Propane or 12V Refrigerator Options for a 2005 Montana 2980RL

[LyndyD]

Mother (84) and son (63) team just purchased a 2005 Keystone Montana 2980RL. Mother and husband (passed away) owned the same model from 2005-2014. Excited to spend quality time together and create new memories.

Rig was one owner, obviously cared for. The only issue is the refrigerator is electric only. Any help in locating a propane/electric refrigerator would be appreciated. Thank you in advance.

Look forward to meeting one of the “gang” on an RVing adventure.

Oh, how do we post on the forum..........not very tech savvy.

 

[Mikendebbie]

Your post looks fine! Welcome to the forum!
It would help if you can post a manufacturer/name of your current fridge.
The industry has been trending toward residential refrigerators - most of which are electric, even though there are 12 volt residential fridges available.
The “traditional” RV fridges that run on battery/propane/ or electric may be going the way of the dinosaur. Norcold Corp. declared bankruptcy last year.

Anyway, let us know what your current electric fridge is and someone can tell you what the original fridge would have been.

 

[Carl n Susan]

Welcome to the MOC!

Having owned a 2005 2955 (very similar to your 2980) i know the original fridge was a Dometic single wide propane/electric. Is yours a Dometic or some other brand? If it is a Dometic, getting the electric side working once again may be possible. Or it could be very expensive, in which case replacing it may be a better option.

 

[LyndyD]

Thank you all for your interest! Unique situation We drove from Oregon to Iowa to see this rig. Bought it on the spot. However, our KIA did not seem to like the idea of hauling it home. Long story short: Son in accident in December 2025 while towing. The 2003 Silverado 2500HD is still not repaired, going in shop Monday. Said all that to say this: we have no idea about anything in the rig. Trying to plan ahead. I looked at a rig with a 31" tub so will compare to the refrigerator cutout for a dimension. We will be waiting for truck and weather to cooperate in the near future. Happy trails.

 

[twindman]

I had a 2980 back in 2006-14. My biggest complaint is the tv is like a mile from the chairs - LOL. We got rid of the tube tv and put in a flat screen and a mount that somehow folded in (can't remember). Only other advice is if you are new to camping - don't run the black tank backflush and get distracted!! LOL Water coming out where it wasn't supposed to!

 

[RMcNeal]

Only water?

 

[danaw]

My advice, get away from propane. I removed my double door Dometic and replaced it with a Dutchman 12 volt with an icemaker. They offer several as other companies do as well. But for a very reasonable price they will install And you will be fairly close to them when you drive home.

 

[Pathfinder75]

My advice, get away from propane. I removed my double door Dometic and replaced it with a Dutchman 12 volt with an icemaker. They offer several as other companies do as well. But for a very reasonable price they will install And you will be fairly close to them when you drive home.

Confused. Dutchman is a RV trailer brand. Are you MAYBE referring to DUTCHAIRE 12V REFRIGERATORS?

 

[Kfinnert]

Good morning -

I had an 110v electric/propane refrigerator in my 2008 Monty. The problem we had was cooling when we were on propane. The unit did not cool evenly, and veggies did not keep. The other concern were the fires being reported due to propane leaks at the refrigerator. So...

We removed this refrigerator and replaced it with a 12-volt. Solved both problems mentioned above!

 

[danaw]

Yep, I meant Dutchaire. Sorry and thanks. I am seeing units from $1000 on up, depending on what you need or want.

 

[nitro9023003]

Mother (84) and son (63) team just purchased a 2005 Keystone Montana 2980RL. Mother and husband (passed away) owned the same model from 2005-2014. Excited to spend quality time together and create new memories.

Rig was one owner, obviously cared for. The only issue is the refrigerator is electric only. Any help in locating a propane/electric refrigerator would be appreciated. Thank you in advance.

Look forward to meeting one of the “gang” on an RVing adventure.

Oh, how do we post on the forum..........not very tech savvy.

Rec pro

 

[LyndyD]

Still perplexed. We have done an exhaustive search for the dimensions of the refrigerator cutout for our 2005 Keystone Montana 2980RL. We have beat all the bushes we know of to find a propane/electric refrigerator, which is hampered by a lack of dimensions (our rig is still in Iowa and we are still in Oregon!). We know 2005 is an older rig; however, hopefully someone in our Montana family has the answers. Please help. Thank you. Wesley (son) & Lyndy (Mom)