dry camping with residential refrigerators
I'm thinking of buying a new motorhome but we do a lot of dry camping and I can't seem to get a straight answer on battery life running these new residential refrigerators. Dealers, salespeople say i...
Forum Discussion
Big lesson learned by me (and others) is Don't Do It !!!
The electric fridge is relentless in drawing down the batts and you need lots of solar, a big battery bank, big amp charger, and big gen to run the big charger,just to keep up . Then the sun goes down every evening, but the fridge stays on. Then you have a few cloudy days in a row. Oops.
It is a nail-biter all the time to keep the fridge alive when off-grid. Takes away from the RV fun experience. Have a propane fridge, furnace, and water heater, and enjoy RVing like you should be able to.
IE, you can adjust your use of the microwave, TV, etc, as required if there isn't enough solar coming in, but you cannot adjust the fridge. It has to stay on, so now it is running your life, not you. :(
The electric fridge is relentless in drawing down the batts and you need lots of solar, a big battery bank, big amp charger, and big gen to run the big charger,just to keep up . Then the sun goes down every evening, but the fridge stays on. Then you have a few cloudy days in a row. Oops.
It is a nail-biter all the time to keep the fridge alive when off-grid. Takes away from the RV fun experience. Have a propane fridge, furnace, and water heater, and enjoy RVing like you should be able to.
IE, you can adjust your use of the microwave, TV, etc, as required if there isn't enough solar coming in, but you cannot adjust the fridge. It has to stay on, so now it is running your life, not you. :(
