Casita Fridge: how long does yours last on propane vs 12volt battery? - Fiberglass RV
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Old 05-14-2022, 01:21 PM   #1
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Name: Alex
Trailer: Casita 17ft Standard
California
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Casita Fridge: how long does yours last on propane vs 12volt battery?

2022 new Casita owner, wondering what is more efficient to run the fridge on? I got the upgraded deep cycle AGM battery with my build, too.

So far I run the fridge For one day and it just about killed my battery before nightfall and couldn’t even start the heater. (With Solar, too). Is this normal? I know there’s a lot of little things to consider here.

How long does YOUR Casita fridge run on battery versus propane? How many days estimate out of either?

I’m Considering swapping out this fridge for some thing lower power drawing or a second battery just for the fridge, but I’m not sure if even that would be enough power!

Thanks all! Have a good one.
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Old 05-14-2022, 02:28 PM   #2
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So let’s break it down. The standard Casita battery is an 85 Ah battery but should only be discharged 50%. That gives you about 40 Ah of battery life. The agm battery you received maybe gives you 10 Ah more of usable capacity.

The fridge on DC pulls about 15A which means it would take about 3 hours before running your battery completely down.

Most people run the fridge on propane which uses very little propane and very little battery. I can run it this way for weeks at a time.

I did a short video comparing vehicle wiring sizes to see how possible it would be to run my fridge on battery when towing. You can see the video linked below. Ultimately, I am unable to run the fridge on battery even when towing because my vehicle cannot provide enough power to sustain the 15A required by the fridge.

https://youtu.be/GzqmAtJ17aY
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Old 05-14-2022, 04:29 PM   #3
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The refrigerator operates by heating the refrigerant in a "boiler" unit. Heat is produced by a propane flame, or 120 volt AC heating unit, or 12 volt DC heating unit. The 12 volt heating unit is not very powerful. Propane is the most powerful and uses very little propane. A 20# tank has been reported to last for weeks.



From the refrigerator manual:

the dc mode is a holding mode not a full cool-
ing mode.dc should be used once the unit is cooled
down and constant supply of dc available (driving
down the road).

I pre-cool mine for a day or 2 on 120V ac and run down the road using propane. I never use the 12 volt setting.
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Old 05-14-2022, 05:22 PM   #4
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Yep, use AC if you have it, propane if you don't. We just turn the fridge off while traveling, stuff stays cold or frozen all day.
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Old 05-14-2022, 09:52 PM   #5
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This question comes up so often and is discussed ad infinitum. And for some reason there seems to be a real fear of using propane gas with many attempts to find work arounds despite it being by far the best way to run the fridge without AC shore power. But back to the DC setting, the fact that it quickly kills any battery in a very few short hours. I wonder if it would be prudent to just put a banner across the top line of the fiberglassrv.com website saying "The DC setting on RV fridges is totally useless"
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Old 05-14-2022, 10:50 PM   #6
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DC actually works quite well in our Class B motorhome. Short wiring run, heavy gauge wire, and a HD alternator probably have something to do with that. Cool down on AC at home, drive on DC to maintain temperature, switch to LP in camp without hookups.

I believe it’s the same 3.7 cf Dometic used by Casita.

I mention it to illustrate why manufacturers offer DC mode on fridges. Agree it’s more challenging to get it to work in a towed RV.
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Old 05-14-2022, 10:55 PM   #7
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I planned to get a three way fridge until I was told ( by the manufacturer of the trailer ) that if you camp and run lights and furnace, depleting the battery, when you drive to the next campsite, you will arrive with a depleted battery if you use DC during the journey. The tow vehicle cannot run the fridge on DC and charge the trailer house battery at the same time. I went with propane/AC fridge. I run the fridge on propane when driving and when AC is not available.
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Old 05-15-2022, 10:34 AM   #8
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The 3-Way fridge works best on Propane, but I never use it on gas because we always camp with utilities, at least water and power. I run mine the whole year around, even sitting in the driveway because I keep the trailer plugged in. But one thing to add is that none of the three methods of cooling the fridge will work without 12 VDC power available to it to run the fridge's control board. No 12 VDC, no fridge.
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Old 05-15-2022, 10:51 AM   #9
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The only thing my fridge needs 12VDC for is the igniter when turned to propane. Once lit, it doesn't need electricity. No blue LEDs or board to go bad. Since I have a 12V house battery, it's not an issue.
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Old 05-15-2022, 11:08 AM   #10
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Not sure which fridge you have Glenn, but the 17' Casitas have, (at least for the past dozen or more years,) the Dometic RM 2453 3-Way fridges, which do require 12 VDC for the control board, in order to function in any of the three operating modes.
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Old 05-15-2022, 11:40 AM   #11
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Another issue with the Casita fridge is that it's easy to inadvertently bump the switches and maybe change it to DC. Big surprise when the 12V dies. The switch cover panel offered by LHC isn't perfect but better than nothing, IMO.
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Old 05-15-2022, 12:00 PM   #12
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12DC vs LP vs 120AC

