We're VERY new to being Grey Nomads (3 days and counting!), have never had a motorhome before and have already had problems with the fridge! It's a 12/240v Fisher and Paykel fridge freezer living in a Mitsubishi Canter motorhome (1992) and it works VERY occasionally. The freezer works long after the fridge stops but the fridge only seems to work for a day and then switches itself off and we have to keep buying ice to keep anything cool (especially beer!). We had it 're-gassed' as I think it has had a 12v compressor retro-fitted as it is a domestic fridge but it only stayed cool for a day. We have been staying in free camps and do have a built-in generator but have not used it yet. We also have two solar panels on the roof and the fridge has been solely on 12v power so far. Any ideas? Help? We would be most grateful.......
Not knowing your power specification makes it hard, but for me I would try running it on your generator,(240v) to prove that it works fine on that power source or otherwise, if it performs fine then you need to look at your 12volt side of things, running ok on 12v for a day and then not performing leads me to think not enough 12v amps available.
there are others more tuned to things fridges and 12volt than me and Im sure they will respond but in the mean time my two bobs worth.
Guys, not sure about transformer or power supply. All I know is that it did 'konk out' running off the mains (240v) at a friends house and I'm guessing that the 12v side of things isn't the only problem. We have two 110amp/h house batteries (12v) and the truck is 24v. We really do know nothing about electrics but when we took it to a fridge/appliance guy in Hervey Bay he reckoned it had a 'leak' and he put some gas in. This lasted just over a day. At the back of the fridge you can see the compressor and it has been 'retro fitted' with a fan from a hard drive off a computer I'm told. If this helps?....
Should I post a picture of the back of the fridge? Would that help? Sorry, we are SO novices at this!
This may be no help at all, but my fridge [Engel 12V/240] cuts out when it is cold enough, and cuts in when necessary. Have never run it on 240 yet, only ever on 12V.
This may be no help at all, but my fridge [Engel 12V/240] cuts out when it is cold enough, and cuts in when necessary. Have never run it on 240 yet, only ever on 12V.
Cheers,
Sheba.
LOL... Sheba, thats how they are supposed to work..
Guys, we are currently free camping around the Gympie area but have to be back in Hervey Bay next week to settle on an investment property. As the price we paid for our Motorhome was relatively low, we've decided to get a new 12/240 fridge fitted (Waeco?) and at least we'll then get a warranty. The guy who sold us the van did tell us that the fridge 'played up' and he used to freeze a plastic container and put that in the fridge to keep it cool. I'm guessing he shouldn't have had to do that! Thanks once again for all your assistance and ideas and reading through the forum, fridge problems are not uncommon on the road! We'll catch up sometime soon....
Consider putting in a standard 240 volt domestic fridge.
They are very much cheaper to buy and the extra power consumed by an inverter on full time will be no more than about 25 Ah/day.
Apart from the compressor, there is very little difference between a domestic fridge and a 12v one for which you pay a very high premium.
With the cash that you save on the fridge (probably close to $1500 depending on the size) you can put in some extra solar and battery power to support comfortable bush camping.
Check the wiring from the battery to the fridge: Often a minimal size is used, but when the battery is slightly down, the voltage drop along the wire could cause the voltage at the fridge to be too low (some fridges automatically cut out when voltage gets below a certain level). I have a small Vitrirfrigo 12V connected with about three of wire and when I ran a bigger cable the amperage draw reduced from 4A to 3.2A. You will also need to run a bigger ground wire.
As the freezer works but the fridge part doesn't, it may be a thermostat problem.
Thanks for all your help guys. We have decided to install a new Waeco fridge/freezer (I understand the domestic fridge is a lot cheaper but we'd already decided to go with the 12/240 option). We will, no doubt, catch some of you on the road........
