LP Fridge for Off Grid Application
Comments
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Re: LP Fridge for Off Grid Application
Hi I had a lpg fridge for a number of years, But wasn't really comfortable about it. Pilot flame running all the time concerned me, if the gas hobs had been left on the pilot flame would be a continual source of ignition. Got a cheeep energy efficient fridge for $550.00 and allot happier with electric fridge.2225 wattts pv . Outback 2kw fxr pure sine inverter . fm80 charge controller . Mate 3. victron battery monitor . 24 volts in 2 volt Shoto lead carbon extreme batterys. off grid holiday home -
Re: LP Fridge for Off Grid Application
As I have said before, if I was designing from scratch a full time building, (or near full time) I you'd certainly go with a conventional and design and install a bigger PV system to run it. That said, LP fridges have a place, particularly in part time use cabin, RVs etc. In the net, if you are only going to use a fridge for week ends and occasional weeks over the course of the year, a propane fridge wins the dollar equation hands down. (Especially if you can find a good buy one used from, say out of a wrecked RV.)
The more intense the usage, the more the equation shifts in favor of a good energy star conventional, using ~500wh/day. You can Certainly justify the cost of the extra PV, the bigger battery bank and bigger inverter set up. It becomes hard to justify having such a large PV set up that is only used occasionally.
Tony -
Re: LP Fridge for Off Grid Application
Now that the Norcold fridge quit working this weekend, Its time to start looking into a new conventional fridge. Living in west Michigan has me a little worried about the amount of PV I can depend on during the short winter days.
Thanks again for all your help. -
Re: LP Fridge for Off Grid Application
I'm really up in the air about all this now. I don't currently have enough solar and a very large battery. I probably average over $600 a month on diesel fuel for the generator. I know, it hurts immensely. I'm trully considering a propane refrigerator made by an amish company called EZ which carries a 5 year warranty and consumes 2.2 gallons every 7 days. 19 c.f. and $1975. It is expensive, but it would solve all my power issues on the PV. I consume very little propane and barely get a fill up once a year on my 250 gallon tank, even with it supplying my water heater bedroom wall heater & stove. Have I gone off the deep end totally. At least if the inverter gives up, the food supply will be safe. I'm also about to get my DC freezer in use. -
Re: LP Fridge for Off Grid Application
There is something out of balance here... If this is a reasonably efficiently operating diesel genest--Call it 5kWH per gallon and $4 per gallon of fuel (using "conservative numbers"/guesswork):
5 kWH per gallon * $600 per month * 1/$4 per gallon = 750 kWH per month of electricity
If you have a refrigerator/freezer running 1.8 kWH per day:
750 kWH per month * 1/30 days * 1/1.8 kWH per day per fridge = ~14 refrigerators running full time
750 kWH per month * 1/30 days per month * 1/24 hours per day = 1.04 kW = 1,040 Watt load running 24x7
750,000 WH * 1/30 days per month 1/0.52 PV system efficiency * 1/5 hours of sun per day = 9,615 watt array minimum
A single replacement LP refrigerator would not seem to be a huge savings on generator run-time--Something else going on?
My numbers are just guess work--But should be close enough (within a factor of 2x) to see that something is not making sense.
-BillNear San Francisco California: 3.5kWatt Grid Tied Solar power system+small backup genset -
Re: LP Fridge for Off Grid Application
Bill, the same issue came up in Backroads' other current posting where I also asked him about the apparent imbalance you are citing. It all just doesn't jive. Something is using too much of his power production or ?
KID #51B 4s 140W to 24V 900Ah C&D AGM
CL#29032 FW 2126/ 2073/ 2133 175A E-Panel WBjr, 3 x 4s 140W to 24V 900Ah C&D AGM
Cotek ST1500W 24V Inverter,OmniCharge 3024,
2 x Cisco WRT54GL i/c DD-WRT Rtr & Bridge,
Eu3/2/1000i Gens, 1680W & E-Panel/WBjr to come, CL #647 asleep
West Chilcotin, BC, Canada -
Re: LP Fridge for Off Grid Application
Propane 'friges don't work that well in hot temps. Something else to consider.
