How long to get cold!

[starsabove]

Hi! Hope some of you can help. I have just completed an overnight for the first time in my new TT it was great! Just have a question on the refrigerator though. I have a Dometic ref. it seems to work but how long should it take to get cold! I have a ref that works only on AC for the outside kitchen and that got cold real fast, but that is a standard dorm type frig. I understand that the one in the Trailer is a evaporator type and takes longer, but what is longer? Please help as I am sure you all have been here before, Thanks

[UsualSuspect]

I try and turn mine on 24 hours before I leave, but sometimes that is just not possible. If I want to use it in a few hours what I do is fill some 2 liter plastic bottles with water and freeze them. Turn on the RV fridge, when I feel the fins get cold I put the frozen bottles in the freezer and the refrigerator, wait 2 hours, and it is usually down to the right temp or pretty close to it.

[doxiemom11]

Freezer will get cold first, then the frig. When the freezer is cold, I then put frozen stuff in freezer and cold stuff in the frig. It doesn't take long after that to get down to 35 in the frig.

[Us_out_West]

If our rig has been sitting for awhile (not likely) and the refer was emptied and off when we get out of storage and bring it home to prep for our next trip we cold soak overnight and the next morning load it up and go.

We always liked the 'overnight' rule.

[lostmarbles]

bigcitypopo wrote:
This is what i do,

I have an inside the fridge fan. I turn it on, LOL! then i stock thenear top shelf with 4 or 5 ice packs. remember that cold air sinks. and seeing that your fridge has no circulation this is key. i leave a gap so the little fan can move the air near the fins in the reefer section. I put a 1 gallon frozen jog of water in the freezer. Come back in 4-5hrs... and reefer is to temp.. while camping i also have two or three 18oz water bottles that i rotate from fridge to freezer.. it helps stabilize the temp as well.

HTH

We do the same thing, basically. We also put frozen food in fridge to defrost for next day meal.

[Gene_Ginny]

I did my Spring test on a warm sunny day last week. It was 72 in the TT and 76 in the fridge when I turned on the fridge on electric. Fridge was empty. I have a wireless thermometer so I can watch the temp without opening the door. My Dometic RM2652 got to 35 at the end of 6 hours. As I recall, it took 2 hours to get below 70 and after that it started to make some progress. Hopefully that will give you some idea as to what to expect.

[bob213]

If you are going to buy a fan for the inside of the refrig. consider something like this rather than one of those battery operated cubes they sell at the RV store.
Fridge fan or
Fan #2

[Steeljag]

I turn it on Four hours prior to leaving with a frozen liter bottle of water.

[fla-gypsy]

Overnight if empty. Much faster if you put cold food in it

[christopherglen]

I fire the fridges up the night before, the cooler air at night helps it cool faster. Even with 110+ degrees during the day, starting it at sunset it was ~40 by daybreak. We were running the ac the day before loading stuff in the trailer - I am sure that helped the inside being 70-80 VS 120+.

[WyoTraveler]

donn0128 wrote:
I give it 24 hours before packing it with food.

Yup!!

[gbopp]

Fill it with cold beer, turn it on and start drinking. Don't stop until it's empty.
It won't cool down any faster but, you won't care :B

I turn ours on at least a day before we leave. After it starts cooling we fill it with cold food, etc..

[starsabove]

Thanks for the fast reply's. yes we did just "take off" it turned out to be a last minute "we got time" trip. Since The TT is stored so far away (1.5hrs) I think I will have to go with the suggestion of "bigcitypopo" and get a frig fan that I have seen in CW and hope that does the trick. Thanks have learn a lot from this forum and one day maybe be able to help someone else!

[Old-Biscuit]

" I have just completed an overnight for the first time in my new TT it was great!"

From that statement I take it you did NOT precool fridge just loaded up and go.

Takes overnight to properly cool and then you load it with cold food stuff otherwise it will get warm and then have to cool down again.
Once it's cold and cold stuff in it fridge will maintain cold under normal usage

[bigcitypopo]

This is what i do,

I have an inside the fridge fan. I turn it on, LOL! then i stock thenear top shelf with 4 or 5 ice packs. remember that cold air sinks. and seeing that your fridge has no circulation this is key. i leave a gap so the little fan can move the air near the fins in the reefer section. I put a 1 gallon frozen jog of water in the freezer. Come back in 4-5hrs... and reefer is to temp.. while camping i also have two or three 18oz water bottles that i rotate from fridge to freezer.. it helps stabilize the temp as well.

HTH

[RoyF]

I'm like donn0128: I turn the refrig on the day before I put food in. And the food has already been cooled down in the regular home refrig. (But I may try skipnchar's method.)