How does a fridge work while I'm off-the-grid?

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Angiekaye said:
OK, I turned on the propane for the first time today. (I've been afraid I'd blow myself up:). So I turned it on, and lit the stove top to get the air out of the line (as someone suggested).  The stove worked great. But then the fridge wouldn't ever start. It tried. It kept clicking to try and start. The x would go on and off. Then I would try turning it off and on again. Maybe I'll try it again tomorrow and see how it goes.
Could still be some air in the  system. Lighting the stove helps get the bulk of the air out but you can still have a little in the lines to the refrigerator and hot water heater. Go ahead and try the hot water heater, it may take several tries with it to.
Life is better with hot water.
Bill
 
We ?dry? camp about 99.5% of the time. So our refer is on gas ALL the time, even when driving. Can?t remember when it was on 120 VAC last? A for driving with the refer on- Would you rather have Propane or Ptomaine?
 
Gary RV_Wizard said:
I doubt if they come that way from the factory, at least not intentionally, but the fridge icemaker is usually plugged to an inverter outlet so as to allow the icemaker to work off-grid.  Sometimes the fridge electric mode heater gets plugged into the inverter outlet, either accidentally or because the owner wants to avoid LP gas mode while traveling. That's fine as long as the engine alternator is running, but not so good once you park.
The reports I have been reading are that the MH is coming from the factory with the gas/elect fridge wired through the inverter. 

Here is a link to one of the reports:  http://www.rvnetwork.com/topic/129500-winnebago-mhs-have-gaselect-fridge-wired-to-inverter/

The other reports were in conversations on a Winnebago Yahoo Group.
 
I would like to see some verified proof not just hearsay. I bet some are confused because if the refrigerator has an icemaker it is plugged into the inverter circuit so it will function when on gas. I used this outlet when I installed my residential refrigerator.
Bill
 
so I too am waiting for you experts to explain the water heater... she needs hot water... actually so do I since this is my first MH and I pick it up from the previous owner on wed,,, I got the fridge down ... is the hot water heater automatic in that it switches to propane when no elect.. or is it strictly propane... 2008 La Palma.. 34...as overwhelming as some of this stuff seems at times it is kinda fun.. and we are really looking forward to rv'ing..
 
Lookin your owners manual or look up your model of water heater on line. Most likely it is just propane. (you need 12v power for the control board)  Make shure you have water in the system. Turn on your propane and light the stove to get the majority of air out of the system. you should be able to hear the igniter click when you turn the switch on. If it doesn't light you will need to cycle the switch off and back on. It might take a couple of tries to get any air out of that line.
Let me know if it lights. :))
Bill
 
is the hot water heater automatic in that it switches to propane when no elect.. or is it strictly propane... 2008 La Palma.. 34

The water heater does not auto-switch. There will be separate on/off switches for LP and electric modes, and you can use both at the same time if you wish (faster heating). Sometimes the electric switch is located in an entirely different place than the LP gas mode switch.

An upper tier rig like the La Palma will surely have a combo electric/propane water heater, but we can be more sure if you give the heater make & model.
 
In addition to a switch above the entry door for 110V operation of the water heater, our Monaco Camelot has an additional switch on the water heater itself. I suspect your LaPalma may have the same switch. Our switch was hidden beneath insulation around the tank.
 
ok thanks guys... will find out all this stuff starting today... we pick it up later this morning... leaving San Diego for Temecula in about an hour... so the adventure begins... thanks for your help... i know I will need it more, "down the road" so to speak.... 8)
 
WILDEBILL308 said:
I would like to see some verified proof not just hearsay. I bet some are confused because if the refrigerator has an icemaker it is plugged into the inverter circuit so it will function when on gas. I used this outlet when I installed my residential refrigerator.
Bill
Good point Bill.  Make me wonder if the reports I have seen of the fridge "cooling" AC power" going through the inverter are because the cords are switched between the ice maker AC plug and the fridge cooling AC plug.
 
AStravelers said:
Good point Bill.  Make me wonder if the reports I have seen of the fridge "cooling" AC power" going through the inverter are because the cords are switched between the ice maker AC plug and the fridge cooling AC plug.
I bet they are complaining that it doesn't make ice on gas. ;)
Bill
 
as overwhelming as some of this stuff seems at times it is kinda fun.. and we are really looking forward to rv'ing..