Wouldn't it be a good idea to spend the $2,000 on more panels? -
Re: LP Fridge for Off Grid Application
backroad,
it's been awhile since we've heard from you. hope all has been well.
now it's been awhile since i was familiar with your circumstances, but my thoughts are you need to move away from the genny and propane costs as much as you can.
imo you should put more into the solar regardless if you go propane or not on the refrig. you are looking at a charge rate that is under 5% currently. if you go with an electric refrig it won't be as bad cost wise as you may think. say you had a bad power consumption rate on the refrig and it's 2kwh per day. you would want to up it to at least 3kwh from pvs and divide that by 5hrs and it's about 600w in pvs. this would add to the overall charge you presently are putting into the battery. 3.1kw + .6kw = 3.7kw in pvs. 3700w/48v=77a. 77a/1340ah=5.75% charge rate. if you go more than 600w in extra pv this would be a cushion for the off days and would further improve the charge rate on the good days.
i better add here that when there's a load on the system, that it does take away from the overall charge rate by the amount of the load.
this path allows you too save some on the propane and even genny run costs, but you must invest in the solar upfront to do it. i remember you lost everything before and it can happen again if you aren't careful and i certainly hope this doesn't happen again. move away from having this same scenario if you can. -
Re: LP Fridge for Off Grid Application
I really don't like these 19 cubic foot gas refrigerators. They are made out of a standard freon-refrigerator cabinet, and I believe they have too many cubic feet of storage and not enough insulation for the size of cooling unit. Back before I went off grid, I gathered up as many propane refrigerators as I could find in my appliance repair business. I think I found four of these types, perhaps made by crystal cold? that had failed within the first ten years. I never did find out if the cooling units became plugged up or if they lost all the ammonia, but every single one was toast. I have also gathered up four or five Servels (pre-1960) in the same time period and every single one of them was able to be brought back to life. Look at every single Norcold, Dometic, and Danby gas refrigerator. They are all small (<12CF) and have about four inches of insulation, especially around the freezer.
We ditched the Servel a few years ago in favor of more panels and an energy star 18CF frig that I think was $550. You already have the battery and inverter, I completely agree with the other posters that you are going to be dollars ahead going with an electric refrigerator. That propane cost for the EZ fridge never goes away. Inverters are pretty darn reliable, your huge battery bank isn't going to wear out any faster with another 600 W/H coming out overnight, and solar panels are somewhere around a dollar a watt. Once you make the initial investment, your monthly cost to run an electric refrigerator approaches zero. -
Re: LP Fridge for Off Grid Application
I have a 14 cu.ft. upright freezer converted to a refrigerator and its consumption is 300 watt/hrs. per 24 hour period. I use an external thermostat ($80 from Johnson control and set the freezer thermostat to maximum. -
Re: LP Fridge for Off Grid Application
"Propane 'friges don't work that well in hot temps. Something else to consider."
I don't quite know what you mean, and I have to disagree. Most LP fridge installations that I have seen that people complain about is traceable to poor installation, specificallly poor ventilation. Efficient cooling of the condenser is essential for good operation, so simply adding a baffle to create a natural convection, and adding a low fresh air intake makes a absorption fridge work better. Adding a tstat controlled fan on the condenser makes it work even better, and finally adding insulation to the case (and th door!) makes it work even better still.
I have used LP fridges in temps well into the 30s C with high humidity (90F or hotter) and they keep ice cream hard as a brick.
Tony -
Re: LP Fridge for Off Grid Application"Propane 'friges don't work that well in hot temps. Something else to consider."
I don't quite know what you mean, and I have to disagree. Most LP fridge installations that I have seen that people complain about is traceable to poor installation, specificallly poor ventilation. Efficient cooling of the condenser is essential for good operation, so simply adding a baffle to create a natural convection, and adding a low fresh air intake makes a absorption fridge work better. Adding a tstat controlled fan on the condenser makes it work even better, and finally adding insulation to the case (and th door!) makes it work even better still.
I have used LP fridges in temps well into the 30s C with high humidity (90F or hotter) and they keep ice cream hard as a brick.
Tony
In other words they work in hot temps if you modify them to do so. Off the shelf without additional baffle, insulation, and ducting not so well.
