Better Refrigerator for my Sprinter ?

[PinballWizard]

I have one of those little square dorm room type refrigerators in my Sprinter van. Its not very useful and I would like to know what you guys are using ? I'm sure this one is fine for a room that doesn't move down the highway at 70 MPH but on the road its useless. Everything shifts around inside and sometimes even knocks the door open. Doesn't have much room inside either. I would like something that is top load, but all I can find is those 12V thermal coolers that really are not refrigerators and really don't work.
Any ideas appreciated

 

[Turtle]

Well, I have a MicroFridge. Specifically:
http://www.microfridge.com/catalog/product.cgi/3/6/P1/default/N/0

It is large enough to hold groceries for a week, has a separate compartment (and door) for the frost-free freezer, so it'll keep stuff like ice cream frozen. The microwave is small, low wattage, which is both good and bad. Good in that it won't overload the wiring, bad in that when the directions say to microwave it for 3 minutes, it'll actually take 7 or 8 minutes. Probably better is a higher wattage microwave that draws more power, but for less time. Just need at least a 2000 watt inverter is all.

They have several models, with and without the freezer, with and without the microwave.

All in all, I really like it a lot.

Slow and steady, even in expediting, wins the race - Aesop

 

[rollnthunder]

>I have one of those little square dorm room type
>refrigerators in my Sprinter van. Its not very useful and I
>would like to know what you guys are using ? I'm sure this
>one is fine for a room that doesn't move down the highway at
>70 MPH but on the road its useless. Everything shifts
>around inside and sometimes even knocks the door open.
>Doesn't have much room inside either. I would like
>something that is top load, but all I can find is those 12V
>thermal coolers that really are not refrigerators and really
>don't work.
>Any ideas appreciated

I have a D unit truck so i have alittle more room.But i went to walmart and got a 3.0 cuft fridge and put it in the truck.My factory 12v died so i had to find something.The problem i had was stuff shifting in the new fridge and knocking the door open.So what i did was i got on camping worlds website and ordered some spring loaded bars that fit inside the fridge and they keep stuff from sliding out and hitting the door.So now the door doesnt pop open.Cost about $7 plus shipping.My fridge cost me under $100 at wally world.

 

[Marty]

Google Engle Refridgerators.

 

[Dreamer]

Turtle,
That's really a nice size fridge for a van. What kind of reserve battery setup do you have, and how fast does it draw them down? Also, I'm curious where you have room for that. Do you have a regular sleeper set up, or bed down the side or what?

Thanks,



Dreamer
Forums Administrator


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[vipra]

Go here http://www.waecousa.com/page.aspx?p=proportref I've had one of their fridges for 3 years, it runs great, no problems. It stays 36 degrees regardless of the outside temperature. Most run off DC and AC. They're expensive but worth it. You should have an auxilliaryâ™  battery to run it when your Sprinter engine isn't idling because it'll drain the battery under your hood.

 

[Turtle]

Dreamer, sorry for the delay in responding...

http://img1.shareavenue.com/gallery.php?file=73a3636ad3dc22c58848b176f7e3332bce2373b3
is the gallery that has some pictures from when I did the shelves, but the first picture (and the last) shows the fridge in a shot through the passenger side sliding door.

The fridge consumes 1.3 amps (120v AC) when the compressor is running, which inverts to 13 amps plus a 10% loss for the inverter to 14.3 amps drawn from the 12 volt battery. Figure 15 amps. A fridge isn't going to be running 24/7, though. It'll run somewhere between 8 and 16 hours depending on ambient temperature and how often you are in and out of there, opening and closing the door. Mine runs about 12 hours a day.

12 hours a day times 15 amps per hour works out to 180 amp hours per 24 hours. It's working to actually about 164 amps hour per day).

When the microwave is running the fridge compressor is shut down, to ensure that no matter what, no more than 10 amps will be drawn by the unit. (That's 10 amps AC, and is the figure that protects older wiring in apartment buildings, dorms, older houses, etc.) Those 10 amps AC inverts to 110 amps DC drawn from the battery. If I use the microwave for 15 minutes per day, that's 27.5 amps per day for microwave use.

