Forum Discussion

Lurker52's avatar
Lurker52
Explorer
Dec 30, 2018

Inverter with residential refrigerator

I have recently purchased my first class A. A 2001 Monaco Night DP. The previous owners installed a residential refrigerator. My questions are ones that I know has been discussed before. But I am still kind of confused as to what I need to do.

I have 4 6 volt batteries that provide 400 amp hrs. 200 usable. The rig also has a Xantera 1500 watt modified sine inverter. I tried plugging the frig into the inverter and although it ran when the frig kicked on and off the inverter board flashed and other lights flickered. I guess my inverter does not like my frig. Other things like the tv and micro seem to work ok on the inverter.

Should I get a 2nd small inverter to run the rig or upgrade to a pure sine inverter. The frig is a Whirlpool WRT 108FZDW02. I have had some difficulty finding the specs as to energy usage.

We are not boon dockers but would like to stay a couple of nights here and there and plan on doing some Walmart overnights. Will the inverter/charger keep the frig going and charge the batteries enough while traveling? I know I can turn the frig off but it would be nice to not have to while traveling and an overnight stop. I do understand any extended off grid time will need the generator to recharge the batteries. Solar may be in the future but not now. I will also want to use a laptop and charge a couple of cellphones.

I am also looking at a Victron battery monitor. Any advise on which model would be best for my use would be helpful.

So, should I upgrade to a larger (maybe 2000 watt) PSI or get a small one for the frig and if so what size? Will the rig run the frig/inverter and keep the batteries charged while driving? Will my 200 amp hour batteries run the rig for a couple of day if we boon dock some.

Thanks as always
Class A
  • Acampingwewillg's avatar
    Acampingwewillg
    Explorer II
    Dec 30, 2018
    Yep, I've had my 10CF residential for about 5 years now. My Inverter is the older Modified Sine Wave heart/Interface 2500 watt. I have (6) 6 volt batteries but at the same time I don't like taking chances so if I pull into a Rest Area for a few hours of sleep, I turn the Inverter off knowing I'm not opening the Frig door. No problems this way.
  • 12th_Man_Fan's avatar
    12th_Man_Fan
    Explorer
    Dec 30, 2018
    my factory installed 800 watt runs only the fridge but it has worked well on 10-12 hour travel days. Have 2 6 volt batteries.
  • pianotuna's avatar
    pianotuna
    Nomad III
    Dec 30, 2018
    No smaller than 1500 watts pure sine wave, with a 'quality' inverter/charger. 2000 watts pure sine wave with a stand alone el cheapo inverter.

    You might consider turning the inverter off overnight once the fridge is not going to be opened, until morning.

    I'd add some solar panels.
  • time2roll's avatar
    time2roll
    Nomad
    Dec 30, 2018
    You really need sine wave of at least 1000 watts to run a residential fridge.
    I would replace what you have with 1500 or 2000 watts.
  • MrWizard's avatar
    MrWizard
    Moderator
    Dec 30, 2018
    i ran 7 yrs full time with a residential fridge and inverter power

    it seems everything 'you have' is working as it should

    you can expect lights to flicker/dim/flash .. what ever.. when a load starts up or stops. especially the fridge compressor starting

    you may need to replace the house batteries, if this really troublesome
    say IF the TV shuts off, when the fridge comes on

    i would advise running the generator in the morning during breakfast & meals

    i would not depend on battery power alone for (2) solid days of dry parking

    but (4) batteries should be a good balance for your intentions

    many people do overnight stops with a residential fridge and only (2) batteries
  • railtrailers's avatar
    railtrailers
    Explorer
    Dec 30, 2018
    We installed a residential refrigerator two years ago. It is similar to yours but is 10 cubic foot capacity. Using a Kill-O-Watt meter, I measured the power draw when running at 100 watts and the multi-day average draw at 40 watts. Per the Home Depot Energy Guide label for your unit (411 kwh/year) your average draw should be on the order of 47 watts. If your running duty cycle is similar to ours, your running power draw should be around 120 watts. A key consideration is the startup surge drawn by the compressor. The compressor in our unit is labelled by the manufacturer at LRA = 11 amps (or about 1,320 watts, Locked Rotor Amperes). The inverter should be sized to supply this surge, not just the running watts. I selected a 1,500 watt AIMS pure sine wave inverter dedicated to the refrigerator for our application. During our last camping trip, the AIMS stopped working. Since we were at a campground with electric power, I simply unplugged from the inverter and plugged into campground power. A first project this spring will be to replace the inverter.
  • VoodooMedicineM's avatar
    VoodooMedicineM
    Explorer
    Dec 30, 2018
    my fridge is set to run on 120 v ac. the batteries are only keeping it cold while traveling.
  • BluegrassBill's avatar
    BluegrassBill
    Explorer
    Dec 30, 2018
    Forget it. The amount of money you will have to spend to run the fridge off of batteries won't be worth it, More Batteries$$ , Lots of solar$$ Etc. There are some low voltage electric fridges available but again more $$. You can of course run your Genny a lot, Please park away from other campers. Happy Camping.

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