Hey Everyone,I finally made up my mind regarding the replacement of my failed 6cu. ft. RV fridge in my little 5er.I decided to go with the Whirlpool model #WRT111SFAW 10.7 cu. ft. "apartment" fridge.This unit is 24" wide and about 60" tall so some minor cabinet mods were required. That completed the fridge fits fairly nicely. I still have minor interference on one side from the waste tank vent pipe. I am still working on that bit.I had hopes that it would be miserly on the power consumption so that I can keep it cool while on the road running a Xantrex 1000watt PSW inverter and 2 golf cart batteries. The Energy Guide info indicated a typical energy consumption of 381kWh annually. Slightly over 1kWh daily.With the unit installed in the cabinet, moderately filled and ambient temps running 52-85F we are consuming .55-.60kWh daily as measured by my new Kill-A-Watt meter.With my 215AH battery bank and my 94% efficient inverter I should be able to run 24hrs without discharging the batteries too deeply.The usable space is wonderful and the power consumption well below my expectations. We'll see how it fares on our next trip.I am still undecided on the solar question. I haven't been boondocking like I used to. Maybe we will make a trip or two then look at whether or not we need solar.

Great energy info and glad it's working out for you.

I have a 120V fridge and solar, it is like peanut butter and jelly. :BThe very nice thing is that once you have solar, battery maintenance is basically looking at a meter. I have a temperature compensated solar controller with programmable charge schedule and set points, it tailors charge voltage as to the battery temperature.

The power numbers are pretty interesting, you may be convincing me to do the same as it likely also is going to work better as a fridge too. My fridge is gone, like $1,000 to fix. I have been using one of those 12 Volt coolers when dry camping while 'I figure it out'.The electrical cooler takes ~3 amps, on full time (yes no thermostat, yes it freezes food on a cool night). That works out to ~50% more power than your full size fridge (~.9 KWH per day). My inverter is not PSW like yours, I'd guess that would take a too big hit on the efficiency unless I upgraded that at the same time.Thanks for the share.

For a 10cf fridge 50 AH a day is very little indeed. Almost twice less than in the specs. It will probably shoot 40-50% higher on a hot day and night. Check the inside temps btw, if they are 4 and 40 respectively.I wonder where the condenser is. Sometimes it's in the side wall, and then you need a clearance from cabinet walls. Solar... In the same moderate temps, and with very strict energy conservation (which usually means no 120V devices other than TV), expect to draw 30 AH a day, so this is 80 AH with fridge. Assuming the fridge numbers are correct, and again, in moderate temps. To reliably harvest 80 AH on most days in winter, even in sunny South West, you need 400W flat panel. On a rainy winter day in PNW such a panel won't collect more than 15 AH.94% efficiency of inverter is impressive, I have to say.

horton333 wrote:The power numbers are pretty interesting, you may be convincing me to do the same as it likely also is going to work better as a fridge too. My fridge is gone, like $1,000 to fix. I have been using one of those 12 Volt coolers when dry camping while 'I figure it out'.You better measure the cabinet. In trailers it's more difficult than in 5-ers. My cabinet with 6cf propane fridge, for example, has inside W=23.5", D=25", which is few inches less than that Wirlpool. The height is also a problem, with converter under the fridge.Those energy numbers are interesting. It doesn't happen very often that manufacturer can beat their own specs by such a margin. I'm not questioning the OP, it's just that all the previous res frig users reported the numbers more-less in line with the specs, i.e. 90-100 AH a day. Maybe something big happened in the industry. Those boxes are getting more efficient as time goes by.Coolers are terrible things. They draw few times more, per cu.ft, than normal fridges. Portable top-loading 12V fridges like Engel are more efficient but the cost is prohibitive.

110v Residential fridge install | Good Sam Community

ScottG
Nomad
Oct 11, 2014
Great energy info and glad it's working out for you.
westend
Explorer
Oct 12, 2014
I have a 120V fridge and solar, it is like peanut butter and jelly. :B

The very nice thing is that once you have solar, battery maintenance is basically looking at a meter. I have a temperature compensated solar controller with programmable charge schedule and set points, it tailors charge voltage as to the battery temperature.
horton333
Explorer
Oct 12, 2014
The power numbers are pretty interesting, you may be convincing me to do the same as it likely also is going to work better as a fridge too.
My fridge is gone, like $1,000 to fix. I have been using one of those 12 Volt coolers when dry camping while 'I figure it out'.
The electrical cooler takes ~3 amps, on full time (yes no thermostat, yes it freezes food on a cool night). That works out to ~50% more power than your full size fridge (~.9 KWH per day).
My inverter is not PSW like yours, I'd guess that would take a too big hit on the efficiency unless I upgraded that at the same time.

Thanks for the share.
Almot
Explorer III
Oct 13, 2014
For a 10cf fridge 50 AH a day is very little indeed. Almost twice less than in the specs. It will probably shoot 40-50% higher on a hot day and night. Check the inside temps btw, if they are 4 and 40 respectively.

I wonder where the condenser is. Sometimes it's in the side wall, and then you need a clearance from cabinet walls.

Solar... In the same moderate temps, and with very strict energy conservation (which usually means no 120V devices other than TV), expect to draw 30 AH a day, so this is 80 AH with fridge. Assuming the fridge numbers are correct, and again, in moderate temps. To reliably harvest 80 AH on most days in winter, even in sunny South West, you need 400W flat panel. On a rainy winter day in PNW such a panel won't collect more than 15 AH.

94% efficiency of inverter is impressive, I have to say.
Almot
Explorer III
Oct 14, 2014
horton333 wrote:
The power numbers are pretty interesting, you may be convincing me to do the same as it likely also is going to work better as a fridge too.
My fridge is gone, like $1,000 to fix. I have been using one of those 12 Volt coolers when dry camping while 'I figure it out'.

