refrigerator run on 12v when not on shore power?

[jmurphyxxl]

Our 2021 Montana 295RL has a GE® Energy Star 18.6 cu. ft. refrigerator & 2000w inverter. Does this mean it will stay cold on 12v when dry camping? I'm concerned about drain on the battery. Considering solar or small generator option, any suggestions?

[twindman]

Don't have one, but everything I have read is it will drain batteries in 12-24 hours. They say traveling all day it ok.

[jmurphyxxl]

Thanks.

[jcurtis934]

I don't know what the max and average power draw is for this fridge, but you should be able to find that info either in documents or online from another user who has studied it. #1- what kind of batteries do you have? Lead acid can only be drained to 50% before you affect the life of this type of battery. Lithium iron phosphate can be drained down to very low levels without affecting their life. Inverters are at best around 90% efficient. This means if you feed it with 12vdc to produce that 120vac, that it will use more amps or watts than it can provide. So, think about this...to provide 1 amp of 120vac for thr fridge, it will take around 12 or more amps of 12vdc out of the battery/ies. So if you had one lead acid battery that was spec'd at 75 amp/hrs, you can only take 37 amp hrs out before you have to turn off the drain. If your fridge took 1 amp of 120vac to run all the time, then that means it takes 12 amps at 12vdc and you have only 3 hours of runtime max. But, in real life the fridge should cycle on and off, ie duty cycle and you should get x times as long. You should be able to figure out how long you can run knowing what I have given you. How you recharge is up to personal taste and what you wish to spend. John

[AZ Traveler]

Jim,

Welcome to the forum!

What kind of camping are you planning and describe your battery bank? With a little more info we can get you a better answer.

[Foldbak]

Originally Posted by jmurphyxxl

Our 2021 Montana 295RL has a GE® Energy Star 18.6 cu. ft. refrigerator & 2000w inverter. Does this mean it will stay cold on 12v when dry camping? I'm concerned about drain on the battery. Considering solar or small generator option, any suggestions?

I have the same rig and solar setup but I don't think the fridge is inverted.

[Paul M]

The simple answer is yes it will. I have a120 volt Samsung digital, it draws about 5 amps, on lead acid with ice maker off, you might get 8 hours with 2 batteries.
I changed to 200 amp hr lithium and can get 3 times that. You will need a generator or solar source for longer dry camping Hope this helps

[rames14]

Beware of talking amps. 5 amps AC = 600 watts. 600 watts from DC is 50 amps/hr. Also, lead acid batteries will drop below 12v before you reach 50%. Just additional food for thought.

[77cruiser]

You might get 6-8 hrs. on a good group 27 battery.

[Arkware]

For dry camping I would suggest a minimum of 400 watts of solar paired with 200 amp hours of lithium batteries just to mostly keep your fridge running. Always carry a genny for the cloudy days.

[Paul M]

That’s what I have,same setup