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  1. #161
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    Quote Originally Posted by timlisajax View Post
    Thank you and all the others for your assistance and posts on this mod. This is always a good place to learn.
    I'm curious to hear what type of results you are seeing after the fan mod installation....what are your fridge temps now?
    Jeff and Debbie
    2021 Imagine 2250RK
    2015 Ram2500 Laramie CC 6.7 Cummins Diesel w/air-ride auto leveling
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  2. #162
    Site Sponsor timlisajax's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Heavysledz View Post
    I'm curious to hear what type of results you are seeing after the fan mod installation....what are your fridge temps now?
    Hi Jeff. We camped in Charlotte, NC a few weeks ago. Temp outside was 92 and the sun hit the fridge side of the camper all day. The 4 computer fans were running nonstop. Temp inside the fridge hit 40 and it still was around 38 at night. Had dropped to 34 by the morning.

    I am curious also if the mod makes any difference. We aren't camping until the end of August so I'll know more then.
    Tim & Lisa
    2012 Silverado SRW LB 3500 Duramax
    2018 Reflection 337RLS, IS, Kodiak Discs


  3. #163
    Site Sponsor timlisajax's Avatar
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    So....I wasn't happy with the paint on the vents. Used a cheap black satin that for some reason bubbled on the plastic. Wet sanded the vents and used a black satin from Ace Hardware. Much better results IMO. Now to continue to review the forum to find other stuff I can do!
    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails old paint.jpg   new paint.jpg  
    Tim & Lisa
    2012 Silverado SRW LB 3500 Duramax
    2018 Reflection 337RLS, IS, Kodiak Discs


  4. #164
    Seasoned Camper Boom 'r Bust's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by timlisajax View Post
    So....I wasn't happy with the paint on the vents. Used a cheap black satin that for some reason bubbled on the plastic. Wet sanded the vents and used a black satin from Ace Hardware. Much better results IMO. Now to continue to review the forum to find other stuff I can do!
    Looks really nice Tim. I got lucky and had an old can of the perfect paint for the job. On to the next upgrade!!
    2021 Winnebago 2932 5th wheel
    2020 F350 w/7.3 Godzilla
    2018 Reflection 220RK - sold 11/20
    2018 Titan XD 4x4 SL - sold 11/20

  5. #165
    Long Hauler DaveMatthewsBand's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by timlisajax View Post
    So....I wasn't happy with the paint on the vents. Used a cheap black satin that for some reason bubbled on the plastic. Wet sanded the vents and used a black satin from Ace Hardware. Much better results IMO. Now to continue to review the forum to find other stuff I can do!
    Sorry if you talked about this already, but I'm curious if you blocked off the areas around the fans?
    If not, I don't see how the fans would help since air follows the path of least resistance, it would
    simply be pulled in all around the fans then blown out. Air would just circulate in this small area,
    instead of actually coming in through the other panel, following along behind the fridge then out this panel.
    I'll attach an edited copy of your photo for reference.
    The yellow arrows show the logical path of air entering the panel then exiting via the fans.

    This is the same as turning on the vent fan in the kitchen and leaving the kitchen window open but expecting to pull air through the bedroom window which is on the other end of the trailer. Air will simply come in through the kitchen window and be blown out through the vent fan, with hardly any air at all coming in through the bedroom window. The only way this would have any effect would be if the fans were incredibly powerful.


    Click image for larger version. 

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    Last edited by DaveMatthewsBand; 08-08-2021 at 08:00 PM.
    Resistance is Not Futile, It's Voltage Divided by Current.


  6. #166
    Site Sponsor timlisajax's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by DaveMatthewsBand View Post
    Sorry if you talked about this already, but I'm curious if you blocked off the areas around the fans?
    If not, I don't see how the fans would help since air follows the path of least resistance, it would
    simply be pulled in all around the fans then blown out. Air would just circulate in this small area,
    instead of actually coming in through the other panel, following along behind the fridge then out this panel.
    I'll attach an edited copy of your photo for reference.
    The yellow arrows show the logical path of air entering the panel then exiting via the fans.

    This is the same as turning on the vent fan in the kitchen and leaving the kitchen window open but expecting to pull air through the bedroom window which is on the other end of the trailer. Air will simply come in through the kitchen window and be blown out through the vent fan, with hardly any air at all coming in through the bedroom window. The only way this would have any effect would be if the fans were incredibly powerful.


    Click image for larger version. 

Name:	Untitled-1.jpg 
Views:	24 
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ID:	35938
    Thanks DMB for your comments. I read all through this post before I did the mod and remember your observations regarding recirculating air flow. And I totally agree, it is a real possibility and makes sense.

    As a baseline, the install is complete and when standing on the ground, I can feel air from the fans. I think the next step is to use the camper fridge and we'll be doing that for 5 weeks starting Aug. 30. I plan to monitor the fridge temps and see how it does. My plan is to carry some duct tape and experiment with taping off the inside of the side vent one-step-at-a-time. It may require complete sealing with the duct tape or nothing at all. My guess is that I'll have to tape off the sides and probably the top two horizontal rows of the vent cover.

    Thanks for following this and offering your valuable suggestions.
    Tim & Lisa
    2012 Silverado SRW LB 3500 Duramax
    2018 Reflection 337RLS, IS, Kodiak Discs


  7. #167
    Seasoned Camper Boom 'r Bust's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by DaveMatthewsBand View Post
    Sorry if you talked about this already, but I'm curious if you blocked off the areas around the fans?
    If not, I don't see how the fans would help since air follows the path of least resistance, it would
    simply be pulled in all around the fans then blown out. Air would just circulate in this small area,
    instead of actually coming in through the other panel, following along behind the fridge then out this panel.
    I'll attach an edited copy of your photo for reference.
    The yellow arrows show the logical path of air entering the panel then exiting via the fans.

