Truck Camper Replacement Fridge Vent Cap With Solar Fan.

[Camper_Jeff___K]

Installation: Truck Camper Replacement Fridge Vent Cap With Solar Fan Assist.
Showing complete installation.
Camco, universal replacement (Dometic or Norcold) refrigerator rooftop vent cover with solar powered fan assist to help improve fridge cooling efficiency up to 40%.
Also used for the first time, Dicor self leveling sealant.
Products purchased at "Camping World", a supporter and advertiser of RV.NET.

Enjoy!
J&K

[Camper_Jeff___K]

Update:
The fridge is about 3 degrees cooler than it has been. The freezer is about the same but may be a little colder. I need to do an ice cream test to see if the ice cream is soft frozen as usual or harder than usual. I'm on a diet so it might be a while before that test.
The cheap fan is still working but does make a periodic noise like it's vibrating and slowing then returns to normal and repeats when in brightest sun conditions.
Otherwise I call it a success, it seems to be actually working in my situation.

Jeff

[Camper_Jeff___K]

The fan will run by the energy produced by the small solar panel. The sun is the switch and the seasons being the dimmer control. Fast in summer when needed slow if at all in winter when not needed in the Pacific North West. The fan was getting some bright sun this AM and running fast though barely audible inside the TC. If the fan does burn out I'll replace it with a computer fan. Also, I think I'd simply mount the computer fan on top of the screen and use a couple small zip ties to attach it to the screen. I would also fab a ducting to positively vent the air away from the chambered area between the cover and the top of the vent about 2 inches.

[Bedlam]

Camping is year round in the northwest since there is only an average 40 degree swing between hottest and coldest seasons. There will be more wear on the fan motor, but it should last quite a while with the minimal load that is applied.

[kerry4951]

The switch for the fan is the problem. I would want to be able to turn it off. If the TC is stored outside and the solar panel is exposed, the fan will run all day even when the TC is not being used. Might be smart to wire in a switch behind the frig access panel for when the TC is just being stored.

[kohldad]

I see the fan is to be mounted separate with flow going upward. I think it would depend greatly on the location as to the efficiency increased. If mounted in the wrong area, it could just circulate the air within the chamber and not force any air outward.

Will be interesting seeing reports on how it works.

[Camper_Jeff___K]

narcodog wrote:
Not to sound negative on your installation but there was a thread sometime ago on that unit. The general conciseness was that it was not strong enough to do the job.

We'll see what happens. Feeling around the roof cap, I can definitely feel an increase in the amount of air flow being blown out by the fan. No, it's not a big fan pushing a large volume but it is a consistent increase of air flow that is evacuating the hot air out from the cooling coils and admitting more cooler air in. It has no effect upon the house batteries since it's a stand alone system. The mounting location of the fan will have an effect on how well it works. Ideally, the fan would be ducted to direct the air out directly rather than how it is now with a lot of mixing of air. I think my extension to the fan tube up to just under the vent screen addresses this issue somewhat and will evacuate air a little more efficiently. Again, we'll see how it works over the rest of the season.

[narcodog]

Not to sound negative on your installation but there was a thread sometime ago on that unit. The general conciseness was that it was not strong enough to do the job.