Yep,, Fridges Again ??

davent said:

Thanks for that RM, but I can't find anything useful in this link

https://www.accc.gov.au/business/treating-customers-fairly/repairs-spare-parts

Click to expand...

I'll hunt up some info and get back to you.

I am still feeling the Love for ARB, I am gonna buy one of their compressors next week for my Tyres "Not" the Fridge Compressor, :lol: :lol: :lol:

I have been busy doing more testing on my ARB 47L Fridge and it just seems to get better and better, this testing came about because I was testing one of those Aldi/Lidl 12v 29L coolers, with The ARB's cycle rates it is averaging 0.52 to 0.56Amps with an average consumption of 13.5 amps per 24hr period, which is not too bad seeing as they claim 0.87amps in temps of 31*c. when set to -18*c, I set mine to 3*c and 4*c and it uses very little power and only cycles for 9 minutes +/-.

As for the 29L Aldi/Lidl Cooler many folks on the net say that Coolers average 4 to 6 amp per hour, well I tested the life out of this one and here is what I got running it from a 12v supply.

MAX Start up was 2.62 to 2.70amps which was the starting spike that only lasts for less than a second.

Running Amps was a minimum of 1.8902 to a maximum of 1.9683amp per hour with an average draw of 1.9406amps

Hooked up to a 240 supply the amperage draw would be even less because running on 240v it has adjustable cooling/fan speed. So by running it via an inverter because of the adjustability it will use less power, I was quite impressed with the Aldi/Lidl Cooler and would go as far to say that anyone who can't afford one of the top of the line Fridge/freezers would do well to grab one if Aldi's get them in, They drop the temp to 15 to 17/20*c lower than the ambient temp which is pretty good for a 30/40 dollar 12v cooler,

I figured that if I set the ARB as a Freezer and keep some of those freezer blocks in there with the food they could be used to help the cooler on very hot days or when the Cooler is unplugged/switched off,

I am still on the fence about buying the 78L ARB or just another 47L so I can set one up as a fridge and the other as a freezer, But this little Aldi Cooler has given me another option until I make up my mind.,

hope that helps.

John.

G'day folks, I have been testing my ARB 47L with it's power usage and how much it can hold, this has been going on for over a week or more now and it's power usage is real good, way lower than what ARB claim, Then I got to thinking about was it big enough because I am looking for an excuse to buy the 78L version, Much to my surprize with only filling it to within 4 or 5" from the top I found that I could pack enough Steaks, Snags and minced Beef to make up over 60 evening meals, This might sound a bit wild but I don't eat like I use too but I still enjoy a good feed,

So now I am thinking of forgetting the 78L and buying a 35L to use as a fridge because I think I could easily get more than enough bread cheese and salad stuff in a 35 or another 47L, I would like the 78L but there is no way would a person going off on their own need that amount of fridge space, Because when packed right leaving room for air circulate this 47L holds a heck of a lot of food.

How do you guys get on who run 60L and 40L fridge together using one as a fridge and the other as a freezer,

Thanks,

John.

when packing a fridge it is better to tetras it in, fridge will work heaps better :Y: we only have 17lt's and that is more than enough

I run 35 engel as a freezer 45 engel as a fridge, but what i do i put in the bottom 45 i put frozen stuff so for the first few days not only helps keep cold you not raiding the frezzer yet but i tow a small van fridge in it to i show you some pictures but i think u got to be gold member

ctxkid said:

when packing a fridge it is better to tetras it in, fridge will work heaps better :Y: we only have 17lt's and that is more than enough
https://www.prospectingaustralia.com/forum/img/member-images/12410/1526765714_p1120015.jpg

Click to expand...

That's food for the first day , what do you do after that

Also find to run two is a good thing. One for the frozen long duration stuff and the other for the open every five such as butter, milk, eggs, cheese, tomatoes and drinks etc etc
Again can differ depending on how long I plan on staying out. Good bed and good grub the two essentials of camping :Y:

Flatlander said:

I run 35 engel as a freezer 45 engel as a fridge, but what i do i put in the bottom 45 i put frozen stuff so for the first few days not only helps keep cold you not raiding the frezzer yet but i tow a small van fridge in it to i show you some pictures but i think u got to be gold member

Click to expand...

Pre freezing your frozen goods in meal portions works at treat to help the fridge /freezer. Good advice there Flatlander putting a few pre frozen meals in the fridge as well :Y:. I've got two 80L fridge freezers only because I've got a medium to large family and my wife likes to have more than enough to see us through. The upside for me is plenty of room for a beverage and kids drinks :Y:.

Bogger said:

ctxkid said:

when packing a fridge it is better to tetras it in, fridge will work heaps better :Y: we only have 17lt's and that is more than enough
https://www.prospectingaustralia.com/forum/img/member-images/12410/1526765714_p1120015.jpg

Click to expand...

