Efficient running of Fridge.

I don't know about constant running my eva-cool RF60 only gets a chance to sit idle for a couple of months at a time. Yes I make ice useing those little glad bag thingys but that is for stress relief in my bourbon at night. mmmmmmm!!!!

People seem to stress out about their fridges and how they should run and this and that...........

Frankly a camping fridge is just that. It gets used when I go camping which is quite regularly. I have two Engels....One is two years old and one is 18 years old. Both get worked when necessary otherwise they just sit there, idle. Never had a problem.

Now unlike a majority of 4by-ers, who seem to advocate that consuming cold beers or any other alcoholic drinks is a lifestyle must, I don't take grog that needs to be cooled out bush. I freeze my meat before I go on a trip and then run the fridge on freeze whilst travelling until I go to sleep at night and then switch the fridge off. Meat keeps frozen for a long while. Once the meat is finished I bring the fridge temp down to 1/4 setting or just enough to keep things cool.

No worries.

Cheers

"Some of the posts on fridges have stated, that they leave their fridge running 24/7. Is there some advantage in doing this?, "

Your food stays cold.

It depends on how cold you want the gear in it to stay. Ice, remember, is at zero degrees. Which is pretty warm by freezer standards, and not cold enough if you want to keep items deeply frozen for more than a few days. If you leave the Engel running in freezer mode you can usually maintain temps below minus ten. If it is just being used as a fridge for beer and a few chilled items then zero is fine.

I'ver found the Chescold 3-way fridge to be great - as soon as you pull up at an unpowered site, you put it onto gas. It gets cold enough, even in the tropics, to work as a freezer.
John

Hey fatty
read post (archive) 11921 about the subject of leaving fridge running.

as for making ice...assuming you are using the fridge as freezer and driving during the day and everything is frozen it will keep overnight providing you have adequate product in freezer...if little product add water and freeze and this will keep all frozen untill your on your way again next day ... but watch the hot weather...
Personally I wouldnt let the product get above -6/7C

having said that, my fridge is used as freezer to preserve meats, icecream and crayfish etc and I alternate and make a two litre milk carton into ice overnight so that i can keep the small esky cold for essential refreshments.....

Fat Bastard,
Its the same with airconditioners (house and car). They should be run every month to prevent the seals from perishing. 24/7 is an over kill, but this is better than leaving unused. Friends who have used thier camping fridge as bar fridges, running 24/7, have been doing this for several years and the fridges are still going strong. As Nudenut said, read thread 11921. This is what happens if the fridge is not used regularly.

Paul

hi peoples - slightly deviating from original topic wonder if i could have info on car coolers/heaters. understanding the different functions/results as such, intending to go west in july heading for kalgoorlie pilbarras etc exiting at pt hedland so was wondering if they are suitable for town-to-town travelling just to keep milk/butter/
cooked-uncooked meats etc.
tks bazza

Mate,

Thge explorer has a 25l freezer and a 50l fridge. No problems, run it all the time, works an absolute treat. Costs a couple of sheckles extra, but well worth it.

Cheers

Craig

Can't see any advantage in running 24/7 unless it's really hot! We turn the fridge off when we crawl into the tent (when it gets dark and cooler) and we turn it on again in the morning when we crawl out of the tent. This system works for us, and we've kept vacuum packed meat that way for at least two weeks without problems.

The fridges are usually very well insulated, so you can afford to use them like an esky overnight when you're not opening the lid and it's cool. Drinks get cooled during the day when it's running.

What do you do with the rest of your stuff while you're making ice in the fridge - thawed out frozen lettuce is pretty awful!