Opinions on fridges (1 Viewer)

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Decent chance I’ll end up with some solar charging, but 3-ish days without charging or much driving sounds adequate to me. Worst case, I idle the vehicle to charge for a while.

That’s my point, in the event that you are out of options you aren’t going to be able to idle your vehicle and charge with a 5a trickle charger. It would take hours and hours. With a fast DC charger can you can totally do this. Run your truck for 30 min and you can add 10-30% charge back in
 
That’s my point, in the event that you are out of options you aren’t going to be able to idle your vehicle and charge with a 5a trickle charger. It would take hours and hours. With a fast DC charger can you can totally do this. Run your truck for 30 min and you can add 10-30% charge back in
Agree.
There's another dimension: connected to just a battery, the input to the fridge is unregulated. As the battery declines the voltage will also decline. My Dometic in 12V mode, for example, can tolerate a voltage no lower than 11.1V. Below that it shuts off. ALL fridges need to monitor voltage and turn off otherwise current draw goes up too much, heat in the compressor motor's windings increases etc...

So, that battery at 11.1 V might just be 50% discharged. You need a DC-DC charger to take the input from a discharging battery to deliver a constant voltage, say 12.5V. This is what I do when I connect the fridge to my 2nd battery.

You just can't beat physics, unfortunately.
 
Agree.
There's another dimension: connected to just a battery, the input to the fridge is unregulated. As the battery declines the voltage will also decline. My Dometic in 12V mode, for example, can tolerate a voltage no lower than 11.1V. Below that it shuts off. ALL fridges need to monitor voltage and turn off otherwise current draw goes up too much, heat in the compressor motor's windings increases etc...

So, that battery at 11.1 V might just be 50% discharged. You need a DC-DC charger to take the input from a discharging battery to deliver a constant voltage, say 12.5V. This is what I do when I connect the fridge to my 2nd battery.

You just can't beat physics, unfortunately.
Is there a single dc to dc charger that manages regulating the charge voltage of the 2nd battery as well as the voltage of the 2nd battery to the load? Or would you always need 2 regulators?
 
Is there a single dc to dc charger that manages regulating the charge voltage of the 2nd battery as well as the voltage of the 2nd battery to the load? Or would you always need 2 regulators?
I haven't looked but I also have not heard of one.
So to be clerar: the Yeti 1500X requires 24V to charge, The Dometic fridge can run either on 12 or 24V.

In my case the Victron 12|24/15 charges the Yeti battery at 24V off the alternator and the fridge runs off the Yeti at 12V. I can disconnect the Victron and attach it to the 2nd battery to run the fridge in 24V mode directly off the 2nd battery. The fact that the fridge can run at 12 or 24V means I can do this, but I can't do both at the same time. To do that would require 2 Victron units.

If the fridge was incapable of running either 12 or 24V I would need a Victron 12|24/15 to charge the Yeti and a Victron 12|12/30 to power the fridge from the 2nd battery. As it turns out I can do both with the same Victron unit sparing me the expense of 2 Victron units. But again, not at the same time.

I can't charge the Yeti with the 2nd battery as it's maintained by a REDARC BCDC 1225D which only transfers 25A from the alternator to the 2nd battery. As I mentioned the draw from the alternator to the Victron is 40A. Were I to attempt to charge the Yeti with the 2nd battery using the Victron engine off it would discharge the 2nd battery very very quickly. If I ran the engine to charge the 2nd battery the REDARC would try to supply it's rated 25A and likely overheat trying to keep that 2nd battery charged and the 2nd battery would discharge anyway.. To fix it I would need a heavier duty REDARC. Hmmmm...
 
I haven't looked but I also have not heard of one.
So to be clerar: the Yeti 1500X requires 24V to charge, The Dometic fridge can run either on 12 or 24V.

In my case the Victron 12|24/15 charges the Yeti battery at 24V off the alternator and the fridge runs off the Yeti at 12V. I can disconnect the Victron and attach it to the 2nd battery to run the fridge in 24V mode directly off the 2nd battery. The fact that the fridge can run at 12 or 24V means I can do this, but I can't do both at the same time. To do that would require 2 Victron units.

If the fridge was incapable of running either 12 or 24V I would need a Victron 12|24/15 to charge the Yeti and a Victron 12|12/30 to power the fridge from the 2nd battery. As it turns out I can do both with the same Victron unit sparing me the expense of 2 Victron units. But again, not at the same time.

