Do you like the size of frig/freezer you slected.

[bagabum]

I previously have always used ice. I will be purchasing a 24V DC Frig/Freezer soon. It's service  will be  for 1 person / 1 week between grocery store runs. Probably will run in  freezer   mode? I'm not sure?  I am not cramped  for size.   I'm thinking around 36 quart size for TV dinners, sausage, HB meat, bacon, frozen foods, etc. beverages, lunch meat, cheese, etc  in not so cold section.  Are you happy with the one you have or would you have bought a larger one or smaller one. Now that you have made your purchase, what are your thought on driving size selection?

 

[barleyguy]

I have a large RV fridge. I think it's (EDIT: I looked it up. It's 7.3 cubic feet.). I can fit about 3 weeks worth of frozen meat in the freezer, and other stuff in the fridge. I could go smaller, but I'd probably be down to two weeks. I also have a 52 quart cooler, that I primarily use to transport food to and from the RV. If that was my only source of cooling, I'd probably have to go shopping once a week or change my diet to include more room temperature foods.

So as far as size, I'd say 50 quart is big enough for a week, based on my personal observations.

 

[MrNoodly]

Well, how much refrigerated/frozen stuff do you eat in a week? Do your shopping, stack all your stuff together and measure it.

 

[highdesertranger]

yeah you don't want to ask me because I am a bad example. I have three 40qt. I use one as a freezer the other two as refrigerators. but I can go a long time between resupply. highdesertranger

 

[izifaddag]

In 2012 I bought a dorm fridge for my truck. It is 4.4 cubic feet. I moved it over into the camper.
I have just recently installed my solar setup, well the start of my solar setup. I have 1 x Mighty Max battery @100ah and 2 solar panels. I also have 2 x 2000 generators neither of which actually delivers 2000 watts.
It creates a problem. A single gen will not run the AC and the fridge.
At night I turn off the gen and switch to battery. It runs the fridge all night no problem. Obviously I will be expanding the setup when I have some extra money.
I have been dithering around the idea of buying a 60 quart dual zone Alpicool and running straight off the battery. The reviews on Amazon are mixed though and it is smaller than the fridge.
So my question to the OP is how are you for power because it is going to determine what you should do. If you have the opportunity plan this out before hitting the road and don't figure this on the fly because it is a pain.

 

[bagabum]

Thank you izifaddag for your response, I have the amp hours due to 1200 watts up top. I am bad about buying the biggest of things and I was thinking of reaching out to this group to see their thoughts on size. I hear you when you say plan the purchase so I dont have to regret purchase. Thank you for your input an have fun with planning the purchase of your new 60.

 

[wayne49]

The amount of solar watts up top matters not, before the sun gets high enough in the sky, and later on when the sun drops below the yardarm. Those are the hours when only the battery bank is doing the heavy lifting.

As to fridge size, it is a compromise between floor space available, available battery amp hours, and what food do you really need to refrigerate and or freeze. Does one really need to refrigerate drinking water. Have ice cubes. Are cold beers more important than food. Everybody is different. Some people need to have a freezer for meds.

A 62 qt Whynter chest takes up floor space, it is about 2.2 cu ft, about half of a 4.4 cu ft dorm fridge. The dorm fridge is cheaper and has a smaller floor footprint, but is taller and would need more of an effort to be secured for transport. The dorm fridge also requires an inverter. A dorm fridge can be finicky when ambient air temps are not in the 68-72 F range 24x7. Freezing hard during a cool night and barely maintaining food safety temps during a hot day. Some areas have a 30-35 F degree swing almost every day. Above 85 F a dorm fridge is working harder than its design load. Above 85 F is when the warranty becomes void [Home Depot].

 

[B and C]

Most dorm fridges are also skin cooled so if built in don't work well.

 

[bagabum]

....So my question to the OP is how are you for power because it is going to determine what you should do. If you have the opportunity plan this out before hitting the road and don't figure this on the fly because it is a pain.

My solar is 3x435 =1305, reality probably 1100 watts , 2 series 12v150ah .. Ohmmu lifepo batteries good to 90% draw. 24Va135aH. 3240 watts, but about 1000 watts of this at night will be for my 24V ZB air conditioner in sleep mode. So plenty of power 24/7.

 

[jonyjoe303]

I got a 26 quart joytutus fridge and its about the right size for me, I use to have a 43 quart edgestar which was too big for my van. Right now I have a bag of fishsticks, bag of taters, some frozen vegetables, bag of taquitos, and also a gallon jug of frozen water. The frozen jug I just keep in case I lose power, I could always remove if I needed more room. 26 quarts will easily store enough food for 1 person for more then 1 week.

