Vitrifrigo dp2600 12 volt compressor fridge

Hi Ian, We have a Vitrifrigo (150lt.) installed in our Phoenix and have never had a problem. We remover a Dometic RM2553 and had the old Phoenix factory install this one. Runs almost exactly as you described ie. freezer abour -15 and the cabinet around 4 to 5 in most ambient temperatures. I like a cold beer and have no worries about having a beer out of this fridge. It does frost sometimes at the back of the cabinet but not heavilly and we never worry about it. We are about to take off and do a lap around the block and I feel confident that it will do the job. Having said that, there are more than one Phoenix owner that have not been happy with the b rand, I guess that we are lucky that ours works well.
Cheers, Nev.

Hi ian, ours is just fitted in the cavity with no extra insulation and it works like a normal fridge. i dont bother checking temps as its just like a fridge at home and i dont check it at home, i have got better things to do than monitor fridge temps. We holiday mainly in the hot weather and so far the fridge is a pearler. cheers mark

Hi Ian, While I cannot specifically answer your question, I would like to share my experience so far. We ordered a van last year and took delivery just in time for our xmas holidays. We to have the 240lt dp2600. I specified this fridge because my research told me this was one of the better fridges, and a 12v compressor fridge seemed to be the best way to keep our food and beer cold. I did consider a large 3 way with large vents, fan and insulation but could not be confident it would work in all conditions so paid the extra for 3 large panels, 3 large batteries etc to do it properly and be confident it would stay cold.

When first loading up the fridge I was a bit surprised that it took a while to reach the temperature, even though most items were cold when loaded. We then went away for a couple of weeks, and found on any day greater than 32 degrees the temp would go from about 1 or 2 degrees to 7, 8 or even 9 degrees which was a worry. We had a few days like this, on one of the days the fridge was not opened all day. The batteries were fully charged and I opened the vents, no change. Since then I have been monitoring it and any hot day it seems to struggle. Turning the thermostat from 4 to 5 or 6 definitely brought the temp down when it was not hot, to say -1 or 0, but it still struggled when hot so in my opinion the fridge is faulty.

I returned the van to the manufacturer and they run tests for 2 weeks. Unfortunately they did not see any issues as it never got hot, until the last day they saw evidence of creeping temperatures, 2 hours before I was due to pick it up to go away..... I now need to return the van on a hot week so they can investigate the problem further. I guess my concern is do I have a dud fridge or do I have unreasonable expectations? I guess I don’t monitor my own home fridge like I do the van fridge, but maybe I should.

Hi Ian Not sure whether this is going to be of any help to you. We have had a Vitrifrigo for about 2 years now and on the road full time. We were never happy with the unit until the fan died and we had a new one fitted in Darwin, while it was there they increased the fan speed to 3,500 revs which can be done at the back of the unit by swaping terminals. Anyway the fridge works a treat now even in temps of 34c+ and that is at #3 setting. Only thing is we have to defrost the fridge every 4-6 weeks, but at least it's working as it should be now.
Cheers
Rick P