Compressor fridges

[JockandRita]

well that's after I've got this one through the Habitation door..either in one, or many pieces..

Martin, you need to explore the option of extrication and installation via the lounge window, which is possibly the largest opening in the MH.

Good luck.

Jock.

 

[mikash]

That van must of had a very poor & dangerous fridge installation. The rear of a 3 way fridge should be completely sealed from the habitation area to minimise the risk of CO poisoning.

No joke. There was just an unfortunate case in Finland of an elderly couple found dead in their mh on a parking lot. The investigation to exact details is still ongoing but some days ago police released a statement the gas fridge is likely to blame.

 

[MisterB]

jumar

Martin, further to our conversation, I think Raul is fitting a 12/24v fridge to work on 24v - I think 24v might be the 'new frontier' for motorhomes (though there's bound to be a few Funsters that have already gone down that part). I know a lot of trucks have 24v.

I didn't even consider 24v options, but as I fitted another lithium perhaps I should have done !!

 

[Raul]

If you go Dometic, most of their compressors are 12/24v. But do read the technical data to be sure.
On 24v they run a bit quieter, and get to temperature a bit quicker. I wish I built the van on 24v from the start, it would saved me few hundreds in upgrade.

 

[Pausim]

No joke. There was just an unfortunate case in Finland of an elderly couple found dead in their mh on a parking lot. The investigation to exact details is still ongoing but some days ago police released a statement the gas fridge is likely to blame.

Very sad. I wonder if a few € on a CO alarm would have saved their lives.

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}

 

[Richard n Ann]

If you go Dometic, most of their compressors are 12/24v. But do read the technical data to be sure.
On 24v they run a bit quieter, and get to temperature a bit quicker. I wish I built the van on 24v from the start, it would saved me few hundreds in upgrade.

By that logic a 230v fridge should be AMAZING
The current draw will be less of course but the rest I find it hard to believe

 

[gus-lopez]

the job isn't difficult and will be done myself , "With a little help from a Friend"

 

[jumar]

Perhaps I should have said, be done by a friend with a little help from me..
Get ya hammer and ya adjustable ready Richard..

 

[Raul]

By that logic a 230v fridge should be AMAZING
The current draw will be less of course but the rest I find it hard to believe

I enjoy my placebo while it lasts, then I wake up.

 

[bobnick]

Just wanted to give a shout out for Thetford Fridges.
Just had a month in Australia where temperatures were sometimes in the mid 40s c.
The Thetford Fridge be it on Gas, EHU, or Battery performed faultlessly changing seamlessly from one mode to the other when needed.
If i were to buy again in UK i would without doubt have the Dominetic? ripped out and thrown on the tip and have a Thetford installed.

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}

 

[MisterB]

Just wanted to give a shout out for Thetford Fridges.
Just had a month in Australia where temperatures were sometimes in the mid 40s c.
The Thetford Fridge be it on Gas, EHU, or Battery performed faultlessly changing seamlessly from one mode to the other when needed.
If i were to buy again in UK i would without doubt have the Dominetic? ripped out and thrown on the tip and have a Thetford installed.

i removed a thetford three way that performed pretty well until temperatures were high, it then struggled to keep food frozen. i replaced it with a Thetford compressor fridge, which was only available as a 12v unfortunately ....

 

[StillGoing]

Just wanted to give a shout out for Thetford Fridges.
Just had a month in Australia where temperatures were sometimes in the mid 40s c.
The Thetford Fridge be it on Gas, EHU, or Battery performed faultlessly changing seamlessly from one mode to the other when needed.
If i were to buy again in UK i would without doubt have the Dominetic? ripped out and thrown on the tip and have a Thetford installed.

You’re not comparing like with like. The fridges in Australia are different to the ones in the UK. The UK ones have a climate class of SN (subnormal 10C to 32C). The Australian ones are climate class T (tropical 18C to 38C).

Having said that, I think Dometic fridge/freezers are overpriced, poorly designed and hard to get spares for once they are a few years old.

 

[bobnick]

I'm comparing this fridge in this MH in Australia with the Dominetc fridge we had inour 2 MHs in UK, both gave nothing but trouble ALL the time.

 

[StillGoing]

I'm comparing this fridge in this MH in Australia with the Dominetc fridge we had inour 2 MHs in UK, both gave nothing but trouble ALL the time.

We had a Dometic 3-way fridge/freezer in Australia and it was faultless. Ours in the UK was rubbish. They are different models as explained above.

 

[ian27]

We had a Dometic 3-way fridge/freezer in Australia and it was faultless. Ours in the UK was rubbish. They are different models as explained above.

Maybe you can get a 3 way in australia that is SN-T I don't know. Edit did a quick bit of research... yes you can

Dometic RUA 8408X 224 Litre 3-Way UES Fridge/Freezer | Caravan RV Camping

Shop the Dometic RUA 8408X 224 Litre 3-Way UES Fridge/Freezer online at Caravan RV Camping. It has adjustable shelves and door bins with reversible door hinges.

www.caravanrvcamping.com.au

However: the RV 3 ways in the UK are SN at best (32C top end). but if you buy a good compressor in the UK it will generally be SN-T. meaning 43C top end, which means its good for southern european summer. Certainly the Thetford 2160 is, which many have fitted. researched all this before I went shopping for my swap to compressor.

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}

 

[wfdTamar]

Now this is interesting as I was reading this thread earlier and recalled that some early compressor fridges were badly affected by ambient temperatures to the extent that in winter there was a need to put the heating on to keep the fridge working properly - if the inside temperature of the camper was too low it simply didn't work properly. From memory the first I heard of this was to do with an Autocruise camper (possibly a Tempo) where the owner, a member of this forum, was complaining about it.

Yes, that would be the Waeco (now Dometic) CR110 (maybe the CR85 too). It's rated for 18-43C because they assume it will be in a heated van, so no need to rate it for lower temps. A pretty common fridge in Australia where there are temperatures below 18 and where heating a van is not as big a deal as in Europe. Hence a lot of people discovered the fridge had problems at lower temperatures.

 

[mikash]

Yes, that would be the Waeco (now Dometic) CR110 (maybe the CR85 too). It's rated for 18-43C because they assume it will be in a heated van, so no need to rate it for lower temps. A pretty common fridge in Australia where there are temperatures below 18 and where heating a van is not as big a deal as in Europe. Hence a lot of people discovered the fridge had problems at lower temperatures.

We've had some commotion regarding domestic freezers as well, with people running them in their cabins and garages in basic upkeep temp (+5-10c) and the freezers not liking it. Insurance companies have rejected claims due to improper use.
In Dometc fridge manuals there used to be a bit that says the compressor may stop completely working if it's too cold. Often the first symptom of too cool temps is that the little freezer compartment will get too warm, because there's often only 1 thermostat and it's watching the fridge part. The freezer compartment is designed so that when fridge is +4c at +20-30c, compressor runs enough to keep the freezer cold. If ambient temp is colder, compressor runs less to keep the fridge at +4c and the freezer warms up.

 

[eddie]

In our camper we have a three way Norcold fridge, which we dislike, no logical reason, just never liked it.

Equally illogically, it annoys me that I sit, getting annoyed that it's burning LPG, on a lovely sunny day, when the "beer fridge" which compressor cooled is happily running from surplus solar.

So I've ordered a Thetford T2175 12 volt fridge freezer and will next week take out the three way Norcold and install the Thetford

 

[wfdTamar]

The Waeco CR110 I have in my Australian Hymer (bought a couple of years ago) seems fine at low temperatures. Maybe it had the fix.