You better measure the cabinet. In trailers it's more difficult than in 5-ers. My cabinet with 6cf propane fridge, for example, has inside W=23.5", D=25", which is few inches less than that Wirlpool. The height is also a problem, with converter under the fridge.

Those energy numbers are interesting. It doesn't happen very often that manufacturer can beat their own specs by such a margin. I'm not questioning the OP, it's just that all the previous res frig users reported the numbers more-less in line with the specs, i.e. 90-100 AH a day. Maybe something big happened in the industry. Those boxes are getting more efficient as time goes by.

Coolers are terrible things. They draw few times more, per cu.ft, than normal fridges. Portable top-loading 12V fridges like Engel are more efficient but the cost is prohibitive.
Gdetrailer
Explorer III
Oct 14, 2014
Almot wrote:
horton333 wrote:
The power numbers are pretty interesting, you may be convincing me to do the same as it likely also is going to work better as a fridge too.
My fridge is gone, like $1,000 to fix. I have been using one of those 12 Volt coolers when dry camping while 'I figure it out'.

You better measure the cabinet. In trailers it's more difficult than in 5-ers. My cabinet with 6cf propane fridge, for example, has inside W=23.5", D=25", which is few inches less than that Wirlpool. The height is also a problem, with converter under the fridge.

Those energy numbers are interesting. It doesn't happen very often that manufacturer can beat their own specs by such a margin. I'm not questioning the OP, it's just that all the previous res frig users reported the numbers more-less in line with the specs, i.e. 90-100 AH a day. Maybe something big happened in the industry. Those boxes are getting more efficient as time goes by.

Coolers are terrible things. They draw few times more, per cu.ft, than normal fridges. Portable top-loading 12V fridges like Engel are more efficient but the cost is prohibitive.

The OPs energy numbers and experience is correct, pretty much very typical of apartment sized fridges. I have a 10cu ft Haier and it basically is the same fridge as the OPs whirlpool. I measured my fridge current draw of .8A at 120V which works out as 96W of power. Fridge runs about 20 minutes per hr with ambient temps of 70F-100F, basically my fridge runs 8hrs out of 24hrs and uses about .768Kwhrs of energy for one day.. The name plate data on my fridge states 1.1A draw but my actual measured draw was less.

The OP can actually save more battery capacity if their inverter has a power save mode.

The inverter I use for my Haier 10 cu ft fridge is a Tripplite PV1250 which has what they call a load sense feature. The load sense detects if there is any AC load demand. If a demand is detected the inverter turns on the output stage. Once the AC load is disconnected the inverter shuts down the output stage . This load sense feature saves me about 24Ahr worth of battery capacity!
Almot
Explorer III
Oct 14, 2014
Gdetrailer, 0.768 KWH is 65 AH. This is closer to what one could expect. And, this is post-inverter, so add another 5 (7?) to this number, to get the battery draw. 70 AH. Maybe 75 AH. This is at 30% cycle. Did it run 30% at 100F?

Now, the draw less than on the nameplate is one thing, but there is also a start-up spike way higher than a running current, with these 120V machines.
westend
Explorer
Oct 14, 2014
My smaller dorm fridge draws 80W when running. The duty cycle is around 25% in summer weather (80f-90f ambient). The somewhat larger fridges can be more efficient because of better insulation and containing more mass, using the same size compressor. I would estimate the LRD to be around 6 amps. A 600W Samlex was unable to overcome the LRD but a 1000W Xantrex doesn't break a sweat. I have 300 AH of battery and a 235W panel.

For anyone having a failing or failed absorbent fridge, the move to a 120V model makes a lot of sense. The difference in price between repair and purchase of a 120V box can be pushed over to a solar system that will have additional benefit besides just food storage. From my experience and user reports, the 120V fridges kick the absorbent fridges to the curb regarding performance.
Almot
Explorer III
Oct 14, 2014
What we are missing here, is that when you live off the battery, you should measure DC draw out of the battery in AH. Not AC draw to the fridge. Very few users of 120V fridges actually did this - if any. An appropriate device for this would be a battery monitor - or amps on display of solar controller when fridge cycles on, less informative but OK.

Stipulated inverter efficiency, killa-gilla-watt, this doesn't tell much. There are DC-AC conversion losses, inverter standby, inverter idling (that you can't completely eliminate when you have semi-permanently running fridge), and whole bunch of parasitic currents of trailer before you even start to do anything there. I won't be surprised to see 15-18 AH for all this, - and then you have actual useful loads. Show me AH out, for the 24 hours period, at 85F. With 10cf fridge and a single bulb on the ceiling.

westend wrote:
My smaller dorm fridge draws 80W when running. The duty cycle is around 25% in summer weather (80f-90f ambient). The somewhat larger fridges can be more efficient because of better insulation and containing more mass,

More mass means more energy to remove the heat to the outside. How "smaller" is your dorm fridge? 80W is roughly a 42 AH "AC equivalent", deducted from 80W*6hrs AC. Don't ask me what 42 AH AC means :)
westend
Explorer
Oct 14, 2014
FYI, a watt is a unit of measuring power/ It's useful to use when in discussion of electrical devices because they're commonly measured in wattage consumed.

Yes, your consideration of efficiencies is valid. Fortunately, my inverter draws less than 500 ma when idling. I estimate that it's about 95% efficient with the conversion. I have no parasitic draws in my rig other than the inverter idling. I know most folks have a bunch of them.

From the battery monitor, I'm seeing 40-60 AH used by the fridge, daily. It depends on how much it's loaded, door opening events, and the ambient temp.

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