[B_and_D]

We had a side a/c in our 97 model but it died. I took it out. We have a microwave oven in there now. Our cabinet frame was slanted to the right towards the back just like yours. Ours had a drip pan with a hole in the middle and a tube attached leading to the underneath of the trailer. It was strapped down with a metal ribbon around the sides and top. The drip pan was quite large and probably helped support the unit. Does your unit create condensation that drips into an internal drip pan? I think that the external drip pan was used as a precaution in case the condensation created by the unit was so voluminous that the internal drip pan overflowed. I recall some people complaining about the external drip pan overflowing because of a kinked or clogged drip hose and making a big of a mess inside the cabinet.

I looked up your model of a/c on the internet and it is said to be a window mount a/c. Someone else earlier on mentioned that the factory recommended a "through the wall" unit vs. a window mount. Although I haven't seen one in person, some of them that are combo "window" and "through the wall" units come with a metal sleeve that seems to be made to surround the vents on the side and block them off. I wonder if those are designed to both take in and exhaust through the back solely vs both the back and the sides.

I've been busy researching a replacement a/c and found that "through the wall" units are much more expensive.

You did a nice job on the installation. It looks great!