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Topic ClosedSolar power for fridge - Event Date: 28 Oct 2017
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js555 View Drop Down
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Joined: 04 Jan 2017
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Posts: 10 		Direct Link To This Post Calendar Event: Solar power for fridge
    Posted: 29 Oct 2017 at 1:44am
Hi all,

I bought a 178 last december and I am so happy.
I want to run the fridge with solar, I am not familiar with any of these things.
I could not run the fridge on battery the other day as I was on a 7 hour trip. Any ideas or reasons why ?
But I would love to save battery and run the fridge, but it seems that the fridge will not run on battery mode. Is there a reason for this ?
So what wattage and amperage would I need to run the fridge and the TV ? How many batteries would I need and would I need an inverter to make it 120 V's ?
Any help would be appreciated.

Best

JS•
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JandL View Drop Down
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Posts: 364 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 29 Oct 2017 at 10:21am
Refrigerator on DC draws around 11.00 amps. It would take many solar panels to power the refrigerator. I would recommend running it on propane if you don't have AC available. I can't run my refrigerator on DC while driving because the wire from the truck battery to the RV socket is only 12 gauge. The truck alternator can not supply the needs of the truck and refrigerator at the same time, so I run on propane
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GlueGuy View Drop Down
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Posts: 2629 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 29 Oct 2017 at 10:34am
Originally posted by JandL

Refrigerator on DC draws around 11.00 amps. It would take many solar panels to power the refrigerator. I would recommend running it on propane if you don't have AC available. I can't run my refrigerator on DC while driving because the wire from the truck battery to the RV socket is only 12 gauge. The truck alternator can not supply the needs of the truck and refrigerator at the same time, so I run on propane
The ampacity of a 12 AWG wire is 20 amps. No problem running the fridge with that. However, the capability of your TV is a real concern. If you also need to charge the battery, then you might come up short (no pun intended).
bp
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furpod View Drop Down
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Posts: 6128 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 29 Oct 2017 at 12:05pm
Just run on propane. It will run for 5-6 weeks on a single 20 pound tank. The battery bank and solar panel requirements for "running on solar"just can't be done on a 17 foot trailer with 8 sq feet of flat roof.. and will cost 1/2 as much as the Pod did.
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fwunder View Drop Down
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Posts: 1676 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 29 Oct 2017 at 12:48pm
I agree with the above comments. Solar powered fridge just doesn't make a lot of sense. Propane is the way to go. However...

An earlier discussion involved gallons of Vodka. I therefore, do recommend a solar powered blender! Strawberry Daiquiris for everyone! Star
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Leo B View Drop Down
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Posts: 4508 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 29 Oct 2017 at 1:15pm
Ha! A must for every camping trip!
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Keith-N-Dar View Drop Down
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Posts: 1447 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 29 Oct 2017 at 1:20pm
And I was feeling pretty smug for adding a solar battery maintainer to our Pod.
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sailor323 View Drop Down
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Posts: 281 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 07 Nov 2017 at 7:49am
Originally posted by fwunder

. . . However...

An earlier discussion involved gallons of Vodka. I therefore, do recommend a solar powered blender! Strawberry Daiquiris for everyone! Star

LOL  but I just use a 12v blender

 
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lostagain View Drop Down
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Posts: 2587 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 07 Nov 2017 at 8:57am
Margaritas with ice crushed by hand requires no electro/mechanical equipment whatsoever.  Just smash the ice inside a towel with a crescent wrench, or what ever blunt objet is handy, put the ingredients in a mason jar, shake, and serve.  

For those who are purists, use a good tequila, lime juice, triple sec or Contreau [depending on your budget], and salt along with your manually crushed ice.  --- no margarita mix stuff.  Yuck!
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CharlieM View Drop Down
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Posts: 1797 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 07 Nov 2017 at 9:53am
Originally posted by GlueGuy


The ampacity of a 12 AWG wire is 20 amps. No problem running the fridge with that. However, the capability of your TV is a real concern. If you also need to charge the battery, then you might come up short (no pun intended).

The ampacity of 12 AWg is not really the issue. Ampacity is a fire safety rating based on the allowable temperature rise at a given current. Voltage drop is the real issue for us. One half to one volt drop at 120V has little effect but it has a huge effect on a 12V charging system. The TV's charging system limits the alternator output to ~13.5V as measured at the TV battery. By the time this suffers the drop in the long #12 wire it delivers very little current to the TT battery and appliances. Most TVs only deliver 10A max to the TT and much less most of the time.
Charlie
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OLD: 2013 RP-172, 2010 Honda Pilot 3.5L 4WD
PRESENT: 2014 Camplite 21RBS, 2013 Supercharged Tacoma 4L V6 4WD
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