Refrigerator Cooling, Propane vs. Electric

Electric. NAC

We have always run it on electric and store frozen food in freezer to assist in cool down. The frozen foods in freezer is a suggestion in my refrigerator owner's manual.

Jump start with dry ice if speed is your concern.

Different manufacturers use different elements, but generally propane burner is the most powerful, AC element is 2nd and 12V element is the smallest.
Don't think the difference is a major, so at home I prefer to cool it down using 120V starting night, or day before and use 12V or invented 120 on the road.
Even there is nothing wrong with running propane while on the road, it is just too easy to forget about turning everything off entering the gas station. Tunnels is other issue.
My 12V element takes 16 amp, what is nothing for 120 amp alternator.

I would think equal ! I have used both methods over the years and noticed no difference.

Turn it on in the afternoon with a frozen water bottle or two, loaded it that night, and hit the road in the morning! Now, I have the standard two door fridge.....not the larger four door model!

Ideally, there should be no significant difference between the cooling capacity on either source, but the reality is that individual refrigerators react a bit differently for a variety reasons. We've had various models of both major brands that performed better either way, and our previous Norcold fridge performed about the same on either source.

k9dad wrote:
I am not concerned about use of propane. Just want to cool the refrigerator as quickly as possible. Which will do it? electric or propane? Or, will they both cool at the same rate?

Not shure from a initial start up what would cool down faster. I always have our rig pluged in so it's always ready to go and in the summer at home it stores all my extra beer.

I find that 'solid' ice lasts longer when we transfer food to the ice chest.

I fill a zip-lock bag with water, zip it closed and put it in the house freezer. It does not melt as fast as loose ice and then I can put it back in the freezer to refreeze for the next 'transfer of food from the house to the coach'.

I also have the small ice packs to keep in the freezer so that the freezer doesn't change temp too much during defrosting.

MM.

Turn it on 48 hours before departure. Fill with food 24 hours before. Done it this way for years, works just fine.

I am not concerned about use of propane. Just want to cool the refrigerator as quickly as possible. Which will do it? electric or propane? Or, will they both cool at the same rate?