Running the Refer on the road

[The Cralls]

I have s 2012 and the refer runs on propane and 120. The propane on mine shuts off whenever the tow vehicle is shut off for about 20 min so you can fuel up. It was in the Dometic reading material.

[AWCHIEF]

Originally Posted by thecralls

I have s 2012 and the refer runs on propane and 120. The propane on mine shuts off whenever the tow vehicle is shut off for about 20 min so you can fuel up. It was in the Dometic reading material.

Interesting, I wonder how it knows. People have posted this before but have been unable to verify that it actually happens.

[ghaynes755]

Domestic does have this feature of a lockout but I don't think it is installed in an Airstream trailer. Likely for motorhomes. From my manual I found this.

TEMPORARY GAS LOCKOUT
When the refrigerator’s temporary gas lockout is energized, the LP gas operation will automatically lock out for 15 minutes when the engine is switched off. This will prevent LP gas operation e.g. when stopping at a refueling station. See Installation Instructions ALTERNATOR (D+) CONNEC- TION to install this feature.

And this to learn more about the connection. http://www.dometic.com/QBankFiles3/E...ring_29333.pdf

[airdreamers]

Originally Posted by SSquared

My 13 foot Scamp trailer has a tiny fridge with 3-way power. We run it on 12 volts on the road.

My 25FB Flying Cloud has a larger fridge with 2-way power. We have mucho solar on the roof (435 watts) and an inverter, and we run the fridge on 110 when on the road. Some travel days we end with the batteries 100% charged, some other days they are down by maybe 10 or 20 amp-hours.

SSquared, Would you mind sharing some info regarding your inverter you use to power your refer. I too have solar but just 300 watts. Will this be enough wattage to do what you do?

[SSquared]

Originally Posted by airdreamers

SSquared, Would you mind sharing some info regarding your inverter you use to power your refer. I too have solar but just 300 watts. Will this be enough wattage to do what you do?

I have a Magnum 1000 watt pure sine wave interter/charger. The inverter has a remote display that shows the current it is pulling from the battery.

My solar system has a controller made by Blue Sky, that controller has a remote that shows the current produced by the solar system. It also has a "shunt" installed near the batteries. that allows it to sense and display the current being drawn from/put into the batteries.

The batteries are a pair of group 27 AGM batteries (Lifeline brand).

When the fridge is running off the inverter, the inverter display says it is drawing around 31 amps of current from the 12 volt system.

The solar system typically produces 25 amps around the middle of the day.

The alternator from the car also contributes power. I have not measured this directly, but once I saw the battery receiving 2 amps of charge when the fridge was running on the inverter and the solar was providing about 25 amps. That says the car was providing 8 amps.

For your 300 solar watt system, you can probably get 17 amps (less if your solar controller is not as efficient as the Blue Sky). At high noon, you would be drawing 14 amps from your batteries and/or car. Depending on how much power you get from the car, that might not be too bad. But on a partly cloudy day, or later in the afternoon on a sunny day, you'll pull a lot of power out of your batteries.

Offhand, I would say that if you don't have enough solar power combined with the power from your car to run the fridge at high noon (without using the batteries), it will probably not work out for you.

[aftermath]

Originally Posted by AtomicNo13

There is a big difference in proximity between a b van (as in the video) and a travel trailer. My fridge is more than 20 feet away from the fuel fill on my tow vehicle. When I pull in to fuel, my trailer is nowhere near a pump, or usually even under a canopy!

First of all, thanks to Al and Missy for posting this story. I am the one who has asked for any proof of any fire caused by a fridge running down the road and this is the closest one I have seen. But, as I understand after reading the story, this was not an Airstream trailer but a van. On top of that the driver managed to spill gasoline not just on the ground but on the van itself. I can certainly see how this thing went up.

Those who have posted that have solar power and an inverter might have the best solution for avoiding using LP when traveling. This is the first alternative that makes sense to me. Nice solution.

I agree with Mr. Aluminum's post above. With the filler on one side and the fridge on the other side I think it would be a challenge for any one of us to spray enough gasoline around to get things to ignite. Possible? Perhaps.

[lewster]

Originally Posted by SSquared

I have a Magnum 1000 watt pure sine wave interter/charger. The inverter has a remote display that shows the current it is pulling from the battery.



My solar system has a controller made by Blue Sky, that controller has a remote that shows the current produced by the solar system. It also has a "shunt" installed near the batteries. that allows it to sense and display the current being drawn from/put into the batteries.



The batteries are a pair of group 27 AGM batteries (Lifeline brand).



When the fridge is running off the inverter, the inverter display says it is drawing around 31 amps of current from the 12 volt system.



