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Old 01-29-2020, 01:50 PM   #41
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Originally Posted by Carmel Clown View Post
I am hoping the solar panels would keep the batteries on the trailer charged while traveling and prevent the truck and trailer batteries from depleting. Is this not the case?
That works as long as the panels produce more power than is being used. In many conditions the panels would not keep up with the refrigerator's consumption.
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Old 01-29-2020, 02:13 PM   #42
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Originally Posted by cpaharley2008 View Post
I see a lot more people smoking a cigarette while pumping gas than rv's filling up, just saying...
Not at this gas station...

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Old 02-05-2020, 12:02 PM   #43
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I guess I like to be different. With very inconsistent results when towing with the fridge on propane (hot windy days being the worst) I ran number 8 wires from the battery to the connector on the tow vehicle through a marine charging relay that isolates the trailer when the ignition is off. That's minimized the voltage drop, and we consistently do as well on 12V as with propane when it's a good propane day. I'm staying out of the safety discussions, which can tend to get a little emotional here, just saying that I like have a viable 12V option. It may not be worth the trouble and expense to others.
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Old 02-05-2020, 04:58 PM   #44
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I have had endless problems with my refrigerator while towing. My experience mirrors what Parker has experienced. Of course hot, high temperatures and the inside temps of the refrigerator rise. But when driving, it would happen much sooner than when the trailer was parked. Winds that directly hit the trailer side with the refrigerator vent were the worst problem.

Thanks to elongest, a forum member, I fabricated a shield to place around the flame area. I did not fasten it permanently because I will remove it when parked in 90+ degrees F. It has greatly improved refrigerator temps when driving. I will not go into the myriad of other things I did, only to say this one did the most good.
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Old 02-05-2020, 05:28 PM   #45
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I have had endless problems with my refrigerator while towing. My experience mirrors what Parker has experienced. Of course hot, high temperatures and the inside temps of the refrigerator rise. But when driving, it would happen much sooner than when the trailer was parked. Winds that directly hit the trailer side with the refrigerator vent were the worst problem.

Thanks to elongest, a forum member, I fabricated a shield to place around the flame area. I did not fasten it permanently because I will remove it when parked in 90+ degrees F. It has greatly improved refrigerator temps when driving. I will not go into the myriad of other things I did, only to say this one did the most good.
I may give that a try. I've had some success with a mesh filter from Lowes designed to fit in a range hood that seems to help...but who knows? We try so many things getting these marginal fridges to work, confounded by constantly changing conditions.
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Old 02-05-2020, 05:41 PM   #46
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On my 2014 E21 with the replacement refrigerator I installed furnace filter material on the outside refer vent hatch which helped with the blow out issue. I also purchased the plastic sheathing for the interior that kept the cold in when opening the door and retrieving items.Both of these "fixes" helped the operation on propane work.
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Old 02-05-2020, 05:57 PM   #47
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I remember your furnace filter, which helped me decide to try the mesh screen. I haven't tried the plastic sheathing yet. I certainly see the advantage, but it might be a tough sell to the other person accessing the fridge on a regular basis.
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Old 02-05-2020, 09:25 PM   #48
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Despite your yelling at us, you do realize that the vast majority of people do not do this. I never have. We have done an informal question on it here, and most do not turn it off.

But if you do choose to go to the trouble, there is no harm in doing so.
Nope don't turn it off.

Every so often I see someone fueling their vehicle with a cigarette in their mouth. How many gas stations are blowing up every year and if so, why?

Enjoy,

Perry
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Old 02-05-2020, 11:18 PM   #49
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Originally Posted by Parker View Post
With very inconsistent results when towing with the fridge on propane (hot windy days being the worst) I ran number 8 wires from the battery to the connector on the tow vehicle through a marine charging relay that isolates the trailer when the ignition is off.
Have you measured the current you are getting through your #8 wires while the fridge is on DC and while driving?
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Old 02-06-2020, 07:59 AM   #50
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I tried the mesh filter to reduce refrigerator blow out, I did not have much success using it. I tried sealing the entire cavity with closed cell foam and tried my own baffle design. None worked. The “elongest baffle”, as photographed above, is very close to the flame area that seems to make the difference.
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Old 02-06-2020, 08:15 AM   #51
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Have you measured the current you are getting through your #8 wires while the fridge is on DC and while driving?
Measuring the current requires breaking into the line for a series measurement, which I have not done. Much easier to measure voltage at the battery, which I found to be quite reasonable. Sorry I don't have the numbers available. If boondocking I'd still recommend switching over to propane for the last few miles to get the battery as topped off as possible before unhooking.
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Old 02-06-2020, 09:19 AM   #52
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Travel when it cold outside . It’s remarkable how cold the refrigerator stays when it’s 20 below outside .
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Old 02-06-2020, 09:39 AM   #53
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I would do whatever I had to, to get rid of an absorption frig. 11 years of full timing, 5 with a an RV and 6 with a residential frig taught me that the residential fridge is the way to go!!!!!!!!!
Way more capacity and no defrosting. Outside temperature was never a factor.

