Fridge fan

Sounds like a problem with the fridge.

It should hold 1.5 degrees in pretty well any temp.

My EVA Kool will hold -12 in that sort of heat.

hi brian
imho i would suggest that you may need a rooftop/or window mounted ext fan extractor fan on your troopy as if you install a computor fan or a solar fan inside the vehicle all it will do it blow the ever increasing hot air onto the fridge and really achieve nothing you need to extract and shift the heat build up from within if this is done then the fridge will be able to do it's own thing
cheers hope this is of help and H n yr

G/day Brian,I did that with my 3/way in the van,I bought one with a thermo to cut in at a certain temp and put this on the floor behind the frig, facing up,then got two computer fans,one on the inlet vent on the side of the van,sucking in and another at the top exhaust vent sucking out, both wired to the thermo fan on the floor,they work very well.I am now going to put one on each side vent of my 40l Engel,that should create a cross-flow,I think i can get them inside the frame.
Regards Keith C

Hi Brian

I have installed computer fans for the caravan fridge and the Engel.

Get a 12 volt ball bearing computer fan from Jaycar for about $40. I just wired them into the power supply and the run 24/7. It takes a bit to get used to the noise for a couple of nights.

Works great. The idea of sucking the hot air out of the vehicle is a good one as well. I have the set to suck rather than blow air into the fridge.

I think the simple answer is that the setting of 1.5 was simply too low on the day for that ambient.....

that setting is fine in a lower temp (<40) I reckon you are over reacting and should have simply wound it up a bit for that temp on that day

we have an Engel with a cover we leave the back and the side widow a bit open in the canopy and no trouble even when we use it as a freezer regard GG

Sorry about this side track, but do Engels have a thermostat?
I just assumed they did.
If they had a thermostat that controlled the internal temperature it should hold that temperature once set.
With the Trailblazer I use the same thermostat setting for ambient temperatures from 60 plus to minus zero & from full sun to shade. The internal temp of the fridge doesn't change outside the thermostats settings.
If there is a thermostat & your fridge won't hold the pre-set temps then there must be something wrong with it. Especially at reasonably low ambient temps.
With modern refrigeration you should not have to be on the temperature control every time the ambient temperature changes.

Hi Brian,
I support the view that it has to do with the fridge setting, not a problem with the fridge or the need for a fan.

Can't comment on whether a fan will help. It may help a bit.
But in terms of practical usage, we have two 40 Litre Engels and for the past 3 years have spent between 2 and 6 months per year in NT fishing. This year we spent 6 months and for the whole time, both Engels were used as freezers. On 4, they held at around -12 to -14 degrees (occasionally colder as low as -20 when there was a 'cold spell' with overnight temps below 20 degrees). On that setting, they sometimes use a fair bit of juice, with the compressor running for close to 20 hours per day (estimate) when there is a hot spell.

While this does not reflect your usage, it suggests the fridges are fine and will (within reason) maintain any temp in almost any ambient temperature, subject to the correct setting of the dial and being able to supply enough power.

Many of us notice the fridge temp variations in our camping fridges because we are paranoid about it and measure / check regularly. We don't check our home fridge, but I'm betting, without adjusting the dial, the variation between winter temp and hot summer temp, even with the unlimited power available to the home fridge, would be enough to alarm some of us if we checked it.

Fit a fan if that is likely to help, but in my experience, it is just a matter of accepting that you need to tweak the dial (and apply more stored power) based on ambient temp.

Norm C

Not exactly the same as what you have but a coupel of years ago I did some investigation with fan placement on a supercheap compressor fridge ( since replaced with a waeco cf50 ) fridge test

Things to note.
1/ Air will slip around the edge of a fan very easily ( ie from air outlet to inlet of fan ).
2/ Significant improvement if you blow outside air into the fridge rather than trying to suck hot air out. Essentially the attempts at sucking hot air out require proper air tight baffles and shrouds to achieve anything. You get a similar effect on a vehicle radiator fan if you don't use a shroud and I've yet to see a radiator fan mounted at the rear of the engine bay sucking hot air.

Hope this gives you some ideas.
Rod