ARB Fridge almost Drained 2nd Battery!

[Brentbba]

Damn glad for the 2nd battery. Went out to Needles area (Park Moabi) for a weekend canoe trip with the scouts this past weekend. 104 at 7pm .

Didn't have anything but soda and lots of water in the ARB fridge. Parked at 10:45 Friday evening. Daytime temps well over 100-110 and Saturday evening probably didn't cool down much below 85-90 with a hot wind blowing all night.

Sunday morning the fridge was still on but barely cooling. I'd had the temp at 2-3 celcius. It was up to 16!

Possible for that period of time to nearly drain a brand new Optima yellow top fully charged? I'd think the fridge was probably running constantly all day Saturday in those temps inside a locked truck. Nothing else on the 2nd battery was on.

Minute I fired up the truck, and the main battery was above 13.2v (cutoff for the Surepower solonoid) I could hear the fridge kick right back up and at the end of the 4 hour drive home the fridge was back down to a very cold temp. Meant to throw the voltmeter on the battery when I got home but forgot to do so.

Damn glad for the 2nd battery x2!

 

[SOCALFJ]

I've drained mine in one day like that too... when we got home from Pismo and i let the truck sit in 100 degree weather for 24 hours. Luckily we have dual batteries too. I just switched over to our second battery, started the rig....... and switched back to the dead battery to charge it back up. They work really hard in 100 degree weather (fridges).

 

[Brentbba]

I've drained mine in one day like that too... when we got home from Pismo and i let the truck sit in 100 degree weather for 24 hours. Luckily we have dual batteries too. I just switched over to our second battery, started the rig....... and switched back to the dead battery to charge it back up. They work really hard in 100 degree weather (fridges).

Good to know Dave. I killed my main battery (before the 2nd battery) on an overnighter out to RSM (OSO Lake) over a similar time frame. Wasn't quite as hot, but warm never the less and main was dead Sunday morning. Thought at the time it could have been either the fridge or the fact that I'd left the troop trailer connected to the truck, and I usually don't do that because I don't have a solonoid or anything outside the standard electrical hookup between the truck and trailer. Trailer has a deep cycle battery for the inside lights and some cheap mag mount flood lights we use when we get to camp after dark.

Why do you have the fridge hooked to the main and not the 2nd battery? I've got the accessories all to the 2nd so I don't kill the main. I can jump the main from the 2nd, but would rather see the deep cycle 2nd drained and not the main. I do know that Hellroaring and others do suggest still hooking up all the accessories to the main and truely leave the 2nd as just that a backup 2nd battery in case the main dies.

 

[SOCALFJ]

Why do you have the fridge hooked to the main and not the 2nd battery? I've got the accessories all to the 2nd so I don't kill the main. I can jump the main from the 2nd, but would rather see the deep cycle 2nd drained and not the main. I do know that Hellroaring and others do suggest still hooking up all the accessories to the main and truely leave the 2nd as just that a backup 2nd battery in case the main dies.

I dont have a "MAIN" battery. I have 2 batteries to choose from. I dont have a specific battery for anything. I wanted it to be as simple and easy to diagnose. I run on battery A or B whenever i feel like. I switch every few weeks to keep them both fresh. I can never kill both batteries.. because only one is in use at anyone time. Either one can be used as a true 2nd battery to start the rig. Same setup as BostonManglers.

 

[rfjtoy]

Brent,
Mine too was drained by Sunday am. But nice and cold by the time I was home. I think 1.5 days over 100, chlling a fridge full of water is the limit.

 

[Brentbba]

Brent,
Mine too was drained by Sunday am. But nice and cold by the time I was home. I think 1.5 days over 100, chlling a fridge full of water is the limit.

Yep - I was nice and cold by the time I got home too. Forgot to put the voltmeter on the 2nd battery to see if it came back to full charge tho.

Funny - when I got cold ones out Saturday after canoeing the were very cold and later that evening I noticed the fridge had gone up a couple of degrees. I just thought it was about ready to cycle on again, but looking back, the battery was probably close to gone by then.

 

[bluto]

You guys have all the fun. All I have to worry about is melted ice.

 

[Brentbba]

Bluto, had that too from the ice chests we took on the river for our lunch! Ice, even a big block didn't last thru to Sunday morning! It usually lasts the entire weekend with a nice chunk left over by the time I get home on Sunday.