Turning off refrigerator before fueling TV

[perryg114]

For a long time my Ranger had a leaking fuel fill hose thanks to Ethanol. Gas would leak on the ground and I am sure I had an exhaust leak or two. The truck never blew up but it did concern me. Fumes hang low to the ground. Always best to touch the truck and the fuel hose before fueling. Static can and will ignite gas fumes as well as dropped cigarettes. Getting in and out of your truck because it is cold is not a good idea.

Perry

[MrUKToad]

Originally Posted by DKB_SATX

I suspect that this is a regional difference. Down here in the latitudes where Perry lives and where I do, the fridge won't stay cold enough inside in a day's drive in the summer unless everything in it started out frozen. This time of year, I could easily get away with what you describe, but with my fiddly old fully-manual fridge it's more trouble than it's worth, I like to keep it cold once I chill it down.

I'm avoiding this question entirely on the 28' trailer, I'm going to use a Danfoss-based 12v fridge. I'm doing that for better cooling capacity at 100F though, not to avoid having the propane on when traveling.

It is quite possibly a regional thing, DKB, although we did spend a couple of weeks one August motoring around Florida and the Gulf Coast with no fridge or freezer issues; the bag of ice in the fridge was the key to it I think.

Still, it's horses for courses, isn't it?

After years of tent camping, it's a real luxury to have a fridge at all!

[openroad118]

Leaving the frig on while fueling is a ticketable offense. I have heard stories. The above arguments may not convince a cop.

[RLS]

This may be a real dumb question, but would it be possible to use an inverter to run the frig when on the road?

[DKB_SATX]

Originally Posted by RLS

This may be a real dumb question, but would it be possible to use an inverter to run the frig when on the road?

If you have the common propane/electric absorption-cycle RV fridge, it's just not a viable option. The absorption cycle isn't particularly efficient , but it's simple and propane provides plenty of heat to make it go. 120v operation works well when you have a power supply that's unlimited for practical intents and purposes but requires too much battery to be practical on an inverter.

If you want to run a refrigerator on battery power, a Danfoss 12v fridge is a more practical solution, but they cost as much as the gas/electric RV fridges.

[Silver Goose]

Originally Posted by RLS

This may be a real dumb question, but would it be possible to use an inverter to run the frig when on the road?

Possible, but probably not practical. In over simplified terms, to generate the amount of heat needed to operate the fridge, you would need 10X the current from 12V as from 120V. To keep the batteries charged under that load, you would need a pretty stout cable from the alternator to the batteries and on to the inverter. Some of the RV fridge makers sell 3-way models that allow operation from LPG, 120VAC and 12VDC. A trailer we bought in the early 80s had one of these. It would run the battery flat in about an hour if we went shopping and the battery was nowhere near charged when we arrived at our dry campsite. From a practical standpoint these absorption cycle fridges work well on gas or 120V when you have a post to plug into.

[Alumaholic]

Originally Posted by Jammer

Gasoline vapors are much heavier than air and sink to the ground. You can stand in a puddle of gasoline and smoke a cigarette and the gasoline won't ignite unless you drop the cigarette. The prohibition on smoking near gas pumps is because of the hazard when a fuel spill is combined with a dropped cigarette or match.

... to reassure me just minutes before he set his 1954 Chevy pickup on fire trying to thaw the frozen fuel line with an open flame. The entire Aztec Volunteer Fire Department arrived in less than 15 minutes. They saved the house, but they could not save the Chevy pickup or the 1949 Chevy sedan parked next to it.
As you can imagine, it made quite an impression on 9 year old Alumaholic.
My mother, a housewife, told my father, a chemical engineer, "Bob, only a fool would stand in a puddle of gasoline and smoke a cigarette. And only a damn fool would thaw a gas line with a blow torch."
She had spent the Great Depression living in a tent because her father had burned down Aztec Motor Company keeping the city fathers' cars inside his wood-stove, heated garage in the winter before the days of automotive antifreeze and insurance.

[RLS]

OK, the inverter is out I appreciate the info

[kswelsh]

Very interesting reading all the comments. I really appreciate all your insight. Everyday I learn something new on the Forums

[perryg114]

You guys up there could use the fridge to keep things warm so they don't freeze solid. If where I am going is close to home then I just cool the fridge down and plug it in when I get where I am going. I don't bother with gas.

Perry

Originally Posted by MrUKToad

It is quite possibly a regional thing, DKB, although we did spend a couple of weeks one August motoring around Florida and the Gulf Coast with no fridge or freezer issues; the bag of ice in the fridge was the key to it I think.

Still, it's horses for courses, isn't it?

After years of tent camping, it's a real luxury to have a fridge at all!