Seems to me.. ice is best when off the grid part time

[Cubey]

I have a Class B.... but the fridge is spotty, much like the old used one I put in the 60s Shasta I had. It'll go down to 40 for a day then goes up to 60 and hangs there. I don't understand it. Anyhow... the house I'm about to get out of (selling short sale, filed chapter 7), the central AC went out last night so I'm out in my van now (thank goodness the roof AC works.. about the only thing that did when I got it.. haha) and the fridge is now at 60 degrees. <br><br>I sold the fridge in the house today for $50 (got it free 3 years ago... so yeah) and the only good stuff in that fridge I had stored actually fits in the van's fridge. (Less all the bread I had frozen..)<br><br>At least I'm vegetarian so my foods aren't quite as sensitive to temperatures above 45 degrees but even so, it seems to me... when off the grid, ice is going to be best for me.<br><br>I bought a medium sized Igloo cooler today for $25 at Dollar General today that has 2 wheels. It's not the best... and the 10lb bag of ice I bought with it (pricey!) is about half gone after about 10 hours. Of course a fair bit of it went in drinks.<br><br>I may end up pulling that Dometic 211 if I find it's not working well in the long run and put in a cheap dorm fridge for use when I'm on the grid for extended periods. A small new Dometic 3 way (which is what I have) is about $500. In the long run, that WOULD be better than an ice chest I suppose but it wouldn't be as efficient.<br><br>On 120v it dropped to 60 degrees today... so now it's on 12v (running on a 12v RV converter) and if that doesn't do the trick, next I'll try it on propane. It may be the electric heater elements are worn out.

 

[TxGypsy]

This is one of those things I lust after, but I can't justify the space it takes up.&nbsp; Your rig is bigger, so it might work for you.&nbsp; http://www.campingworld.com/shopping/item/dometic-portable-stainless-steel-ice-maker/55033&nbsp; You can find it cheaper if you shop around.

 

[Cubey]

Well 12v did nothing it seems. Trying on propane now. Maybe it'll work on that since that happens sometimes on RV fridges.

 

[Cubey]

Well my ice chest fits on the other side of the dinette I put in (had the sofa option, some had dinette). It also fits between the front seats should I need to get into the under seat storage (water heater, a bit of storage).<br><br>A small "Truck Fridge" is about $550-600 and runs on 12v only but runs on a compressor at only 5 amps draw when running. That's not bad at all and would cool better than an absorption fridge like RVs come with... and costs the same to replace.<br><br>Sure, a cheap dorm fridge is under $100 but it would only be good on the grid really. Then we're back to needing ice for off the grid. That ice maker weighs as much as the small "Truck Fridges" and needs 120v power. May as well have a dorm fridge instead.<br><br>I'm hoping the fridge will work fully on propane but if not... well, at least I can use it for dry food storage.<br><br>Edit: Temp is dropping FAST on propane... so... yeah.. I'll see how it is after a day or two though.

 

[DollarJoe67]

I'm scoping Craigslist constantly, just waiting for some poor chum who wants a quick $50 for their Yetti cooler.&nbsp; Dry ice and a 20lb bag of ice lasted a week in my Igloo cooler.&nbsp; It created a block of ice for the first 4 days&nbsp;BEFORE starting to melt.&nbsp; I'm betting a Yetti can go two weeks.&nbsp; An ice box.&nbsp; Who would have thunk it?

 

[VanLifeCrisis]

I think those fridges are mostly for running on propane....everything i read say the other 2 options suck bean bags.<br><br><br>I was gonna do dorm fridge but since i work at a motel i can get free ice, so i will go that route until i can afford a dedicated 12v fridge.&nbsp; <br><br>BTW, if a motel near you has an outdoor ice maker, they probably dont know or check if the people getting the ice are staying there. &nbsp; Just use a grocery bag or something.&nbsp; We only started noticing people doing that after the power went out for 10 days in the area (but we had power) and people were filling up huge coolers of ice...pretty sure they were selling it <img rel="lightbox" src="/images/boards/smilies/frown.gif" class="bbc_img">&nbsp; But yeah, anyone could hit our ice machines up and wed have no idea. <br><br><br>

 

[dragonflyinthesky]

Probably a senseless reply, most probably know this, Keep your ice chest wrapped in an old blanket or similar. Of course ice chests are made better now so that may not be necessary.<br><br>

 

[Cubey]

This morning the fridge is about 41-42 degrees since running on propane overnight (I have a fridge thermometer). But then again, it cooled down to 70 degrees or less over night outside. During the day yesterday it was about 92 degrees. My van is currently parked under a steel roof carport and mostly surrounded by trees. The afternoon sun hits the side of the van opposite from the fridge. Also, the van is about as level as you can get. So it may just be that the fridge is messed up. If I find that it goes back up to 60 degrees while running on propane today, then I will probably have to assume so it's going to only work when it's 70 degrees or colder outside.. which makes it almost like a thermoelectric cooler.

