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Not running a 3 way fridge when travelling?

Submitted: Monday, Aug 24, 2009 at 20:24

ThreadID: 71764 Views:4631 Replies:5 FollowUps:2

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Portable Fridges

The debate over which fridge is the best on the market is one of the most contested discussions in the camping recreation. In this article we look at the range of features and the major issues to

Willykj

Hi,
Recently came home from a 3 month trip - our van has a 3 way Dometic RM7401. The fridge has 2 12V connections - one to run the electronics & the other the normal 12V element. On the 2nd day of our trip the battery went flat (not going into why that happened) & as the fridge was running on 12V the 12V relay on the PCB stuck on - so the fridge was drawing 12V even when on 240V or gas. Had to stop using the fridge (fortunately had a camping fridge in the 4WD).
Sent an email to Dometic & they did contact me to guide me in how to disconnect the 12V for the heating element whilst leaving the 12V for the electronics working. This enabled us to use the fridge on 240V or gas & we then had no problem for the remainder of the trip. Just couldn't use 12V for travel. We found that that was not a problem - the fridge seemed to hold its temperature very well- we put the gas on when stopped for a while - lunch etc.
When talking to others we found that lots of people do not run their fridge on 12V when on the road. We haven't got a quote to fix the fridge and we have been led to believe that it could cost lots to replace the PCB. We are now wondering whether its worth getting the fridge fixed - just keep doing what we did on this last trip?
Would be interested in how many do not run their fridges on 12V when travelling & particularly their experience in summer.
Regards, Willy

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Reply By: Tenpounder (SA) - Monday, Aug 24, 2009 at 20:36

Monday, Aug 24, 2009 at 20:36

Ain't you heard of Murphy? as long as the ambient temperature is moderate, and the freezer compartment of the fridge is almost empty, except for a cold pack and some fish fingers, then you'll last all day on the insulation of the fridge to keep everything OK.
Seriously, it's often fine, but we've found the internal temperature of the fridge get to 10 - 12 degrees during a day of 'power off' touring, especially, say, in the Top End during the dry.
So we run our fridge on 12v during the warmer months, and I for one would not want to be without that. But, in SA for the rest of the year, the insulation is more than enough during the day.

AnswerID: 380332

Reply By: paulnsw - Monday, Aug 24, 2009 at 20:50

Monday, Aug 24, 2009 at 20:50

Dometic have 2 yr warranty

Is your fridge an RM7401L AES automatic energy selection?

AnswerID: 380338

Follow Up By: Willykj - Monday, Aug 24, 2009 at 21:08

Monday, Aug 24, 2009 at 21:08

Unfortunately the fridge is 3 years old - yes it is a RM7401L but not AES - manual selection.

FollowupID: 647663

Reply By: Member - Redbakk (WA) - Monday, Aug 24, 2009 at 21:25

Monday, Aug 24, 2009 at 21:25

Willykj......I have two 2 litre plastic (milk) bottles full of water and frozen which I place in the freezer compartment so that as we travel, the temperature stays down.....when we park up for the night I run the fridge on gas all night and turn it off when we travel again.
I never run the fridge on 12 volt....only gas or 240 vac.....our milk stays cold and so does everything else....this method always works for us.

AnswerID: 380346

Follow Up By: Member - Norm C (QLD) - Wednesday, Aug 26, 2009 at 14:08

Wednesday, Aug 26, 2009 at 14:08

I don't have a 3 way fridge, but have a friend who uses a similar system, which seems to work well. He uses two or three Techni Ice sheets. They take up a lot less space in the freezer and fridge and work at least as well - probably better. Also no risk of water leakage if a bottle is punctured or the lid leaks.

Norm C

FollowupID: 647909

Reply By: Member - Michael C (WA) - Tuesday, Aug 25, 2009 at 02:59

Tuesday, Aug 25, 2009 at 02:59

Hi Willykj,
We have just got back from a three month trip. Earlier in the trip we parked up and went on a tour and forgot to disconnect plug from tow vehicle.Needless to say, tow v. battery was flat on return. So I made sure that every time we stopped, even for lunch, the plug was pulled. The fridge then started to drain the van battery. So for the next two months the fridge did not see 12volts. Even when we stopped for a cuppa or lunch, we did not use any power to the fridge. We travelled between four to six hours a day. When we free camped, used gas, 240v in parks. May, June and July.Perth to Darwin to Port Augusta To Perth. I always checked the status of the fridge whenever we stopped. For us that is the way we will do it in our future travels.

AnswerID: 380373

Reply By: Member - Russnic [NZ] - Wednesday, Aug 26, 2009 at 07:36

Wednesday, Aug 26, 2009 at 07:36

Hi Willy
I Haven't run my fridge/freezer on 12v for a while now, I found it was not very effective as it drained the house batteries, apparently the wiring from the tow is not heavy enough or the alternator was not putting out enough.
I have never bothered following it up, I have found if I run the fridge on gas when stopped or if on 240v turn the fridge up high overnight if travelling next day, have the temp really low at the start of the day and no problem with everything remaining frozen. A couple of bottles of frozen water in the fridge dept helps there as well.
Cheers
Russ

AnswerID: 380522