Getting our fridge cold before setting off

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alasdairandannie

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Hi everyone. We are total virgin campers having collected our Motorhome yesterday. We are going on a 2 night test tomorrow. Eek!!!!
We store our van 10 minutes drive away. It is stored outside. I just want to ask if I can put the fridge on gas tonight so it is cold tomorrow. I think I might be safe doing so but wanted to get experienced peoples views so we are not doing anything stupid.
 
If safe why not 👍
I usually have mine on for a few days prior. On ehu.
With a couple of ice packs to kick it off.
Then when starting off pack fridge and freezer as normal.
Bacon frozen from home freezer into camper fridge will Thore out till needed and help keep temp down.
Happy trails . 👍
 
If your storage area does not contain flammable materials near your van and you have a lot of space around the van then I would expect it would be safe enough to put your fridge on gas the night before.
If you are parked very close to other vans though I wouldn't .
You will be leaving your van pitched up when using it which is no different than it being in a storage area apart from spacing issues.
Just check the rules with your storage people first. (y)
 
It depends on the conditions of your storage place some say all gas needs to be turned off when stored if they don't you could leave it on or just put some freezer blocks in your home freezer and transfer them to the MH fridge when you put the food in . The food obviously needs to go in already chilled. In the summer heat we put a freezer block in the freezer at night when on gas then swapped it into the fridge while driving as on 12 v ours isn't great it worked well.

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Oh good point re storage area. We are parked very very close to other vans in storage so I think I know the correct answer. I will do the ice pack trick and bring food that is cold before we set off
 
I'd say in most storage areas vans are too close together for it to be safe. Best option would be to freeze some bottles of water, some ready meals and place these in the fridge/freezer overnight to cool it down. Will at least give it a good start.

Is there no way you can have your MH at home overnight even though you can't store it there? If you can that would be a better option so you could leave it on overnight on EHU.


Edit: you posted while I was typing to say you were going to do the frozen food trick!
 
I usually bring my van from storage the night before setting off . Plug the ehu in and leave it over night . Then in the morning put stuff in the fridge and shut the fridge door the door doesnt get opened again till after i am plugged into ehu at site. With the cold food and the 12v running usally enough to keep everything cool
 
In my experience of fridges (40yrs) I have found the only reliable way, at this time of year, is on EHU overnight
(I use a cheap overnight campsite to break most journey's where possible or at home)

After that, with the temperature already down, the gas will keep it down (but not get it there) especially if you add a couple of one litre frozen water bottles.

PS. I should have said, my experience has only been with smaller fridges in PVC's perhaps larger fridges are better on gas?
 
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The other reason for not trying this is it is a new van to you and you don't know if there are any issues with the fridge. I would have a night or two away somewhere very local and check all the systems: water, electric and gas. This will also give you the opportunity to list the stuff you need, stuff you don't need and stuff you forgot to bring. :)
 
ceejayt said:
On gas ours does really well, will freeze ice overnight from switch on. Good and generally perhaps even better than when on EHU
Click to expand...
Same with ours best on gas. The only time it wasn't was when we needed a new jet in the burner
 
I don't like the idea of leaving my van unattended with gas accessories running.

Also on a storage site, the day before I fill the freezer compartment with home frozen freezer packs and a couple in the fridge area.

On the morning, as soon as I arrive I put the gas on before switching to 12v before driving off.

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The Old Man said:
I don't like the idea of leaving my van unattended with gas accessories running.

Also on a storage site, the day before I fill the freezer compartment with home frozen freezer packs and a couple in the fridge area.

On the morning, as soon as I arrive I put the gas on before switching to 12v before driving off.
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What do you do if you go out for the day surely you don't turn your fridge off
 
The Old Man said:
I don't like the idea of leaving my van unattended with gas accessories running.
Click to expand...

Do you never leave it when away on a trip? We do a lot of off grid camping when travelling so the fridge just lives on gas all the time. It's the only option unless you are always on campsites and plugged into EHU.
 
VXman said:
Do you never leave it when away on a trip? We do a lot of off grid camping when travelling so the fridge just lives on gas all the time. It's the only option unless you are always on campsites and plugged into EHU.
Click to expand...
Same with us. If there was a big risk of catching fire the worst time would be at night when you're asleep in it!
 
VXman said:
Do you never leave it when away on a trip? We do a lot of off grid camping when travelling so the fridge just lives on gas all the time. It's the only option unless you are always on campsites and plugged into EHU.
Click to expand...

I can't say never, but it is in my mind.

I also 'wild' a lot, but I repeat, with the freezer box full of ice packs, the fridge stays cool.

BTW. My fridge is small and the ice box is in the fridge, not a seperate unit.

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With all due respects to denisejoe and L' Hobo I'd go careful with freezing water bottles. The expansion of the water when it freezes may split the thin plastic or pop the cap; not a great issue when it's freezing, but when it thaws ... . I've frozen milk, in both plastic* and tetra containers, hundreds of times without issue even though milk also expands when frozen.

* the plastic used with the usual supermarket plastic containers appears thicker than the more brittle water bottles and can take the expansion.
 
Have found plastic bottles freeze OK but don't fill them right up because of the expansion. We need to do this any more as we keep the MH at home so can plug in overnight to get it cold. Don't usually use EHU whilst out and about as we tend to rally more than anything else.
 
My storage place is next to a lpg storage facility where they fill tankers and cylinders. Probably not the best place to have anything running on gas.
I bring the mh home for a day before we go away to do various things including getting the fridge cold on ehu, even though it is more efficient on gas. Every fridge I have had has always worked best on gas, then ehu and usually the worst on 12v.
 
If you freeze the bacon, wrap the slices in cling film individually else you will have to get a hammer a chisel to them.

Bonjour :drink: ;bigwelcome:

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It is a good idea to run your fridge freezer a day or so before travelling. If possible run it on gas for a while, as gas can have odd issues with foreign objects like dirt or even insects, which can be sorted out. Mains power is the most reliable, only component failure would normally interrupt it. Battery power is a holding power only used while driving.
The fridge can take up to 12hours to establish sustainable cold and can greatly be helped by filling up with pre cooled items.
 

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