 

[James AKA Lynx]

Frig - if you have not done so already, pull the back cover off, turn off and inspect and clean. If you can, pull out the frig and check around and the door seals.<br><br>Also, check around to for easy fixes. You my need to replace a simple part. <br><br>Check the level of the frig compared to the van.<br><br>No other help from me as I have never worked on them. <br><br>James AKA Lynx

 

[Cubey]

Yep, I have cleaned the back side. I put in a new hose for the defrost/condensation that was missing, I built a new access door panel that was missing and the controls for on/off and thermostat are on the back side.<br><br>I can't find my bubble level meant for checking in an RV fridge..

 

[James AKA Lynx]

Level - a plumbers level would help.<br><br>Dry Ice would do better than regular ice. Regular Ice will not keep meat cold enough. <br><br>I have no idea how to check gas (ammonia?) inside the unit. You may want to.<br><br>I suggest that you find a Propane frig forum and ask. Maybe one of the bigger RV forums.<br><br>James AKA Lynx<br><br>

 

[Cubey]

As I said, I'm vegetarian so I don't have to keep meat cold.<br><br>The system is sealed. There is no "checking" it like a compressor fridge or AC. It's either good or it's bad. There is no fixing it short of replacing the sealed system which is impossible on such an old unit.

 

[James AKA Lynx]

Interesting, I did not know. However if the flame has something wrong, it could be fixed. I have seen dirty LPG and changed filters on LPG before. Most people do not have a filter on their LPG systems.&nbsp; Just checking if the nozzle is clogged might help.<br><br>Just pulling straws. <br><br>Best, James AKA Lynx

 

[Cubey]

Uh.... the propane is burning fine but the the system just isn't cooling very well... nor is it on electric as I said. <br><br>The system can clog up or whatever inside so that it won't flow properly or some such.

 

[Cubey]

I ended up pulling my old Dometic fridge. It wold cool to 40 at night, 50 during the day. Guarantees food spoilage. I tried it on all 3 modes... 120v, 12v and propane. No dice. It was as level as humanly possible. I tried adding fans for better airflow which made it worse. I tried restricting the ventilation.. also no help.<br><br>I bought a 1.7 cu ft fridge from Lowes and put it in place of the old Dometic. I am hoping my 200W solar setup and batteries will be able to power it when off the grid at least most of the time. If I have to run my generator a few hours a day to supplement, so be it.<br><br>I posted some photos and more details here: http://cubey7800.blogspot.com/2013/06/compact-refrigetator-insall.html<br><br>I'd like to have a Yamaha generator. The hours per full tank might be over stated like my Yamaha scooter's mpg... but the 1000w generator claims 12 hours on 0.66 gallon at 1/4 load constantly. The 2000w claims 10 hours on 1.1 gallon. The fridge is about 168w running (about 675w startup) so that would be pretty good if one gallon of gas could get me through the night.<br><br>This old 70's Onan AJ 2.7HW genset I have in the van consumes much more. These are the specs on the 2.5kw:<br><br>2.5 AJ:<br> No Load = 0.36 Gph<br> ½ Load = 0.47 Gph<br> Full Load = 0.54 Gph

 

[wrcsixeight]

168 watts! wow. &nbsp;HOw many minutes per hour does it run? Is it loud?<br><br>The 'truckfridge's do not draw 5 amps. &nbsp;They start at about 3 amps and within a minute are in the 2.5 amp range.<br><br>The &nbsp;Danfoss/Seco compressor can be sped up to make it draw 5 amps with the use of a resistor in the thermostat circuit. &nbsp;The only reason to do this is if it is running more than 50% of the time to maintain sub 40f interior temps.<br><br>I have a Vitrifrigo with extra insulation added in an insulated cabinet. &nbsp;I removed the supplied 277 ohm resistor so it runs at the minimum speed of 2000 rpm. &nbsp;Runs about 25% of the time in 75 degrees F to sustain sub 38f interior temps<br><br>I hope your dorm fridge works out for you. &nbsp;Don't forget to include inverter losses in its battery consumption<br><br>Generally the dorm fridges are energy hogs and do not take to road/driving vibrations, and the money you save over a 12v &nbsp;compressor fridge is nullified by battery replacement costs, and if the fridge fails from vibration......&nbsp;

 

[Cubey]