I can't charge the Yeti with the 2nd battery as it's maintained by a REDARC BCDC 1225D which only transfers 25A from the alternator to the 2nd battery. As I mentioned the draw from the alternator to the Victron is 40A. Were I to attempt to charge the Yeti with the 2nd battery using the Victron engine off it would discharge the 2nd battery very very quickly. If I ran the engine to charge the 2nd battery the REDARC would try to supply it's rated 25A and likely overheat trying to keep that 2nd battery charged and the 2nd battery would discharge anyway.. To fix it I would need a heavier duty REDARC. Hmmmm...

To be fair, much of this complexity is due to the components and architecture you have.
 
To be fair, much of this complexity is due to the components and architecture you have.
Gee I thought it was a huge simplification that I didn't have to buy a 2nd DC-DC charger and could get away with just 1 Victron unit. :)
Again, this setup is to support camping, not just a fridge.
It's some of what would be going on in an RV.
 
Not the one I was looking for, but close enough to the concept.

A couple years ago there was an mppt. dc/dc, distribution block hub all in one from one of the big manufacturers, can’t seem to find it now.
 
I’m trying to decide on which size fridge to get.
Because of all the aforementioned love of a freezer when overlanding, I want to get a dual zone fridge - which seems to relegate me to the bigger ones. Which, in turn, could make me crowd it a bit back there with my other gear.

Question for you guys:
How much space do you give around your fridges? I mean, are there rules of thumb on how many inches on each side you need to keep so as to allow for ventilation?

(Alternatively, I am also contemplating a smaller fridge and putting the entire thing in freezer mode and then carrying a small yeti cooler (already owned) for the non-frozen perishables. But this seems like it would take up even more space so I haven’t run the number for this set-up.)

Edit: I just went on-line and found the dometic manual for their 12v fridges. It’s odd that it doesn’t address the issue of ventilation at all.
There’s a small area at one corner with vents for the compressor fan to blow the heat out, but other than that you can pack things right up to it like a cooler. The only reason I don’t allow things to come into contact with it is so I can easily slide it in and out when I get something out or put more stuff in.

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Gee I thought it was a huge simplification that I didn't have to buy a 2nd DC-DC charger and could get away with just 1 Victron unit. :)
Again, this setup is to support camping, not just a fridge.
It's some of what would be going on in an RV.

Yes, understood. And probably crossing points, but I thought we were talking to the adequacy of a simple 100Ah battery with 5A charge.

I get what your saying too. As I also used a GZ previously. Part of its component shortcoming is the 3s Li-Ion format with a native 10.8V output, that is below many fridges voltage input thresholds. That doesn't apply to a LiFePO4 battery @TomEf was proposing. Part of the reason I also switched batteries.

Not the one I was looking for, but close enough to the concept.

A couple years ago there was an mppt. dc/dc, distribution block hub all in one from one of the big manufacturers, can’t seem to find it now.

I think there's a general movement away from these integrated solutions. Part of the beauty of 12V is you can stack and aggregate charge sources. Each can then be upgraded independently as technology advances. I prefer my charge controller to be part of the portable panel with something like this. Providing the flexibility to charge my starter, house, or any other battery out there.
 
Those of you with DC-DC chargers, how have you routed the wiring? Is there a nice spot to run power through the firewall and route along door sill panels? Or access from the bottom of the body?
 
Those of you with DC-DC chargers, how have you routed the wiring? Is there a nice spot to run power through the firewall and route along door sill panels? Or access from the bottom of the body?
There are two rubber disks on each side where Toyota passes wire harnesses and the hood release (driver's side). Each disk has a large center hole and 2 sealed protrusions. On a stock 200 the driver's side has a wiring harness in the center and the hood release through one of the protrusions. The passenger side has a wiring harness through the center but there are two free protrusions. I have gotten through these with 6 GA wires and up to 5 smaller 12, 14 & 16 ga wires.

I chose to leave my SB-50 and cigarette lighter connectors anchored at the footwells and opted to use extension cords to get power to the back on the truck. The reason is that I'm constantly re-arranging where things are located and having dedicated outlets wouldn't get me much. But I'm always evolving...perhaps I will run heavy gauge wires along the door sill panels some day for a clean outlet in the rear..
 
As the OP of this thread, I thought I would give a little follow-up.
I know you guys convinced me that I need a fridge. But I then convinced myself that I needed a suspension upgrade before the fridge. So while I contemplate how to best upgrade my suspension, I went on one more trip with my Yeti cooler.

I want to share that on my trip back from Telluride, I discovered a great way to keep food from getting water-logged due to melting ice. It also keeps the sloshing sound down.

Simply don’t close the little drain valve at the bottoms of the cooler!

It works wonders! Keeps all the ice in the cooler and lets all the water drain into the back of your LC!

F me.
Luckily I happened to have a towel near that drain which caught most of it… but still frustrating and a mess.
 
