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Old 05-04-2021, 10:53 PM   #1
dfryk
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Cooling fridge in hot conditions

We will be hooking up to our Montana on a hot day (95) for our trip next week. In the past, it has taken over 24 hours to cool the fridge. Someone suggested that it will cool faster if we run it on gas rather than electricity. Does anyone have any experience with this?

Would it help to put dry ice in the fridge and freezer to aid cooling?
 
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Old 05-04-2021, 11:17 PM   #2
nellie1289
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I personally think gas is faster. I put some frozen ice packs in mine from the house to help cool it down faster but I always let it cool before I load it and try and start at least one day in advance. Prefer 2
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Old 05-05-2021, 05:45 AM   #3
DutchmenSport
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When we had gas/electric refrigerators in the past, I found running them on gas to be a bit faster than starting out on electric. We always had good refrigerators in our 3 previous travel trailers. Ours always went from ambient temperature to full made ice cubes within 8 hours, even in the hottest weather.
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Old 05-05-2021, 09:06 AM   #4
Route66Rambler
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Absorption fridges just take 24-36 hours to cool due to the nature of how they work of removing heat from the inside box and not making cold air like a standard fridge.
Just make sure you turn on the fridge between 2pm-5pm so that it will run the defrost cycle in the middle of the night and not during the day. Read your manual for details.
Get the fans that attach to the cooling fins to circulate the air and prevent ice buildup on the fins. Makes a big difference.

https://jc-refrigeration.com/product...an-23-a-12v-u/
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Old 05-05-2021, 09:14 AM   #5
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Dan,

I always fire mine up 24 hours before loading it for a trip. Gas works better than a/c. Make sure all the food is cold before going in.
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Old 05-05-2021, 09:53 AM   #6
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We full time so never have to deal with startup cooling. But to the question of cooling when in hot weather, we have the ARP device with the two additional fans, one at the bottom vent cover and the other at the top, which are controlled by the ARP device. These fans are separate from the factory fans and in hot weather you need extra air flow when these fridges are in slides. We have been close to 100 degrees here in AZ for several weeks now and the fridge is exposed to the south so it’s getting full afternoon sun and heat and is still working great.
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Old 05-05-2021, 12:12 PM   #7
dfryk
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Thanks for the comment. What is an ARP device? I've not heard of that. We are coming to the Phoenix area next week and might need it.
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Old 05-05-2021, 12:17 PM   #8
nellie1289
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on a residential fridge is this crap really necessary? was in palm springs when it was 100 in april and fridge seemed plenty cold at all times in our 2021.
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Old 05-05-2021, 01:39 PM   #9
skippydoo
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Hey
We live in the South...Carolina South, HOT, humid. We only travel to hot hot locations.
We just turn it on about 1 day in advance (if turned off for some reason) load it up and off we go. We never had to prep our Montana fridge for anything.
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Old 05-05-2021, 02:27 PM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by dfryk View Post
Thanks for the comment. What is an ARP device? I've not heard of that. We are coming to the Phoenix area next week and might need it.
https://www.arprv.com/index.php
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Old 05-05-2021, 02:31 PM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by rohrmann View Post
We full time so never have to deal with startup cooling. But to the question of cooling when in hot weather, we have the ARP device with the two additional fans, one at the bottom vent cover and the other at the top, which are controlled by the ARP device. These fans are separate from the factory fans and in hot weather you need extra air flow when these fridges are in slides. We have been close to 100 degrees here in AZ for several weeks now and the fridge is exposed to the south so it’s getting full afternoon sun and heat and is still working great.
Do you have the cooling unit ventilator fan and the internal defrost circulation blower fan in addition to the ARP Fridge Protection Control with Fan Controller?
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Old 05-05-2021, 09:28 PM   #12
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I have this ARP setup, https://www.arprv.com/products.php#4-arp-3.1-2-fan, which works great. You definitely need to be very careful to not let the rig sit out of level when the fridge is operating. If the boiler gets too hot, crystals will start to form in the coolant and start reducing the performance of the fridge. That excess heat will also weaken the steel in the plumbing of the unit and you risk having a leak. If it's hot outside or especially when the sun is shining on the fridge slide and it's hot, the fans are working in addition to the factory fans which makes a huge difference.