It's rated 1.4 amps @ 120V to that translates to about 168w @ 120v.<br><br>Hmm.. doing the math, my solar panels and batteries might only barely be able to keep up. It'll pull about 14-15 amps @ 12V when the fridge is running on an inverter. As I understand inverters, they only pull the power they need (plus about 15% loss). So it seems to translate to about 3.5 to 3.75 amps an hour (based on 15 minutes per hour for 24 hours) totaling about 84-90 AH per 24 hours. It'll be a stretch for my solar and batteries but it may be possible. I could be off slightly in my math but that's a rough estimate.<br><br> I could add another 100W solar panel if I remove the TV antenna that I'll probably never use (I made sure to leave space in case I ever want to!) and more batteries if I remove the old inefficient generator. But the generator directly charges the batteries... it has a HUGE cable going from the generator to the batteries so it outs out several amps. But I won't have to do ANY wiring... just mounting. The bay could hold a lot of batteries and it's built for airflow and ventilation as it is. A couple big computer case fans put in would also help.<br><br> The fridge is SUPER quiet... it's hard to tell it's even running. I imagine the inverter's fan will be louder.<br><br>I may have to settle for nothing cold when off the grid. I will be buying small portions of cold items, mainly due to the tiny fridge. But also, if I plan to go off the grid, maybe I can use the cold stuff up by the time I'm ready to go off the grid, then leave the fridge off until I return to the grid... and use an ice chest or get a more fuel efficient generator. Or run the generator 2 hours a day to give the batteries a rest and let them recharge while the fridge runs on the generator's output.<br><br>I have 2 year extended warranty on the fridge so if it does die from vibration or even power surge, I'll get a new one or money back.. whichever they do exactly. I won't tell them it was in an RV is all. They'll even replace it from normal wear and tear they say if it quits or breaks from normal usage. The compressor has rubber mounts between it and the frame so it has some vibration absorption built in. Since I sealed the old vents (easily removable) it won't get the back of the fridge filthy or rained on.

 

[Cubey]

Unplugged for about 2 hours today while I took a trailer load of furniture from my house to my mom's house that she wanted, the fridge was still about 40 degrees inside the fridge area when I got home. So I know it'll survive if not opened for 2-3 hours without serious food spoilage.<br><br>I think I am going to buy the 800w/900w max generator from Harbor Freight. Based on reviews I have read, you MUST do a break-in like the manual says or it'll fail prematurely. I have a coupon to get one for $90 and based on a YouTube video I saw, it's not nearly as loud at the old Onan built in right now. The fuel economy on it is also pretty good. I'll get the 2 year warranty on it just in case I get a dud or something major goes wrong after 6 months or a year. You can go into any HF for the warranty which is nice.<br><br>It's rated 5 hours at 50% load so my fridge pulling about 1/4 or less load, it should run about 10 hours at least on 1.1 gallons. That would get me through the night just fine. Maybe during the day I can run it on solar/batteries. One review I saw said to run at least 89 octane gas in it. I may try all 3 kinds and see how it runs on each kind.<br><br>It's a 2 cycle engine so I'll have to premix which kind of stinks, but I plan to keep a 5 gallon gas can full at all times for emergency fuel (dump it in the tank at every fill up and refill it with fresh gas so it doesn't sit too long). I can use the 1 gallon gas can I already have for the generator's premix.

 

[highdesertranger]

lets see 1.1 gallons per night at 3.50 per gallon = 3.85 per night x 365 = 1,405.25 per year.&nbsp; just get a 12v compressor refer and solar.&nbsp; you will be way ahead on all counts.&nbsp; however I see you are talking part time.&nbsp;&nbsp;at the moment I am part time also and have tried the ice chest, dorm refers,&nbsp; absorption,&nbsp;etc.&nbsp; I still say get the 12v in the long run you will be happier.&nbsp; it will only take a years worth of use to pay for itself. &nbsp;highdesertranger

 

[Cubey]

Yes, I'm not ALWAYS going to be off the grid. And that's assuming I *want* to run the fridge off the grid. If I do it on occassion for one or two nights a week, it won't be that bad. I'll also be able to use my laptop while the generator is running so it won't be ONLY for the fridge.<br><br>I'm just keeping my options open in the short term. In the long term yes, a 12v one, more solar (can only fit about 150w more, I have 200w now) and more batteries (if I pull the Onan generator to make room) is better but that's $1000-1200 I don't have right now.<br><br>I can put out $110 for the fridge I got and about another $110 for the cheap generator at this moment so that's what I'll have to do. Maybe in 6 months to a year I can afford such a setup. The generator will still be useful to have, especially if I end up pulling the Onan one that's a guzzler, leaks oil and generally seems worn out from negelect and maybe abuse.. but still works at the moment.&nbsp; It has 284.4 hours on it based on the timer in the wall inside.