I purchased my first RV last week, a 2010 Itasca Navion. I have a "newbee" question. the RV has a Norcold N611RT 2 way refrigerator. When we are underway, should I operate the refrigerator on propane gas or run the diesel generator to power it electrically?
I purchased my first RV last week, a 2010 Itasca Navion. I have a "newbee" question. the RV has a Norcold N611RT 2 way refrigerator. When we are underway, should I operate the refrigerator on propane gas or run the diesel generator to power it electrically?
Thanks.
Running the generator would be a waste of fuel unless you need the electric power for something else. I've always run the fridge on propane while underway, never had a problem yet (3rd RV).
I always run my generator when on the road. Not only does it help to give the generator much needed run time it lets you run the coach ac. This helps keep the unit cool and once plugged in does not take as much time to cool down. I also keep the frig. on AC..As for fuel usage yes it takes fuel but to me the trade off is worth it.
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07 Meridian 36G
Roadmaster tow dolly
Great Wife!! & Max the Frisbee chasing dog.
My View refrigerator runs on engine driven 12v while on the road. Automatically switches to 120v AC when hooked to shore power and if all else is not available it switches to propane. I find it very stingy with propane use which takes weeks to move the gauge level
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Alan & Monica
2016 View 24J Profile
A two-way fridge uses 110 volt AC when plugged into power or LP (propane gas) when disconnected from 110 volt power. If you select "auto" mode on the frigde panel, it will operate from 110 volts when plugged in or LP gas when not plugged in.
You can also select AC 110 volt power or LP gas manually. However, if you're operating on 110 volt AC in the manual mode and unplug without manually changing to LP on the panel, the fridge will stop cooling. I learned this the hard way.
I usually leave it set on Auto which will run the unit on 12v while driving. After shutting off it clicks over to LP unless it is hooked to shore power or the genset is started. Again this is done in Auto mode. I set the cooling at 3 bars on the display in all but the hottest of outside temperatures
Park the rig with the wall of the refrigerator in shade on the hottest days and install a condenser cooling fan for hotter climates
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Alan & Monica
2016 View 24J Profile
We loved the frig in older units we have had but the newer we now have only offers AC or propane and it does switch itself when we run on "auto", just no option to use the battery power as we liked when running down the road. It was just nice to use the power from the engine alternator, rather than use propane and have to refill more often.
Which temperature setting to use will take some getting used to how you operate as it will vary. Kids that open the door every few hours will need to have the frig set colder to maintain ice cream in the freezer, for instance. Inside and outside temps will also change the question but over time, we have found that the mid range is fine for what we do. Takes a bit of experimenting to find the sweet spot that keeps things frozen without freezing the milk and lettuce.
Try to remember that we are "roughing it"!