Leaving the fridge on?

[R-N-R]

Anybody care to share their wisdom, opinion, or both regarding leaving the fridge running while camping and at home in between trips (during the camping season), as opposed to emptying it and re-stocking it for each trip?



TIA,

Bill

 

[Doc Tinker]

I leave my fridge on all the time, except in winter. Easier than leaving the door open and unscrewing the bulb.



Doc

 

[Fireman]

Thats what we do. Ours runs year round, no problems yet.



Fireman

 

[Prairie Dog]

As long as their level you can leave them on as long as you want.

 

[TnLRacing]

Same here... off in the winter, but on all the time during camping season

 

[RustyJC]

Since we live on the Texas Gulf Coast, we RV year round. Therefore, our 5ver stays plugged in with the refrigerator on when it's in covered storage.



Rusty

 

[klenger]

That was close. For a minute, I thought that this was going to be another hot thread about traveling with the frig on.



Mine's off when in storage cause I got no power.

 

[R-N-R]

This is great news! Having to empty it and re-fill it every week or two would have been a royal drag. Just for the sake of being thorough, can anybody give me an idea of how long their fridge has lasted with leaving it on during camping seasons?



Thanks for your responses,

Bill

 

[FParisi]

It should last a long time. I fulltimed in mine for 3 years + generally leave it on all year long.

With no moving parts I think it will last longer used than not.

Frank

 

[JMorrow]

We have had several RVs in the past 15 years and have left the refer. on all the time, and never had any problems. The only time it would be off is if were the shop.



John

 

[Casey Balvert]

Just be sure to defrost when ice builds up on the cooling fins. You lose efficiency very quickly when this occurs. Mine runs 8 months of the year with no problems.



Casey

 

[Loren]

How do you guys get away with leaving the fridge on all the time?



Mine builds up frost so fast that I have to turn it off while we're home just to get rid of the ice. Do I have a bad seal, or am I just opening the door too much?



I really don't like having to start it up for every trip since it takes about 24 hours to cool down, but I can't keep the ice out otherwise.



Any suggestions?



Loren

 

[FParisi]

Sounds like it might be a seal. Try defrosting when you get home, then leave it on for a week or two without opening the door + their should be little frost.

Of course it might just be those humid summer days if you open the door at all.

Frank

 

[slo-ryde]

Question: How long would one of these refrigerators run on a medium sized bottle of LP? I'm not going to be near power when the trailer is in storage so if I do decide to leave it on LP is my only option.

 

[Casey Balvert]

I have to defrost once a month. Whenever my wife opens the door, she thinks she is in the refrigerated section at Walmart and just takes her time shopping. In the meantime all that cold dry air in the reefer is replaced by warm humid air. Moisture that eventually freezes to the cooling fins. The trick is to organize everything so that the reefer is open only the minimum time possible especially on humid days. If anyone knows how to train my better half let me know.



Casey

 

[FParisi]

Casey- Maybe get her to defrost it?

Slo-ryde I've run 2 weeks on 7 gal. - You'd want to recharge batteries about then I would think.

Frank

 

[Casey Balvert]

Frank, YOU get her to defrost it. She is half Irish and half Italian. Might just as well light a fuse.

 

[Bill Stockard]

Casey,

If anyone knows how to train my better half let me know.

Take it from someone who has been married for over 35 years... don't bother to try. It's hopeless and just creates unrest around the household. However, I must admit, my wife is pretty good about not keeping the door open longer than necessary.



We leave our fridge running too if we are going back out in a week or two. Just keep watch on it though. We had the electric heating element go out in one and after it is off a few days in warm weather, you'll have a real mess to clean up!!



Bill

 

[Mtngoat]

My parents live in their 5er (they are camp hosts at an RV park), and theirs has been on continuelly for 4 years. Twice they have had a circuit board replaced. As far as the cooling system no prob! I keep my Motorhome in storage most of the year as I still have a job. :{ So, its shut off all the time except when traveling and on vacation. No probs with it in 5 years.



Robin

 

[clem]

Originally posted by slo-ryde

Question: How long would one of these refrigerators run on a medium sized bottle of LP? I'm not going to be near power when the trailer is in storage so if I do decide to leave it on LP is my only option.

When your 12 volt power goes down your Refrigerator will go to max cooling the Controls needs 12 volts to control the temp. 12 volts goes away the Refer. Goes into fail mode full cold untill the gas runs out. Could take weeks. One reason to not shut the Frig down is every time the unit is shut down the condensation that has built up in the insulation on coils melts and you get rust where you can't see,and after time it eats the coils and you get a bad smell and the Fridg stops working