Convert RV fridge to residential
We are in the process of buying a Solitude 378MBS to fulltime in. We will be adding 1200 watts of solar, 3kw inverter and 3 SOK Lithium batteries. We plan to boondock at least 50% of the time (proba...
Forum Discussion
Cptnvideo wrote:
Why is it that I have not seen one person that regrets going from a propane fridge to a residential fridge?
Solar is extremely reliable but if ours should ever fail, we have a backup generator. Solar allows us to boondock practically indefinitely in peace and quiet. The only limitation is dumping and water. We can even go without propane if we don't mind waking up a little chilly.
If I could I would switch to propane in a heartbeat. My current RV does not have side or roof vents to permit that.
My small (4 cuft) refrigerator has a very efficient Danfoss compressor. Depending on ambient temps, my unit can easily pull well over 50 AH/day. The bigger unit I replaced pulled well over 100 AH and a residential refrigerator is likely to pull twice that amount. Fifty, 100, even a couple hundred AH/day does not sound like much if you have a large battery bank and a large solar array. That changes instantly if you camp in the forest because it is beautiful or too hot to camp in the sun or if you have some rainy days, or if you camp in the winter with the sun very low in the sky. Anyone who has depended on solar knows how poorly solar panels work with even just some partial shade. Personally I hate the need to run a generator for hours when a propane refrigerator can work for a month or months on a tank of propane.
