I’m sure my refer insulation is about gone after 25 years, if there ever was any. Has anybody upgraded theirs? How did you access? Looking for success & fails here.
Refrigerator Insulation Upgrade?
- Thread starter LouisMK
- Start date
I failed. I took everything apart, realized there was no space for more insulation unless I completely rebuilt my icebox.
I ended up buying a portable fridge and using the icebox for storage.
I ended up buying a portable fridge and using the icebox for storage.
I tore my galley cabinet out and built a new one with one of the goals being to increase the insulation around the icebox - turns out as JPB said, there's no room to add more. O'Day did a good job of covering the icebox with foam (2" - 3") and it was in good shape so I left it as is. I had to destroy the cabinet to take it apart as there were screws that were inaccessible.
Tip: Insulation is only a time delay to allow your batteries or shore power to re-cool the box.
Jim...
PS: If left alone, Inside Box temperature = Cabin temperatures
Wow, thanks so much! Surprised to hear the insul is 2-3” tk. That’s enough to replace w/ higher density material, but looks like a lot of work for a modest improvement. You’re right, time delay, that’s what insulation does…..
I'm sure that the insulation on our 40 is shot too. In hot weather the compressor runs almost full time and there is condensation running onto the galley sole.
I put an Engel MR40 under the chart table that we use as a freezer. It uses a lot less juice than the fridge and the chef loves the freezer space.
I'd like to redo the insulation but it's such a big job that it gets shoved down the "to do" list.
It was easier, but more expensive, to add 588 watts of solar so that it doesn't matter that much. Plus it lets us run the water maker and Starlink without running the engine.
Have you thought about how to replace the insulation? I don't want to remove the wood in front of it so probably would need to cut out the liner, reinsulate and then patch up the liner. Maybe taking the top off and lifting out everything would work too.
I added some Spaceloft Aerogell around the Engel but it would cost too much to use it on the fridge. I think polyiso would be the way to go with a good spray foam for the little gaps.
Hopefully another O'Day 40 owner who has done it will chime in.
I took another look at the millwork surrounding the frig & I can’t see a way to get it off w/o destroying it in the process. I looked at JBP-PA’s photos and my galley arrangement is did-fervent from his. Later this spring I’ll cut a few poke holes from the aft cabin side & scoot a small inspection camera backtrack there, will let your know what I find.
The front panel in the galley doesn't have the usual plugs covering screws so I assume it is screwed on from the inside so the aft cabin may be the best approach. I added an inch of insulation in the aft cabin because I was getting moisture in the mattress there.
I put stainless countertops in so I could butcher the top if I went in that way.
I think that there may be some access from underneath if you lift the access board at the foot of the bed. IIRC another 40 owner cut an access from that side to improve his insulation.
let me know how you make out.
I put stainless countertops in so I could butcher the top if I went in that way.
I think that there may be some access from underneath if you lift the access board at the foot of the bed. IIRC another 40 owner cut an access from that side to improve his insulation.
let me know how you make out.
I glued a piece of foam insulation on the surface of the ice box that I could access from under my sink. I then sprayed insulation foam in the spaces around the other three sides of the ice box. Just be careful when applying the foam as it expands a lot and I noticed that one of the sides of the ice box appeared to be pushed in a little from the foam expanding in the space behind it.
I cut a piece of Reflexite (thin air-filled metallic insulation) to tightly fit inside the top box of my fridge…just lays in the opening (a tight fit so it stays there). It cut down the condensation I was seeing around the frame of the opening and I think helps keep things colder and the compressor running less.
Greg
Greg
Thanks, that looks similar to what was in my O’34 & it worked noticeably well. Not a total replacement for good insulation, but a significant step in the right direction. I think that a layer of this and new seals will definitively make a difference!
There is some amazing (and expensive) insulation panels made from ceramics you can buy. I’ve seen them mostly used to line the inside o the box.
I, too am working on a way to keep cooler temps in our icebox. We have 2 aboard FH, one on the port side and the other on the starboard side. While on a passage from the DR to the Bahamas last spring, I met a marine tech who advised me to line the inside of the icebox with 2" of rigid foam insulation and to tape all the seams with aluminum tape. So, after planning this project all winter, I have begun to line the interior of the starboard icebox with the rigid foam and have covered it with reflective bubble insulation. I realize that this is reducing the interior capacity of this icebox, but I feel that I won't lose much room for beverages for the sake of keeping them cooler.. I would like to find a way to bind the seams permanently, other than the aluminum tape, so that I can remove the insulation like a water tight bag.......
The foam should make a significant difference, less so the bubble wrap (R-1?) as it needs an airspace to get any significant insulation value. The bubble wrap helped on Greg’s boat as did in my previous boat because it is just used as a cover, leaving an airspace above & below. Adding a reflective surface toward the cool side is not going to reflect lower temps back into the frig. Also, make sure your foam is non-hydroscopic, like polyiscocyanurate, so it does not absorb water.