12 volt Fridge

Forget the 12V feature. It can run your batteries down in no time at all.

Stay with the propane or electric.

The 12 volt option is really just for when you're driving. Cool it down first with 120 or propane.

just leave it on propane, cools better ,faster ,if your on shore power use electric . the 12volt will kill a battery in no time ,and use propane when driving. the frig uses so little propane you won,t notice it.

JohnnyNorthland wrote:
Hello everyone.

We just traded from a sprinter class C to a Travato G class B.

We have the taller 3 way 12 volt/propane/electric fridge and I can't seem to get it to work on 12 volts? The other power sources work fine? Does anyone have any experience with a 3 way Fridge ? Can you start out the fridge on 12 Volts? Or does it need to start on electric or propane first for 12-24 hours?.

John

What do you mean by "I can't seem to get it to work..."? If you turn the selector to 12v and remove the lower vent cover, can you feel the chimney get warm/hot? It will take a few minutes before you can feel the heat. If it never heats up, you have a problem.

The 12 volt option is the weakest option and it is also not thermostatically controlled on your fridge but it does work and is useful for when you're driving, not for cooling the fridge down initially or when stopped. I use mine all the time while moving but I have it wired so that it will only work when the engine is on.

jerseyjim wrote:
Forget the 12V feature. It can run your batteries down in no time at all.

Stay with the propane or electric.

I respectfully disagree. Assuming the fridge is functioning normally, the 12 volt option is very useful when driving, or stopping for a few minutes to re-fuel (when the propane flame of the fridge is dangerous to leave on anyways). Having said that, the fridge will certainly cool down faster when on propane or 120 VAC, since the 12 V setting is best used to "maintain" cooling in the fridge.

This is our experience, for what it's worth.

My 3 way Dometic fridge only works on 12 volt when the engine is on. No way it will run down a battery. I drive with the fridge on 12 volt and switch to propane or electric depending upon if I'm plugged into an electric source or not. My fridge does not switch automatically.