I have a puzzle to solve on my O'Day 28 in a very hot climate -- on the Okanagan. I'd like an electric cooler, as lugging expensive ice blocks every three days is not my idea of adequate refrigeration. At the moment I have no access to shore power. I have seen solar panels very elegantly mounted on a stainless steel frame above the transom and, ideally, I'd like to insert an electric cooler into the existing ice box space, which is fairly generous, but the access, from the top, is so limited that I can't even find a cooler small enough to slip in, and of course I'd like to maximally exploit the available space in the ice box. Do I have an unresolvable problem? Is there a solution, without sawing the whole counter apart (something I obviously don't want to do)?
Fridge with Solar Power
- Thread starter Ernest Skublics
- Start date
9"x13". And the vertical clearance above the counter/opening is 13". In other words the box could hold a deeper unit, but I couldn't get it in on account of the deck above. I've had some reply about frigoboat "evaporators" which can apparently be bent (?) and inserted, but I don't quite understand what an "evaporator" is and how it fits in and works. Of course I'll also have to learn how much power whatever unit I get requires and what (solar panel) I need to match that demand. And what all this means for the pocket book.
Thanks for whatever you can recommend, Greg.
Ernie
here is an interesting video about installing refrigeration into an existing icebox. I don't know the dimensions of the evaporator plate ( the cooling unit that goes into the icebox) but it looks like a small opening.
You need a place for the compressor also. But the video may spark some ideas...not me by the way....
http://youtu.be/2e8DAEhdXys. Part 1
http://youtu.be/Sq7G27P-2kQ. Part 2
http://youtu.be/_2WOODGOEtA. Part 3
Greg
you will need some kind of battery bank to transfer and store the solar panel energy to the cooling unit just a solar panel alone will not be a good solution due to shading and night time light or the lack of so do as much research as you can and develop a plan then ask about your plan on here and there are several solar informed people that will help you fine tune it ...good luck
Thanks Woody,
I was thinking that the solar panel would charge the house battery and the fridge would be fed from that. Anything wrong with that?
Ernie
I was thinking that the solar panel would charge the house battery and the fridge would be fed from that. Anything wrong with that?
Ernie
The easiest solution maybe to add a portable freezer/refrigerator rather than try to use an electric cooler inside the existing icebox.
Electric coolers are power hogs.
A portable freezer/fridge like this could work on solar, http://www.defender.com/product.jsp?path=-1|2276179|2276204|2276226|2276228&id=333014 if you have a big enough panel, big enough house bank and enough sun.
You may need to up size your alternator and battery charger too if the solar can't keep up with the required refrigeration.
The ampere hours used for refrigeration will depend on the boats temp. how often the fridge gets opened, temp. of what is put in the fridge. Using a battery monitor with a refrigerator will give you an idea of how many Ahrs you will burn, from that you can figure out the solar panel size, battery bank size, and if alternator needs up sizing.
Our boat has a refrigerator and freezer. We use about 80 to 120 Ahrs per day. Our battery banks is 400 Ahrs, 140 Amp alternator, 50 Amp charger, 325 W solar panel. In Florida/Bahamas we can live on just the solar panel if we get 3 out of 4 days sunny. All our lights have been changed to LEDs. These numbers give you an idea of what is involved.
Sumner has a good write up on using one of these portable freezer/fridge units in a sailboat. Have look at his set here, http://purplesagetradingpost.com/sumner/macgregor2/inside-22.html
Good luck, Bob
Electric coolers are power hogs.
A portable freezer/fridge like this could work on solar, http://www.defender.com/product.jsp?path=-1|2276179|2276204|2276226|2276228&id=333014 if you have a big enough panel, big enough house bank and enough sun.
You may need to up size your alternator and battery charger too if the solar can't keep up with the required refrigeration.
The ampere hours used for refrigeration will depend on the boats temp. how often the fridge gets opened, temp. of what is put in the fridge. Using a battery monitor with a refrigerator will give you an idea of how many Ahrs you will burn, from that you can figure out the solar panel size, battery bank size, and if alternator needs up sizing.
Our boat has a refrigerator and freezer. We use about 80 to 120 Ahrs per day. Our battery banks is 400 Ahrs, 140 Amp alternator, 50 Amp charger, 325 W solar panel. In Florida/Bahamas we can live on just the solar panel if we get 3 out of 4 days sunny. All our lights have been changed to LEDs. These numbers give you an idea of what is involved.
Sumner has a good write up on using one of these portable freezer/fridge units in a sailboat. Have look at his set here, http://purplesagetradingpost.com/sumner/macgregor2/inside-22.html
Good luck, Bob
This is my set-up: I have a Danby 1.7 cubic foot fridge - it measures about 18 x 16 x 18 inches. Commonly picked up anywhere inexpensively - about $100. It uses 1.3 ac amps which converts to 14.3 dc amps. My use dictates about 15 cycling minutes/hour so about 6 hours of operation in 24, therefore 14.3 x 6 = 85.8 ahrs. I ran it off a 600 watt eliminator inverter from crappy tire on my other boat. This time it will be going through a 3000 watt one as well as the microwave etc. I never had any problems. In my original set up I had a 100 a/hr 12v battery being charged with a 40 watt solar panel. With little understanding at the time about tending to solar matters, I could easily get three days before having to resort to other charging means. This time it will be tied into 6 trojan T-105's! yeah baby 
This set-up doesn't address your space issue, but it is an alternative. I am in Manitoba by the way.
This set-up doesn't address your space issue, but it is an alternative. I am in Manitoba by the way.
actually no depending on how large you bank is these things use about 50 to 75 amps a day so you will need at least a 200 amp hour bank in order to keep up and then there is the days when there is no sun light to speak of ...this thing get complicated fast
Thanks to all of you! Confusing and expensive. Quite discouraging. I also had some info from West Marine, from which I am estimating it should cost $2,500-3,000, or more! I may have to do without.
Ernie
Ernie
Ernest are you on the hook off of Summerland, CA? If so how long? I have some interesting stories of boats that were there while I worked in Summerland for 6 years.
This is Summerland BC, on Okanagan Lake. I've joined this club (at great expense -- initiation), believing there was an opening for a berth with power. Now I am on the bottom of the food chain out on a "Berm" that is not connected to land. And I'm turning 80 this year and not in great shape. So, I am fed up with the situation, and I have no idea when they'll move me to a normal berth. And there is nowhere else to go on the lake. Bloody popular place.
Wow that is a bummer. Hopefully something opens up quickly for you. Living on the hook for periods of time is extremely tricky.