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Old 11-19-2017, 06:16 AM   #43
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Precisely why I see a residential fridge as a bad idea in any gas chassis MH let alone a fiver or pull behind. The only rigs setup to handle the battery load are DP's.
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Old 11-19-2017, 07:09 AM   #44
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Precisely why I see a residential fridge as a bad idea in any gas chassis MH let alone a fiver or pull behind. The only rigs setup to handle the battery load are DP's.
LOL, sorry, I want it all. I love my ice cream hard. I love the 19cu ft of storage my residential refer provides. I hated the Notcold in my prior DP. I had recall after recall on it. Then if you are not perfectly level you had the fear your DP would go up in flames. NEVER AGAIN will I have a Notcold absorption fridge. And I NEVER have to defrost my refer. Lots of pros to a RR IMO.
My investment in solar and lithium will last a long time.
The comment above doesn't jive to me. To each their own. Lithium is lighter and takes less space for more usable amp hours. If you look at the long term picture it sure makes dollars and sense (and cents) to me. And add the tax credit because of solar it doubles my belief (maybe not double but at least increases it by 30% ).
Oh, and I have a gasser that cost tens of thousands less than a DP.
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Old 11-19-2017, 11:13 AM   #45
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What does a gasser have to do with anything? Sure, your average luxury DP comes with a dozen golf cart batteries but those aren't to power a residential fridge. Those are to power the three TVs, radiant heat, washer & dryer, hot tub and disco lights. Gassers can be upgraded to carry more batteries...and surprisingly, some come equipped with more than two marine batteries. If running a residential fridge is the goal, a gasser plus a few thousand bucks in battery and electrical upgrades is way, way, way cheaper than a big DP.

And as stated above, to each their own. I mean, why carry a TV? You just need more batteries to run it. Why light the coach? Candles work just fine. Heaters are for wimps too. Nobody needs any of that stuff...heck, nobody needs a motorhome.

Residential fridges need more battery storage but so do a lot of RV appliances or systems that have simpler and/or non-electrical alternatives. But we run them anyway and pay the cost. Why are residential fridges any different? They flat work better than propane units and I've yet to hear about mass recalls, class action lawsuits or fires when discussing residential fridges.

Nobody is forcing anyone to run one but if folks want to, suggesting ways to do it without running out of battery is helpful...even if it does cost money.
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Old 11-20-2017, 06:03 AM   #46
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Actually the only absorption refrigerator that seems to be having a significant problem is the Norcold 1200 double door used mostly in the larger units. The rest of us do fine in a smaller unit with the single door and a freezer models. Ice cream is cold, as is food.

Try stuffing a residential in the smaller units and there is no place to put more batteries.

Leveling is another one of those mythical problems. If you are enough off level to bother the refrigerator you will be uncomfortable trying to walk and sliding out of bed.
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Old 11-20-2017, 08:58 AM   #47
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I have a Dometic fridge that works OK. Aside from setting it to 4 for soft ice cream or 5 for frozen milk and needing to defrost it every month or so, there are no significant problems.

If it stops working, once, its going out the door for a residential unit. The PSW inverter, 300 wats of solar, and wiring is already there.

I have 10 years of experience in residential fridges running on inverter, installed in my boat and have no complaints. They just work better and cost less.
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Old 11-20-2017, 09:16 AM   #48
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We replaced our Norcold the first time it quit. The Norcold 1200 replacement refrigerator was $3100 for a 12 cubic foot 2-way propane and electric. It lasted 3 years and started going out again. The last time we had it repaired it lasted 2 hours before quiting. Neither the original nor the replacement Norcold kept ice cream frozen consistently. Yes, it will freeze the ice cream, but then it periodically thaws and refreezes making a mess. If the grandkids are with us I had to ride heard on them to not open the refrigerator door constantly.
This last time the Norcold went out I replaced it with a residential refrigerator that was 1/3 the price and 6 cubic foot larger.

If you turn the ice maker off, the current usage is greatly reduced. We can dry camp without an issue as long as we run the generator each morning.

The other issue with the Norcold is the problem of a fire. When I replaced mine there was a large burned area in the rear of the refrigerator that was pretty scary to see. We have seen more than one RV burned to the ground because of a refrigerator fire.
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Old 11-20-2017, 09:22 AM   #49
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RV Residential Refrigerator - How Much Power Does It Use
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Old 11-20-2017, 10:29 AM   #50
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The Winns testing leaves out a lot of data points.

Was fridge cool when the test started ? Initall startup uses more energy.

