Dometic Fridge on 8 AA batteries? - R-pod Owners Forum

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furpod

Moderator Group - pHp

Joined: 25 Jul 2011
Location: Central KY
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Posts: 6128

Topic: Dometic Fridge on 8 AA batteries?
Posted: 16 Mar 2019 at 9:40am

The AA stuff is only an option in Europe. Don't know why.So far as I know, 1 owner ever went through the trouble to get the part shipped and installed it. They didn't feel it was worth the bother after doing it, and they boondocked a lot.

offgrid

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Joined: 23 Jul 2018
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Posts: 5290

Posted: 16 Mar 2019 at 6:27am

8 AA batteries in series provides 12V, and AA batteries have about 2-3 AH capacity. So, you're talking about 1-2% of your main trailer battery capacity. In comparison, the AA battery capacity you gain is in the noise, even if the fridge used the AA's up in only a day you wouldn't notice any extended camping time on 12V.

I do think its interesting that the manual states the fridge goes into a power saving mode when on the main 12V power is disconnected and its on the AA's. Not sure why Dometic wouldn't put the fridge in that mode whenever its running on propane. That would be helpful, and maybe there's a way to set that up.

Good luck in your research, please let us know what you find out.

1994 Chinook Concourse
1995 RV6A Experimental Aircraft
2015 Rpod 179 - sold

podwerkz

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Joined: 11 Mar 2019
Location: Texas
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Posts: 966

Posted: 15 Mar 2019 at 10:22pm

Oh yeah, sorry, yes I know the 12v battery system will run the fridge electronics.

What I meant to convey is that if I want to flip off the main battery on the tongue to conserve ALL use of power in the camper when parked off-grid, say at night, or on super cloudy days, parked under trees, etc, but then maybe the fridge could keep running on gas and the AA batteries for a day or 3, when or if my solar is not hooked up or is under-producing.

The manual states that if the 12v supply is lost, the fridge will switch to the AA batteries for control operation. That seems like a feature I want to have when off-grid.

On top of that, the fridge manual states that the fridge goes into power saving mode when on the AA batteries: the display goes dark, only blinking the 'gas' indicator once every 15 seconds so you know it's operating. If you push any button, the temp setting LEDs light up so you can adjust the temp.

Just seems like a nice idea...I will call Dometic on Monday and see what they have to say about it.

r･pod 171 gone but not forgotten!

StephenH

podders Helping podders - pHp

Joined: 29 Nov 2015
Location: Wake Forest, NC
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Posts: 6289

Posted: 15 Mar 2019 at 10:04pm

Congratulations on your new RPod. I hope you have many fine adventures and make many great memories doing so.

Okay, if you have a good battery, it is superfluous. Your 12V battery (or, if you did like I did and install dual 6V batteries wired in series) will provide all the power your refrigerator needs to run for quite a while if you don't need power to run anything else. However, in real life, the refrigerator is not the only draw on power. There are also constant power draws from the LP/CO detector and the thermostat. If you forget to turn the antenna booster off, that also draws power as does the entertainment unit and the USB charging outlets. You won't want to leave your 'Pod disconnected long unless you put in a battery disconnect switch (or just disconnect the negative terminal of the battery). Be careful if you disconnect both battery terminals to note which wire goes to the positive and which to the negative. Connecting them backwards means at a minimum that you blow the two 40A fuses in your power panel that protect your converter from reversed polarity.

Could you possibly find a battery box that fits that space? Maybe. Do you NEED to find it? questionable. I don't really think you would want to use the refrigerator in your R-Pod with no lights, furnace (in cool/cold weather) or vent fan ( in warm weather) anyway. You would be better off upgrading your battery to dual 6V (lots of power but relatively heavy but also relatively inexpensive compared to other options) or LiFePo4 (Lithium) batteries (light weight, great capacity, very expensive still and need an adjustment to the converter to properly charge). Ultimately, you could really build a high-capacity power bank with the LiFePo4 batteries that would weigh much less than dual 6V and have more usable capacity.

StephenH
Happy is the man that findeth wisdom,...

ouR escaPOD mods
Former RPod 179
Current Cherokee Grey Wolf 24 JS

podwerkz

Senior Member

Joined: 11 Mar 2019
Location: Texas
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 966

Posted: 15 Mar 2019 at 8:48pm

The Dometic fridge in my new 171 has a compartment for a battery holder that will hold 8 AA batteries to run the electronics of the fridge.

The manual says the battery holder is optional. What the heck? 50c worth of plastic I'm guessing.

It's referred to in the manual as 'Self-contained gas operation and optional battery compartment'.

(yes I know there needs to be a gas supply to run the refrigerant unit)

But there is no part number and I googled and googled and can't find the part number or even a reference to it on the Dometic website or anywhere else for that matter.

Has anyone ordered or obtained one of these? If so, how long did the batteries last? Days? Weeks? More?

It might be handy when off-grid.

r･pod 171 gone but not forgotten!

