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Post Info TOPIC: Fridge on 12v when driving
jbrinks


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Fridge on 12v when driving
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we have a new van and trying to learn how it all works. We have a Thetford 2 door fridge/freezer. We noticed the other day the freezer had de frosted and temp had dropped from 0-5 in 3 hours travel. Our last van which only had a small freezer never did this. So many wires now but we think after a bit of investigation that the fridge when we are travelling is working off our van 12v battery system. Would this be correct We had thought it would have come direct from the car. We of course could be looking at  this in the wrong way as not very electrically minded. If this is the case would the fridge work better if it was connected directly from the car via an Anderson plug which is what we had on our old van



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Murraman


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You don't say whether it's 2 or 3 way, if 3 way it could be drawing 17 amps, if 2 way it could be around 5 amps so if you are not sure what you are doing I would recommend to get an auto electrician to advise you. If you let us know your location someone may suggest someone in you vicinity. Cheers Allan

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Allan
jbrinks


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The fridge is a 3 way , gas , 240, 12v , brand new with two batteries and a solar panel on the van  and we are in the Barossa Valley SA.

any help much appreciated



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Aus-Kiwi


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Check.. Our friridges thermostat doesn't work on 12v ...
As per specs..

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KevinC


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I'd guess that on a new van the fridge will be powered by the tow vehicle while traveling. The house battery may never power the fridge elements at all, although it may be used to ignite the gas.
Fridges destroy house batteries, which is why we use gas or 240v when camped, and the battery of the tow vehicle when on the move.
Be aware that fridges aren't all that efficient on 12v but they should at least maintain their cool when you're driving. Maybe you need to check to make sure you are actually getting 12v to the fridge when you're connected to the tug.
My experience was a bit negative, and I needed to have a little extra work done to match the van to the tug.

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brickies


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We run our 3 way fridge with an anderson plug/lead direct from the alternator when driving when ever we stop for a break we urn the fridge off and turn it back on when we take off , We run the fridge on AC power at home for 2 days before we leave home , When we free camp always use gas never had a problem .

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Aus-Kiwi


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Our fridge tmk only works when engine is running on 12v ..

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Woody n Sue


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Our fridge is 12 V only so runs off the house battery all the time have solar and Anderson plug through DC to DC charger while traveling just did 2 days in shade no traveling never started tug freezer stuff still frozen perfect have two 225 ah batteries batteries still showing 12.2 when we moved on

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oldtrack123


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Murraman wrote:

You don't say whether it's 2 or 3 way, if 3 way it could be drawing 17 amps, if 2 way it could be around 5 amps so if you are not sure what you are doing I would recommend to get an auto electrician to advise you. If you let us know your location someone may suggest someone in you vicinity. Cheers Allan

 Hi

Ditto  to above

,It probably is not wired correctly

If an absoprtion ['3way ]fridge ] it SHOULD definately be run of the CAR batterry

  But WILL require heavy cables all the way.for it to work correctly on 12V

Possibly the car wiring is not large enough

You will need to tell the Auto electrician ,that you want Min 12V at the fridge when it is RUNNING.

PeterQ



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Baz421


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Have a look at these sites for relevant info,, you can work out  the length of wire from relay to fridge and you ypou know what guage (thickness) wire is required AS A MINIMUM.

http://www.lets-getaway.com/battery-charging.htm

http://www.engineeringtoolbox.com/amps-wire-gauge-d_730.html

 



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Phil C


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Hi, most of what I learned about fridges has left me a I never used it after trade school.

From experience we travel with the fridge set to 12v, free camp on gas and CPs on 240. Never had an issue, flat tug batt or melted ice cream. I checked the cables from the connector and we have 6mm sq, I'm guessing that's enough as my rear view camera on the back of the van uses the same circuit.

Cheers

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Cloak


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Same here as Phil.

We also run the fridge off 12V while towing on heavy duty cable which was wired up by an Auto Elec to my specs.

Never had a problem so it is definitely possible JB.

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Phil C


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Cloak wrote:

Same here as Phil.

We also run the fridge off 12V while towing on heavy duty cable which was wired up by an Auto Elec to my specs.

Never had a problem so it is definitely possible JB.

 G'day Cloak, how are you today? As I said the 6mm sq doesn't melt the ice cream so I'm happy with that. I'm contemplating having a switch controlled circuit to the fridge on the house batts when we free camp. Logic behind this is that the fridge is already cold and the 12 volts keeps it that way. With solar charging durin the day it's cheaper than gas. When we move on the switch will change the feed to the tug circuit. 

please correct me if this is not feasible or just plain dumb. 

Cheers



-- Edited by Phil C on Wednesday 8th of April 2015 05:08:39 PM

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Homebase is Murray Bridge Tourist Park (in a cabin). New Horse.. 2020 Ford Everest Titanium, Jayco swan for touring.

Life is way too short to be grumpy.
oldtrack123


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Phil C wrote:
Cloak wrote:

Same here as Phil.

We also run the fridge off 12V while towing on heavy duty cable which was wired up by an Auto Elec to my specs.

Never had a problem so it is definitely possible JB.

 G'day Cloak, how are you today? As I said the 6mm sq doesn't melt the ice cream so I'm happy with that. I'm contemplating having a switch controlled circuit to the fridge on the house batts when we free camp. Logic behind this is that the fridge is already cold and the 12 volts keeps it that way. With solar charging durin the day it's cheaper than gas. When we move on the switch will change the feed to the tug circuit. 

please correct me if this is not feasible or just plain dumb. 

Cheers



-- Edited by Phil C on Wednesday 8th of April 2015 05:08:39 PM

 HI phil 

without knowing few  important bits of info , no one can really say 

]a] Model # of fridge or its current draw  on 12V

Is it thermostat contolled on 12V 

[c] house battery capacity to SPARE from other loads 

[d]solar panel wattagesmile

 

 

PeterQ



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Bevandy2


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Baz,

Thanks for those two web sites, very useful info.

Bevan



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