Ice maker on or off ? Ice makers draw extra power.

Inverter in search or idle mode ?
The 11.5 hour test adds 22+ AH if in idle mode, in that particular inverter. That can count for their discrepancy between the monitor and the Kill A Watt.

My experience with a " non ice maker " 8 CH, 2 door fridge, with a 1/2 amp idle draw, PSW inverter, is under 100 AH for a 24 hour day. 1/3rd of my present battery capacity.
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Old 11-21-2017, 09:12 AM   #51
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I agree with almost everything they say. My RF18 on the inverter seems to use about the same 250 - 300 Ah in a 24 hour period. I have ran several 24 hour test using the BMK, which includes inverter inefficiency and parasitic draws.

The only point I can add is, if you camp in areas where AC is necessary, then solar is not going to help you much. If your always camping where it's below 80 degrees, then solar may be a good investment.


It amazes me how many 5th wheels are being sold with a 18-22 CF RR, 2 marine 12V batteries, and no generator for backup.
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Old 11-21-2017, 11:58 AM   #52
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I think the pioneers of residential fridges merely used the convertible method. Unplug...refrigerator converts into a cooler(ice chest). Plug back in...cooler converts back into a refrigerator.

Batteries, Inverter's, Generators...just make it more manageable...no more convertible method.
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Old 11-22-2017, 03:45 AM   #53
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I suspect it's more like the sucker method. They are sold on the convenience of the RR but not told about the power issues if they want to dry camp. Same problem with the gas chassis motor homes.
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Old 11-22-2017, 10:51 AM   #54
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I suspect it's more like the sucker method. They are sold on the convenience of the RR but not told about the power issues if they want to dry camp. Same problem with the gas chassis motor homes.
That might be true in some cases but we chose the RR and gas chassis after a lot of careful research and planning. I get what you're saying but don't pretend everyone that chooses a residential fridge (or gasser or whatever) is ignorant.

And the fact is that if you comb the forum, there are many, many stories about swapping out a propane fridge for a residential unit or ordering one in a new coach and most folks seem to love them. "We'd never go back" is a common theme. And plenty of folks use them while boondocking too.

As I said before, diesel pushers are expensive to buy and own. They are full of all kinds of gadgets and system that no one needs to full time. They are luxuries that require gobs of power. Yet all I hear are people extolling the virtues of DP's despite the cost and complexity. But a residential refrigerator is a bridge too far? Not buying it.
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Old 11-22-2017, 11:21 AM   #55
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Lithium is lighter and takes less space for more usable amp hours. If you look at the long term picture it sure makes dollars and sense (and cents) to me. And add the tax credit because of solar it doubles my belief (maybe not double but at least increases it by 30% ).
Oh, and I have a gasser that cost tens of thousands less than a DP.
ComputerGuy, What is the brand/model of your batteries?

I googled GBS lithium battery and found a website selling 12V 100Ah battery at $615 each. I believe you have 600Ah capacity. There is also this http://www.lithiumrvbattery.com/Lith...0AH_Cells.html

How much does it cost? Do you have six 100Ah batteries or some other combination?
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Old 11-22-2017, 11:41 AM   #56
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That might be true in some cases but we chose the RR and gas chassis after a lot of careful research and planning. I get what you're saying but don't pretend everyone that chooses a residential fridge (or gasser or whatever) is ignorant.

And the fact is that if you comb the forum, there are many, many stories about swapping out a propane fridge for a residential unit or ordering one in a new coach and most folks seem to love them. "We'd never go back" is a common theme. And plenty of folks use them while boondocking too.

As I said before, diesel pushers are expensive to buy and own. They are full of all kinds of gadgets and system that no one needs to full time. They are luxuries that require gobs of power. Yet all I hear are people extolling the virtues of DP's despite the cost and complexity. But a residential refrigerator is a bridge too far? Not buying it.
I never said people buying were totally unaware. What I was pointing out was the sales folks don't point out the issues. If questioned their answer is Auto Generator Start will prevent problems from low batteries.

AFAIK the RR move was a response to the Norcold 1200 double door mostly used in DP's and some large gas. They have the room for the added batteries. What I object to is pushing them into the 30 ft and under class that does not easily have room for extra batteries. They also don't get the Norcold 1200 as it's too big to fit.

Don't put me in the DP praising camp. I happily drive a gas and would go for another one. It's all we need for what we do. I'm also one of the folks that point out that no one on a tight budget should consider a DP because the cost of repairs is so high compared to gas.
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