Refridgeration in bay area

[markwbird]

So, I want to "electrify" my ice box by installing a refrigeration kit. The ice box on my H-34 is about
8 ft^3. The available kits are rated for different sized boxes with around 5 ft^3 being most common. It occurs to me that the bay area is cooler than most places in the summer so I wonder if I can cheat a little and go smaller. Anyone have any experience with this?

 

[woodster]

isotherm makes a water cooled 12v system that will cool the heck out of that space and it shouldn't be a lot more money just shop around .....you may want to try beard marine in savannah ga for a good price ...haven't looked at SBO they may have one also

 

[Stu Jackson]

Not a good idea. It gets hot in Sept & Oct, and you might want to go to The Delta.

 

[Benny17441]

I do not think it would be a wise as most boat ice boxes are poorly insulated and it is difficult and can be costly to upgrade them. In a boat proper sizing is very important to keep power consumption under control. A small unit coupled with a poorly insulated box will likely force the compressor to recycle frequently and run for a length of time thus using up valuable power. If any you would likely need a unit rated for a larger space.

 

[keys please]

Mark, if you go electric give some thought to solar panels.... I installed two 100 watt panels last year and then spent 6 weeks on the hook in the keys…. Fridge on 24/7 and cold beer always….. What a joy….. Didn’t see a plug until back at my dock….. Batts were back to 100% by 1:30 or 2:00 everyday….I really like solar….. fair winds

 

[Gunni]

I have noticed that once our 3-phase DC reefer compressor gets the ice box to temp, it continues to cycle at much lower amperage draws. So I would suspect that if your system was oversized a bit it would draw down your temps, then run at lower amperage.

 

[Charlie98117]

I've also been looking to convert the box in my H34. I would be worried that going with an smaller compressor and evaporator would cause the system to run longer to maintain the temps. We are lucky that Hunter did a good job of insulating the box, there is 2" of foam all the way around from what I can determine.

I did a detailed measurement and came up with 7.34 cu ft. I did some research and decided I liked the Vitrifrigo products. I reviewed my setup with a local dealer http://www.suremarineservice.com/ice-box-conversion-components.aspx and they recommended a ND50CB3-QV compressor/condenser (rated for up to 14 cu ft), a R10536 thermostat and either a PT9-Q flat evaporator or a S7-Q boxed evaporator. The whole package with the plate evaporator is $670.