I also have one of these, which has been working well, attached to the cooling fins in the fridge. https://rvcoolingunit.com/Norcold-Ev...-P5984717.aspx
ARP also has an interior fan option with one or two fans. I installed all this after having my second cooling unit replacement in 2015, and this cooling unit with all these parts has been performing great. It was 100 degrees here today, sun shining on the fridge slide, and the freezer right now is in the middle teens and the fridge is just under 40 degrees.

I have also had to replace the factory fan switch which is attached to the cooling fins near the top of the cooling unit, accessible in the upper vent area. I noticed a few years ago that the fridge wasn't quite working as well as it had been, and the factory fans weren't working. I replaced the switch, and they were again working. https://rvcoolingunit.com/Norcold-Fa...-P1802602.aspx

If you are unsure about the ARP device or have questions or need support after purchase, Paul Unmack's personal cell phone is the number at the bottom of their web site. (406) 494-1959 He regularly puts on presentations at Quartzsite and even does installs out there. Paul and his wife Mao designed the ARP device and are very sharp about the RV fridges. Unfortunately, I don't get a cut from sales or their products, but I am a happy customer.
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Old 05-06-2021, 11:41 AM   #13
dfryk
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Thanks for all the suggestions. They are helpful and appreciated.
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Old 05-07-2021, 09:00 AM   #14
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Rohrmann, how do the outside fans attach to 12V? Do they provide the wiring and is there some sort of thermostat? Thanks.
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Old 05-07-2021, 07:26 PM   #15
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Originally Posted by twindman View Post
Rohrmann, how do the outside fans attach to 12V? Do they provide the wiring and is there some sort of thermostat? Thanks.

You need to provide enough wiring to reach the fans when you install them, so you will need basic connectors and tools, cable ties, and possibly other items. The ARP control device is what turns on the fans when it senses heat from the operation of the fridge cooling system. The factory pancake fans operate when the snap switch on the fins near the top of the fridge senses heat, and then those fans come on, independent of the ARP device.
If you go to the ARP site, https://www.arprv.com/ , they have info on the operation of their device and also detailed operation and installation instructions and video's. Most questions can be answered by the information on their site.
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Old 05-07-2021, 08:03 PM   #16
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Tom,

I had the folks Bob mentioned in the earlier post install mine. They did it fairly quickly and are often in AZ. The extra fans really help.
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Old 05-09-2021, 01:30 PM   #17
Bill T
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Have to circulate the air in the fridge to help it cool. My first attempt was a RV refrigerator fan the ran on D batteries. It helped but didn’t quite do the job. I can cross a fan on eBay that hooks to the fins in the back of the fridge and that worked like a champ. The fan gets its power from the light in the fridge so it’s not had to wire up. Very hot days I turn the fridge to level 5 and run both fans..
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Old 05-09-2021, 02:14 PM   #18
VagabondLove
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Not sure if yours is a Dometic fridge, but this might also be interesting...
https://www.montanaowners.com/forums...ad.php?t=83845
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Old 05-09-2021, 05:51 PM   #19
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I bought 4 12v muffin fans, a 130F thermostatic button switch, several feet of #18 wire, and a 12v inline fuse holder. I mounter the fans at the top sucking air through, as opposed to pushing air from the bottom. The fans are attached with tie-wraps!

My 1201LRIM cools down in less than 12 hours and maintains the refer box at 33-40F and the freezers at -18. Regardless of the weather.

Before doing this (8 years ago) I was ready to scrap the refer.
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Old 05-10-2021, 04:04 PM   #20
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Ours cools pretty fast on gas. Plus we have learned over the years to load it with already cold groceries, then it doesn't have to play catch up.
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