1.5 year update on my DIY home refer install...reorganized
This is a rework of my DIY refer install from a year ago, hopefully in a better format and at the end with an updated after a year of use. If you are having problems with your NoCold 1200 before spending any more money on it you need to seriously consider going residential... they are very energy efficient... uses less power than a 100 watt bulb and with the addition of two batteries you can boondock with ease.
History:
I put off going residential too long partly because we boondock often, I could not find a unit that was not too tall (most by 5") because the DW wanted to save the drawer below our 1200. Finally found a unit that ended up being 1/2" too tall but was able to save the drawer. Whirlpool WRT311FZDW/white WRT311FZDB/black, and SS for stainless steel... less than $900.
I forgot to turn my 1200 off when parked on a incline overnight leading to it's even poorer operation. Went the Shipshewana/Amish route five years ago with fair results as we boondock often and could not find a home refer that did not require 6 more inches of height taking out the drawer below that the DW wanted. Several years ago it started warming up when traveling on gas and electric so I threw some more money at it...replace drain line, new control board, ARP control, more fans, better insulation....... no change. Between finding a unit that only required 1/2" more height and just tired of fooling with it almost every day I finally went residential last year. By putting in a separate AGM battery bank(500 AH) with it's own PSW inverter/100A charger/transfer switch powering a EnergyStar refer (21 cuft uses less energy than a 100W bulb). It will run for 48 hours before getting to 50 percent and by then the 800AH of AGM house batteries need charging anyway... actually at 18 hours so you could get by with just two batteries for the refer. All I can say is I should have done this years ago before putting good money into a sorry situation. If done with enough additional batteries there is not any reason to not go residential, even if you boondock often... we do in the summer. Granted most cannot do it for the $1200 it cost me... the same as a Amish cooling unit but at some point you need to stop trying to make a 1200 not spoil your food.
This EnergyStar Whirpool 21 CuFt Refer has a energy guide of $44/year and 410,000 kWh/year or 1,123 W/day or 94 Amps/day... So out of my 500 AH battery bank I should be able to go two days before getting to 50% and needing to recharge. $44/year is 12 cents a day... It's amazing how energy efficient they have gotten these things.
DIY Install:
I bought a Whirlpool WRT771RWYB 21 cu ft refer as I hoped it was short enough to fit in the hole of my NoCold 1200. Cutting out the board at the top that holds the 1200 in still left me 1/2" short on the needed height of 65 1/2". The DW did not want to give up the large drawer under the 1200... So I cut out the 3/4" plywood floor and put in side rails for the edge of the refer to sit on.
I kept the two 120V outlets (one a MSW inverter) and added a third one from my PSW inverter.
Filled in the bottom with 2 pieces of 1/2" foil faced insulation that I had behind the 1200. Added four steel angle brackets at the front cross piece to help hold the weight of the refer that cantilevers 6" out from it. Not shown in this picture.
I've had my 1200 out so many times it's something I do by myself using a platform to slide it out on to and then I can slide it to the floor and then walk it out of the way or in this case, up front. Was able to get the 1200 out the side window without the four doors on and putting two boards over the coils/fins so I could slide it out on it's back. Used the 3/4' scrap plywood on top of the steering wheel to help slide it out. With some help from my John Deere skid steer I was able to get it out by myself.
Getting the new on in took some help from the DW to get it to slide in without hurting the driver's chair. Getting it into the hole took some effort as it's a tight fit, but we got it to go.
The driver's side slide comes in the same amount as this new refer stick into the hallway so other than the door not opening all the way when traveling, I'm happy with how it's turned out and I did not have to modify the drawer under it. Even the counter depth Samsung 197 sticks out 4"... the Whirlpool 21 6".
Bought these child saftey locks on Ebay to hold the doors shut when traveling but may have to paint them black for the DW... guess she earned it helping to get it in. :B
Power system and usage:
For power I created a separate system by adding four AGM batteries (we boondock often) and separate transfer switch, 1000W PSW Inverter, and a seperate 100 Amp charger at the rear of the MH. Found a sealed area on the side of the engine compartment that I was able to get into and put the three power items inside it. I'm using the block heater outlet as my shore power supply and I had to run a 120V line under the MH up to the basement bay under the refer.
