Addiing 12 volt to frige operation

[joecool911]

My Dometic refrigerator runs on either 120V or propane.  What would be the procedure to add 12 volt?  I assume it would be easiest to use a converter to run off batteries.  How would I switch over to 120v if I plug it into a converter? Or would I simply run off batteries through the inverter when hooked up to shore power?  How big of a converter should I consider?

 

Seems like a good feature to have 12 volt operation while driving.

[MnTom]

Running on 12 volts is OK for these fridges, but they do consume afair amount of power. If you are just driving you can shut the fridge off and it will go all day without a problem unless you open it up once in a while. I leave mine on auto and it will run on propane until I plug into shore power. Mine will only run on 12v if I manually switch it or if the propane runs out.

[AH64ID]

To run the fridge off of AC power with a DC-AC inverter takes 23A DC on my fridge, my truck only puts a peak of about 15A into the batteries.

I am setup to do it, and still don't know the long term effect on the batteries over a 6-8 hour day.

I did it because the inverter was already installed, so it was easy to add the option. I am not sure I would go out of my way to add 12V DC power to a 2-way fridge.

[joecool911]

Okay, does not sound like a worthy project. Yeah I was kind of worried about the battery deficit trying to run the refrigerator.

[Mopar1973Man]

I'm going to suggest to continue using propane. Cheapest way to go. A 30# bottle will run months for just a RV fridge.