Golly. I replaced a cruise air 16000 btu compressor unit on an aged split system last year with one from Ocean Breeze. Gave them the model no. and had it in about a week. Installed and wired it with their new controls and had a tech come check it and charge it. Around 2 boat bucks but works great. Kudos to Ocean Breeze-I'm satisfied.
Yes...well...your sort of experience with OB is mostly what I read on the web...which is why I felt comfortable buying one.
If I had done like you and ordered it from day one with
their thermostat control maybe everything would have been fine. But they were confident it could be configured to be controlled by the original SMX thermostat...supposedly done it before.
But when I picked up the unit in person (on the way to Palm Beach show) I discovered when I got home there was zero manual or instruction with it. Then when I finally got the manual, the electrical schematics were not the same as what I actually received.
Then I got new diagram drawn but still no hint of how to connect it to the original SMX thermostat (which is interfaced to a rather complex electronic board in the Cruisair...complete with at least 11 wires) So then Joe says to remove the Cruisair electrical box and the SMX thermostat, send it to him and he will wire it for me.
A week or so later, I get a box from them that has yet another OB electrical box and one of their digital thermostats. No note... no instructions..... no manual.....
nothing....zero paperwork.
Did not get back my Cruisair box or SMX...they either still have it or threw it away. (which would have been fine, if the new box and thermostat came with schematics and actually interfaced with the OB condenser....but it didn't)
All I can guess is they could not figure out how to interface to my SMX, so said to heck with it and sent me their box and thermostat for free and figured I'd be so grateful for that, I would somehow magically figure out how to then interface the new box with their previous box.
(FWIW, I am not a marine HVAC expert, but I am somewhat of an electronics person, sometimes repairing CNC machine tools at the component level.....so it's not like they are dealing with someone completely devoid of needed knowledge here)
But then it turns out that latest box they sent is meant for a 115 VAC system ! Mine is a 230 volt system (they knew from the get go it was 230 volts, including photos I sent of
their own nameplate on the condenser saying so !! )
In other words, not only could I not figure out how to interface their new box to the condenser,
neither could they !
So now, I have to disconnect the original box wiring from the condenser, and ship yet again two electrical boxes to them to see if they can sort out their own system !!
So...it may turn out all right eventually....they seem like nice folks...but have been astounded it's like pulling teeth to get some action on this.
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If curious why I wanted to use the original Cruisair SMX thermostat...
1. It works fine
2. I wouldn't have to run new wires to it.
3. I wouldn't have to cut a new hole to fit the very different shape OB thermostat (not only cut but fill the blank spaces vertically)
4. It would cost less not to buy another thermostat.
5. I have a spare one that probably works, in case this one every craps out
(the spare is from when two of the Cruisair units were upgraded by previous owner and they changed to SMX II thermostats)
But apparently it's simply impossible to do it....which would have been nice to know in the beginning.