Fridge Only Inverter??

[sgtjoe]

I have a 2000 Freedom Inverter in my 2001 National Tradewinds but I just installed a residential fridge and this inverter is a MSW.  The fridge doesn't run off of it.  Fridge is a Haier 9.8cf.  My question is while traveling I would need to run the genny to keep the fridge cool, so I've been thinking of having a smaller PSW inverter installed.  If I did this can I bypass the current inverter and only let the PSW run the fridge.  Any thoughts as how I could do this or should I take her in and have it done?

[huffypuff]

I believe you can but driving it will overwork your alternator.  You may have to go to a bigger alternator.  

[dons2346]

You can install a PSW inverter to run the refer but you don't have to. Contrary to popular belief, the refer doesn't need power 24/7 to keep things cold and frozen. I have gone over 20 hours without power to our 18cuft Samsung and the refer portion was still in the 30's and everything in the freezer was still frozen.

If you do go new inverter, check the power requirement of your refer and scale accordingly. Usually a 700 watt unit will do. Install the inverter close to the battery bank and then run the 110VAC line to the refer rather that run a long length of DC cable to the inverter. There is less loss in the AC line than there is in the DC line. No change in alternator is necessary

[wolfe10]

As Ray said, you need to verify the amp rating of your engine-driven alternator.  If both battery banks are fully charged from shore power when you start, very likely it will be adequate.

If batteries are deeply discharged, it may not be adequate.

And, as Don said, very likely you can go hours before needing to run the refrigerator.  Our last coach had a residential refrigerator.  We had a remote-read thermometer in the refrigerator.  Would only turn on the inverter to power it if the refrigerator temperature rose to 40 degrees F.  Unless ambient temperature was high, this could be many hours/miles down the road.

[jleamont]

sgtjoe, can your refrigerator run on the MSW inverter? I installed a GE 15.5 cuft residential unit and per GE it’s fine on MSW. Battery bank size will be the other determining factor.

[sgtjoe]

2 hours ago, jleamont said:

sgtjoe, can your refrigerator run on the MSW inverter? I installed a GE 15.5 cuft residential unit and per GE it’s fine on MSW. Battery bank size will be the other determining factor.

I've tried it but even the fridge light would not come on.  Whats weird is that I have power to the plug but it won't run the fridge.  Even more weird is that when I had a shop take out the Dometic and install a Magic Chef it worked on the inverter and the readings were in the 120 range.  I changed out the Magic Chef after reading the owner's manual that said "not for RV installation" and not to be run on an inverter.  I'm thinking maybe my inverter needs to be checked out.  My battery bank is four 6v golf cart batteries and two sealed (new) 12v chassis batteries and the MH has two solar panels on top from the factory. 

[desertdeals69]

13 hours ago, sgtjoe said:

I have a 2000 Freedom Inverter in my 2001 National Tradewinds but I just installed a residential fridge and this inverter is a MSW.  The fridge doesn't run off of it.  Fridge is a Haier 9.8cf.  My question is while traveling I would need to run the genny to keep the fridge cool, so I've been thinking of having a smaller PSW inverter installed.  If I did this can I bypass the current inverter and only let the PSW run the fridge.  Any thoughts as how I could do this or should I take her in and have it done?

I installed a Haier 9.8 in my coach about 3 years ago and the compressor failed in 7 months running on a pure sine wave inverter.   The factory said there is no warranty when installed in a motorhome.  I put the Dometic back in and later sold the motorhome.  My current coach had a Dometic side by side and was 32 inches wide.  I installed a Insignia brand 10 cu ft with freezer on the bottom and built a slide out pantry using the rest of the width.  I run a pure sine wave Xantrex 3000 watt inverter.

You could run a 400 watt pure sine wave inverter and wire it directly to the fridge so thats the only thing running off of it.

[sgtjoe]

21 minutes ago, desertdeals69 said:

I installed a Haier 9.8 in my coach about 3 years ago and the compressor failed in 7 months running on a pure sine wave inverter.   The factory said there is no warranty when installed in a motorhome.  I put the Dometic back in and later sold the motorhome.  My current coach had a Dometic side by side and was 32 inches wide.  I installed a Insignia brand 10 cu ft with freezer on the bottom and built a slide out pantry using the rest of the width.  I run a pure sine wave Xantrex 3000 watt inverter.

You could run a 400 watt pure sine wave inverter and wire it directly to the fridge so thats the only thing running off of it.

Now that is interesting, I learned from the first residential fridge, Magic Chef, that the owners manual said not to be installed in a RV.  So I returned it and saw the Haier, I sent an email to Haier asking if it would work and be covered under warranty in my MH.  They replied saying yes, so I bought it and an extended warranty.  I keep a copy of their response saying YES along with all the fridge paperwork in a sealed plastic bag in the fridge freezer.