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  1. #11
    Long Hauler geotex1's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by goducks14 View Post
    Actually 12V fridges have been around for many years in the marine industry. There's a company in Canada that makes some of the best. RV fridges are way more reliable than absorption because they have fewer parts to deal with. Compressors are simple and you only need a cheap ($) motherboard for control. If you have an issue you only have two things to replace besides the compressor. The temp control part and the ECU. Both are inexpensive. Compressors should last years like a residential fridge.

    https://www.novakool.com/
    Yes, indeed! I was referring to the makers putting them into campers. Take for instance Dometic. They've had 12VDC compressor chests for a long, long time. However, when they put out their first versiom of their 8 cu.ft. freezer over fridge it was a disaster... A little more time for Dometic and Norcold.
    Rob & Nikki + Cloverfield
    2020 Grand Design Solitude S-Class 3350RL
    2015 RAM 3500 Longhorn Laramie Crew Cab, Long Bed, 4x4 Dually Cummins/AISIN

    Mountains of Pennsylvania

  2. #12
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    Quote Originally Posted by geotex1 View Post
    Yes, indeed! I was referring to the makers putting them into campers. Take for instance Dometic. They've had 12VDC compressor chests for a long, long time. However, when they put out their first versiom of their 8 cu.ft. freezer over fridge it was a disaster... A little more time for Dometic and Norcold.
    Agree. Honestly I'm not sure I can trust Norcold or Dometic. My Norcold quit working 1.5 years in thats why I went with a GE 12V 9.8 cu.ft fridge. Trouble free for 3 years.

  3. #13
    Setting Up Camp
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    Orbsah. you are correct on Grand Design switching over to a 12v frig, we are looking at an Imagine 2600RB and it has it even in units built in the early '22. I talked to their Sales division and they said they had started in '22, and we are receiving all good reviews. Also the trailer charging system can handle a lithium battery. I thought this forum was about that , that's what drew me here, I was hoping to hear so reviews I can trust not just what G.D. says.

  4. #14
    Site Team Soundsailor's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Intofire56 View Post
    Also the trailer charging system can handle a lithium battery. I thought this forum was about that , that's what drew me here, I was hoping to hear so reviews I can trust not just what G.D. says.
    Hey @Intofire56, as I've said elsewhere we're pleased with our 12-volt refrigerator. That being said, I wouldn't want anyone to think that the stock battery and solar panel (165-watt) that came with my coach would support the refer for any length of time. We regularly camp off-grid and so added 800 Ah of LiFePo4 batteries. While our 12-volt refer consumes about 100 Ah of battery capacity per day on its own, we can comfortably support the refer and our other power needs for four days with little solar input. The stock battery that comes with many of these coaches has an effective capacity of 50 Ah. With good sun, the solar panel might give you 80 Ah per day, so you're going to need more than the stock battery and solar panel for an extended off-grid stay.
    Stephen and Judy
    2022 Reflection 150 Series 260RD (Stella)
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    Traded - 2018 Forest River Rockwood Minilite 2104S

  5. #15
    Seasoned Camper fmartinmn's Avatar
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    @FordmanNJ, we chose to modify our stock 12cu ft Norcold to 12V through JC Refrigeration. I had them do the install (about 2.5 hrs) compared to my doing it (about all day). We store our trailer offsite and we do long travel days. The conversion made sense for our needs. Prior to the conversion, we could not pre-cool the fridge unless we were willing to leave an un attended flame run overnight. Our Norcold took a very long time to cool down, seemed like all day. The 12V conversion cools down in about 2-3 hours and we can run it while driving. We try to keep our travel days at less than 6 hours road time but sometimes that is just not possible. The Norcold did not stay very cold by the end of the day. We had already upgraded our battery bank to lithium for other reasons (experienced too many campground power outages), so going to a 12v fridge was an easy step for us. Best of luck with your decision.
    Frank & Jolynn Martin
    Litchfield, MN
    Mabel & Bailey, Golden Retriever Fur Kids
    2019 RAM 3500 CTD, CC, LB, B&W Turnover Ball, AirLift 5000 Bags
    2019 Solitude 3350RL S-Class, 4440# CCC, Reese 20K GooseBox, 8K EOH Disc brakes, RV Airflow, SoftStartRV, 2-206AH SOK batteries, Victron Multiplus II, Victron 30A DC2DC,790W of Solar, Flex Armor Roof, Blu Tech Water Filtration, BlazeCut Fire Suppression