The solar system typically produces 25 amps around the middle of the day.



The alternator from the car also contributes power. I have not measured this directly, but once I saw the battery receiving 2 amps of charge when the fridge was running on the inverter and the solar was providing about 25 amps. That says the car was providing 8 amps.



For your 300 solar watt system, you can probably get 17 amps (less if your solar controller is not as efficient as the Blue Sky). At high noon, you would be drawing 14 amps from your batteries and/or car. Depending on how much power you get from the car, that might not be too bad. But on a partly cloudy day, or later in the afternoon on a sunny day, you'll pull a lot of power out of your batteries.



Offhand, I would say that if you don't have enough solar power combined with the power from your car to run the fridge at high noon (without using the batteries), it will probably not work out for you.

You are doing your Lifeline batteries a great disservice if you allow them to be charged by an unregulated automotive alternator.

Lifeline recommends either to disable the charge line from the TV by pulling the fuse or by disconnect of the 7-way's umbilical charge connection at the trailer.

By continually pumping the alternator's 14.2-14.4VDC constant output into Lifelines, you never allow them to float charge, as they are seeing a steady bulk/absorb charge from the alternator.

You have solar too, so do your Lifelines a favor and kill the charge line! Your batteries will be much happier.


Lew Farber
RVIA/RVDA Nationally Certified Master Tech
Master Tech Energy Systems, Inc.
AM Solar Certified Installation Center
Lifeline Batteries**Magnum Inverters
541-490-6357

[m.hony]

Originally Posted by Howard L.

Meant to ask about trailer, not RV. How many trailers or RVs are out there now running pilot lites on any appliance now?

They're all RV's.
Travel trailer is a type or category of RV- Recreational Vehicle-
Motor Home is another type or category of RV.
A fifth wheel is an RV.
A Class A motor home is an RV.
A Class B motor home is an RV.
A Class C motor home is an RV.
A travel trailer is an RV.
A pop-up trailer is an RV.
A teardrop trailer is an RV.
They're all RV's.
RV doesn't just mean motor home.

[moxie t. moto]

Question
are you suppose to shut off the propane tank if it is running the fridge while traveling down the hgw. And you pull in to fuel your tow vehicle?
Appears to be a good safety issue, but this is the first ive heard of it.

[aftermath]

No need to turn off the propane at the tank. Those who choose to shut down the fridge when refueling simply turn the fridge off. When off, there is no pilot light and no chance of a flame coming on. Once you drive away from the pumps you can pull over and turn the fridge back on and be on your way.

[AtomicNo13]

I think it's simply a simple case of a little common sense going a long way!
Yes pumping gas on a pilot light will result in an explosion, keeping a safe distance most likely will not!

Buyer beware!

[boblind]

I run my Airstream (Dometic) on 110vac using an invertor. The propane is not on while traveling.
300 watt investor powering refer circuit only, using a separate dedicated 12 vdc cord to the invertor. 10 gauge wire from TV batteries through a receptacle on rear bumper. Total cost for 2 relays 30' of wire and investor about $300.

[Jacob D]

Our '67 has an opening directly under the flame for the reefer which is approx 15' from the TV gas fill. That distance is probably enough to dissipate fumes from fill up, but my great fear is a spill which could run under the trailer and foom! I stop and turn the gas off before driving to the pump.

[Glenritas]

In the past on our other trailers we ran with the propane on . When pulling in for gas I would check the wind direction and stay up wind of the pumps on the outside island.
If that wasn't an option I would shut off the refer.

Now on our Tradewind I only have 120v & 12v available at this time . I haven't installed the propane system yet.
So on the last 2 trips I ran 12v while on the road the refer worked great and the Tundra kept the battery up. We've covered over 2500 miles so far.

[The Cralls]

I have stood next to the refer and opened the door and watched the flame shut off, then turn on again. You can hear it if you are standing next to the refer, the igniter will make a noise when it re-lights. So I do know it works.

[Howard L.]

Originally Posted by m.hony

They're all RV's.

Travel trailer is a type or category of RV- Recreational Vehicle-

Motor Home is another type or category of RV.

A fifth wheel is an RV.

A Class A motor home is an RV.

A Class B motor home is an RV.

A Class C motor home is an RV.

A travel trailer is an RV.

A pop-up trailer is an RV.

A teardrop trailer is an RV.

They're all RV's.

RV doesn't just mean motor home.

Thanks so much Mr. Hony. I'm going to write all that down, so I don't screw up that RV thing ever again.


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[AWCHIEF]

Originally Posted by howard l.

thanks so much mr. Hony. I'm going to write all that down, so i don't screw up that rv thing ever again.


Sent from my ipad using airstream forums

lmao😜