That's food for the first day , what do you do after that

Also find to run two is a good thing. One for the frozen long duration stuff and the other for the open every five such as butter, milk, eggs, cheese, tomatoes and drinks etc etc
Again can differ depending on how long I plan on staying out. Good bed and good grub the two essentials of camping :Y:

Click to expand...

we have done outback trips and not gone short , takes a little more effort to pack tight but accessible, the fridge was bought for the motorcycle trailer, but now lives in the zook, awesome for cold water and stuff after a sniff

Ridge Runner said:

G'day folks, I have been testing my ARB 47L with it's power usage and how much it can hold, this has been going on for over a week or more now and it's power usage is real good, way lower than what ARB claim, Then I got to thinking about was it big enough because I am looking for an excuse to buy the 78L version, Much to my surprize with only filling it to within 4 or 5" from the top I found that I could pack enough Steaks, Snags and minced Beef to make up over 60 evening meals, This might sound a bit wild but I don't eat like I use too but I still enjoy a good feed,

So now I am thinking of forgetting the 78L and buying a 35L to use as a fridge because I think I could easily get more than enough bread cheese and salad stuff in a 35 or another 47L, I would like the 78L but there is no way would a person going off on their own need that amount of fridge space, Because when packed right leaving room for air circulate this 47L holds a heck of a lot of food.

How do you guys get on who run 60L and 40L fridge together using one as a fridge and the other as a freezer,

Thanks,

John.

Click to expand...

I'd reckon the ARB power usage claims would be based on testing in Australia John - in conditions with a much higher ambient temperature than you'd be experiencing in sunny England. It would explain your lower results?

Good Stuff great info,, I have been doing a lot of research and with the testing I have been doing what they say seems to work about not packing the fridge/freezer too tight leaving Air Gaps so the Cold air can radiate throughout the contents, I tried this out a couple of days ago where I filled the ARB up to just about a couple of inches from the top this worked but not as well as I expected,

Just for testing purposes I filled it up with food from the house freezer and I set it to -14*c and just let it do it's thing for about 6 or 7 hours logging the different temps every time it cycled, I had frozen dinners I use at work in containers that were stacked above the basket by a couple of inches and the temp above them was around -10.5 and in the Dairy Area it was reading -7.4 to -7.5*c because they were blocking the cold Air from coming up to the top, So I removed the ones covering the basket divider and tested it again and then the Air Temp in the top dropped right down to - 14/-15* and in the Dairy Area it dropped down to -9.5 to -10.5*/11*c which is the normal Temp difference which is 4 to 5* higher than the main compartment, All it took was for there to be a 10mm/12mm gap and the fridge was working to it's full capacity and even though there was enough food in there for 60 days with the temp set to -14* it was still using close to what ARB Quote 0.87Amps when running it at 3*c,

Now It's run times were shorter and it's "Off" times were getting longer with every cycle which lowers the Amps used over a 24hr period, Running at ARB's 3* @ 0.87amps setting it's return cycles are over 98.95+ minutes which means it is using less that .71 of an amp and I have recorded Amp draws per cycle as low as 0.56amps "Not" 0.87amps, So packing these fridges right has a lot of merit to it, where I thought just fill it up and turn it on was the way to go that is not the case,

hope that helps.

John.

mbasko said:

Ridge Runner said:

G'day folks, I have been testing my ARB 47L with it's power usage and how much it can hold, this has been going on for over a week or more now and it's power usage is real good, way lower than what ARB claim, Then I got to thinking about was it big enough because I am looking for an excuse to buy the 78L version, Much to my surprize with only filling it to within 4 or 5" from the top I found that I could pack enough Steaks, Snags and minced Beef to make up over 60 evening meals, This might sound a bit wild but I don't eat like I use too but I still enjoy a good feed,

So now I am thinking of forgetting the 78L and buying a 35L to use as a fridge because I think I could easily get more than enough bread cheese and salad stuff in a 35 or another 47L, I would like the 78L but there is no way would a person going off on their own need that amount of fridge space, Because when packed right leaving room for air circulate this 47L holds a heck of a lot of food.

How do you guys get on who run 60L and 40L fridge together using one as a fridge and the other as a freezer,

Thanks,

John.

Click to expand...

I'd reckon the ARB power usage claims would be based on testing in Australia John - in conditions with a much higher ambient temperature than you'd be experiencing in sunny England. It would explain your lower results?

Click to expand...

Yes you are right, they tested them in 30*c heat set to 3*c giving them an average of 0.87amps, At the same temp I got a recording of 0.71 and 0.73amps and at 20*c I got a recording of 0.62amps.

Here is a Video of a Guy in Aus testing out the ARB60L version.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T5q-9Kw_8ME&t=171s

I have tested it in 33* and 29.7* in the past month and last year, But I have to pick the days when I do it because as you say the weather is a limiting factor so I can only test it at certain times of the year, I have also tested it in 20* days too and there is very little difference, Where things start to change is when you set them close to or at the maximum freezing temps then it can go up to about 1.3 to 1.4 Amps,