12 volt fridge

Camper24 · May 25

How many days will a 12 volt refrigerator in a 2021 Nucamp 320s run, daytime temps 80F or lower?

AnOldUR · May 25

The 12V fridge can draw somewhere between 25 and 35 amp hours per day depending on use plus ambient day and night time temperatures. So if you have a single 100Ah LiFePO4, you will get about three days with minimal use of other current draws. In reality, we use up to 50Ah per day total, but it is offset by solar. With solar, we can dry camping indefinitely most of the time.

Edit to add that you didn't specify what battery you have. If it's a standard 80Ah lead acid you will only have about 40Ah of usable power. The math says you'd only get one day at best.

Camper24 · May 26

Don't own the camper yet. Looking at buying it but not impressed with 12v refrigerator. Would prefer propane. Thanks for your help.

pthomas745 · May 26

The 12V fridges, paired with lithium batteries and solar, work quite well. They just "work". No muss, no fuss. Lots of threads here with reviews and measurements.

https://www.google.com/search?q=12v+fridge+performance+site:+https://tab-rv.vanillacommunity.com&client=firefox-b-1-d&uact=5&oq=12v+fridge+performance+site:+https://tab-rv.vanillacommunity.com

AnOldUR · May 26

Camper24 said:

Don't own the camper yet. Looking at buying it but not impressed with 12v refrigerator. Would prefer propane. Thanks for your help.

You may want to research that more. The old absorption fridges that run on propane are outdated. Current battery and solar technology along with dropping prices have made them obsolete. A 12V compressor fridge can run indefinitely with the right battery/solar setup. A compressor fridge can hold food safe temperatures consistently regardless of outside temps. That was not the case with our old 3-way. Getting rid of it and replacing with a 12V was one of our best mods.

Camper24 · May 26

AnOldUR said:

Camper24 said:

Don't own the camper yet. Looking at buying it but not impressed with 12v refrigerator. Would prefer propane. Thanks for your help.

You may want to research that more. The old absorption fridges that run on propane are outdated. Current battery and solar technology along with dropping prices have made them obsolete. A 12V compressor fridge can run indefinitely with the right battery/solar setup. A compressor fridge can hold food safe temperatures consistently regardless of outside temps.

Trying to start the research now. I appreciate your help, thanks.

Camper24 · May 26

pthomas745 said:

The 12V fridges, paired with lithium batteries and solar, work quite well. They just "work". No muss, no fuss. Lots of threads here with reviews and measurements.
https://www.google.com/search?q=12v+fridge+performance+site:+https://tab-rv.vanillacommunity.com&client=firefox-b-1-d&uact=5&oq=12v+fridge+performance+site:+https://tab-rv.vanillacommunity.com

Thanks for the information. We're new to this and looking for anything to help us decide if this is the camper for us.

pthomas745 · May 27

I really liked my 2017 propane fridge...until it just started to fade away after only 5 years. Some propane fridges chug along for a lot longer, of course. I carry a portable 12V fridge with me in the camper now, and it works well for me, and the power use is easy to manage with a 100 amp hour lithium battery and portable solar.

There may be other new campers out there still with propane fridges. If you find one, ask very closely about who might be able to service a three way fridge, because that is the hurdle many owners have when dealing with a failing fridge.

SLJ · May 28

I've had a 12 volt fridge for over three years now. Never going back to a 3 way propane. 12 volt Gets cold fast and stays cold even in the summer. Sold my '21 T@B and made sure the new camper also had a 12 volt fridge (larger). Just got back from our first three week 2,500 mile trip with it and didn't even have to think about the fridge temp once.

WayneW · May 28

+1 on the 12v fridge. I like ours much better than a 3-way. We mostly boondock and haven’t had an issue keeping up with the battery. We have the rooftop solar plus a 100w portable panel and about 40 ft of cable so I can chase the sun.

