Residential fridge pros/cons

After 8 years with rv fridges that couldn't keep frozen stuff frozen, we put in a residential fridge this summer. Can't say enough good about the swap. We did not add an inverter so it only runs on shore power. Have travelled daily for about 3 weeks (each travel day being from 5-7 hours without power) and the inside temp does go up but frozen stuff stays colder than our rv fridge running full time. I have thermometers in the fridge and freezer compartments....after travel Freezer is still in the high twenties...fridge in low fourties.

The con is simply that you will be limited in regards to any dry camping. You'll have to have hookups OR run your generator all the time to keep the fridge running. If you never intend on dry camping, you should be fine.

I have an old RV fridge (39 years old). It runs just fine. When traveling, it is not running, but stays cold. The freezer stays frozen during a 4 hour drive without issue. If I need a little extra insurance, I simply put a frozen blue ice pack in the freezer - it helps keep thing cool.

I would try to imagine OEM would set you up with four batteries/inverter that would keep you running while in transit and one night off grid. Otherwise you can upgrade based on your needs.

With "most trips withing a few hours", you have nothing to be concerned about. The fridge would be just fine completely turned off for that period of time.

I have a res. fridge in my soon to be delivered Mobile Suites and I am also interested in boondocking. I ordered the unit with a 2800 watt inverter and 4 6v batteries. I also have a 6500 Onan and will probably put on solar panels as it is wired for that. If you are concerned put in an inverter and a couple of 12v and you should be good for over night. The newer rest frigs are much more efficient then in the past.

I don't know where thos fear comes from that if a fridge is off for a few hours everything is going to defrost.

Not going to happen.

Leave the doors closed & it can go many hours before anything will even begin to thaw.

Using a residential fridge is an interesting thought. They are much cheaper. How will they stand up to the fulltime traveler with a few days here & a few days there getting bounced around like they never do in a house plus getting the constant cycles of being on then off then on again? This is not a life that they were designed for.

Having an inverter sounds like a plan. Run it 100% of the time off the inverter so that there ia no power interuption. That needs an inverter big enough to handle the surges of the fridge as its compressor kicks in. It also needs a battery bank large enough to supply the inverter when not on shore power & not getting charged while in transit or dry camping.

There is more to it than a simple 'lets install a residential fridge'.

Ours has a residential fridge and we love it. Not knowing what you looked at, most that we did came with 2 batteries and an inverter. Ours did and we have traveled up to 8 hours with no problems. No way I would go back to a electric/gas fridge again. Temps stay the same, more space, doesn't ice up and cools down quicker on start up.

Ordering a Salem Hemisphere 356qbq with upgraded fridge. I will be asking tomorrow about the invertor and batteries.

We've never had an issue with our residential refrigerator and I personally would never opt for an RV one again. Residential all the way. Our 5er came with residential refrigerator and inverter. We however, do not dry camp so I can't say for sure there but our travels are sometimes as many as 9 hrs in one day. The inverter does fine because the truck charges the battery while in transit. We have also left inverter on overnight the night before a trip because the refrigerator is packed and ready to go. We usually still have good battery power left when we start rolling the next morning and that is without electrical hookup. I don't think you will regret a residential refrigerator.

I have yet to hear anyone complaining about going residential. Most that I know though are MH full timers so most have generators with 4 to 6 battery banks. If we ever replace out present fiver I would consider a residential fridge.