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Old 02-06-2020, 09:51 AM   #54
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Originally Posted by steve dunham View Post
Travel when it cold outside . It’s remarkable how cold the refrigerator stays when it’s 20 below outside .
Actually it does not work well in below freezing weather. In fact they have winter covers that close off the exterior to help the unit.
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Old 02-06-2020, 09:59 AM   #55
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Originally Posted by cpaharley2008 View Post
Actually it does not work well in below freezing weather. In fact they have winter covers that close off the exterior to help the unit.
No need to run the refrigerator when it’s below zero , nature takes care of the problem
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Old 02-06-2020, 10:10 AM   #56
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Have you measured the current you are getting through your #8 wires while the fridge is on DC and while driving?
Thomas,
I have not measured the amperage, but have measured the voltage. With the trailer battery and solar disconnected, the voltage drop between my truck alternator and 'fridge connection at the WFCO breaker-box was on the order of 1.5V. Or in other words, 13.8V at the alternator and 12.3V at the 'fridge. This is sub-optimal and would result in the trailer batteries being drained after a day's drive, and less cooling at the 'fridge.
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Old 02-06-2020, 10:17 AM   #57
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Originally Posted by Nomad54 View Post
I would do whatever I had to, to get rid of an absorption frig. 11 years of full timing, 5 with a an RV and 6 with a residential frig taught me that the residential fridge is the way to go!!!!!!!!!
Way more capacity and no defrosting. Outside temperature was never a factor.

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Old 02-06-2020, 11:48 AM   #58
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We travel with propane on and it often blows out. But so what? As long as the fridge door isn't opened the food remains cool enough. In our tent camping years we used a cooler with a block of ice. Often when we opened the cooler the ice had melted but the food was still safe.
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Old 02-06-2020, 02:39 PM   #59
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There's been a lot of talk on one of the other forums lately about the problems owners have had keeping their refrigerators cold during long days on the road. The consensus seems to be that most tow vehicle alternators are not up to the task of both maintaining the tv electrical system and operating the refrigerator while driving down the road. The problem sometimes takes as long as a week to show, but apparently the tv battery eventually becomes too discharged to start the tv at some point down the road, which if it were to happen in my world, I would consider it to be a bad thing.

I tow my 2009 E 19 with a 2017 Nissan Frontier, which as near as I can tell has an alternator that peaks out at about 90 watts output, and that seems to be at about 4,000 engine RPM. I don't know how much the truck requires to run, and I don't know how much my Dometic RM2510 refer requires when operating on 12 volts.

Most of the folks on the other forum seem to gravitate to using their propane cooling systems in order to avoid discharging their tv batteries. The Escape 19 owner's manual that came with my trailer (I'm the second owner) is very explicit in recommending against this practice. That advice makes sense to me. It might discourage tailgaters if the trailer catches fire, but I don't see any other advantages to recommend the practice. I even seem to recall that it is illegal to run on propane while moving in some states. Tunnels and gas stations could also create some exciting moments.

Has anyone here had this battery drain problem, and how have you addressed it? Have you had to install higher output alternators?

I've got dreams of a couple of longer trips later this year and I hope to avoid as many difficulties as I can. My little A-Liner was not nearly so sophisticated!
I turn the fridge off when driving. I’ve never had a problem with the fridge not staying cold while driving, whether in this trailer or my previous motorhome. If it is cold to begin with, and the doors are kept closed, it will remain cold. That said, the most I’ll drive in a day is about six or seven hours, and those sorts of days are very rare.
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Old 02-06-2020, 08:22 PM   #60
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With solar becoming more popular and more panels on the roofs - i'm surprised the 12v compressor fridges are not becoming more of the standard? I haven't ran the solar numbers but I pull about 4.5amp running, and it runs approx 50% of the time. Thats 2.25ah constant or approx 48 hours on a 220ah battery setup from 100% to 50%.

I just dont know enough about solar yet (I will have it on our next rig) to know if it will easily handle this. But you cant beat the fridge simplicity and performance.

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