  6. #16
    Long Hauler huntindog's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by fmartinmn View Post
    @FordmanNJ,

    Prior to the conversion, we could not pre-cool the fridge unless we were willing to leave an un attended flame run overnight.12V conversion cools down in about 2-3 hours and we can run it while driving. We try to keep our travel days at less than 6 hours road time but sometimes that is just not possible. The Norcold did not stay very cold by the end of the day
    By not wanting to leave a unattended flame, that would mean turning it off at night while you were sleeping,correct?
    2021 398M Full Body Paint 8k axles. LRH tires. Disc brakes.
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  7. #17
    Site Team xrated's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by huntindog View Post
    By not wanting to leave a unattended flame, that would mean turning it off at night while you were sleeping,correct?
    LOL....I don't think that's what he meant at all. His "unattended" was ....storing the trailer off site from where they live, and having to turn it on there, then leave it overnight, and come back the next day to load up, hookup, and travel.
    2016 F350 CrewCab Dually
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    Excessive Payload is a Wonderful Thing

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  8. #18
    Seasoned Camper OshawaDave's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by huntindog View Post
    The reasons you gave for making the swap are not a very good argument. If your absorbtion is working, I would leave well enough alone.
    Now if you are not happy with the perfomance, that would be a different story.
    You would probably need a heavier 12V powerline, and a battery capacity upgrade. How much more is debatable. The longer you are without power the more you would need.
    That could lead into needing solar and or a generator. It can get pretty involved and expensive depending on just how long you need it to run off grid.
    OTOH, the absorbtion fridge you have now can run a VERY long time off grid. Other power draws would drain the battery first
    I tend to agree. If the concern is hydro outages at a park, you'll still have the propane side of the fridge (assuming it's a two way fridge). If so, I'd buy a 100W solar panel and use it if needed to charge the battery.
    Dave & Carol
    Eastern GTA, ON
    2022 Reflection 303RLS Fifth Wheel
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  9. #19
    Site Team xrated's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by OshawaDave View Post
    I tend to agree. If the concern is hydro outages at a park, you'll still have the propane side of the fridge (assuming it's a two way fridge). If so, I'd buy a 100W solar panel and use it if needed to charge the battery.
    And for our non Canadian folks, "Hydro Outages" is translated to Power or Electrical Outages!
    2016 F350 CrewCab Dually
    2018 Momentum 394M...Heavily Modded!
    2023 Suzuki GSX-S1000 GT+
    Excessive Payload is a Wonderful Thing

    "If it ain't fast....It ain't Fun"

  10. #20
    Seasoned Camper
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    OK, somewhat of a "newbie" question. I can get the fridge going while it is in storage using 30 amp "shore power" a day before we leave. I am not thrilled about running LP while in transit. Furthermore, I find the fridge temp is inconsistent between the top and bottom part of the fridge. The deals seem OK, that was the first thing I looked at. In short, it passed the carboard/seam test.
    That said, I have a few options:
    A) Freeze what I can, and place it in the fridge for our typical 3-6 hour journey to our destination. This has worked just "OK" with outside temps below 80F
    B) Include a bag of ice bag (5# or 10#) but that takes up a lot of space and limits what I can put in the fridge
    C) Include a bag of ice in the fridge AND ice in a cooler

    I would rather not have to bring a cooler, but as we increase our long weekends from Thursday-Sunday to now Wed-Sun, option C is becoming the norm.

    My 2020, 22MLE did NOT come with the solar option and makes use of a single lead acid battery. I do not have plans to get solar nor a generator as I do not see us dry camp for the foreseeable future.

    Question:
    Is there a way to run the fridge on battery power only, while connected to the tow vehicle? If so, what do I have to do?
    Mitch and Alisa Frank
    2020 Imagine XLS 22 MLE
    2020 RAM 2500 Diesel

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