All that food last me several weeks since I also eat can goods. I added insulation to the sides/top of the fridge and got it to maintain 12 degrees F using 26ah of power per 24 hours. 12f is good enough to keep that food frozen, I even kept ice cream at 12 degrees for weeks but it wont be frozen solid. I bought the joytutu because you can fit a gallon jug of milk in it standing upright and it only weighs 26 pounds empty.

Whichever fridge you get make sure you vent it, in a hot day, they put out alot of heat. Two weeks after I bought the joytutu I was already regretting the decision, out of the compresser vents I was getting 110 degrees of heat. All that heat in a already hot van, makes it unbearable quickly. I use flexible ducting and vented the fridge to the outside, heat problems are gone. 3 months later very happy with the fridge.

 

[tripper]

I have 45 quart Whynter. I like it, you do not have to worry about vehicle being level. For sure get the largest size you can comfortably fit in your rig, you will not regret it, plus they can be used as an auxiliary seat if you put a cushion on top. A dual zone one is very useful, it is nice to have fresh items like salads, milk and eggs, but also have TV dinners, steaks and hamburgers which should be frozen.

 

[bagabum]

Thank you Itripper, I think I might target the 45 size range as I do have theroom [font=Tahoma, Verdana, Arial, sans-serif]Oh,[/font].and your rig looks really comfortable. Great job!!

 

[bagabum]

I got a 26 quart joytutus fridge and its about the right size for me, I use to have a 43 quart edgestar which was too big for my van. Right now I have a bag of fishsticks, bag of taters, some frozen vegetables, bag of taquitos, and also a gallon jug of frozen water. The frozen jug I just keep in case I lose power, I could always remove if I needed more room. 26 quarts will easily store enough food for 1 person for more then 1 week.

All that food last me several weeks since I also eat can goods. I added insulation to the sides/top of the fridge and got it to maintain 12 degrees F using 26ah of power per 24 hours. 12f is good enough to keep that food frozen, I even kept ice cream at 12 degrees for weeks but it wont be frozen solid. I bought the joytutu because you can fit a gallon jug of milk in it standing upright and it only weighs 26 pounds empty.

Whichever fridge you get make sure you vent it, in a hot day, they put out alot of heat. Two weeks after I bought the joytutu I was already regretting the decision, out of the compresser vents I was getting 110 degrees of heat. All that heat in a already hot van, makes it unbearable quickly. I use flexible ducting and vented the fridge to the outside, heat problems are gone. 3 months later very happy with the fridge.

Thanks jonyjoe, I may have to think about the heat and a ventilation concept. I'm already thinking about a "user friendly" secondary enclosure for whatever I get so that it doesn't run as much.  So about an 1ah / hour average.... take care!

 

[CraigL]

yeah you don't want to ask me because I am a bad example.  I have three 40qt.  I use one as a freezer the other two as refrigerators.  but I can go a long time between resupply.  highdesertranger

Which brand/models did you buy, Wolf? I’m about to buy

 

[highdesertranger]

I have 3 of these,

https://engelcoolers.com/collections/powered-fridge-freezers/products/mr40-overland-fridge

highdesertranger

 

[bigsallysmom]

I have 3 of these,...

A lot of vent holes.  How much heat do they generate?

 

[highdesertranger]

"A lot of vent holes. How much heat do they generate?"

LOL, not enough to keep me warm in the winter.

truthfully I don't know I have never had a reason to check. I am curious does that concern you? in other words do you think it would make my trailer hot?

highdesertranger

 

[bigsallysmom]

... I am curious does that concern you?  in other words do you think it would make my trailer hot?

highdesertranger

My only experience is a 5th wheel refrigerator.  I'm sure it's not as efficient as these super insulated 12v chest fridges and freezers.  I've never had one but believe it doesn't put out much because I don't recall seeing any complaints about it.  Add two more and is it noticeable?  Is it enough to vent sending that heat outside in the summer?

 

[highdesertranger]

like I said I don't notice. but I am only in my trailer occasionally during the day and not for long periods of time. was your 5th wheel an absorption refrigerator? most RV have absorption refrigerators they have only started putting compressor refrigerators in high end models a few years ago. highdesertranger

 

[wayne49]

Instead of a gallon jug of frozen water, one could use two large FREEZ PAKs, (reusable ice substitute) that would take up less space.