Basil48192 · May 28

I have to agree with the group. I have had very good luck with my fridge and almost exclusively boondock.
I am actually running a little home test on my batteries right now to test a repaired, loose connection.
I am operating on just my batteries and, after 24 hours, have used up about 23 AH. Since I'm not staying in the camper, the only draw has been my fridge and whatever small parasitic draw I might have. This is consistent with the numbers posted above from @AnOldUR. I am on the low end of the scale because it's been unusually cool here in Michigan and I haven't really been opening the fridge during the test.
I hope this helps.

Camper24 · May 29

Basil48192 said:

I have to agree with the group. I have had very good luck with my fridge and almost exclusively boondock.
I am actually running a little home test on my batteries right now to test a repaired, loose connection.
I am operating on just my batteries and, after 24 hours, have used up about 23 AH. Since I'm not staying in the camper, the only draw has been my fridge and whatever small parasitic draw I might have. This is consistent with the numbers posted above from @AnOldUR. I am on the low end of the scale because it's been unusually cool here in Michigan and I haven't really been opening the fridge during the test.
I hope this helps.

It helps tremendously! All the comments have helped us greatly. We have tent camped most of our lives. We upgraded to a Coleman Colorado about ten years ago. Tired of not having any furnace in that camper we then upgraded to a Jayco 806 pop-up. That's getting a little hard setting up. Have I mentioned we are in our early 70's! We're looking at something a little easier to use. We initially didn't like the idea of battery power; had no idea the technology had progressed so far. This group has really been a great help to us. Thank you all so much.

Shadrax · June 6

Agree with above. My original 3 way leaked all of the ammonia so I replaced it with an Isotherm Cruiser 12/120 volt model. It has a real compressor as opposed to the Norcold regenerative technology which was popular with the RV world but has significant problems. The worst one I discovered is that the trailer must be almost perfectly level for it to function properly. There are many very efficient and simpler all electric options. I also have a 35 ish quart Isotherm chest refrigerator/freezer in my tow vehicle (Sprinter van) that I use mostly to make and store ice, frozen water bottles, and frozen food.

jdzioba · June 25

Say what you t about three way fridges. We spend lots of time in wooded areas in the Adirondacks without any hookups and can go for weeks on a propane tank. Love our three way fridge.

SLJ · June 25

jdzioba said:

Say what you t about three way fridges. We spend lots of time in wooded areas in the Adirondacks without any hookups and can go for weeks on a propane tank. Love our three way fridge.

We also spend at least half our camping time in the Adirondacks boondocking parked in the shade. In fact we almost never have hookups. Had 3 way propane fridges for many years in different campers. Switched to 12 volt and don't have to even think about it anymore. Propane is old technology and there's a reason why it's being replaced even for boondocking.

Cherokee · June 25

Camper24 said:

Don't own the camper yet. Looking at buying it but not impressed with 12v refrigerator. Would prefer propane. Thanks for your help.

The 3-way refrigerator is VERY efficient running on propane and great for boondocking. Yes, one should place a thermometer inside and glance at it occasionally and adjust it accordingly. But after 6 years of service, with few problems, I'd endorse them. By the way, compressor refrigeration dates from the1890's while "old tech " propane didn't happen till 30 years AFTER. We boondock with just 95 watts of solar and one canister of propane as long as we want and a cloudy or rainy days don't spoil food

rfuss928 · June 26

Cherokee said:
The 3-way refrigerator is VERY efficient running on propane and great for boondocking.

Propane is a way to carry a large amount of stored energy. One pound equals ~6400 watt-hours ==>20 # is 128000 watt-hours!
200 amp hours of LFP battery storage is ~2400 usable watt-hours.
Efficiency is not really the right description. Ammonia absorption refrigeration is not very "efficient", it's just that you can easily carry a huge amount of energy in Liquified Petroleum Gas in a small volume and weight. Its energy use is probably quite similar whether it is sourced electrically or by combustion (although likely a bit lower on LGP). As most with 3-way units have observed, when the heat required for ammonia evaporation is produced with electricity, a lot of watt-hours are needed.
Nit picking semantics maybe but...