    This is the same as turning on the vent fan in the kitchen and leaving the kitchen window open but expecting to pull air through the bedroom window which is on the other end of the trailer. Air will simply come in through the kitchen window and be blown out through the vent fan, with hardly any air at all coming in through the bedroom window. The only way this would have any effect would be if the fans were incredibly powerful.


    Click image for larger version. 

Name:	Untitled-1.jpg 
Views:	24 
Size:	90.2 KB 
ID:	35938
    DMB, I agree with your logic. A key part of the airflow is how well the RV mfgs have engineered the chimney behind the frig. From what I saw in our 220RK and the pics others have posted, Grand Design appears to do a decent job. One area to improve is open areas above the refrigerator. There's a YouTube channel called My RV Works. He does a good job showing how to fix a poorly designed chimney and improve the direction of the air.

    My goal when I started this project was to improve the performance in our 8CF frig in the 220RK. The fans alone did that for us. Now with a 12CF frig, the fans alone may or may not do it. They certainly helped. If we are not happy with the results, the next move will be improving the chimney in my Winnebago. They did not do as good a job as GD.

    The last step for us will be sealing off the open areas in the upper vent.

    On a side note, how did your residential frig install go? Were you able to do it yourself or did you need another strong back? Curious minds here...
    Last edited by Boom 'r Bust; 08-10-2021 at 07:45 AM.
    2021 Winnebago 2932 5th wheel
    2020 F350 w/7.3 Godzilla
    2018 Reflection 220RK - sold 11/20
    2018 Titan XD 4x4 SL - sold 11/20

  8. #168
    Fireside Member
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    Quote Originally Posted by DaveMatthewsBand View Post
    Sorry if you talked about this already, but I'm curious if you blocked off the areas around the fans?
    If not, I don't see how the fans would help since air follows the path of least resistance, it would
    simply be pulled in all around the fans then blown out. Air would just circulate in this small area,
    instead of actually coming in through the other panel, following along behind the fridge then out this panel.
    I'll attach an edited copy of your photo for reference.
    The yellow arrows show the logical path of air entering the panel then exiting via the fans.

    This is the same as turning on the vent fan in the kitchen and leaving the kitchen window open but expecting to pull air through the bedroom window which is on the other end of the trailer. Air will simply come in through the kitchen window and be blown out through the vent fan, with hardly any air at all coming in through the bedroom window. The only way this would have any effect would be if the fans were incredibly powerful.


    Click image for larger version. 

Name:	Untitled-1.jpg 
Views:	24 
Size:	90.2 KB 
ID:	35938
    Good point...I've wondered the same. Could somebody test this theory by holding a lighter or candle near the bottom vent while the top fans are running?

  9. #169
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    A simple test would be to see if the air being blown out is warmer than the ambient air temperature. If it is, then you know at least some of the air being expelled is coming from the coils. Hot air rises by nature so there is air moving behind the fridge, the fan is only there to augment this airflow. If you were to block off all of the vent space surrounding the fan(s) you could theoretically cool down the evaporator coil too much and have an equal but opposite effect on the fridge performance by having the ammonia return to a liquid state to soon. If it cools too much at the upper evaporator coils, it will not properly cool the lower section (i.e. the fridge). A tell tale sign of this would be near zero temperatures in the freezer and low to mid 40's in the fridge.

    If you plan on blocking off all other air vents, basically turning the back of the fridge into a forced air setup, I would highly recommend putting the fans on a thermostatically controlled switch to prevent the above scenario from occurring. It may not be an issue in very hot conditions but if you camp in locations where it gets very cool at night, you may start to see this problem.
    Jeff and Debbie
    2021 Imagine 2250RK
    2015 Ram2500 Laramie CC 6.7 Cummins Diesel w/air-ride auto leveling
    USMC Veteran

  10. #170
    Site Sponsor timlisajax's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Heavysledz View Post
    A simple test would be to see if the air being blown out is warmer than the ambient air temperature. If it is, then you know at least some of the air being expelled is coming from the coils. Hot air rises by nature so there is air moving behind the fridge, the fan is only there to augment this airflow. If you were to block off all of the vent space surrounding the fan(s) you could theoretically cool down the evaporator coil too much and have an equal but opposite effect on the fridge performance by having the ammonia return to a liquid state to soon. If it cools too much at the upper evaporator coils, it will not properly cool the lower section (i.e. the fridge). A tell tale sign of this would be near zero temperatures in the freezer and low to mid 40's in the fridge.

    If you plan on blocking off all other air vents, basically turning the back of the fridge into a forced air setup, I would highly recommend putting the fans on a thermostatically controlled switch to prevent the above scenario from occurring. It may not be an issue in very hot conditions but if you camp in locations where it gets very cool at night, you may start to see this problem.
    Jeff - you and others are the main reason I am on this forum. Thank you for your wisdom and knowledge. I will do as you suggest and see if there is air being blown out that is warmer than the ambient air. I'll also see how often the 4 fans installed by GD recycle. And of course the big questions will be how well the fridge cools. There is going to be lots of trial and error and there has been some good information on things to consider. Again, thanks for your insight - things I didn't know but will now consider as we move forward.
    Tim & Lisa
    2012 Silverado SRW LB 3500 Duramax
    2018 Reflection 337RLS, IS, Kodiak Discs


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