I am curious what are your thoughts on running an RV refridgerator all the time vs. shutting it off between camping trips. (I usually take it out every month for something...and sometimes more often than that...with occasional 2 month breaks)

I store my RV (WW FS2600 Toyhauler) at an enclosed storage place with free electricity. So the expense of running the fridge all the time is irrelevant in my case.

My last camping trip.....my neighbor at the RV park said he leaves his on all the time and that is actually "better" for it to run all the time vs. shutting it down and then restarting it later. He said they are an "amonia" based system that has no moving parts. I don't really know what that means.

Mine has been fine running for weeks at a time and seems fine to shut it down too. Which way is better if one (in fact) is? I would think for convenience sake (in my case) it would be easier to just run it all the time. But the lifespan of my fridge is more important to me. Thoughts?



ps....I know I can ask this question on RV. net.....but I don't go there very often. Just thought I would ask the RVers on this site. Thanks.

 

I'm no expert, but have worked on a few of them lately.

RV fridges are ammonia absorption type, and the cooling is driven by heat provided by either an LP flame, or a 110v heating element (and sometimes a 12v heating element). There’s no compressor or other moving internal parts.

I don’t see what you would hurt running it on 110 all the time, as long as it is level. Maybe the 110 heating element would eventually require replacement, but it isn't an expensive part or difficult to change.

On the other hand, I don’t think shutting the fridge down between trips will hurt anything either. It cycles it's self on and off all the time as needed to keep the preset temp when it is running anyway.

Occasionally a circuit board will go out of them, or a thermocouple or whatever, which are fairly easy repairs. If they loose their charge, though, the cooling unit ends up getting replaced, which is an expensive part and a lot of labor.

 

I live in mine full time , but I would shut it down if there was no need , even non moving electrical parts will break down , the less use the longer it will last I would think but this is just what seems like anything els , a new part is new as long as it is not used .
But if you did not know the single biggest issue is to keep it level when in use .

 

I keep mine on all the time! 110V then by the gas when i pull out to go raceing.Less mess that way! just my 2 cents worth!

 

And I (my wife),clean ours out and shut it down whenever it's stored for more than a couple of weeks. The doors are propped open with the little clips on the door. To us, the basic advantage is letting all the plastic parts air out and deodorize. It may not be a valid reason but it works for me.

Dan

 

I shut mine off when in storage. As stated above, prop the doors open to eliminate mildew. Absorption refrig does not have any moving parts, but the electronics still go on as well as the heating coil. Why run them if not needed?
Bob

 

Ditto. But I know several people who keep them plugged in and running all summer so they don't have to pack all that food back and forth to the house everytime they go camping, with no ill effects.

I've been storing my toys in my toy hauler this summer and decided it wasn't worth the fire risk of leaving the trailer plugged-in in between trips. I know, I know... what are the odds. A properly wired trailer shouldn't burn down in the middle of the night. But it's one less thing to worry about I guess.

 

If you leave it plugged in, your batties will need to be watched closely, so they do not boil dry. You are better off, I think, leaving it not plugger in, or maybe only a 1 amp trickle now and then.

 

Leave mine on April to Oct - stocked and ready! Been doing this for twelve years on the same trailer without a hick-up. Its all personal preference.

 

I shut mine off, my brother keeps his going in his motorhome which is stored indoors in his shop. If you disconnect your batteries, the 12v supply in your rv will run the fridge just fine. The only thing i would be concerned about is if your 12v converter takes a dive and you don't check the fridge daily, you could have a skunky fridge in no time..

 

Thanks guys but it seems to be about 50/50 rather to run it or not...


I do leave the fridge door open when I shut it down so there is no mildew.

I do watch my batteries also and keep them close to full with Distilled water. They don't seem to be going down much if any....so the charger thingamijgy must be working correctly and only charging them slightly or when needed.


If I didn't use my RV in the winter and only in the summer....then I guess I could just turn the fridge off then. But I use mine year round. It often goes to our North Texas DTR get-togethers.....as well as all my ATVing trips/Vacation trips. Just about every month it goes someplace. But only for a few days at a time....and usually just a weekend.

I guess I will just leave the fridge running for now...unless I know im going to take a 2 month break for one reason or another.

If anybody else has a thought on this...please share it.

 

One more thought...


My question really involves......"start up wear" vs. "running constantly wear". I don't want to put extra "wear" on the electronics....but doesn't "starting" and "stopping" also put it's own version of wear on the electronic item?

 

Running them all the time seems to be OK. I've got one that has been on since 2001 with only an occasional defrosting. It works great and is on 120 volt electric all the time.

Ones that sit off a lot can become less and less effective. My other one in my camper had this problem. They begin to have trouble making ice or just seem weaker. The fix for this is to take them out and turn them upside down for a few days. I used to think it was a bubble problem from being out of level. It can be that but it is also something about disolving a chrystalized material in the upper tubing. One RV guy I knew did this regularly for his customers and I've done it too. I've come to the conclusion that running them may be better than occasional use so don't worry about running it.

John

 

Thanks John. (sidebar...thread jack------why did you change your name from Wetspirit to Raspy)....

 

Starting and stopping the electronics should not make any difference in their life.

Newer multi-stage smart converters/chargers should drop to float mode when the batteries are fully charged, and don't drive off much water that way.

If you run a fridge off level, the refrigerant may pool in places it isn't supposed to, so there is less in the boiler. Since the amount of heat from the flame (or heating element) is fixed, this can cause some of the coolant to be heated too much and carbonize or form bits of solids. These can then plug up passages inside the fridge. Turning the unit upside down can sometimes restore some of it's function.

The bottom line, to me anyway, is that you are likely to get a good service life out of the fridge whether or not you shut it down when not in use or run it continually...