Cherokee · June 26

rfuss928 said:

Cherokee said:
The 3-way refrigerator is VERY efficient running on propane and great for boondocking.

Propane is a way to carry a large amount of stored energy. One pound equals ~6400 watt-hours ==>20 # is 128000 watt-hours!
200 amp hours of LFP battery storage is 2400 usable watt-hours.
Efficiency is not really the right description. Ammonia absorption refrigeration is not very "efficient", it's just that you can easily carry a huge amount of energy in Liquified Petroleum Gas in a small volume and weight. Its energy use is probably quite similar whether it is sourced electrically or by combustion (although likely a bit lower on LGP).
Nit picking semantics maybe but...

Semantics are not as important as having a louver on the side of a trailer to let the heat from the condenser vent to the exterior. Rather then a louver on the inside of the trailer venting the heat from the condenser into the interior of the trailer. Basic HVAC engineering makes a T@B with a 3-way far more comfortable to enter on a warm day.

AnOldUR · June 26

In our fifth season with a 12V compressor fridge. The heat produced has never been a significant issue. If it was, manufacturers would have a system to vent it out of the trailer. Wouldn’t be that difficult. Proper ventilation for a propane fired fridge is more about serious safety issues than heat.

Over the years we’ve up our solar to over 700W. Even on cloudy days it produces enough to power the fridge indefinitely. I’ll admit, the $400 we recently spent on a 400W Renogy suitcase would buy a lot of propane, but getting the reliable, consistent refrigeration that the original 3-way in our 2020 320S never offered is worth it to us.

rcarlson1957 · June 26

We're down here in North Texas where it gets hot and we have a 3-way. It's not a problem on the 1st day of travel after precooling it the day before. But if it's a series of stops to get to a destination (like a rally) it is really problematic for us. Works great once we're set up in camp and either connected to shore power or on propane. The problem for us is in transit. That 1st day out is fine since it has been precooled, but after that we just can't seem to trust it. We ended up bringing a small ICECO GO 20 compressor fridge for food safety. It's been trouble free for 5 yrs now and I can monitor it from my phone. We also bring a small cooler just for ice for drinks. The 3-way just becomes a place to store drinks and things that aren't temp sensitive in transit for us unless we are setting up for multiple days and then we'll transfer some things to our 3-way once we're set up and it's cooled down. That whole process is tiresome. Seriously thinking of taking the 3-way out and installing the GO 20 in it's place or maybe even getting a slightly bigger model like some on here have done. We went to a 100ah lithium battery and have two 120w portable solar panels as well as a solar battery last year so think would work well when boondocking although most of the time we camp with hookups. The 12v ones just seem so much less trouble. As many have said, set it and forget it. Found that is not the case with our 3-way at all.

Cherokee · June 26

After 6 years, I could keep posting images - but these should make the point. Brought to you by a NoCold 180.3, that is adjusted every so often, and 95 watts of solar in: California, Colorado and Texas. If these refrigerators didn't work I could not have done this. The 3-ways are not perfect, all of the available RV refrigerators have advantages and disadvantages. These images show what can be accomplished with my set-up. Boondocking with a 3-way:

Image: https://us.v-cdn.net/5021717/uploads/editor/oa/klvtdedmqehd.jpg

Image: https://us.v-cdn.net/5021717/uploads/editor/av/8cpvzjfdou51.jpg

Image: https://us.v-cdn.net/5021717/uploads/editor/nd/1v95h5lf2rdb.jpg

Image: https://us.v-cdn.net/5021717/uploads/editor/yu/uiwb2pdyd8pc.jpg

Camper24 · June 26

A big thank you to all of you folks for taking the time to post this information, it has been very useful.

Cherokee · June 27

Camper24 said:

A big thank you to all of you folks for taking the time to post this information, it has been very useful.

