DonC said:
I am confused by the frig types and terms. Some are propane only, some are propane and electric, and some are electric only? What is 2 way, 3 way, vs compressor?
Usually "3-way" is "propane", meaning it's
primarily powered by burning propane, but can also run (sorta -- not very well) using DC or AC electric power to provide the heat that runs the system.
Propane + DC + AC = 3-way.
Internally it circulates a solution of ammonia and hydrogen gas -- there is no compressor.
(Are there fridges that are propane only? I'm not familiar with those.)
Some people use the term "2-way" to refer to a compressor-type fridge, "2" because the compressor may be able to run on DC or AC.
DC + AC = 2-way.
But I think that's confusing. I think that compressor fridges should be just called that -- "compressor" -- named for how they work rather than the number of possible power sources
. (In fact, my compressor fridge runs
only on DC, not on AC, so does that make it a "1-way" fridge?)
In this type of fridge the DC or AC doesn't heat a fluid, it runs a motor that turns a compressor -- it works the same way as the fridge that most people have in their house.
A better name for "propane" or "3-way" is the "
real" name for that type of fridge:
Absorption refrigerator (though few people call them that in everyday RV discussions).
In a perfect world there would be no talk of "3-way" or "2-way", you either have an "absorption fridge" or a "compressor fridge" --
naming the fridge based on it's operating principle rather than how many power sources can run it.
Some day...