Added a volt/amp meter so I can keep track of the new system which is accessed through the trap door in the floor for the engine. Two of the new batteries are at the bottom of the picture and you can see the inverter in the unused area I found under the floor.
In another post there was a question about how to charge the refer batteries while traveling. I ran a cable with a 200 amp switch on it from the house batteries to the refer's battery bank. By turning it on the alternator will be providing the 8 amps of power necessary to run the refrigerator. After Boondocking and before getting on the road I run my generator to charge the batteries up instead of using the alternator. Having it put out 100+ amps for several hours cannot be very good on it even though I carry a spare alternator.
I've added a 120V outlet from my 1000W inverter next to the V/amp meter in the bedroom so I can power the DVR Sat receiver and TV 24/7. This will stop the 10 minute powering up of the Sat receiver and will let it record favorite programs while boondocking. When out of the coach I turn off the main converter/inverter to save on it's 2amp standby draw.
"This EnergyStar Whirpool 21 CuFt Refer has a energy guide of $44/year and 410 kWh/year or 1,123 W/day or 94 Amps/day... So out of my 500 AH battery bank I should be able to go two days before getting to 50% and needing to recharge. $44/year is 12 cents a day... It's amazing how energy efficient they have gotten these things." 1,123W/day divided by 100W running equals 11.2 hours/day or a 47 percent duty cycle.
After a years use I have found the duty cycle to be closer to only 40 percent
Update. After a two month trip out west this summer boondocking aprox half the time all I can say is [COLOR=]I should have gone residential sooner! I would recommend two batteries to power it as my house batteries need charging every 24 hours. It took close to 48 hours before I would have to charge the four refer batteries which means the duty cycle is less than 40 percent. I would let the ice maker harvest ice when on shore or generator power... not inverter.
It's very nice to not have to constantly monitor the refer temps like I had to do with my NoCold 1200.:B I did have to glue the child safety locks on better than just the peal and stick that came on them. I did have one 12V battery connection that overheated because I had not tighten the connection well enough. It would be nice to have a remote on/off switch for the inverter as I have to open the engine access hatch to turn mine on/off. Otherwise I'm very happy with this project.
History:
I put off going residential too long partly because we boondock often, I could not find a unit that was not too tall (most by 5") because the DW wanted to save the drawer below our 1200. Finally found a unit that ended up being 1/2" too tall but was able to save the drawer. Whirlpool WRT311FZDW/white WRT311FZDB/black, and SS for stainless steel... less than $900.
I forgot to turn my 1200 off when parked on a incline overnight leading to it's even poorer operation. Went the Shipshewana/Amish route five years ago with fair results as we boondock often and could not find a home refer that did not require 6 more inches of height taking out the drawer below that the DW wanted. Several years ago it started warming up when traveling on gas and electric so I threw some more money at it...replace drain line, new control board, ARP control, more fans, better insulation....... no change. Between finding a unit that only required 1/2" more height and just tired of fooling with it almost every day I finally went residential last year. By putting in a separate AGM battery bank(500 AH) with it's own PSW inverter/100A charger/transfer switch powering a EnergyStar refer (21 cuft uses less energy than a 100W bulb). It will run for 48 hours before getting to 50 percent and by then the 800AH of AGM house batteries need charging anyway... actually at 18 hours so you could get by with just two batteries for the refer. All I can say is I should have done this years ago before putting good money into a sorry situation. If done with enough additional batteries there is not any reason to not go residential, even if you boondock often... we do in the summer. Granted most cannot do it for the $1200 it cost me... the same as a Amish cooling unit but at some point you need to stop trying to make a 1200 not spoil your food.
This EnergyStar Whirpool 21 CuFt Refer has a energy guide of $44/year and 410,000 kWh/year or 1,123 W/day or 94 Amps/day... So out of my 500 AH battery bank I should be able to go two days before getting to 50% and needing to recharge. $44/year is 12 cents a day... It's amazing how energy efficient they have gotten these things.