Your welcome - whichever you choose, 2-way or 3-way trailer refrigerators will perform better if air can circulate around the items in the refrigerator. These units are small and people tend to over-stuff them cutting down on their efficiency. To assist our 3-way, we carry a cooler to to carry additional food stuffs. During the trip, we re-stock the trailer refrigerator from the cooler.

Image: https://us.v-cdn.net/5021717/uploads/editor/r2/1918zmb60vqh.jpg

Cherokee · June 27

AnOldUR said:

In our fifth season with a 12V compressor fridge. The heat produced has never been a significant issue. If it was, manufacturers would have a system to vent it out of the trailer. Wouldn’t be that difficult. Proper ventilation for a propane fired fridge is more about serious safety issues than heat.

Over the years we’ve up our solar to over 700W. Even on cloudy days it produces enough to power the fridge indefinitely. I’ll admit, the $400 we recently spent on a 400W Renogy suitcase would buy a lot of propane, but getting the reliable, consistent refrigeration that the original 3-way in our 2020 320S never offered is worth it to us.

Odd, but when I said this was the best conversion, you agreed with me - and this person knows what he's doing. He installed a 2-way using the existing vents to get the heat out. On this forum many people have complained about heat build-up
https://tab-rv.vanillacommunity.com/discussion/comment/212656#Comment_212656

rcarlson1957 · June 27

Cherokee Agree with value of 3 way especially when boondocking as long as you have a backup like a good cooler or 12v frig when traveling. Since we have 100ah lithium we run our 3 way on 12v and have a heck of a time keeping it cool in transit other than the 1st day of travel since we precool it at home. Problem is keeping it cool in transit...especially on multiple 1 day stops. Running it on 12v just doesn't seem to keep it cool enough without food safety concerns and no way I'll run it on propane when en route. Once we get on site it runs great off shore power or on propane when boondocking. Do you do anything special to keep the 3-way cool when traveling or do you just keep temp sensitive stuff in your cooler to handle that problem?

Cherokee · June 28

rcarlson1957 said:

Cherokee Agree with value of 3 way especially when boondocking as long as you have a backup like a good cooler or 12v frig when traveling. Since we have 100ah lithium we run our 3 way on 12v and have a heck of a time keeping it cool in transit other than the 1st day of travel since we precool it at home. Problem is keeping it cool in transit...especially on multiple 1 day stops. Running it on 12v just doesn't seem to keep it cool enough without food safety concerns and no way I'll run it on propane when en route. Once we get on site it runs great off shore power or on propane when boondocking. Do you do anything special to keep the 3-way cool when traveling or do you just keep temp sensitive stuff in your cooler to handle that problem?

Thanks! Indeed, we start the frig on 120v the night before to get it cold. We load it in the morning before we leave. Once we start the TV, we turn it to 12V. My alternator has more then enough capacity. My NoCold 180.3 doesn't have a thermostat, so we have to look at the thermometer we placed inside and adjust as needed whenever we stop. Ace Hardware carries refrigerator thermometers. We may be eventually climbing a mountain, but to cross a valley to get there the trailer often gets hot traveling under the summer sun. This requires twisting a knob. It's a two edge sward: simple and reliable, but it requires some effort.

AnOldUR · June 28

I don’t have experience with the factory 12V fridge. I replaced my 3-way with a 12V chest model on a slide. It’s opened in the front, so there is no heat buildup from being enclosed and the heat that’s transferred into the cabin is insignificant. Getting rid of the inconsistency of the 3-way was one of the best mods I’ve done. I don’t remember the exact amount, but it was less than $300.

We’re now up in Jasper, Canada where it was mostly cloudy yesterday and we still managed to pull in 700Wh from solar. I’ll admit to having gone a bit more than others may choose to go with solar upgrades, but it’s comforting in a strange way knowing that we can keep our fridge, television and other electronics going indefinitely and worry free.

Sharon_is_SAM · June 28

@AnOldUR - lucky you up there in Jasper. Great area!

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