Our 2000 Scamp with small 3-way fridge. worked best on LP or 120volt AC.
Same for our Parkliner now. LP on the rod is a no-no.
We do use the 12v while towing, after pre-cooling for 24 hrs. A big help is to have a couple bottles of ice in there to reduce the load.
Our TV's have always had enough alternator capacity to keep the battery charged and the fridge cool - as long as the engine is running.
BUT, in the Scamp, the voltage at the 12V terminals ov the fridge was < less than 11 volts, more like 10. This was due to too small wiring (high resistance) wiring to and from the load center.(converter) Fixe that by running a 12 gauge wire direct from battery to fridge - with a fuse near battery.
CAUTION: before you leave the rig for lunch, or sight seeing, unplug the 7 pin cable, or switch OFF the 12v at fridge, to keep from draining the TV battery.
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Old 05-15-2022, 12:35 PM   #13
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We have the small 3way dometic fridge and I'm very happy to have all three modes. When camping AC is great when we have it. Often we don't and propane works well. When towing however the DC option is a major benefit (I've never been able to keep the propane lit when towing) on long trips to keep the fridge cold. It works so well that we have to periodically turn it off for an hour or two to keep food from freezing.

The standard wiring for power supply is, as others have noted, inadequate and I ran a 6g cable from the TV, via an Anderson plug bypassing the 7 way. Our 2017 highlander happily keeps the dometic running on DC and charges the trailer battery. We're just back from a 7000 mile trip and ran the fridge on DC for every mile of it.
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Old 05-15-2022, 03:18 PM   #14
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In my old 21c with the three way, I would cool down the fridge at home and if I had a short run to the next camp ground sometimes I would use the 12volt. With the alternator and solar panel it would lose charge but not precipitously fast. If it was a long drive then I would switch to gas. On a ferry I would run dc . These were two 6 volt batteries in series. With 200 amp hour of lithium I would expect a longer 12volt run. Manage your power consumption intelligently and it will work fine on 12volt. But only on maintenance of an already cooled fridge.
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Old 05-15-2022, 03:49 PM   #15
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Casita Greg View Post
Not sure which fridge you have Glenn,
Dometic RM2510.
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fridge label.jpg  
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Old 05-22-2022, 10:38 PM   #16
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Redwoodragon View Post
2022 new Casita owner, wondering what is more efficient to run the fridge on? I got the upgraded deep cycle AGM battery with my build, too.

So far I run the fridge For one day and it just about killed my battery before nightfall and couldn’t even start the heater. (With Solar, too). Is this normal? I know there’s a lot of little things to consider here.

How long does YOUR Casita fridge run on battery versus propane? How many days estimate out of either?

I’m Considering swapping out this fridge for some thing lower power drawing or a second battery just for the fridge, but I’m not sure if even that would be enough power!

Thanks all! Have a good one.
You cannot run the fridge on 12V at all when parked. Battery will die quickly. We run ours on propane when driving since if on 12V the battery still dies. Some people say the fridge doesn't get warm when driving and turned off. I have never let ours be off. It does get warm believe me. When it got turned onto 12V by my husband about 9AM and we stopped for lunch the battery was dead and the fridge was at 45 degrees. Much to warm for safety of food. They are made to run on propane while traveling or they wouldn't make them that way. Our propane tank will last all summer depending on what else we use the propane for.
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Old 05-23-2022, 06:02 AM   #17
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[QUOTE=Redwoodragon;84096I’m Considering swapping out this fridge for some thing lower power drawing.... [/QUOTE] What have you found as an alternative?
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Old 05-23-2022, 02:54 PM   #18
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ShelbyM View Post
Yep, use AC if you have it, propane if you don't. We just turn the fridge off while traveling, stuff stays cold or frozen all day.

Why do you turn it off while traveling?
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Old 05-23-2022, 09:19 PM   #19
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Originally Posted by Steve Outlaw View Post
Why do you turn it off while traveling?
I would not turn the fridge off while traveling. They do get warm and food can go bad. You are in danger of getting sick. It takes hours for the fridge to recover. Some people are afraid of explosions. I've never seen one explode. I guess it can happen and has but it is extremely rare. If it was a danger then RV manufacturers would not make the fridges to run while traveling. I've seen more cars catch fire and burn than trailers. I've seen RV's burn from engine problems but not from fridges. Just shut off before fueling up as gas fumes can explode from flames. Again I've never seen it happen but it is a possibility.
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Old 05-26-2022, 07:24 PM   #20
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I run mine on gas, unless I have 120 v. I run it on the road as well.
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