12V compressor fridge power consumption

Raxel7851 · 05-23-2023, 06:16 PM

I was checking out a 2023 View the other day and reading the specs, noticed it has a 10 Cu Ft double door fridge. It comes with 2 Group 31 batteries and 200W of solar roof panels. My question is if I drive approximately 8 hrs a day, will the batteries be able to run the fridge until the next morning or roughly 16 hrs. I know there are so many factors involved such as outside temperature, inside temperature, but ballpark figuring would the batteries keep the fridge running. I’m used to the propane/electric fridge in our 22M.

Ray,IN · 05-23-2023, 06:50 PM

Amp-draw will be found on the nameplate. The variable is actual run-time %. I found this website informative: https://vansage.com/how-much-power-d...lt-fridge-use/

Marine359 · 05-25-2023, 07:52 AM

A 10cuft 12v compressor fridge will consume between 40 and 60 amphrs/day. Factors affecting consumption are fridge mode, ambient temps, and shading of exterior wall that the fridge is on. We can go for up to five days just on our solar and the compressor fridge mode on eco. But we do have 170ah of LFP battery. Two group 31 marine deep cycle batteries will provide about 100 useable amphrs if you discharge them below 50%. So, if your other 12v consumption (in addition to fridge) is around 25amphrs, you can go for one day with no sun, and no other source of battery charging. 200w of rooftop solar on a good day might give your batteries 30-40 amphrs., so maybe that can extend you to two days. For the camper you describe, it would be adviseable to install a dc/dc charge controller which will allow your engine alternator to recharge while you’re driving. But with those batteries/solar you’re never going to get more than a couple of days stationary dry camping.

Morich · 05-25-2023, 08:45 AM

Since power used is a factor of so many different things, I like to get a better idea of what it takes by using a meter and testing in the temp, etc that I am likely to find when camping.
A really handy item that we can do a lot of tests on various electrical use is a "Kill-A- Watt" meter.

https://www.bulkreefsupply.com/kill-...QaAl3MEALw_wcB

https://www.amazon.com/P3-P4460-Kill...90661471&psc=1

They come in lots of different levels from the cheap to the Amazon, so looking at what you want is worthwhile but I like the one which lets me set in things like the price of my electrical and it figures out how much it costs me to leave things on versus turned off.
I pay extra to let it do the math rather than me!

You may be amazed at how much you are paying to leave that phone charger plugged in, instead of putting it on a power strip to click off when you pick your phone up!

On RV use, we can plug the RV into the meter and the meter into the supply and it will tell us how much it uses, in several different forms like amps or dollar per week!

l1v3fr33ord1 · 05-25-2023, 11:43 AM

Ron-

I expect a 2023 coach to charge the house battery bank from the alternator while the engine is running. In your example, that reduces the refrigerator battery bank draw time from 16 to 8 hours, yes?

Marine359 · 05-25-2023, 02:32 PM

Using a shunt monitor with all other loads disconnected yields pretty consistent measurement of fridge consumption. I’ve done this, tested in real world camping situations and while rv was at rest. The shunt captures all watts leaving the battery.

Fanrgs · 05-28-2023, 05:27 PM

The poat-2019 View and Navion are factory-equipped with a 2,000w inverter that includes a transfer switch that automatically switches from alternator to solar to 30A AC shore power to charge the batteries. As a test, we turned on our 2020 Navion's 12v fridge on a Wed. with only solar providing the power, loaded the freezer with water-filled ice cube trays and the fridge with a pitcher of tap water on Thursday. The ice was still frozen and the water was cold the following Sunday, so we loaded the fridge and freezer on Monday and headed out on a 3-week trip on Tuesday. We do have lithium batteries and 350w of solar, but that was still 6 days of fridge use, but nothing else except lights when we were loading up.

We love our 12v fridge compared to the two-way fridges in our previous trailers because it keeps ice cream frozen even in the 95 degree temps we experienced in the SE last summer. The only time we have ever drained the batteries was under dense tree-cover in a USFS cg. at 10,000' in the Rockies with the furnace running most of the night. And that's the only time the generator has been run out of necessity, not just for periodic exercise.

Lasswell · 05-28-2023, 07:36 PM

Upgrade to 2 Lithium 100 ah batteries. I did that on my 2020 view and added a 175 solar panel. The solar panel alone did not cut it. After the battery upgrade life is so much better. I also turn off the inverter at night now. The inside on/off button only works if the button on the inverter itself is in Off position fyi

Camper Ken 2 · 05-28-2023, 07:41 PM

I'd love to trade my 2016 Navion for a new model to get all the Mercedes chassis/cab features but the residential fridge is the reason it's a no-go. We only dry camp.once or twice a year for 5-8 days at a time. The rest of our trips are with 120v power. I don't want to add a couple of thousand dollars with more solar and lithium coach batteries. Winnebago should offer the option of an absorption fridge. Til then I'll keep my 2016.

Redd22 · 05-31-2023, 09:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lasswell

Upgrade to 2 Lithium 100 ah batteries. I did that on my 2020 view and added a 175 solar panel. The solar panel alone did not cut it. After the battery upgrade life is so much better. I also turn off the inverter at night now. The inside on/off button only works if the button on the inverter itself is in Off position fyi

Lasswell,
Curious what benefits do you gain by turning inverter off at night?
Also when referring to the inside button, do you mean the rotary dial near the floor or the inverter lcd panel in the cabinet area?

Regards

tim myers · 06-09-2023, 10:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Camper Ken 2

I'd love to trade my 2016 Navion for a new model to get all the Mercedes chassis/cab features but the residential fridge is the reason it's a no-go. We only dry camp.once or twice a year for 5-8 days at a time. The rest of our trips are with 120v power. I don't want to add a couple of thousand dollars with more solar and lithium coach batteries. Winnebago should offer the option of an absorption fridge. Til then I'll keep my 2016.

I am not following your logic, if you mostly camp with shore power, why is the res fridge an issue?