campingsaxplayer
Texas
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Joined: 03/12/2008
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Klohey wrote:We own a 2007 Coachmen Clipper 1070 ST. We ALWAYS run it on electric while travelling. I begin 2 days before by cooling the frig using propane. By the next day the frig is very cool so I load the food into it. And Day 3 we switch it to electric and depart. The electrical system has ALWAYS kept the frig and its contents cool during travel - absolutely NO NEED to run it on propane, and NO NEED to add ice.
Same here: I precool the fridge for several days and then while we are traveling it runs off of the battery that is charged by the TV. It always works fine.
Sincerely,
Matt
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DrrD
Denver
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Joined: 03/03/2004
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Another solution that we use is:
12 V DC cooler
We have 2 kids and our fridge is too small, so we cool this down the night before using an AC adapter, then put it in the back of our TV plugged into the 12 V DC adapter in the back, then when we get to our site we can use the AC adapter to plug it into outside outlet on PUP (when we have electric). It cools pretty well. If we're in bear country we just transfer to the PUP fridge and run off propane and use the cooler for drinks.
2005 Acura MDX
2008 Flagstaff MAC 228D pup
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Wildcat63
MN
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Joined: 07/09/2006
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I always pre-cool the fridge for a few days on 110v at home and then run it on 12 v while we are driving. So far so good even when we didn't have a 7 wire plug on our old pop up.
Wildcat
Wildcat63
07 Coachmen Clipper Classic 1070ST
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Klohey
Kanata, Ontario
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Joined: 08/21/2007
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We live in a condo too. We store our camper at a nearby commercial storage facility. We have a plastic "credit" card for entry from 6:00 am 'til 10:00 pm. I drive to the storage facility to get the frig going on the propane and to load the frig the next day.
TV: 2006 Hyundai Santa Fe
Pup: 2007 Coachmen Clipper 1070ST
Favourite Campgrounds: Lake Superior Provincial Park; Chutes PP; Sharbot Lake PP; Rainbow Falls PP; Neys PP
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b2220128
29.72 North by 95.5 West
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Joined: 03/03/2005
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Your best colling will be to use propane while driving, assuming that your fridge will run on propane while driving. Some won't.
Rather than run it on the battery, you can disconnect the battery from the trailer (though not the breakaway switch) and let the fridge run off the vehicle charge line. That way you arrive with a fully charged battery. To avoid running down the car battery, you will need to switch the fridge to propane if you are stopping for an extended period to avoid running down the car battery.
Tom
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Kernan Campers
Jacksonville, FL
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Joined: 07/11/2007
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Due to electrical issues we unplug and run the fridge at our house to pre-cool, then switch to battery, and back to plugging in when we arrive at the site.
Kc
2003 Toyota Sequoia
2001 Coleman Westlake
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PopUpTom
Subject to Change, TN for now
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Joined: 08/27/2005
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We just did over 12 hours on the road while the fridge was on 12v. It did OK until about 2pm when the outside temps got close to 90 deg. I switched it over to propane but didn't see it drop too much afterwards - probably because of the 95 deg temps outside. The fridge "fan mod" may be a requirement in these hotter temperatures.
We use a wireless indoor/outdoor dual temp thermometer and keep the outside sensor in the fridge. The display unit is able to get a signal while sitting in the car console. We set the display near the fridge when camping. Pretty handy and only $10 at WalMart.
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scpopupcamper
Lugoff, SC, USA
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Joined: 12/05/2004
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sounds to me like firing it up on propane is the best option...mine cools best on propane anyway...just fire it up before you hook up.
Martin Ray
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nfisherman
IL
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Joined: 04/17/2005
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If you're only going to pre-cool for an hour, I wouldn't bother with running on 12V. It takes a fridge much longer than an hour to cool down. The OP said that it's an hour to the campsite. The fridge works best on propane. I would just pack my food in a cooler with ice and turn the fridge on with propane when I get there. Put the chilled food in there and it will cool down pretty quickly.
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PattieAM
Maryland
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Joined: 08/03/2005
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The 12-volt won't cool your fridge if it isn't pre-cooled....it just 'maintains' the temperature.
If the campsite is only an hour away, and you haven't pre-cooled it, you'd probably do better to toss your perishibles in the cooler and wait until you get to the campground to load your fridge and turn it on. One hour is not enough time to cool your absorbtion style fridge.
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