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furpod Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Moderator Group - pHp Joined: 25 Jul 2011 Location: Central KY Online Status: Offline Posts: 6128	Topic: Dometic Fridge on 8 AA batteries? Posted: 16 Mar 2019 at 9:40am
	The AA stuff is only an option in Europe. Don't know why.So far as I know, 1 owner ever went through the trouble to get the part shipped and installed it. They didn't feel it was worth the bother after doing it, and they boondocked a lot.

offgrid Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Senior Member Joined: 23 Jul 2018 Online Status: Offline Posts: 5290	Posted: 16 Mar 2019 at 6:27am
	8 AA batteries in series provides 12V, and AA batteries have about 2-3 AH capacity. So, you're talking about 1-2% of your main trailer battery capacity. In comparison, the AA battery capacity you gain is in the noise, even if the fridge used the AA's up in only a day you wouldn't notice any extended camping time on 12V. I do think its interesting that the manual states the fridge goes into a power saving mode when on the main 12V power is disconnected and its on the AA's. Not sure why Dometic wouldn't put the fridge in that mode whenever its running on propane. That would be helpful, and maybe there's a way to set that up. Good luck in your research, please let us know what you find out.
	1994 Chinook Concourse 1995 RV6A Experimental Aircraft 2015 Rpod 179 - sold

podwerkz Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Senior Member Joined: 11 Mar 2019 Location: Texas Online Status: Offline Posts: 966	Posted: 15 Mar 2019 at 10:22pm
	Oh yeah, sorry, yes I know the 12v battery system will run the fridge electronics. What I meant to convey is that if I want to flip off the main battery on the tongue to conserve ALL use of power in the camper when parked off-grid, say at night, or on super cloudy days, parked under trees, etc, but then maybe the fridge could keep running on gas and the AA batteries for a day or 3, when or if my solar is not hooked up or is under-producing. The manual states that if the 12v supply is lost, the fridge will switch to the AA batteries for control operation. That seems like a feature I want to have when off-grid. On top of that, the fridge manual states that the fridge goes into power saving mode when on the AA batteries: the display goes dark, only blinking the 'gas' indicator once every 15 seconds so you know it's operating. If you push any button, the temp setting LEDs light up so you can adjust the temp. Just seems like a nice idea...I will call Dometic on Monday and see what they have to say about it.
	r･pod 171 gone but not forgotten!

StephenH Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List podders Helping podders - pHp Joined: 29 Nov 2015 Location: Wake Forest, NC Online Status: Offline Posts: 6289	Posted: 15 Mar 2019 at 10:04pm
	Congratulations on your new RPod. I hope you have many fine adventures and make many great memories doing so. Okay, if you have a good battery, it is superfluous. Your 12V battery (or, if you did like I did and install dual 6V batteries wired in series) will provide all the power your refrigerator needs to run for quite a while if you don't need power to run anything else. However, in real life, the refrigerator is not the only draw on power. There are also constant power draws from the LP/CO detector and the thermostat. If you forget to turn the antenna booster off, that also draws power as does the entertainment unit and the USB charging outlets. You won't want to leave your 'Pod disconnected long unless you put in a battery disconnect switch (or just disconnect the negative terminal of the battery). Be careful if you disconnect both battery terminals to note which wire goes to the positive and which to the negative. Connecting them backwards means at a minimum that you blow the two 40A fuses in your power panel that protect your converter from reversed polarity. Could you possibly find a battery box that fits that space? Maybe. Do you NEED to find it? questionable. I don't really think you would want to use the refrigerator in your R-Pod with no lights, furnace (in cool/cold weather) or vent fan ( in warm weather) anyway. You would be better off upgrading your battery to dual 6V (lots of power but relatively heavy but also relatively inexpensive compared to other options) or LiFePo4 (Lithium) batteries (light weight, great capacity, very expensive still and need an adjustment to the converter to properly charge). Ultimately, you could really build a high-capacity power bank with the LiFePo4 batteries that would weigh much less than dual 6V and have more usable capacity.
	StephenH Happy is the man that findeth wisdom,... ouR escaPOD mods Former RPod 179 Current Cherokee Grey Wolf 24 JS

podwerkz Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Senior Member Joined: 11 Mar 2019 Location: Texas Online Status: Offline Posts: 966	Posted: 15 Mar 2019 at 8:48pm
	The Dometic fridge in my new 171 has a compartment for a battery holder that will hold 8 AA batteries to run the electronics of the fridge. The manual says the battery holder is optional. What the heck? 50c worth of plastic I'm guessing. It's referred to in the manual as 'Self-contained gas operation and optional battery compartment'. (yes I know there needs to be a gas supply to run the refrigerant unit) But there is no part number and I googled and googled and can't find the part number or even a reference to it on the Dometic website or anywhere else for that matter. Has anyone ordered or obtained one of these? If so, how long did the batteries last? Days? Weeks? More? It might be handy when off-grid.
	r･pod 171 gone but not forgotten!