Replacing factory fridge with....

[VanGoOutdoors]

My experience is that the newer Indel/Webasto Isotherm 60L fridge uses about the same amount of power as my last ARB/NL/etc top loading fridge (1 - 1.5 A average under 'normal conditions'). So if you have the newer fridge in your camper you won't gain much from the switch. In my opinion anyway, my new front loader is much more convenient to use compared to the ARB I had in my previous camper as you don't have to dig through your food and it is easy to access from outside with the top up or down.

You must not offroad alot.

I can't tell you how annoying it is to open the fridge and stuff just fall out.

 

[rando]

I don't really have much of a problem with stuff falling out, when I am on rough roads or pavement. Occasionally at the beginning of a trip when it is really full a couple of things will have shifted and something I stuffed in on top will fall out, but the little lip on the front of the shelves helps stops most things from actually falling out. Are your shelves installed the right way up?

 

[Vic Harder]

+1 on great low power use on our 130L Truckfridge to keep stuff from moving around in the fridge we use strategically placed empty plastic containers

 

[smlobx]

We keep a variety of small square Tupperware containers onboard and use it to stabilize food in our front loading 2 way fridge and works great.

 

[abqbw]

My experience is that the newer Indel/Webasto Isotherm 60L fridge uses about the same amount of power as my last ARB/NL/etc top loading fridge (1 - 1.5 A average under 'normal conditions'). So if you have the newer fridge in your camper you won't gain much from the switch. In my opinion anyway, my new front loader is much more convenient to use compared to the ARB I had in my previous camper as you don't have to dig through your food and it is easy to access from outside with the top up or down.

Rando-My new 85L isotherm must be a dud. FWC has agreed to replace it. It runs most of the time even in mild temps and kills my 2 75ah batteries. The 180w factory solar barely keeps up. FWC has agreed to replace it. Hopefully the new fridge will perform more like what you experience even though it is larger. Your post is encouraging..

 

[rando]

Hopefully that solves the issue for you and it is not too much bother to swap these out. It would make sense that if it were low on refrigerant or had a bad seal that it would get cold, but just run very inefficiently. It sounds like most of us have been very happy with the new Isotherms.

 

[So Cal Adventurer]

No advice on how to fit it in your rig, but i have been running a 65qt ARB in my truck, for over a year without shutting it off soley on a 100 watt renogy panel. Its insanely efficient

 

[abqbw]

You must not offroad alot.

I can't tell you how annoying it is to open the fridge and stuff just fall out.

I had the ARB top load in my Hawk shell and now have a front load in my Hawk front dinette. I off-road a lot. Pretty much every time I use the camper. My nights in the dirt vs on pavement ratio is probably 100:1. Hands down the front load is more convenient than the top load. Trying to open and access a top load with the top down is between challenging and impossible. Even with the top up it takes a lot of extra room to swing the lid up and get into the thing and find what you are looking for. With the front load it is easy to reach in and put things in or take things out with the top down. Items rarely fall out when I open it the front load. Stuff may have shifted toward the door but it's easy to shove it back in as I open the door. It's only the flat soft stacked stuff that tries to fall out. Like tortillas and cheese and lunch meat stuff. Round cans and jars go on the door and the only thing that bounces up and out is my beloved red-bull 8 oz because the cans are skinny. But I learned to jam them with other small plastic items such as mustard or mayo.

 

[abqbw]

Hopefully that solves the issue for you and it is not too much bother to swap these out. It would make sense that if it were low on refrigerant or had a bad seal that it would get cold, but just run very inefficiently. It sounds like most of us have been very happy with the new Isotherms.

I know this has been covered a million times but how do you measure power consumption? What is the simplest device to add to do it. I'm a moron when it comes to electronics. I only need something that is permanently mounted that I can look at and get a live reading of consumption so I can check what my fridge is doing at any given moment. Any other logging functions would be extra. Useful but not required...

 

[rando]

In order to understand the fridge, you kind of do need the logging functions. I can tell you right now that your fridge draw is about 3.5A when it is running. What you want to know is the average current consumption over some longer interval - say per day. The simplest and best option is the Victron BMV-700 or the newer BMV-712, these can tell you both your average power consumption and the state of charge of your battery. There are cheaper direct from China options on ebay, but if you want to hard mount this and cut a hole in your cabinet, I would go with a proven reliable option over the cheapest option.

