Ammonia versus Compressor Fridge...
After all the talk about Danfoss compressor fridges and how much better they were than the old school Ammonia Units, I decided to 'fiddle with mine and do a long term test using a remote digital recor...
Forum Discussion
rexlion wrote:
I am bumfuzzled. :h Everything I've read up until this thread had led me to understand that ammonia rv fridges can't achieve more than about 35 degrees difference from ambient temp. Everyone said so; it seemed to be "common knowledge." This alleged "fact" would translate to a fridge temp of about 65 degrees if the outside temp was 100. But a couple of you folks seem to be indicating that your fridge temps hold steady below 40* even when it's 100* outside. Unless I've misread, I need to completely re-adjust my understanding of these fridges! Or am I missing something? :?
I should add that my last two trailers had small (2.5-3.0 cu ft) units with side venting only. Their performance was abysmal. I did manage to get right around that 35* differential when I hung an O2Cool fan just outside the upper vent to suck air out through the vent system at a high rate. I can't imagine how that fridge could have been capable of a 50 or 60 degree temp drop, though!
While I haven't yet added the extra insulation and such, I too was under the same impression that the temp difference between outside and inside was approx. 35 degrees. I wondered why the Amish thought that these things were so wonderful if the temp would swing that much.
My Dometic 2310 will get cold, but as the outside temp rises...so does the inside. I live in Phoenix and will take the camper to Prescott or Pinetop and depending on the outside temp, the inside temp will fluctuate (Sometimes enough to worry about food temp safety so I always carry a cooler for backup)
SideCar, I will have to look at the insulation around mine and see what I can do. There probably isn't a lot as it hasn't probably been touched since leaving the factory. I do agree that the more insulation around an item, the harder it is for outside influences to cause a temperature change to the inside of that item. Also, moving hot air away from the device will cause cooler (relatively) to move in.
As mine is 26 years old, I'm not sure how much longer it will last...but until it goes the way of the Dodo Bird, I want it to work as best as it can.
