Dorm fridge heat?

[RetchedOne]

I'm building a cargo trailer Conversion on a 7x12 frame. We mostly camp with hookups so electricity inst an issue. I've been looking at a few compact fridges that have a integrated freezer compartment (Freezer is in the fridge). The thought is when at home before I leave, I can freeze a few 1/2 gallon jugs of water in it. Then travelling the frozen water may help keep food cool, and plug it back in when I arrive at the campsite where the water would freeze again.

All the fridges I have looked at (with and without freezer internal) say I need to leave 3-5 inches on the back and 3 inches on the side. As space is a premium in most trailers, how much can this be fudged?

I know the fridge needs ventilation as they cool from the back, but the sides?
Has anyone added another inch of foam insulation to the sides?

I planned on putting a fridge in a "closet" with a vent above, situated over the back of the fridge so any heat could escape up the back and out the top.
This one has a lock (for travelling)
It is energy star rated
(We may "one day" add solar and a inverter for the fridge to run while travelling)
The fridge would be removed on dry camping trips and the space used for storage (the "closet" is built with removable shelves and detachable door)

Looking at this one -
http://www.lowes.com/pd_591035-47224-FF ... 60171&pl=1

[RetchedOne]

What i am not sure of is if coils are in the side walls of the fridge (doubting they are). if they are, insulating the sides would be bad is my guess...

Found this article where a guy did insulate a small fridge
http://coolfridge.blogspot.com/

[warnmar10]

I'm building a cargo trailer Conversion on a 7x12 frame. We mostly camp with hookups so electricity inst an issue. I've been looking at a few compact fridges that have a integrated freezer compartment (Freezer is in the fridge). The thought is when at home before I leave, I can freeze a few 1/2 gallon jugs of water in it. Then travelling the frozen water may help keep food cool, and plug it back in when I arrive at the campsite where the water would freeze again.

All the fridges I have looked at (with and without freezer internal) say I need to leave 3-5 inches on the back and 3 inches on the side. As space is a premium in most trailers, how much can this be fudged?

I know the fridge needs ventilation as they cool from the back, but the sides?
Has anyone added another inch of foam insulation to the sides?

I planned on putting a fridge in a "closet" with a vent above, situated over the back of the fridge so any heat could escape up the back and out the top.
This one has a lock (for travelling)
It is energy star rated
(We may "one day" add solar and a inverter for the fridge to run while travelling)
The fridge would be removed on dry camping trips and the space used for storage (the "closet" is built with removable shelves and detachable door)

Looking at this one -
http://www.lowes.com/pd_591035-47224-FF ... 60171&pl=1

Is your condenser coil on the back, underneath or molded into the sides? If it is on the back or underneath you can insulate the sides and top with abandon. If it is molded into the sides, not so much. If there is no coil visible anywhere on the outside then it is probably molded into the sides and uses the metal sides of the refrigerator cabinet to dissipate heat. After it has been running for a while do the sides seem warm to the touch? Even if the coil is on the back you still have to allow some way for convection to take the heat away.

[48Rob]

On a vintage retrofit years back, I installed a dorm fridge under a counter.



In order to vent the heat, I installed a computer vent fan in a 3" hole in the floor just behind the fridge, with a metal dryer vent hood pointed backwards under the trailer to keep water and road debris away.
The fan brought cool air from under the trailer and blew it and the warm air from the fridge upward to a vent in the wall.
The fridge cooled well with the vents, but poorly without them.

Rob

[noseoil]

As others have said, check the back to see if the coils are exposed. If they are, you can use less air space, but I wouldn't give it less than an inch on the sides, just to be safe. I like the idea of a bottom vent for cool air and a top vent for the warm exhaust. If you can do the layout correctly, a hole in the floor and a vent out the side at the back/top would create a "thermal siphon" which would draw it's own airflow when the unit is plugged in and running. I like the idea of a small computer fan at the bottom or top to provide a positive airflow with very little current drain. You would probably want to isolate it from the inside, so it's isn't acting like a heater in the interior.

The specs on the one you're looking at show a current draw of .88 amps, or about 100 watts. This translates into roughly 8 amps of 12 volt current, but if there's an inverter making 110 volts, figure it's really closer to about 10 amps. This would take a group 27 battery down to 50% in about 5 hours, so it's a fairly hefty load for a single battery. Even with a solar panel, it would be a large load over time (at night or in overcast weather). Shore power or a generator would be fine for this setup, an inverter would work in a pinch, but not for very long with one regular battery.

For travelling, the frozen ice bottles is a good idea to get where you're going. If you have a good sized alternator, you could run an inverter off the TV's electrical system while on the road, but it would take some larger wires & solid wiring to make it run properly. Is the fridge going to be in the front in your layout? If so, it's possible to use the TV without monster cables to power it.

[Irmo Atomics]

The chest freezer and dorm fridges that I have need air space around the sides and top because the coils are just under the outer skin - most don't have the exposed coils on the back or bottom any more. Plug it in and let it run for a few hours, then check the top and sides, they'll probably be warm to the touch.