3-Way Frige Kaput - Suggestions
So after reading an earlier post about someones freezer getting to 0 but the refrigerator at about 50 degrees and all of the comments about "ït's toast", I am resigned to the fact that mine's toast al...
Forum Discussion
SidecarFlip wrote:whizbang wrote:
Holy smokes Batman!!! I just downloaded the specs on a Nova Kool frig. A whole bunch of Nova Kool frigs run with a 2.2 amp draw. Amazing. My Dometic 3-way pulls 8.5 amps on 12 volt DC.
But... on the 'preferred' power option, propane, it pulls about 2/10ths of an amp. Really, a 3 way was only meant to run on 12 volts in a 'must have situation' where no other power source is available.
Don't believe I ever energized the cal rod elements in either my previous Lance of my Palomino.
Unless you are unhappy with your ammonia refer's performance and you really want a compressor unit and have a bulging wallet or it 'poops' out, replacement with a compressor unit, factoring in the cost, you can buy a whole lot of propane and an ammonia unit can run a month or more on a full bottle (20 pound) of propane.
My opinion (which I've proved to myself) is, a lot of 2 way and 3 way refer owners are unhappy because of the marginal cooling capabilities and temperature swings (impacted by high ambient outside temperatures). That is easily and cheaply corrected by enhancing the airflow across the rear, top mounted condenser and adding extra insulation to the cavity between the unit and the outside cabinet walls.
My current Dometic had temperature swings last summer and was hard pressed to cool down in an efficient manner, until I opened 'her' up on the backside, replaced the wienie stock Dometic 12 volt fan with 2 high airflow Arctic fluid bearing 120 mm muffin fans mounted directly in front of the condenser (exhausting out the upper side vent (I have a PUP like you with no roof vent), added a half roll of R13 unfaced insulation the the cabinet (the builders really skimped on insulation) and made a baffle plate that I installed on top the condenser to direct the airflow and reduce turbulence. The fans are thermostatically controlled via a snap disc thermostat, mounter directly to the outer fin of the heat sink on the condenser, activates the fans at 100 and off at 80. 2 fans plus the disc thermostat and wire was about 30 bucks. The baffle was a piece of scrap galvanized sheet from the shop.
Now it holds 34-36 interior temp no matter what (as indicated on my wireless thermometer) and cools from a hot start to to that level in 3 hours. Once it attains the set level, the unit cycles by itself and most times, after dark, it don't run at all.
If and when it poops and I say when because the Norcold in my Lance was going strong after 15 years, I would replace it with a compressor fridge, but at this juncture, I cannot justify the expense.
Recovery time has always been an issue with an ammonia unit but that is because the interior air movement (with the door closed is about niul and you can increase that by adding a battery fridge fan and powering it with Lithium batteries, which are not impacted by the cold interior temp at all.
More than one way to skin a cat as they say....
I own an Engle portable cooler which is a compressor unit. It resides on the back seat of my 4 door truck and keeps my 'road beverages and sandwiches cold for on the go stuff while driving. Plugs into the cigar lighter in the backseat and does a really good job but the capacity is limited, even compared to a RV ammonia fridge. It wasn't cheap either. I had it in my Class 8 sleeper when I drove over the road, I was always adverse to truckstop food. Too greasy, too calorie laden.