Just got back from 2 weeks on the road. We did 3 full days in The Maze in Canyonlands. I've always had the "ice is cheap, a fridge is expensive" mindset but just like the OP I found my cooler was mostly water by the end of 3 days in 100F Utah heat and enough water had made it into some food (ziploc'ed meat, butter, etc) that I've decided for summer camping for anything more than a long weekend a fridge is a must have. I don't own one yet but I will before I do another long tent trip.
 
At this point I just wish one of the more reliable brands made one narrow enough to get into my rig with the sleeping pad and wheel well.

It’s really surprising to me that my thick-walled 35qt pelican is narrower than all of the ones I’ve researched. Even that squeezes the pad somewhat.. losing another 4” due to the cooler just isn’t workable. Spacing upwards means interfering with the headliner.
 
Color me converted. I took advantage of some sales and picked up a decent solar panel, dcdc charge controller and lithium battery, then opted for a cheaper fridge. Having dry, cold things is nice, and the volume feels much more usable since I don’t have to account for 30-50% of my volume being taken by ice. Forgive the non-200-series vehicle.

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At this point I just wish one of the more reliable brands made one narrow enough to get into my rig with the sleeping pad and wheel well.

It’s really surprising to me that my thick-walled 35qt pelican is narrower than all of the ones I’ve researched. Even that squeezes the pad somewhat.. losing another 4” due to the cooler just isn’t workable. Spacing upwards means interfering with the headliner.

That was the goal too in sizing my fridge setup, to maintain enough width for a sleeping pad. Needed the fridge stay within the 40 section split of the middle seat. I don't have a pic but I've been able to sleep 2 with my 8 yr old and myself next to the fridge in a pinch.

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I wanted to revive this thread for a sanity check. I am trying to compare the efficiency of a two different frigs. Here is what I have found:

  • Dometic CFX3 75DZ - Energy Consumption 12VDC (Ambient@90F, Internal@39F), [Ah/h] 1.43
  • Truma Cooler C69 Dual Zone - Power consumption 0,8 A
    • Average power consumption: 0.31 A (on-board voltage; outside temperature of 25°C; temperature adjustment of 5°C)
Any one able to make sense so to make an apples to apple comparison?
 
I wanted to revive this thread for a sanity check. I am trying to compare the efficiency of a two different frigs. Here is what I have found:

  • Dometic CFX3 75DZ - Energy Consumption 12VDC (Ambient@90F, Internal@39F), [Ah/h] 1.43
  • Truma Cooler C69 Dual Zone - Power consumption 0,8 A
    • Average power consumption: 0.31 A (on-board voltage; outside temperature of 25°C; temperature adjustment of 5°C)
Any one able to make sense so to make an apples to apple comparison?
Well, they are rated at different temps, with the Dometic cooling in a hotter environment. Also the Truma doesn’t state the input voltage for the measured .31 Amps, that number by itself is pretty meaningless since it accepts 12, 24, and 230 V.. and honestly .31 or .8 AMPs ar 12v seems impossible, as that would mean it runs at 4-9W (Still unreasonable at 24v which would double those numbers) My portable fridge runs at 40w in eco mode and about 60 in normal mode. The efficiency comes from how long does the compressor have to run for it to maintain temp. If the dometic fridge was same power consumption as mine in Eco, then they are suggesting that at 90 degrees, the compressor would have to run about 25min/hr.
 
Giving more feedback on this, as it's been a few months now of living with the fridge. It has completely changed the way we plan our trips, both from a multiday perspective, but also in a daily driven/running errands perspective. We now never feel rushed when buying food or drinks. There's no rush to get home with frozen groceries; no rush to get home when be buy cold beer. We no longer have to plan to get groceries last if there are multiple errands to be run. Also, when we're out doing some other stuff and see a brewery, ice cream place, or butcher shop to try, we can stop and pick some up, knowing that it will be kept cold while we go about the rest of our day.
 
Giving more feedback on this, as it's been a few months now of living with the fridge. It has completely changed the way we plan our trips, both from a multiday perspective, but also in a daily driven/running errands perspective. We now never feel rushed when buying food or drinks. There's no rush to get home with frozen groceries; no rush to get home when be buy cold beer. We no longer have to plan to get groceries last if there are multiple errands to be run. Also, when we're out doing some other stuff and see a brewery, ice cream place, or butcher shop to try, we can stop and pick some up, knowing that it will be kept cold while we go about the rest of our day.
This is good information. Thanks for sharing.

So you leave your fridge in the LC all the time. Do you leave it running constantly? If so, do you worry about wear on it?
If not, does a take a bit to cool it down - like if you come out from a grocery store with a pint of icecream?
 

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