DIY Install:
I bought a Whirlpool WRT771RWYB 21 cu ft refer as I hoped it was short enough to fit in the hole of my NoCold 1200. Cutting out the board at the top that holds the 1200 in still left me 1/2" short on the needed height of 65 1/2". The DW did not want to give up the large drawer under the 1200... So I cut out the 3/4" plywood floor and put in side rails for the edge of the refer to sit on.
I kept the two 120V outlets (one a MSW inverter) and added a third one from my PSW inverter.
Filled in the bottom with 2 pieces of 1/2" foil faced insulation that I had behind the 1200. Added four steel angle brackets at the front cross piece to help hold the weight of the refer that cantilevers 6" out from it. Not shown in this picture.
I've had my 1200 out so many times it's something I do by myself using a platform to slide it out on to and then I can slide it to the floor and then walk it out of the way or in this case, up front. Was able to get the 1200 out the side window without the four doors on and putting two boards over the coils/fins so I could slide it out on it's back. Used the 3/4' scrap plywood on top of the steering wheel to help slide it out. With some help from my John Deere skid steer I was able to get it out by myself.
Getting the new on in took some help from the DW to get it to slide in without hurting the driver's chair. Getting it into the hole took some effort as it's a tight fit, but we got it to go.
The driver's side slide comes in the same amount as this new refer stick into the hallway so other than the door not opening all the way when traveling, I'm happy with how it's turned out and I did not have to modify the drawer under it. Even the counter depth Samsung 197 sticks out 4"... the Whirlpool 21 6".
Bought these child saftey locks on Ebay to hold the doors shut when traveling but may have to paint them black for the DW... guess she earned it helping to get it in. :B
Power system and usage:
For power I created a separate system by adding four AGM batteries (we boondock often) and separate transfer switch, 1000W PSW Inverter, and a seperate 100 Amp charger at the rear of the MH. Found a sealed area on the side of the engine compartment that I was able to get into and put the three power items inside it. I'm using the block heater outlet as my shore power supply and I had to run a 120V line under the MH up to the basement bay under the refer.
Added a volt/amp meter so I can keep track of the new system which is accessed through the trap door in the floor for the engine. Two of the new batteries are at the bottom of the picture and you can see the inverter in the unused area I found under the floor.
In another post there was a question about how to charge the refer batteries while traveling. I ran a cable with a 200 amp switch on it from the house batteries to the refer's battery bank. By turning it on the alternator will be providing the 8 amps of power necessary to run the refrigerator. After Boondocking and before getting on the road I run my generator to charge the batteries up instead of using the alternator. Having it put out 100+ amps for several hours cannot be very good on it even though I carry a spare alternator.
I've added a 120V outlet from my 1000W inverter next to the V/amp meter in the bedroom so I can power the DVR Sat receiver and TV 24/7. This will stop the 10 minute powering up of the Sat receiver and will let it record favorite programs while boondocking. When out of the coach I turn off the main converter/inverter to save on it's 2amp standby draw.
"This EnergyStar Whirpool 21 CuFt Refer has a energy guide of $44/year and 410 kWh/year or 1,123 W/day or 94 Amps/day... So out of my 500 AH battery bank I should be able to go two days before getting to 50% and needing to recharge. $44/year is 12 cents a day... It's amazing how energy efficient they have gotten these things." 1,123W/day divided by 100W running equals 11.2 hours/day or a 47 percent duty cycle.
After a years use I have found the duty cycle to be closer to only 40 percent
Update. After a two month trip out west this summer boondocking aprox half the time all I can say is [COLOR=]I should have gone residential sooner! I would recommend two batteries to power it as my house batteries need charging every 24 hours. It took close to 48 hours before I would have to charge the four refer batteries which means the duty cycle is less than 40 percent. I would let the ice maker harvest ice when on shore or generator power... not inverter.
It's very nice to not have to constantly monitor the refer temps like I had to do with my NoCold 1200.:B I did have to glue the child safety locks on better than just the peal and stick that came on them. I did have one 12V battery connection that overheated because I had not tighten the connection well enough. It would be nice to have a remote on/off switch for the inverter as I have to open the engine access hatch to turn mine on/off. Otherwise I'm very happy with this project.