Ours always had trouble when the weather got hot even when it was new, unlike the electric which has proven more efficient heat exchange between its interior and exterior. -
Re: LP Fridge for Off Grid Application
the electric which has proven more efficient heat exchange between its interior and exterior.
I'll wager the increased efficiency is due to the fan most of the new fridges have. the 2 we have in the house right now 1 @ 30 + yrs old , the other @~ 12 yrs, both have fans, one blowing out the front , the other out the back, no appreciable difference in operation thru the year.
KID #51B 4s 140W to 24V 900Ah C&D AGM
CL#29032 FW 2126/ 2073/ 2133 175A E-Panel WBjr, 3 x 4s 140W to 24V 900Ah C&D AGM
Cotek ST1500W 24V Inverter,OmniCharge 3024,
2 x Cisco WRT54GL i/c DD-WRT Rtr & Bridge,
Eu3/2/1000i Gens, 1680W & E-Panel/WBjr to come, CL #647 asleep
West Chilcotin, BC, Canada -
Re: LP Fridge for Off Grid Application
Actually Marc, they work well (at least most of the ones I have used/installed/serviced) over the years. By doing the baffles, the fan, insulatingth box etc simply decreases the run time. (considerbly) The last Dometic I installed for a customer was a non Rv type (complete enameled case as opposed to a no external case like the RV models) works and looks great with no mods, save a back stop on the top that both serves as a baffle as well as keeps junk from falling off the top of the fridge onto the condenser.
I guess the point is, on a per BTU basis, absorption fridges ared inherently less efficient than a compressor fridge, but if the source of the energy is cheaper, (in total) there is a case to be made for a LP fridge. As I have often said, for weekenders, a couple weeks of vacation cabin etc. the total in cost to buy an run a LP fridge is likely to be less than the cost of a conventional coupled with a later PV system to run it. If I had to do mine over again, I would go with a conventional, since I am essentially full time. If I only used it a month a year, I would go with the LP.
All that said, Lp absorption fridges are extremely sensitive to being level. A few degrees off level, especially left to right, and performance drops off considerably, often to zero. With that comes the risk of burning out the cooling unit quite quickly if the coolant stops circulating effectively. Way more than once, I have gotten calls from cottagers near me saying their seasonal fridges weren't getting cold. I would run over with a torpedo level and a handful of shims. Inevitably the frost had shifted the building enough that they threw them enough out of level to stop running. I even know of one model, (a Sibire iirc) that came with a little string plumb bob installed inside the fridge, along with a bulls eye for the bob, making it completly fool proof as to level.
Tony -
Re: LP Fridge for Off Grid Application
Howdy Niel. Just trying to maintain. Off work now on disability. Had a knee replacement in March and having my lower back fused tomorrow. Life is good.
The diesel gen uses about 3/4 - a gallon per hour. It is a 4 cyl...
My daily load brings the battery down to 80%.
As I said in another post, I do have 10 - 200 watt panels to put up yet and another 750 watts that are going to be used on a dedicated 12 volt system for my 2 swamp coolers, sundanzer freezer and 12 volt led lighting.
I probably let the gen run too long in the evenings and burn some extra fuel. Tried to get the AGS working and finally just gave up. Things tend to sink into my head very slowly these later years. I do appreciate you guys bearing with me. Its likely one of the reasons I have been on here a lot recently. I know I'm a PITA....... Thanx......
Alright then, I will definitely put a hold on making my LP decision. When I get recovered from my back surgery and get the rest of the panels up, I will re-evaluate. -
Re: LP Fridge for Off Grid Application
One way to cycle your batteries that may save you a bunch of fuel costs... Cycle them from 50% to 80% or so every (per cycle)... and let that happen for 5-10 days. On the 6th to 11th day, run enough power in the battery bank to get it back >90% state of charge.
The batteries are more efficient when cycled below 80% SOC (and much more efficient than>90% SOC cycling). And, from what I have read, with good quality flooded cell (i.e., heavy plate, forklift, traction type cells), they will not sulfate as long as they are actively cycling and brought back >90% state of charge once in a while... You might just pick one day a week (or weekend) to do the recharge >90% thing.
And I would study the generator power/current and see what you can do to keep it in the ~50% to 80% range of name plate rating (or prime mover rating maximum).
If you are running the genset at 25% or less of rated power--You should try to do something different.
