Post by John Palmer on Oct 2, 2020 20:14:36 GMT -8
After you recover from the sticker shock of buying a new RV "two, or three way", refrigerator, many people start looking for alternative options to keep the beer cold. The inexpensive, small dorm type, and Retro type refrigerators fall into this category. We are talking about a hundred bucks new compared to a RV refrigerator that sells for many times that much.
I camped in my Spartan while it was being restored over several years. I had a $20 yard sale purchased dorm refrigerator temporarily strapped to the wall setting on top of the fender well during my camping trips. I have used, that very old refrigerator for many years in shops, and offices, as well as thousands of miles in the Spartan during the restoration. It's still working just fine in my office.
Please do not think these can just be set into a trailer and work without considering some issues. Lets talk about some of the things you should consider.
1) A refrigerator is just a heat exchanger. In basic terms, it sucks the heat out of your Coke Can and dissipates the same heat BTU's out of the back of the refrigerator. That heat should be evacuated "outside" of the trailer or it just heats up the inside of the trailer.
2) The efficiency of a cooling device like a refrigerator is limited by the ambient temperature (lets keep this a simple discussion). If you keep the trailer interior cool, or cooler by evacuating the warm refrigerator exhaust the refrigerator will cool better.
3) One of the big differences (besides 12 volt, and propane) between the high priced RV units and the Dorm refrigerators is the RV units are designed to efficiently evacuate the hot exhaust air out of the trailer.
4) The RV units are designed to be securely screwed/bolted into the vehicle cabinet. The Dorm Refrigerators have no means for mounting. I have used several Dorm refrigerators in different trailer projects. I have used 1 1/2" wide by 1/16" thick aluminum angle. I screw it to the refrigerator body sides forming a lip around the refrigerator. This lip is then screwed to the cabinet face. I makes for a secure mounting for a minimal cost. The aluminum can be sanded and polished to a chrome like finish.
5) Hot air rises, cool air sinks. When adapting something that was designed to sit on a shelf in a room, to a moving vehicle you need to figure out a way to supply cold/cool air with a good flow into the bottom of the refrigerator. The cool air will not get to the cooling fins on the rear of the refrigerator unless you have a clear way for the hot/heated air to escape up. That heated air is best evacuated to the exterior of the trailer like we previously discussed. I have seen computer fans used to move the heated air, but your just kidding your self unless it gets moved to the outside.
6) Secure positive latch, You need to fabricate a secure locking latch to keep the door closed during the road travel. The magnetic door strip seals will not hold the doors closed during transit. I like to use a door drop pin, you can find the replacement ones at any RV parts store. They come with a small chain so you do not loose them during camping.
Just a few things to consider when you go the mini refrigerator route.
John
I camped in my Spartan while it was being restored over several years. I had a $20 yard sale purchased dorm refrigerator temporarily strapped to the wall setting on top of the fender well during my camping trips. I have used, that very old refrigerator for many years in shops, and offices, as well as thousands of miles in the Spartan during the restoration. It's still working just fine in my office.
Please do not think these can just be set into a trailer and work without considering some issues. Lets talk about some of the things you should consider.
1) A refrigerator is just a heat exchanger. In basic terms, it sucks the heat out of your Coke Can and dissipates the same heat BTU's out of the back of the refrigerator. That heat should be evacuated "outside" of the trailer or it just heats up the inside of the trailer.
2) The efficiency of a cooling device like a refrigerator is limited by the ambient temperature (lets keep this a simple discussion). If you keep the trailer interior cool, or cooler by evacuating the warm refrigerator exhaust the refrigerator will cool better.
3) One of the big differences (besides 12 volt, and propane) between the high priced RV units and the Dorm refrigerators is the RV units are designed to efficiently evacuate the hot exhaust air out of the trailer.
4) The RV units are designed to be securely screwed/bolted into the vehicle cabinet. The Dorm Refrigerators have no means for mounting. I have used several Dorm refrigerators in different trailer projects. I have used 1 1/2" wide by 1/16" thick aluminum angle. I screw it to the refrigerator body sides forming a lip around the refrigerator. This lip is then screwed to the cabinet face. I makes for a secure mounting for a minimal cost. The aluminum can be sanded and polished to a chrome like finish.
5) Hot air rises, cool air sinks. When adapting something that was designed to sit on a shelf in a room, to a moving vehicle you need to figure out a way to supply cold/cool air with a good flow into the bottom of the refrigerator. The cool air will not get to the cooling fins on the rear of the refrigerator unless you have a clear way for the hot/heated air to escape up. That heated air is best evacuated to the exterior of the trailer like we previously discussed. I have seen computer fans used to move the heated air, but your just kidding your self unless it gets moved to the outside.
6) Secure positive latch, You need to fabricate a secure locking latch to keep the door closed during the road travel. The magnetic door strip seals will not hold the doors closed during transit. I like to use a door drop pin, you can find the replacement ones at any RV parts store. They come with a small chain so you do not loose them during camping.
Just a few things to consider when you go the mini refrigerator route.
John