So a good ballpark to figure is 200 amp hours per day for the fridge. To keep batteries from being drawn down more than 50%, that means 400 amps hours worth of batteries to cover the fridge, and then after 24 hours there needs to be 200 amp hours put back into those batteries. If you do it with a 30 amp charger, that's gonna take a minimum of about 9 hours to put the amps back in. SO not only is total battery capacity a large issue, so it charging methods and the charging requirements of the batteries.

I have other amp hour requirements other than the fridge, of course, like lights, Espar heater, vent fan, laptop, couple of external hard drives, printer, a little AA battery charger, cell phone charger, stuff like that. An amp here, half an amp there, couple of amps there, it all adds up. All those requirements need to be figured in, and then doubled (to keep from drawing down more than 50%). and added to the battery capacity needed.

I may be sitting for 12 hours or more, then get a load that has me running for any number of hours, all the while I'm charging the batteries while running, as well as discharging them around the clock. That's where the battery monitor takes out the guesswork and keeps track of all amps in and all amps out, and I know at a glance the state of charge of my batteries at any given time.
Slow and steady, even in expediting, wins the race - Aesop

 

[The Enemy]

Turtle, I am wanting to do the shelves in my sprinter, but am worried about the weight. I currently don't have a partition, just have a bunk that breaks down to fit the 3rd skid and a plastic dresser where your fridge is. I want to add a fridge, microwave and a printer where yours is and then move the clothes and canned goods on the shelves. Also what kind and how many battery's are you running to keep all your stuff running and where did you get your battery meter. The only accessories I am running right now is my lap top and once in a while a little 10" dvd player, needless to say my stock battery wouldn't keep up with it, so I am in the process of finally adding in an Optima battery, so I'll be running a 2 battery system. Any advice would be appreciated.

 

[Turtle]

See the "Batteries and Cranking Amps" thread for a lot of details to keep in mind about batteries. That is assuming your mind is still in tact when you get to the end of that thread. It very well may explode.

The biggest problem I'm having with the Sprinter is the Bosch alternator won't put out enough volts to properly charge AGM batteries, which require a constant voltage of between 14.2-14.4 volts at however many amps you can push through the cables. The Bosch wants to stay in a comfort zone of between 13.3-13.8 volts, usually right around 13.5 volts. That's not enough to charge up AGM batteries, much less several of them.

The Bosch alternator has an internal regulator and has internal regulator sensing. It senses and determines the amount of system voltage needed internally, and it gets that information from the system and the computer. A battery isolator cannot be used with an internal alternator sensing regulator. The only option is a Battery Separator.
http://www.surepower.com/pdf/separatorinterconnect.pdf
http://www.smithae.com/store.html

Even with the Separator the alternator doesn't want to put out enough volts. It puts out enough to keep these Wal Mart Everstart Maxx "marine" batteries charged, but not nearly enough for AGM's. I'm not going to drop big bucks for high end AGM deep cycle batteries (or even low end Optima AGM's until I can be certain they will be properly charged.

I've talked with others who have aux batteries, some connected via a battery separator and some via the power tap under the driver's seat. I know absolutely nothing about the power connections under the seat. Haven't gotten around to even looking under there, yet. But, in all cases, those who are running aux batteries and are cycling them on a daily basis out here, they are all having to replace the batteries every 12-18 months, more or less. Of course, almost every one of them are not using a battery monitor to ensure they aren't discharging too deeply, but just the same, if the batteries were getting a proper charge they should be lasting a little longer than that.

As for the battery monitor, I got mine here:
http://store.solar-electric.com/xabamosy.html

I also got the Connections Kit, the Communications Kit, and the Temperature Kit.

