When you guys travel with your fridges on, is it better to run them on 12V or propane? Some of the other guys I talked to use propane to keep the draw on the alternator down, and since the fridge has auto light, blowing out isn't a big deal. I think the fridge only draws something like 17 amps or so, can't see it being a big deal for the alternator to handle. What do you think?

 

DRD,<br> When I pull, I run it on 12V, all my propane is turned off. Thus far, no problems. <br>Big dawg

 

How do you travel with the fridge running? When I was looking at TT's at a dealership the sale guy told me that the fridge must be level in order to work. You can't be level all the time when moving, so what gives?<br>Do the fridges absolutely have to be level?<br><br>Thanks,<br>Chris

 

The newer fridges are not as sensitive as the older ones were. The need to be level has to do with the ability of the cooling fluids to effiecently flow through the cooling system. If the unit is running while the unit is not &quot;more or less&quot; level, it tends to cause the system to clog up. And the damage is cumulative. While you are moving, the system gets shaken enough to keep things flowing. While parked, if the floor is level enough to be comfortable for you to live in the unit, it is probably level enough for the fridge.<br><br>As for traveling with the fridge on, the 12v is safer. The danger of an explosion while fueling up (from the flame igniting gasoline fumes) is a real, if remote one. I travel with the propane on, as my fridge doesn't have a 12v option. On the other hand, I have an aux. fuel tank and carry 110 gallons of diesel fuel when full and I never fuel up while I have the trailer in tow.<br><br>Hope that this helps.<br><br>DeWain

 

I don't have a 12v either. I wasn't sure they even offered the 12v fridges anymore. The ones I have seen never worked well, but that has been a long time. Maybe they're better now.

I run the fridge on LP while driving with no problems. As mentioned before, when driving, the fridge is level often enough to keep it operational.

I am very observant of my fueling situations though. My truck fills on the driver's side and the fridge is on the passenger's side. The distance between my fridge and fuel tank is sufficient that it does not worry me.

I am leary of getting too close to a pump on the passenger side though. If it looks like there is a pump that will be too close to the fridge (especially if it is gasoline), I will have the wife go in and turn the fridge off before I pull up to the pump area.

 

We do the same thing as thecatsfan. If we are fueling at a diesel only island and as long as it does not have pumps on the passenger side (where my fridge is) we leave it on, making sure we don't go near the gas pumps. If we have to get anywhere near them we pull over and shut it off first.<br><br>ALso, if we are only going a couple of hours we just turn it off. We keep a couple of blue ice packs in the freezer and keep a few frozen bottles of water in the main fridge door. Seems to work pretty well.

 

My 2001 model 5er doesn't run on 12V. If I plug the trailer into an RV electrical plug, it will run on the converter source, when I unplug, the auto ignition lights the LP to operate the fridge. I leave it running duting transit like Catsfan does, since my deer camp is a little over 4 hours away. The fridge is on the passenger side, and at the big truck stops the gasoline pumps are a long way from the diesel pumps, so no problem there either.