that would otherwise shorten the life of the shroud and let junk into the unit. It won't turn a worn-out AC into a new one, and it isn't a substitute for a full RV cover if you want to protect the whole roof. But for keeping the air conditioner itself clean and shaded through the off-season, it does exactly what it says. The packaging is bilingual, printed in English and French.