LP Fridge for Off Grid Application

chevenstein wrote: »

Wow, what great responses. Thank you all!

The intended use is full time; this is a full time year round residence where grid power is not cost effective to bring on site. My biggest worry with the large LP fridge is that it will not be able to keep cool effectively and longevity and fuel consumption.

On the other hand, the idea of expanding the array/adding batteries/running the backup genset more frequently just on account of the fridge bugs the heck out of me. ~1KW HR per day for a good AC electric model still seems like a lot of power to come up with to keep my beer and her foodstuffs cold, is this with the auto-defroster enabled?

Finally, if we go with this Diamond model, does anyone have experience with them as a company and that product, specifically? (If it was me alone believe me - there'd be a salvaged RV fridge in the kitchen!)

icarus wrote: »

Here is my take,, at least take one. A I suggested earlier and Ccoot seconded, the more you use a fridge the more a conventional makes sense.

You can however skew the numbers in favour of an LP if you do a few things. The first is, install a evaporator fan and a condenser fan that are triggered to come on when the condenser coils get warm. This will increase the efficiency considerably. (Cost about $20 for the T-stat, and some junk fans from computers. I run 24vdc off of 12 vdc so they are almost silent.

Next, add ~2" of styrofoam board on the sides, top of the cabinet. (You can also do the door. You can make it look pretty good if you plan carefully. This will also increase the efficiency and reduce the run time.

Next, I am a great fan of Dometics. Over the years we have used Servel/dometic fridges, some of which are over 50 years old, and they still run fine. The modern Dometics require 12vdc for the control boards regardless of if they are burning LP or running on 120vac or 12vdc. Because they are electronically controlled, they turn off and on as needed instead of going to low (pilot) flame and as a consequence they burn less gas over time. That said, the electronics can be a bit delicate, but spare control boards are under $100, and the aftermarket boards are very reliable. I keep a spare around just is case.

I have used other brands including Consuls, Sibiers, and a sister brand to Consul that I can't remember. I have also installed a couple of big full sized units (prospector or pioneer or some darn thing. These were horrible since the cooling units were for smaller fridges and they could never get/or stay cold unless we covered them with blankets!) The Consuls work fine, and the Sibiers were quite good units. I don't know if they are still available.

Given a choice, for some basic part time, I would by a Dometic Americana series. The largest is still smaller than a conventional fridge, so we often run two at a time during the time of year we are island bound.

Lp fridges are more expensive than good conventional, and way more expensive than cheap conventionals. You can cut the price by buying GOOD used. The biggest single issue is if they have been run out of level, the cooling unit can be damaged easily. You can buy fridges with damaged cooling units for nothing or next to nothing, and then buy a cooling unit to replace it. They are not too hard to replace. You can also buy used fridges for next to nothing from RV wrecking yards. There are a couple of places that sell rebuilt fridges for about 1/3 the price of new. If you can find a reputable rebuilder/reseller it might make sense. I have bought several over the years with good success.

So the long and short is, if you are starting from the ground up, and you are going to use it full time, then start with a good energy start conventional and size the solar system accordingly. If you already have a building and system, get a good LP and work to make it more efficient.

Tony

Coach Dad wrote: »

.....It lights first or second click in warm weather but it could take several minutes to light when the cabin is below freezing inside. .......

icarus wrote: »

Tool,
PS. Part o f the reason it may be hard to light in the winter is two fold. (guessing!) one is lower manifold pressure avaialbe due to cold temps at the tank. Depending on how cold it is tank pressure can drop enough so that no gas can get out at all -45f or so! As a tip, light the fridge before you light any high BTU draw burners like ovens, heaters or water heaters. That said, I do lift a stove burner to quickly purge the line between the tank and the appliance if the tank has been off for a while.

The second reason it may be hard to light is the flue has to "push out" all the cold air in the flue in order to work. Until the fridge can purge this air, it may down draft and put the flame out.

Finally, I would NOT install a LP frige in a newish building ( read relatively tight!) without providing a flue vented to the outside. It is so simple to do, and the margin of safety is so much greater. In the I'd days, LP fridges in cabins that were essentially screened porches were fine, but nowadays the danger is too great. People die every year at fishing resorts in our area by not having proper vents. Failing that, it'll a good CO monitoring system.

One more final note to Mike etc, Remember while it maye -40 outside it isn't very useful to keep food. Thee is no middle ground, 60 inside is too wrm to keep food, but -40 outside is ay to cold. As an aside, when we come home from town we put veggies in the cooler in the winter to keep them warm! Cooler, wrapped in a tarp, and home fast at -20.