I agree with that statement from @mauleman
 
Gary RV_Wizard said:
I have a four-door Norcold refrigerator and it uses 1/2 gallon of propane a day, which is more than I expected.  Since the OP's refrigerator looks to be about half the size of mine, I'd make a wild guess that it uses about 1/4 gallon/day.
That does seem excessive. Are you sure it isn't a 1/2 lb rather than  a 1/2 gallon? The flame isn't much bigger than an oven pilot light.

Of course, temperature in the RV and door-open frequency can have a big effect on consumption rates.

I have an onboard propane tank on my motorhome, and it's always measured in gallons, so yes, it's 1/2 gallon and not 1/2 pound.  And I'm not sure why we're comparing the propane used by a water heater to an oven pilot light.

I gathered the data two different times and the results were the same both times.  And it matches less carefully observed times. 

I'm not a maniac about keeping the door shut, but we don't naturally stand there and stare inside with the doors open.  And the usages were measured when we were boondocking without air conditioning or heat, so moderate temperatures, but with relatively high humidity, over several weeks.
 
Trivet said:
That does seem excessive. Are you sure it isn't a 1/2 lb rather than  a 1/2 gallon? The flame isn't much bigger than an oven pilot light.

Of course, temperature in the RV and door-open frequency can have a big effect on consumption rates.


I have an onboard propane tank on my motorhome, and it's always measured in gallons, so yes, it's 1/2 gallon and not 1/2 pound.  And I'm not sure why we're comparing the propane used by a water heater to an oven pilot light.

I gathered the data two different times and the results were the same both times.  And it matches less carefully observed times. 

I'm not a maniac about keeping the door shut, but we don't naturally stand there and stare inside with the doors open.  And the usages were measured when we were boondocking without air conditioning or heat, so moderate temperatures, but with relatively high humidity, over several weeks.
Thought you were taking about a refrigerator, not a water heater??? 

A water heater may use 1/2 gallon an hour while the burner is on, although it seldom takes more than about 20 minutes to take the water from 60 degrees to 140 degrees.  Most people don't leave their water heater on propane 24/7.  Usually just turn it on shortly before needing hot water. 

A gas/elect fridge will not empty a 14 gallon propane tank in 2 weeks if that is the only thing using propane. 
 
Angiekaye said:
Okay!  The refrigerator is a Norcold. I took a picture of the fridge and the details on the inside. But maybe everyone's familiar with this one.

My hope is to start using the fridge soon. My RV is now pretty level after driving my right 2 tires up on blocks, so I just need to turn the propane on and the fridge will work? My propane tank says it's 3/4 full.
We have the same fridge in our Winnebago. We could use our tank for months on end just running the refrigerator. BTW that label reads 1500 BTU's per hour. 1 gallon of propane = 91,333 Btu. So a BBQ tank depending on size would contain 5, 10 20 0r 30X as many BTUs.
 
AStravelers said:
Thought you were taking about a refrigerator, not a water heater??? 

Oops--you're right.  I meant refrigerator, not water heater.


AStravelers said:
A gas/elect fridge will not empty a 14 gallon propane tank in 2 weeks if that is the only thing using propane. 

Since my refrigerator uses 1/2 gallon per day, it will presumably empty a 14-gallon propane tank in 28 days, or 4 weeks.  That's for a four-door Norcold.
 
The Norcold 1200 uses 2400 btus/hr of flame time, and most of them run pretty much non-stop during the warmer daytime hours. However, they generally cycle on/off once the sun goes down, so the burner hours per day are likely to be in the range of 15-20. A gallon of pure propane has about 91,000 btus, so 2400/hr yields about 38 hours of burner run time. Using a half gallon per day implies the burner is on for 19 hours/day, which is on the high end but not out of the question.  LP with a high butane content has a higher btu/gallon so should last longer than LP that is 100% propane.

One major reason for poor fridge performance (and thus longer burner time) is poor sealing around the rear of the fridge, allowing hot air to surround the sides or top of the box.  Sadly, that installation flaw is all too common.  Another is leaky door seals which allow warm and moist air to enter the interior all day long.
 
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