Good luck on the surgery--Sounds like it has been a tough year for you (and your family) so far.
-BillNear San Francisco California: 3.5kWatt Grid Tied Solar power system+small backup genset -
Re: LP Fridge for Off Grid Application
Thanx Bill. I'm now 62 and wanting to be able to do the things I need to and want to. Still looking at life through rose colored glasses.
On cloudy days the battery tends to do the 50% thing when I'm not paying attention. I always charge it fully to 100%. -
Re: LP Fridge for Off Grid ApplicationOn cloudy days the battery tends to do the 50% thing when I'm not paying attention. I always charge it fully to 100%.
The forklift battery manufacturers always seem to emphasize the importance of reaching 100% SOC every day, but they also recommend discharge to 20% SOC. I am not so sure that daily 100% is a good idea for RE batteries that are discharged to only 50% (or higher) SOC. I have set my absorb voltage and time lower so that I do NOT achieve 100% every day. I do make sure to achieve 100% SOC twice a week however.
As Bill mentioned, charging above 80-90% is not so efficient, but that is not the reason I avoid daily 100% SOC. The most common cause of premature battery failure is sulfation and you can avoid that by frequent 100% charges. The next most common reason for premature failure is overcharging. High voltage (as in absorb and equalization) are tough on batteries, and that is the reason I avoid daily 100% charging.
I started out attempting to achieve 100% SOC every day, in part to avoid the corrosive effects of stratification...
read: http://forum.solar-electric.com/showthread.php?15475 and http://forum.solar-electric.com/showthread.php?17994
but after a few years I have noticed an increase in internal resistance of my batteries, possibly a sign of positive grid corrosion caused by overcharging.
I am still trying to figure it all out.... time will tell. Bill suggested to you that a daily charge up to 80% is OK, and he emphasized the efficiency of that charge regimen. It might be a good idea for other reasons also.
--vtMaps4 X 235watt Samsung, Midnite ePanel, Outback VFX3524 FM60 & mate, 4 Interstate L16, trimetric, Honda eu2000i -
Re: LP Fridge for Off Grid Application
yikes, that's not good needing those things. be aware i've heard bad things about back surgeries as in nerve damage. i've got problems in those areas as well, but not to the point of even thinking about surgery. good luck with the operations and don't push yourself too fast or too hard. -
Re: LP Fridge for Off Grid Application
Try to, pre-the-knife, find a good Physiotherapist and see just what you can/should do pre surgery, the better shape your muscles are in the faster the recovery. Bone Drs. are just highly paid fancy carpenters, after the surgery they tend to fob you off onto the physio's and leave the remedial work to them! Ask Lots of Questions, even when you think it may be irrelevant, its your body and you are stuck with it regardless of surgery outcome... If you don't like the answer ask some other DR. Look into alternate practitioners too, they are not all quacks.
Look up OSTEOPATHY and read about it. Traumatic events have hidden surprises tucked into your earthly shell.
BTDT 3 times, still recovering 45 yrs later
Best wishes,
KID #51B 4s 140W to 24V 900Ah C&D AGM
CL#29032 FW 2126/ 2073/ 2133 175A E-Panel WBjr, 3 x 4s 140W to 24V 900Ah C&D AGM
Cotek ST1500W 24V Inverter,OmniCharge 3024,
2 x Cisco WRT54GL i/c DD-WRT Rtr & Bridge,
Eu3/2/1000i Gens, 1680W & E-Panel/WBjr to come, CL #647 asleep
West Chilcotin, BC, Canada -
Re: LP Fridge for Off Grid Application
Done the PRE surgery most of my adult life and just had my lower back fused yesterday. -
Re: LP Fridge for Off Grid Application
hope the prognosis is good. how's it seem from your perspective? any numbness, pain, recovery time, etc? -
Re: LP Fridge for Off Grid Application
I have several questions to ask in the middle of me running my mouth. I'm told the the generator is only efficient when charging up to 80% or a little higher.I'm to understand that the rest of the charging needs to come from PV to be efficient. If my autonomy is just over a day, am I correct to understand that I can only gain autonomy from a larger storage? I have tried to bring the battery up to 80-90 % in the morning and let the panels "top" the battery off which does not happen. I do understand that more panels will enable me to top off the battery with other that the generator. Now then, what happens on that particularly cloudy/stormy when the batterys go down and and the generator is not running? At his point I believe that the only way to gain autonomy would be conservation, get rid of something that uses enough power, or a larger battery bank. I don't see enough conservation happening to make enough difference and with the battery being over two years old I'd really need to replace the batery already in use which would be about $6500 plus another $6500 to upgrade from the "old" battery totaling $13,000. I can"t see that happening. I truly hope that I'm missing something in all this as theb only realistic way for me to increase my autonomy would be going back to the idea of the propane refrigerator. This is being a a troubling little circle.
