Community Forums

rgonzales · 03-15-2021, 05:02 PM

We currently own a 2007 coachmen freelander with a dometic fridge that runs on propane and electric. Looking at a 2021 FR forester that comes with a magic chef 12 volt fridge. Definitely like that it is 10cu feet instead of 6. From what I have read the 12volt compressor also cools significantly faster than the dometic heat exchange chemical fridge. Does anyone have any experience tlwith the 12v compressor fridge? How long can you run them off of house batteries? Do they cool well running off of batteries down the road? I believe the brand is magic chef however don't quote me on that. Any feedback is appreciated.

richard5933 · 03-15-2021, 05:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rgonzales

We currently own a 2007 coachmen freelander with a dometic fridge that runs on propane and electric. Looking at a 2021 FR forester that comes with a magic chef 12 volt fridge. Definitely like that it is 10cu feet instead of 6. From what I have read the 12volt compressor also cools significantly faster than the dometic heat exchange chemical fridge. Does anyone have any experience tlwith the 12v compressor fridge? How long can you run them off of house batteries? Do they cool well running off of batteries down the road? I believe the brand is magic chef however don't quote me on that. Any feedback is appreciated.

Can't speak directly to the brand, but I have a 12vdc compressor fridge in our coach and like it very much. How long can you run with it from battery? You'll have to do the math - get the specs which detail the draw, figure out how much capacity you have, and then divide.

rgonzales · 03-16-2021, 06:23 AM

Thank you for the feedback Richard. Good to hear it is working well for you. I figured the how long will it run on battery was a broad question depending on your battery brand and set up including the fridge itself. More just fear of the unknown we are excited about the increase space however nervous about the new type of fridge.

Sweetbriar · 03-16-2021, 06:53 AM

Found some info on a forum dedicated to Forest River products
https://www.forestriverforums.com/fo...on-198356.html

I lifted a JPEG of the specifications for the 12VDC fridge from the thread. I have a 120VAC Magic Chef 10 Cu.Ft fridge to compare it with. Looking at the power demand for each, 1.4 amps @ 120VAC against 11A @ 12VDC, the DC fridge is a better option with regards to power consumption when the compressor is operating. Add in inverter lose and the numbers grow further apart.

Compressor duty cycle is the next factor but a bunch of variables that make energy usage difficult to determine such as how hot is the environment, how off is the door opened, how much of a load is in the fridge. I can't recall my exact power consumption just that when I was using only two GC2 flood batteries I could easily make it thru a 12 hour over night from a full charge to 12.1 or so VDC.

rgonzales · 03-16-2021, 08:55 AM

Thank you Sweetbriar this information really does help. I think all factors taken into consideration i should be fine while driving down the road as we typically keep our trips within a 6-7 hour driving range prior to stopping and often times plugging back in to a lower source. Only one trip of 16 hours last year where the dometic did a nice job on propane. Will be happy not to have to worry about the flame at gas stations or through tunnels.

KanzKran · 03-16-2021, 09:10 AM

For reference, the dual-voltage (12VDC/120VAC) Norcold in my van runs about 40% of the time with the interior at OK temperatures (not over 80F). It has 7.0 CF of interior space including the separate freezer, and draws about 6A (measured) running on battery power. That's around 2.4Ah/h, or 29Ah in a 12 hour period.

Duty cycle matters, and if you load it up with warm stuff then run it off the batteries, it'll use a lot more energy to cool everything down, and especially to freeze unfrozen things, then if they were where they need to be when put it, or if it's run off utility power for a day before traveling.

If you have solar panels, they'll help. There may not be enough to keep up, but any contribution comes off the amount drawn from the batteries while driving, thereby extending potential run time.

My van has a second alternator (no generator) which is dedicated to the house battery, so it stays up while driving even with roof A/C running off the inverter. You may be able to tap a little power from the tow vehicle in your case, but that's outside my area of experience, so I'll just leave it there.