How often should a refrig. unit turn on?

Status
Not open for further replies.
J

Josh Peskin

I'm just being lazy here, but does anybody know how often an Adler-Barbour cold-machine (I think that's what it's called) should turn on. Mine seems to go on every hour so, and I'm dreading changing the insulation.
 
A

Andre Kapuscinski

TO MAN Y VARIABLES TO ANSWER

It appears that you have been a bit lazy in providing more detatils as well! Firs you have to answer a few questions befor a any one can determine if your compressor comes on too often: 1. What is the outside(enviro.) temperature 2. What temp. is your unit set for 3. Level of insulation(material , gaskets...) 4. How often is someone opening the door to get things out 5. how old is the unit (Freon leak?) ...and so on... May be than it would be easier to find the solution to your problem... Good luck
 
Jun 2, 2004
5,802
Hunter 37-cutter, '79 41 23' 30"N 82 33' 20"W--------Huron, OH
Frig cycling.

Gene G. once stated that our H37C refers had "pretty good" insulation. The problem is the top and the lid. In the starboard locker that beer opening is thin as well. I sealed that opening. But first I used it as access to cut and glue one-half inch thick insulation to the entire inside top of the frig. Then I made the top access door one inch thick and added a rubber seal to the perimeter. I still plan to add expanding foam around the outside where I can get at it. With my mods my A/B, in 80 degree weather, runs a little more than 20 minutes an hour. You will remember that I installed mine so that it draws in cabin air and exhausts it into the starboard locker.
 
J

Josh

more info

1. Outside temp is between 45-55 deg F 2. Unit is set to 5 on 1-7 scale (not sure what temp that is) 3. Insulation was installed by previous owner but looks to be 1 to 1.5 inch think foam sheets, froming a cube around the unti. 4. door is opened rarely--twice a day lets say. 5. Unit looks to be a relatively new model, I would guess the previous owner installed it in 2001 or 2002. For the 'and so on' I can only think to add that the bottom sheet of insulation probably has some water in it, from a drainage problem I experienced a bit ago--I tried to unclog it, but I think I cut into the foam and the foam insulation may have sucked some water into itself. I hope that helps. According to Ed, it sounds like it ought to run multiple times each day. I thought I remembered reading a post here indicating that the frig. ought to only go on a couple times a day.
 
Jun 2, 2004
5,802
Hunter 37-cutter, '79 41 23' 30"N 82 33' 20"W--------Huron, OH
Cold plate?

Josh, is yours like mine with an evaporator(previous picture)? Or does yours have a cold plate? This would look like a one-inch thick aluminum block about ten inches square. A cold plate takes a while to get the box down to the right temp. Then the unit will not cycle as often because the "block" stays cold for awhile, like a block of ice. The cycle rate might only be once every couple of hours. But a thin evaporator type will cycle every fifteen or twenty minutes if the cabin temp is above 70 degrees. The key is keeping the box full, the drain plugged, and the door shut. How well sealed and insulated is your door? And do you have a freezer side? The inside of my evaporator is the freezer. Keeping ice cubes in there(and a little ice cream) helps keep the evaporator cold for longer periods. What happened with the diesel leak?
 

Gene G

.
Jun 11, 2004
38
- - Austin, Tx
top is plywood

Ed is correct, the top is nothing more than plywood, 1/2" as I recall. With the two lids, it's not very efficient. The sides and bottom are about 4" all around. When I tore mine out the bottom was somewhat waterlogged, which had to hurt it. I didn't spend any time trying to figure out how that happened as that entire part of the boat went into the dumpster. Insulating the top should help a lot. If you are not going to rebuild it, simply gluing a 3/4" or thicker sheet of foam up under the lid should help a lot. If I were doing this, I would seal the back opening, then try to cover the underside as tightly as I could. The other big drawback is the odd shape of it, making it difficult to use it effeciently, but that will take a major job to resolve.
 
J

Josh

like yours Ed

Mine's like yours Ed. I think I was misled before and that mine is working properly. Thanks for the help though. On to other things.
 
T

Tim

That's a lot.

That's a lot in an outside temp of 57 degrees. I'm guessing, but you will likely run continuously and still have problems fully cooling down on hot sunny days. 1" of foam insulation is very minimal; if its wet, it's not worth much at all. My Adler Barbour went on once per hour in the summer at outside temps of 85+. In the outside temps <60 I would expect it to cycle a lot less. Beyond keeping a low temp, the unit will use 5-7 Amps per hour. If it's on continuously, then you're using 150Ahours per day of battery capacity; at 50% on time that's 75Ahours. That's a lot of battery. There's a lot you can do to improve (thermal blankets, gasketing around the top, better venting on the unit's fan, etc.) but 1" of wet insulation is the likely biggest issue.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.