3 way fridge in pop-top

[timbo_au]

Hi guys, i am new to this site so take it easy on me.   I have just bought a 1978 Jayco Swan poptop camper in excellent unmolested condition. It has a Dometic 3 way fridge. It works really well on gas. My question is, can i run the fridge on 12v while it is under tow? It has a vent outside which is warm to the feel when running on gas, and a vent inside on the kitchen bench top beside the sink, which also is warm to the feel when running on gas. Less warm than outside though. I know it will work, but I am worried the canvas will be affected or cause damage as the canvas is all bunched up when not popped up. Cheers in advance. 

[archer63]

Hi Timbo,
I am sure you will be receiving advice from guys far more experienced than me, but I don't think you are legally allowed to run your fridge on gas while travelling or when the top is down anyway.
So yes, that is why people run their fridges on 12v from the car battery through an Anderson plug while travelling.

Cheers
Rob

[HKB Electronics]

Personnaly I would not run the fridge on gas whilst travelling, you can run the
fridge on 12V, my old finch already had 12V wired from the car as standard so I imagine yours would too.

You'll need to wire 12V to the caravan plug in the car if not already done, an automatic isolator to
turn off the power when the car is not running is a wise idea to prevent flattening the battery
I would suggest a "fridge switch connected to the fridge inside the van. If you turn of the 12V
to the existing caravan wiring your 12V lights won't work.

Cheers
Leigh

[timbo_au]

Thanks guys , I do have a work Navara, so wont bother getting an Anderson Plug wired up to it, but do have a 100ah battery and an Anderson Plug on the camper, in which I intend to purchase fold-out 100w solar panels to charge to battery whilst camping. I just wasn't sure if I was able to have the fridge running on 12v because of the heat generated. So we all agree it will not affect the canvas while the camper is in the closed position?

[Muckinhell]

the fridge running on 12v most likely wont cause as much heat as when on gas as thats its most efficient means of operation to actually pull it down and keep it cold, 12v will only maintain the set temperature but it will draw large amounts of power continuously so putting a battery on the cct whilst driving and no other means of charging will flatten that battery very quickly. if you can hook your panels up on tap somewhoe whilst driving to charge or maintain the battery you should get to camp with some power left for lights etc when you arrive depending on your distance and time travelled.

[timbo_au]

Excellent! That's what i wanted to hear. I was thinking of buying a panel and fixing to the roof, but a friend suggested to buy movable ones in case I camp under shade. Do you think both is too much or the fixed one will be enough?

[timbo_au]

Cheers

Tim.

[Trrrumping Beast]

Excellent! That's what i wanted to hear. I was thinking of buying a panel and fixing to the roof, but a friend suggested to buy movable ones in case I camp under shade. Do you think both is too much or the fixed one will be enough?

If you can afford the $ and weight of both then I think its a good idea - I have it set up this way for my Goldstream.  The roof mounted panel generates more power than I would have expected, given that it is flat and not angled square to the sun at all times.  If you know your destination has no shade then it works fine.  In fact, I rarely take my portable panel anymore, the fixed does such a good job of re-charging the batteries, even in partly shaded conditions.

Hope this helps,
  Nigel

[timbo_au]

Thank you.

[markg66]

Hi Tim,
I have exactly the same issues as I also tow with a work vehicle and I don't fit a hot (charging) wire from the vehicle.
What I do is I have 2 x 110AH deep cycle batteries, a 1500watt inverter, a 160 watt solar panel and a 15 amp 240V charger.

The solar panel is on the camper roof rack when traveling and charges the batteries, it is removable and is positioned on the ground when camped.
I put the fridge on 240 three or four days before I go and get it down in temp as far as possible and also make sure the batteries are fully charged.
Just before we leave I plug the fridge from the house 240V into the inverter 240V and turn the thermostat down from flat out to the normal setting.
We normally try to get to wherever we are going in the one day as we have a lot of gear packed inside the camper which is a pain if you have to set up for a one over-nighter on the way.
We can get 12 to 14 hours on the road and still have 1/4 to 1/2 the batteries left when we stop even if it hasn't been particularly sunny during the day.
Sometimes to make it a little better the missus freezes pre-made meals in takeaway containers and we load the fridge with this frozen stuff and eat the meals that thaw out first, the fridge hardly cycles on when doing it this way.

To be on the safe side I do have a couple of warning stickers one on each side of the camper advising that the fridge is running on 240V during travel and one that points to a battery isolater under the floor that can be operated to kill the inverter in case emergency services have to get involved.

The pic is how i made the removable panel system.

[timbo_au]

That's pretty clever. I will look into a roof top style I think.

[Muckinhell]

running an inverter is a big waste of 12v power, there are losses in the system in that configuration. far better to run straight from 12v only if possible to cut the excess waste of powering the inverter as well as its converting to 240v as well. most fridges just convert 240 to 12v anyway.

[Trrrumping Beast]

That's pretty clever. I will look into a roof top style I think.

Heaps on here have done it.  The removable option is probably the best in my opinion, but I didn't have the know how to do it.  Have a look at my goldstream thread if you want some pics of my roof top panel - I posted in it earlier today.

Whole set up cost me around $500 for a 255watt panel, regulator (albeit the much maligned el cheapo $50 sort from Hong Kong which has worked perfectly), brackets, connectors and cabling. I fitted proper solar type y-junctions to the feed cable and an anderson plug to the side of the trailer so I could feed the portable panel in at the same time (regulator removed from back of portable panel).

Good luck which ever way you go, personally I do like the idea of removable, but now I have both worlds covered which suits my use.  For travel i let the fridge run off the car, if you intend to run off ther batteries 160w may not be enough as these fridges can draw over 10a....

  Nigel

[Trrrumping Beast]

running an inverter is a big waste of 12v power, there are losses in the system in that configuration. far better to run straight from 12v only if possible to cut the excess waste of powering the inverter as well as its converting to 240v as well. most fridges just convert 240 to 12v anyway.

Not true for gas fridges - the heating element is 240v powered.  Compressor fridges yes the majority are 12volt.  The inverter option isn't the worst idea IF there is sufficient re-charge capacity.  The biggest problem with this concept is you are limited to daylight hours of travelling, fine weather and non-dusty roads.  On a recent trip the roof panel was completely covered in a caked on layer of dust upon arrival at camp and required cleaning prior to set up.

Nigel

[HKB Electronics]

The heating element in all the gas fridges I have had was both 12V and 240V. For running off
of 12V I would also avoid the inverter as their usually only around 70% efficient.

[geedublya]

Mine works very well on 12v and I often reach my destination with some of the fridge contents frozen. Now I usually put the lettuce in the engel. I'm using a house battery connected to my cars 2nd battery.
My mate travels using gas, however be aware you cannot refuel doing this.


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[Trrrumping Beast]

I would be cautious of travelling using gas without first checking your insurance, both personal and the compulsory third party.