What fridge should I buy?

[US1]

Originally Posted by redbaron73

We went with 120v to get a 10.4cu ft fridge and freezer that fit the hole exactly.

Readily available at Lowe's and home Depot and under $350

I installed that same fridge a couple months ago, replacing my Norcold fridge. As you stated, it was a direct replacement. Looks like it was installed originally.
We think this mod has been the best upgrade ever. So far I've been good for overnighters with no issues on my 2- 6V house batteries and not needing to run the gen. To be far though, as of now my boondocking is has been limited to overnight in a parking lot while traveling. Solar would be my next investment if my camping habits changed.

I do miss the simple LP usage feature, but not the messing with making sure its level and the wide temp swings the absorption fridge did.

[Homeby5]

Originally Posted by US1

I installed that same fridge a couple months ago, replacing my Norcold fridge. As you stated, it was a direct replacement. Looks like it was installed originally.
We think this mod has been the best upgrade ever. So far I've been good for overnighters with no issues on my 2- 6V house batteries and not needing to run the gen. To be far though, as of now my boondocking is has been limited to overnight in a parking lot while traveling. Solar would be my next investment if my camping habits changed.

I do miss the simple LP usage feature, but not the messing with making sure its level and the wide temp swings the absorption fridge did.

Can you guys tell me what fridge and inverter you purchased? I will try to buy the exact same setup?

[redbaron73]

Originally Posted by Homeby5

Can you guys tell me what fridge and inverter you purchased? I will try to buy the exact same setup?

Fridge: https://www.homedepot.com/p/Magic-Ch...00BE/302245062

Renogy 1000W Pure Sine Wave: https://www.amazon.com/Renogy-1000W-.../dp/B07VC5RTK7

[US1]

I bought the same fridge as above, the Magic Chef, but went with the Xantrex Prowatt SW 1000 Invertor, transfer switch, and remote turn on/off switch.

[BougeRV]

Check out our 12 V portable refrigerator!

[Fridge Defend]

Originally Posted by Homeby5

As you may have seen in another thread, my Dometic Gas/120v fridge died after only 3 years. Coolant unit went bad. Cost to repair is almost as much as new unit and Dometic will not give me a discount.
Anyway...what type of fridge should I buy to replace this? I still want propane because I drycamp a lot. I also don't have solar panels.
Is there a compressor fridge that will do the job?
My model is a Dometic DM 2662.
Thanks

You can see why they fail, we use a DM2652 as a demo, see how long it takes for them to overheat:

Safety Seminar

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=khH0-dti1MA

Go residential if your do not protect the boiler.

The cooling unit you see in this video has been forced by many methods, including off-level operation, to overheat. We quit counting overheat and Fridge Defend protection cycles at 300. 300 times the Fridge Defend protected this fridge cooling unit, this ~10 year old DM2652 still works like new!

[Homeby5]

Not sure. About 10cf if compressor fridge.

[Cumminsfan]

That Magic Chef fridge is not designed for RV's. Says right in the installation instructions. It needs 5" of clearance top and sides and not recommended for inverter use. That was the issue when I was trying to decide on 12V compressor or 120V compressor. Most all the 120V home fridges had too many restrictions for RV installation.
There are a few 120V home fridges that will work but it takes some time searching them out.

[redbaron73]

Originally Posted by Cumminsfan

That Magic Chef fridge is not designed for RV's. Says right in the installation instructions. It needs 5" of clearance top and sides and not recommended for inverter use. That was the issue when I was trying to decide on 12V compressor or 120V compressor. Most all the 120V home fridges had too many restrictions for RV installation.
There are a few 120V home fridges that will work but it takes some time searching them out.

No household fridge is designed for RV usage. It's a legal disclaimer.

No functional difference exists, and household refrigerators are commonly used in RVs
All 3 of my Newmar RVs included a presidential refrigerator that said not for RV use. Came directly from the factory this way.

The magic chef 120v is simply the best price and fit for direct replacement of the dometic dual fuel 7-8cu ft, and had 10cu ft of space.

Btw, it also states don't use an inverter. Ignore that too, as long as you have adequate power and pure sine wave.

[2cyber71]

I boondock with my all electric Horizon 42Q
My fridge lasts about 2 days without recharging.
It’s Samsung 23ft residential fridge. Bigger that the one I have in the house
But I do have 6 gel batteries and a 3000 watt inverter.
I set my auto Gen to kick in at 12.2 volts.
My Gen will charge to 13.3 volts and kick off.
So I can go many days but I usually do a day or two on a trip.

[rhenning]

Originally Posted by US1

I installed that same fridge a couple months ago, replacing my Norcold fridge. As you stated, it was a direct replacement. Looks like it was installed originally.
We think this mod has been the best upgrade ever. So far I've been good for overnighters with no issues on my 2- 6V house batteries and not needing to run the gen. To be far though, as of now my boondocking is has been limited to overnight in a parking lot while traveling. Solar would be my next investment if my camping habits changed.

I do miss the simple LP usage feature, but not the messing with making sure its level and the wide temp swings the absorption fridge did.

I am thinking of replacing our Norcold, and I am wondering how you attached the frig so it won't tip over.

[Marine359]

We have the Dometic 4101 12v compressor and have grown to like it. No leveling concerns, cools down fast on morning of departure. Gets really, really cold if you want it to, and it’s much bigger than the absorption fridge which fits the same space. However, you must have a big battery and solar to make it work for boondocking. If you rv primarily post to post, and you have a dc/dc charger, everything will be fine. It consumes 50ah/day nominally. So, whatever method of charging you use: solar, generator, shore power, dc/dc, you need to be able to replace every day into your battery system the 50ah that the fridge will need.

[redbaron73]

Originally Posted by rhenning

I am thinking of replacing our Norcold, and I am wondering how you attached the frig so it won't tip over.

In the back, 3 screws thru the plate into the wood platform, along with a custom made bracket.

In the front, 4 brackets, attaching lower and upper corners to the wood frame.

At the top, a trimmed 1x4 attached to the wood framing hides the brackets and makes it look very clean.

I don't have picture of final install but will take it tomorrow.Attachment 368650

[US1]

Originally Posted by rhenning

I am thinking of replacing our Norcold, and I am wondering how you attached the frig so it won't tip over.

In my case…….
The fridge has threaded holes on top for either left or right hand door swing. I used a hole on each side and ran a bolt thru the cabinet bottom above the fridge with a spacer block as fill in. Same concept as an under cabinet microwave.
Then from the outside thru the access panel, I just drilled 2 holes thru the bottom bracket and screwed to the floor, same as the dometic I removed. The fridge s solid as a rock.