Right now I have three of those Wal Mart batteries, but they will be 6 very soon. Each one is 125 amp hours, but 125 amp hours in a short footprint like that is about the same as 100 amp hours from a taller golf cart footprint deep cycle battery. With three of the batteries I can go about 12-14 hours before I have to crank up the engine to recharge. With six that will be 24 hours between having to charge them up if I'm sitting over a weekend somewhere or something.

The batteries are under my bunk, which is a permanent bunk. I have 9 feet for cargo space. The shelves went up because I needed more space under the bunk for more batteries, be they more Wal Mart batteries or four or six of the 6-volt deep cycle batteries that I want.

If you know or find out anything about how to get those Optima's properly charged, please let me know.

Slow and steady, even in expediting, wins the race - Aesop

 

[cheri1122]

I really like the fridge that costs around $125 at Walmart, but I had trouble with things sliding forward, too. My solution was: nonskid sheets on each shelf, (cut from the small rolls), and a spring tension curtain rod placed at the front edge of each shelf, to keep things from toppling out when the door is opened. You can also place a hook & eye latch on the fridge, to keep the door closed - something I haven't had a problem with, but a former codriver did, and the hook worked very well. I'm thinking a couple pieces of Velcro, glued to the door & side of the fridge, would work, too.

 

[Turtle]

I use Velcro to keep the door from popping open. When I first got it, the door was always popping open. Pretty much every left turn something inside would shift and hit the door, popping it open and spilling everything out onto the floor.

Put a "fluffy" piece of Velcro about 2" long on the side of the fridge, and another "fluffy" piece an inch or so on the side of the door, and then one long piece, the "hook" part of the Velcro, long enough to cover both the "fluffy" pieces and that sticks out towards the front a little. I can grad the piece that sticks out a little and lift it from the Velcro and also open the door in the same motion.

Slow and steady, even in expediting, wins the race - Aesop

 

[60MPH]

turtle the only way I can think of to get the 14+ volts required to charge the AGM'S is to go with a high output ALT but you are going to spend some money for that. American Armature out of davenport makes ALT'S for police, ambulances, wreckers and big rv's. They are drop in's. The one for my express van is 880.00 dollars but it puts out 150 amps @ idle @ 14.2 volts min. and 280 amps @ 2000 rpms at no less than 14v I ordered on for my van they are in stock I am running the 2 factory batteries just for engine starting and the other 2 are isolated with a relay and a toggle switch so I decide when to use the alt to charge the deep cycles. I never flip the switch until I am at highway speed and have been rolling for atleast 20 to 30 mins. The two deep cycles I am using are the Discover Advanced AGM's rated at around 200 amp hours a piece I do not have a battery monitor yet but now that u brought it up I will go out and get one when I install my new alt. I am trying to keep the factory 145 amp alt along as possible it is charging all my batteries but it was not designed to have to completly charge the two low agm's after sitting for a weekend somewhere. But I figured out what to do to keep my new alt to last a long time when I only discharge the batteries a little over nite like the espar for a couple of hours and about 1 or 2 hours of tv I will just charge the batteries when I am driving but when I sit for the weekend I pull the honda 2000 out on sunday afternoon and charge to deep cycles up so when I start to roll monday the alt does not take the big hit and I won't burn the alt or batteries out.

60 MPH ALL DAY-EVERY DAY

 

[Turtle]

Thanks for the info. Problem with the Sprinter is, the computer is tied in to tightly with the alternator's regulator and the system voltage as a whole. The alternator I have right now is a Bosch high output alternator, puts out 150 amps low idle. But it's the voltage that's the problem. And I can't plop in any ol' alternator and use an external regulator without reprogramming the Sprinter's computer.

The batteries that I want in here are the Discover Energy L16's, 6 volts, 390 amp hours for the pair at 12 volts. I want two pair, 780 amp hours.

But before I drop $325 a pop for L16 AGM's I have to be certain they'll charge properly.

If/when I get a generator for this thing, that won't be a problem, but I'd still like it to properly charge, at least at the correct voltage, while driving, even if I have to run the generator a couple of hours to finish off the charge.

Slow and steady, even in expediting, wins the race - Aesop