THANX from confused again......................... -
Re: LP Fridge for Off Grid ApplicationI'm told the the generator is only efficient when charging up to 80% or a little higher.I'm to understand that the rest of the charging needs to come from PV to be efficient.
If this was me... 50% or over for a "standard" genset is fuel efficient... The <80% or so was a derating for "consumer" type generators. Battery chargers that can be programmed to run at near 100% name plate for a consumer type generator--Will probably overheat the alternator head/wiring (anything more than 5-30 minutes or so). Derating to ~75-80% of Watts (really VA) rating of genset is just to acknowledge that only a prime mover rated genset can probably operated (reliably) at near 100% of rated output. Chris Olson has used a number of smaller gensets and finds that many cannot even supply name plate for a very short period of time (not trying to put words in Chris' mouth--just my memory from other posts of his).If my autonomy is just over a day, am I correct to understand that I can only gain autonomy from a larger storage? I have tried to bring the battery up to 80-90 % in the morning and let the panels "top" the battery off which does not happen.
You can run 50-80% daily cycling with recharging to >90% state of charge every 5-10 days or so for true deep cycle batteries. Charging 80% and especially >90% SOC is not very efficient (or fast).
If the panels are not charging the battery bank as expected (watt array*0.77 derate*1/Vbatt-charging=Amps), then we need to look at the each section of the system.
Is the array voltage/current as expected (Vmp-array, Imp-array)? Is the charge controller in MPPT (maximum current mode) when the battery needs the current? What are the settings for the charge controller (absorb voltage, float voltage, absorb time, charge termination current, etc.)? What is the battery bank voltage (Vabsorb ~59-60 volts for 2-4 hours per day)? Etc.I do understand that more panels will enable me to top off the battery with other that the generator. Now then, what happens on that particularly cloudy/stormy when the batteries go down and and the generator is not running?
Use the generator directly to power periods of heavy loads (cooking, shop, cleaning). For example, just use the genset to keep the battery bank in the 50-80% range during the week, and fully charge the batteries >90% on Saturday or Sunday.At his point I believe that the only way to gain autonomy would be conservation, get rid of something that uses enough power, or a larger battery bank.
From earlier posts/discussions--I am not sure I understand your power needs. They seemed to be on the high side (or the generator/solar array was terribly inefficient).
A nice Battery Monitor (Victron is another good brand) can be a good help to understand what you doing to the battery bank (charging, discharging, etc.). With the understanding that you still use the hydrometer as the "gold standard" for estimating battery state of charge (Battery Monitors need programming and can be confused in some cases, and/or drift over time).
A Watt*Hour meter on the genset (there are lots of used utility meters on Ebay--Or here new). If you can, also keep track of fuel use... If you are >>5kWH per gallon of diesel, your genset is being operated efficiently. If you are <<3kWH per gallon, you might be able to "do better" (just some rough guesswork numbers).I don't see enough conservation happening to make enough difference and with the battery being over two years old I'd really need to replace the battery already in use which would be about $6500 plus another $6500 to upgrade from the "old" battery totaling $13,000. I can"t see that happening. I truly hope that I'm missing something in all this as the only realistic way for me to increase my autonomy would be going back to the idea of the propane refrigerator. This is being a a troubling little circle.
I don't think a propane fridge should make much difference at all... Put a kill-a-Watt type meter on the fridge and see what it is using every day. Even a "poor" fridge at 2kWH per day would use:
2,000 WH per day * 1/0.85 inverter eff * 1/48 volts = 49 @ 48 volts per 24 hour day
That is "round off error" for your battery bank.THANX from confused again.........................
