Residential Fridge Batteries - How many??

Effy wrote:

et2 wrote:

edatlanta wrote:
I just don't see the need for a residential refrigerator in an RV. Let me see, bigger battery bank at $100+ per battery (and they don't last forever if they are run down too much/too often), inverter or bigger inverter required, all to have harder ice cream? Doesn't make sense to me, but to each his own.

My Norcold keeps the freezer in the 7-8 degree range and I'm happy with that.

Until you run out of propane. Or plan to go off the grid. Especially in a MH, not like you can pull the tank out and go get fuel when needed. Someone with a solar power never has to worry about powering their fridge ( or other stuff too). Not to mention a generator start up to top them off. We've owned many of the traditional ( norcold) and they are minimal at best in size and capability. Always had a issue with every one of them.

It's not all about having harder ice cream. There is a very distinct benefit over a propane fridge. You have to buy fuel to power yours, that cost money too.

I think both refers have their pros and cons but lp fuel consumption isn't one of them. If you plan on boondocking and are so low on lp that your fridge uses it all, you have planning issues. The amount of lp that a fridge uses is so small I think you could run it for a year without running out. Also, you can run your generator to run it on electric pretty easily. Frankly I'd rather boondock with a gen and LP than batteries. Not saying all electric coaches are bad, but I think boondocking is more if a con for electric coaches than lp and gen setup. Solar has it's constraints too and a heavy dependency on direct sunlight, which may not be the case in wooded areas. LP and Gen have no such constraints. Just sayin.

You're correct, they both have their pro's and cons. Personally I believe your propane usage claims are a bit liberal. But one thing you have to remember is your propane fridge still needs 12v to run the control board. A battery you too have to recharge ( probably at least 2). Charging a battery would be the same for you as anyone else. Running a generator, solar, driving, or plugged into a power source.

So that being said one thing a propane is always doing .... Burning fuel. A battery bank can be recharged using solar, over and over for years. To not consider putting a solar panel In the best position to achieve the benefit would be poor planning. There are many options for that. Battery costs per year would be less than $5 per month when replacement is required. The same cost possibly as someone using propane. So the cost of the batteries, if that is a issue is miniscule and a cost everyone has.