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Old 09-07-2020, 01:53 AM   #41
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this was an old thread FOGEY,

In the end I went ahead and installed a Novakool R3800 a week befor the Heatwave a month ago struck - perfect fit, excellent unit but I attributed many teething problems to the Novakool when in fact, upon closer inspection my RV guy found a loose connects here my negative was connected by the shunt - as soon as that was fixed, my unit ran fantastic & my Solar waa getting enough sun to turn to reach float by 10am.

Now we are in a second historic Heatwave & i had to crank up the unit little so its probably cycling more than 50%.

50% cycle is about 26 amp hours draw over 24 hours.
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Old 01-15-2021, 10:58 AM   #42
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The more I've read, the more I tend to agree with this.

If one is on the road, the fridge would be using DC power. If one is boondocking, with no generator running, the fridge is on DC power. However, if one is plugged into shore power, wouldn't the fridge still run fine on it's native DC power, while the RT's on board charger keep the batteries topped off?

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Yes, it is correct. Fridges with Danfoss compressors are native 12VDC as you say. The "120VAC" option is just a wall-wart-style DC adaptor. Makes no sense at all in an RV.
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Old 01-15-2021, 11:42 AM   #43
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The more I've read, the more I tend to agree with this.

If one is on the road, the fridge would be using DC power. If one is boondocking, with no generator running, the fridge is on DC power. However, if one is plugged into shore power, wouldn't the fridge still run fine on it's native DC power, while the RT's on board charger keep the batteries topped off?

Yep, there is really only one tiny, tiny, downside to not having the 110v side and that would be if you need lots of battery charging in a short time and your charger is very small so the 3-4 amps to frig would slow down the charging.



In the real world this would almost never happen, though.


We have had our 12v only frig for a decade with no problems at all and never missed the 110v version at all.
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Old 01-15-2021, 06:23 PM   #44
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In our specific situation I found AC/DC fridge useful. When the van is parked in the garage and connected to AC, I can disconnect batteries, charger, all AC appliances except the fridge. We use this option often before and after the trip or if we need extra fridge capacity. So, in our situation it is useful. Could we live without it - yes, was it worth extra $100 for this option and $20 for CB - yes.
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Old 01-16-2021, 01:24 AM   #45
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Why would you run an ac fridge in a van? Are you trying to go residential? Dc fridge will be more efficient. You won’t have to waste power to run the inverter and convert the energy. New inverters can charge your batteries while you are plugged in with an automatic transfer switch.
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Old 01-16-2021, 01:25 AM   #46
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In our specific situation I found AC/DC fridge useful. When the van is parked in the garage and connected to AC, I can disconnect batteries, charger, all AC appliances except the fridge. We use this option often before and after the trip or if we need extra fridge capacity. So, in our situation it is useful. Could we live without it - yes, was it worth extra $100 for this option and $20 for CB - yes.

How about just pull the fuse?
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Old 01-16-2021, 01:30 AM   #47
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Why would you run an ac fridge in a van? Are you trying to go residential? Dc fridge will be more efficient. You won’t have to waste power to run the inverter and convert the energy. New inverters can charge your batteries while you are plugged in with an automatic transfer switch.
They are not really discussing actual AC fridges, but rather DC fridges that come with a $100 option consisting of an 120VAC->12VDC power brick. They don't make sense for most people, although there are special cases, such as the one that George describes.

There is a fringe group that believes in using true AC "dorm" fridges, but that is a different story.
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Old 01-16-2021, 04:21 AM   #48
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They are not really discussing actual AC fridges, but rather DC fridges that come with a $100 option consisting of an 120VAC->12VDC power brick. They don't make sense for most people, although there are special cases, such as the one that George describes.

There is a fringe group that believes in using true AC "dorm" fridges, but that is a different story.
They are just cheap
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