 

[PaulT]

If you use either a Trimetric or Victron, you will have a more expensive but more capable instrument for managing your power system. There is a cheaper option for measuring power used by specific subsystems that could be useful. The Powerwerx wattmeter. Powerwerx Watt Meter, DC Inline Power Analyzer, 45A Continuous, 12 Gauge, Powerpole Connectors

This is more useful and easier to use if there are already Anderson Powerpoles installed on those power using devices that you want to know about.

Just another option.
Paul

 

[billharr]

If you use either a Trimetric or Victron, you will have a more expensive but more capable instrument for managing your power system. There is a cheaper option for measuring power used by specific subsystems that could be useful. The Powerwerx wattmeter. Powerwerx Watt Meter, DC Inline Power Analyzer, 45A Continuous, 12 Gauge, Powerpole Connectors

This is more useful and easier to use if there are already Anderson Powerpoles installed on those power usung devices that you want to know about.

Just another option.
Paul

I agree the Trimetric and Victron are great but $$$. Useful information can can be had for much less .

Amazon link. $15.99

 

[abqbw]

Thanks Rando, Paul T, billharr. Good advice.

 

[Timothy McGowen]

Rando-My new 85L isotherm must be a dud. FWC has agreed to replace it. It runs most of the time even in mild temps and kills my 2 75ah batteries. The 180w factory solar barely keeps up. FWC has agreed to replace it. Hopefully the new fridge will perform more like what you experience even though it is larger. Your post is encouraging..

I run the 130L Isotherm with dual 75 ah batteries and 160w factory panel. Mine keeps up just fine. Keep in mind most of my travel has been in southern California and drive every couple of days. Refer pre-chilled at home but have no problem with it keeping the main compartment in the 30's and freezer in the single digits. I am going to add a 120w portable panel just so the batteries don't get pulled down as much in the hot weather.

 

[buckland]

I have the small digital volt meter I installed to monitor the batteries (2 AGM) in the camper but did want to know more as to the usage... don't have the deep pocket to buy quality so sprang for the one Bill suggested above. I have the 65L Isotherm and it is quiet and efficient as I have never run into a power problem with the 165 watt solar on the roof. Being a novice electrical person... I know how to set it up but the optimal spot... is it right after the battery on the main wire out?

 

[rando]

You would want to put the shunt in line with the negative terminal to the battery if you want to know about the status of your battery - but you should check to see if this can measure bi-directional current - if not it won't be able to measure the charge current to the battery (in which case the Wh measurement is kind of meaningless).

 

[buckland]

Thanks Rando. I sent an email to their service department asking whether it measures bi-directional current. I'll report back when they do.

 

[PaulT]

You would want to put the shunt in line with the negative terminal to the battery if you want to know about the status of your battery - but you should check to see if this can measure bi-directional current - if not it won't be able to measure the charge current to the battery (in which case the Wh measurement is kind of meaningless).

One of the reviews at the link discusses using two of these to measure charging with one and discharging with the other. That implies that these are unidirectional and that manually doing the math between them is necessary to determine SOC.

Paul

 

[rando]

I am not sure wiring two of them and trying to subtract the 'Wh' readings is really going to give you what you want, and could actually be more confusing.

The issue with coulomb counting (ie integrating) power meters is that they integrate any small offsets or errors in the measurement, eventually leading to big errors and confusing data. The bi-directional meters have the advantage that at least their errors are the same in each direction - so if your shunt is a little off or the current meter is a little off it effects both the charge and discharge currents equally and the SOC measurement can still be fairly good. Using two separate meters, the errors are independent, so if the discharge current meter reads a little higher than the charge current meter, within a few days the difference will be telling you your battery is empty, even if it is full.

Secondly, even if they were dead-on-balls accurate, you would still end up pretty far off as they don't take into account charge efficiency (about 0.9), which means you need to put 1.1Ah back into your battery for every Ah you take out. Over the course of a couple of charge cycles this will make the math very tricky.

I don't want to be to much of a downer - the amazon or powerwerx meters could be very useful in understanding the power use by a specific appliance, such as your fridge, but don't expect them to be able to replace a dedicated battery power meter.

 

[abqbw]

If I already have the Zamp controller that came with the factory solar system wouldn't it in combo with a unidirectional meter give me all I need. The zamp gives me Ah and (rough) SOC, and Amps coming in from the panels and volts. I'm mostly interested in how much power my fridge is consuming... Compared to what you all are posting about your isotherm fridges mine seems to be a power hog.