Start from the basics. Put the battery in the middle and make sure it is running "OK" (specific gravity in the range you need).
Then look at one part of your system. Say loads... Figure out how much you are using per day (AH/kWH/WH, etc.).
Then look at each power source. For example, is the Solar array + charge controller outputting the expected output on a sunny day:
3,100 Watts * 0.77 panel+controller derating * 6+ hours for sunny summer day = 14,322 Watt*Hours per day (from MPPT controllers)
14,322 WH / 48 volt battery bank = 289 AH @ 48 volts useful power from solar array
3,100 Watts * 0.52 system derating * 6 hours of sun per day = 9,672 Watt*Hours of "useful" AC power into your loads per day
If your solar panels are not doing the above--Then either your bank is full (battery+loads do not accept maximum available power), or there is probably something "not right" with the solar power subsection of your power system.
After you get the loads + Solar Power straightened out, then we can talk about genset+AC charger. You have to understand a piece at time. For the most part, the loads+Inverter vs the Charging system do not really interact with each other (other than as battery state of charge).
-BillNear San Francisco California: 3.5kWatt Grid Tied Solar power system+small backup genset -
Re: LP Fridge for Off Grid Application
Couple of different percentages confused, I think.
Generators are most efficient when operating at >50% rated capacity. Below that you're burning a lot of fuel for a few Watts.
This translates into not using the generator to bring the batteries to 100% SOC, the average cut-off being 80%. If the gen is sized just right for the batteries + loads by the time the bank gets above 80% their capacity the gen's output is down around 50% of its capacity and then you stop and hope the panels can finish.
Just sort of general guidelines, not hard-and fast rules. Sometimes you have to waste the fuel and bring the batteries all the way up with the gen even though it's not fuel efficient 'cause the weather doesn't co-operate. -
Re: LP Fridge for Off Grid Application
if your solar can't top off the batteries on an average day where the genset was run for a couple hours in the early AM, then something is majorly wrong or imbalanced. You likely have TOO MUCH battery or TOO small solar PV.Powerfab top of pole PV mount | Listeroid 6/1 w/st5 gen head | XW6048 inverter/chgr | Iota 48V/15A charger | Morningstar 60A MPPT | 48V, 800A NiFe Battery (in series)| 15, Evergreen 205w "12V" PV array on pole | Midnight ePanel | Grundfos 10 SO5-9 with 3 wire Franklin Electric motor (1/2hp 240V 1ph ) on a timer for 3 hr noontime run - Runs off PV ||
|| Midnight Classic 200 | 10, Evergreen 200w in a 160VOC array ||
|| VEC1093 12V Charger | Maha C401 aa/aaa Charger | SureSine | Sunsaver MPPT 15A
solar: http://tinyurl.com/LMR-Solar
gen: http://tinyurl.com/LMR-Lister , -
Re: LP Fridge for Off Grid Application
I promise that I will get my head wrapped around this. Just went over to the frige to look at the kill-a-watt meter that's been inline for almost a year. I need a new meter as this one only has a blank screen.
I am absolutely positive that I don't have enough panels for the battery and I still have over 2,000 watts to get up. -
Re: LP Fridge for Off Grid Application
don't forget that after the battery gets to float that the fridge can use power that is otherwise lost or wasted.
KID #51B 4s 140W to 24V 900Ah C&D AGM
CL#29032 FW 2126/ 2073/ 2133 175A E-Panel WBjr, 3 x 4s 140W to 24V 900Ah C&D AGM
Cotek ST1500W 24V Inverter,OmniCharge 3024,
2 x Cisco WRT54GL i/c DD-WRT Rtr & Bridge,
Eu3/2/1000i Gens, 1680W & E-Panel/WBjr to come, CL #647 asleep
West Chilcotin, BC, Canada -
Re: LP Fridge for Off Grid Application
Plugged the kill-a-watt meter back into the fridge and I reccon it reset itself.................... -
Re: LP Fridge for Off Grid Application
After plugging the kill-a-watt meter back into the fridge for 24 hours, it's telling me that it's drawing a little over 2,000 Watt*Hours per day. BB, it hit your mark on useage....... now it's time to check the sears 8 cf freezer just for the heck of it.
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