Seeking refrigerator tips... in AZ and heat is hampering...

Here's a personal report about efforts to maintain 35°F refrigerator temp with 0°F freezer temp in ultra hot conditions...

I simply could not meet these temperature goals with an absorbsion refrigerator. A brand new 8 CF Norcold. With a fifty degree differential (Delta T) door shelf temps were in the sixties and interior fans maintained 45°F+ which impacted my food safety.
Best cooling unit effectiveness was achieved with the use of a noisy 225 CFM 24 VOLT fan placed right at the roof vent base. Passing air across any of the coils below did nothing or raised interior temps. The huge fan is utterly impractical energy consumption and noise wise.

I tried a Whirlpool home refrigerator. The result was 24/7 operation and a temperature curve that bulged into the forties during the afternoon.

Trial number three was a knee knocking purchase of a 24 volt Vestfrost refrigerator that weighs 300 pounds. Due to insulation. Due to weird dimensions this is an utterly impractical choice. My bus allowed me latitude in space.

Due to cost and hassle I nicknamed the refrigerator and freezer The Manhattan Project. The insulation and Danforth compressors did the trick. Still I needed a circulation fan inside and a small condenser fan outside. But door temperature was maintained in the high thirties and freezer temps maintained below zero.

Just for info. Outside air temps soared to 115°F
Because the reefer and freezer were so large a
P hour usage was cruel. 115 and 140. @ 24 volts.

So, chin up when things seem tough. The ultimate "fix" is neither inexpensive or easy.

I spent all spring and summer on the Caribbean coast. A trip to town was 200 miles. Forty years later has entailed 2 rebuilds plus 2 new motors.

I finally gave up in July and started a diesel genset 24/7 and 3 roof airs. That and a palmetto roof really cut down amp hour consumption. Diesel was 15 cents per gallon back then.

Following the advice of the people on this forum will be easier and cheaper :)

Original Poster:

Old Wizard..
I can run this refrigerator in the wilderness on a tiny bit of propane.
Can that be done with a compressor fridge?

pbitschura wrote:
We installed a computer fan near the vent to draw more air. Also, since the freezer works better than the frig we freeze water bottles in the freezer then rotate them throughout the frig. If you start with several frozen bottles they can be cycled between the two.

We use blue ice for startups and Same on rotation during day to help cool frig. Usually start early tho. I have seen someone put skinny foam between frig back and pipes of ammonia to keep heat away from frig. I thought about doing that but on my unit there isn't room... Well, there would be but not bending the pipes. Too bad there isn't an 2 inch ducting from a/c to back of frig to help cool it a little back there.

Bite the bullet. Get a compressor refrigerator.

Moving the air inside the fridge is important too. Small battery powered fan works great. Usually two D cells for power.

In addition to an external fan (mine came with one) they also
Make small fans for inside the fridge to better move air within the fridge.

Swamp coolers work very well. I have a portable one inside my motorhome to help with the air conditioners. Have to fill it with water almost every day. It helps a lot.

Do you still have the 29 foot Airstream? If so, that silver Metal exterior is NOT the best exterior to have in hot climates. Also, due to Airstreams curved body, the roof vent is NOT right above the refer rear Condenser fins. So, opening the lower door and adding a fan to blow UP will give you much better operation and cooling. Usually on Airstream's there is enough room to install a small 120 volt fan blowing up so you just plug it into the rear 120 receptacle the refer is plugged into. Doug

https://www.amazon.com/OPOLAR-Speeds-Powered-Powerful-Office/dp/B01MR2SEAR/ref=sr_1_15_sspa?dchild=1&keywords=120+volt+small+fan&qid=1624032510&refinements=p_n_feature_keywords_five_browse-bin%3A7899354011&rnid=7899353011&s=home-garden&sr=1-15-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEyNlNLWlVCTjU1RThOJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwMzczOTcxM0NGSTBKR1EzUVhMQSZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwMjQzNzMwMTlYSTBJVUdON1VGRSZ3aWRnZXROYW1lPXNwX210ZiZhY3Rpb249Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU=

We installed a computer fan near the vent to draw more air. Also, since the freezer works better than the frig we freeze water bottles in the freezer then rotate them throughout the frig. If you start with several frozen bottles they can be cycled between the two.

Star Gazer wrote:
Many times these fridges are not installed correctly to begin with. The specs call for no more than a certain space in front of the cooling fins, this is so that as air moves up it actually goes thru the fins. If the space it too large then air goes past the fins and does not cool them enough. I have added a deflector to mine that forces air closer to the fins. And if is really hot I will set a fan pointing towards the bottom and remove both upper and lower vent covers. Shade is a must as well.

Yup, good point. On many units the entire rear baffle needs to be about an inch away from all the rear coils. Having the entire baffle that close actually improves air movement due to the venturi effect. One would think more space would be better, but not the case.