Residential refrigerators

[GRUBBS]

Originally Posted by vito.a

We all think that until we own a coach with a residential

I turn on our residential fridge 1 hour before loading it and everything is ready to go. Our Norcold used to take 2 days to cool down.
I don't have to worry about parking level as the residential fridge will still work.
Our ice cream is always frozen. With the Norcold it would thaw during the afternoon and refreeze at night ruining the ice cream.
Our inverter runs the fridge and the batteries are charged by the alternator when the engine is running or anytime we are plugged in.
If you dry camp a lot, then yes you have to run the generator for about an hour each morning to recharge the batteries.
Most folks don't understand how efficient a modern refrigerator is. The residential fridge in our Windsor only used .8 amps with the ice maker off and our current residential fridge only uses 1 amp.
There are lots more great things about it but I think you will have to try it to fully understand.

We'll never go back to an LP Gas, the only gripe I got is, the water cut off is difficult to get to and it makes too much ICE, really churns IT OUT! My fridge at home is a Whirlpool and it don't make that much ice...

[bobmac]

Irishguy
I installed the Samsung RF-197 , the predecessor of the RF-18 in 2013 in my Winnebago Journey and run it on my Dimensions MSW inverter. I have not experienced any issues. Around the time it was installed, the great - and seemingly never ending - debate of PSW vs MSW was underway. Some member here secured a letter from Samsung stating that their fridge would operate fine on MSW power. Obviously that has been my experience along with many others. From a purely technical perspective, power efficiency would increase with a pure sine wave supply however both supplies will still keep the beer cold and the ice cream hard - and for many years. Save your money on the inverter until it needs to be replaced or better still, add a solar controller and several solar panels to your coach.

[KenM]

Our bounder came with a residential Fridge. Has 4 deep cell 6 volt batteries wired to make 2 12 volt batteries. When boon docking I rung the generator 1 Hour in the morning and 2 hours in the evening around 10. Haven’t had no problems yet. We will sit outside and watch tv also. Sometimes I set the auto generator. If battery reach 12.2 the generator starts back up to recharge the batteries

[irishguy]

Originally Posted by bobmac

Irishguy
I installed the Samsung RF-197 , the predecessor of the RF-18 in 2013 in my Winnebago Journey and run it on my Dimensions MSW inverter. I have not experienced any issues. Around the time it was installed, the great - and seemingly never ending - debate of PSW vs MSW was underway. Some member here secured a letter from Samsung stating that their fridge would operate fine on MSW power. Obviously that has been my experience along with many others. From a purely technical perspective, power efficiency would increase with a pure sine wave supply however both supplies will still keep the beer cold and the ice cream hard - and for many years. Save your money on the inverter until it needs to be replaced or better still, add a solar controller and several solar panels to your coach.

The Samsungs are pretty pricey, I'm wondering if most residential fridges will run on msw inverter as well or is there something special about Samsungs?

[bobmac]

If you are replacing a Norcold, the Samsung is a near "exact fit" hence it's widespread use. There is also a Whirlpool that will fit. Bottom line is that there are not many 33" wide, counter depth with the same height as the Samsung. Models that have electronics on the door or display panels will not likely work with MSW power. The Samsung's are in the same price range as comparable alternatives and much cheaper than a replacement Norcold or having to make changes to the Norcold due to fridge door seal failure. You get what you pay for and the fridge is a pretty essential component in any RV.

[irishguy]

Originally Posted by bobmac

If you are replacing a Norcold, the Samsung is a near "exact fit" hence it's widespread use. There is also a Whirlpool that will fit. Bottom line is that there are not many 33" wide, counter depth with the same height as the Samsung. Models that have electronics on the door or display panels will not likely work with MSW power. The Samsung's are in the same price range as comparable alternatives and much cheaper than a replacement Norcold or having to make changes to the Norcold due to fridge door seal failure. You get what you pay for and the fridge is a pretty essential component in any RV.

Bobmac, thank u for the good info...makes sense.

[Ivylog]

The reason a Samsung works well on MSW power is because the compressor runs on DC power...not like your normal AC compressor that looses 15% efficiency running on MSW power.

The Samsung is 6-7” taller than a 1200...hardly fitting perfectly. The 21 cuft Whirlpool I installed (thinking it would fit perfectly) was 1/2” to tall AND it is not counter depth. I put in a separate 1000W PSW inverter to power it (main inverter is MSW) as we boondock often so efficiency is important.

[Old Scout]

Perhaps its ancient history now but our 2003 Alpine came with an Amana R&R and a MSW inverter. Compressor efficiency with MSW inverters may have been an issue but the electronic controls and displays on the door were the most obvious. To make it work, Amana had to modify the circuit board in the door. I eventually switched out the MSW with a PSW inverter and had no issues for 10+ years.
PS--rig came with 4-6volt bats so did have to add 2 more bats for a greater margin of power over night.

[vito.a]

Originally Posted by irishguy

The Samsungs are pretty pricey, I'm wondering if most residential fridges will run on msw inverter as well or is there something special about Samsungs?

Both Home Depot and Lowes run the Samsung RF18 on sale for $997 with free delivery. The guys that delivered ours took the doors off and carried it into the coach and set it up next to the fridge compartment.
A new Norcold 1200 LRIM was over $3200 plus shipping and it's only a 12CF fridge with all its inherent dangers.

The Norcold Spec sheet says it is 63.5” tall (my cabinet cutout was 65”) and the Samsung RF18 is 70.5” tall (the spec sheet says 70 13/16” but mine measures 70 ½” with the front height adjusters removed). The Norcold is 32.4” wide (without trim) and the Samsung is 32.25” wide. The Norcold is 24” deep and the Samsung is 24 5/16” (without doors/handles). So my task was to make an extra 5 ½” of height available in the refrigerator cabinet opening.
http://www.irv2.com/forums/f115/sams...re-356096.html

[vsheetz]

Use an inverter to run the RR from the batterues... we have RR and dry camp often.

[FatChance]

For those who have set up a dedicated, smaller PSW inverter for a residential refrigerator, do you also wire in a transfer switch so the outlet can be powered by shore/generator when available or do you exclusively power the refrigerator directly plugged into the inverter?

[RVPioneer]

For those “charging” their batteries in 30 minutes, assuming they are not lithium, you are murdering them. Factor in the cost of frequent replacement.

[tropical36]

Originally Posted by FatChance

For those who have set up a dedicated, smaller PSW inverter for a residential refrigerator, do you also wire in a transfer switch so the outlet can be powered by shore/generator when available or do you exclusively power the refrigerator directly plugged into the inverter?

I haven't done so, but do have a plug and play transfer thingy, that I built for this and used in our old motor-home.
I used the NC contacts of a relay for the inverter power and the NO contacts for external power. Losing outside power, auto transferred to the inverter, but had to be careful with leaving it on too long, cuz of the high current draw of the Dometic RV fridge, so would switch to gas manually on the fridge itself, for long term use.
I think, I would use this method again, unless I could easily figure out how to make a pass through out of the existing circuitry that I have already and while keeping the MSW inverter functioning in this way, as well.

[Waiter21]

The PSW I installed, AIMS Power PWRIX120012S 1200 Watt Pure Sine Inverter, in my Southwind switches over automatically if it detects 110 volts coming into it.

HOWEVER, the inverter must be powered on for it to switch/pass 110 volts to the output. If the inverter is turned off, 110 volts is removed from the output.

Pure Sine Wave inverter install – 1999 Southwind 35S


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