Camping refrigerators and freezers are good for...camping or total off grid minimalist living. Most American families aren't in those 2 groups but have families to feed and prep for. And at least here and on other websites like this one, families stock up on frozen foods...in quantity. We have a full size 26 cubic foot refrigerator/freezer drawing 3.1 amps, a 16 cubic foot refrigerator/freezer drawing 1.7 amps, and a 17 cubic foot upright freezer drawing 1.2 amps of power. All three are 120 volt / 60 Hz units. These are all "domestic" units. No need for munchkin sized camping units.
I'm curious as to how many amps your camping fridge draws, and what size it is?
True this, as well.
But- I was super impressed with our RV fridges.
Our fridge in our larger pop up was a larger dorm room size but it could run off of 12v battery, shore power or propane. Packing it was a PITA unless you raised the roof and deployed the beds to pack the whole camper- which was not convenient where we lived at that time. So we got real proficient at crawling inside a closed up pop up to pack the fridge. BUT, it could run off of the 12v pop up battery while rolling down the road, which was immaculate. And it had a teeny tiny little freezer shelf thingy- think 2 ice trays and a couple of ice cream bars.
The fridge in our hard sided travel trailer was much larger, smallish household size by today's standards albeit it had a completely separate freezer compartment and it was too large to run off of a single 12v rv/marine battery. (I don't know what's possible now but back in the day, there was room to put 2 batteries on the tray, on the trailer tongue, but the RV wasn't wired AFAIK to run 2 batteries at one time, so you weren't running 2 batteries at a time to run 1 fridge/freezer.) We had a 12v cooler as well, which we used in the tow vehicle and while on site. Between the generously sized fridge (for our 18' rv) and the 12v cooler, we lived quite comfortably for up to 2 weeks out at a time, as far south as the Florida Keys in April, and every where on the southern Mid-Atlantic to the southern coastal regions all year round. (We camped, comfortably, in our larger pop up with a/c and that 3 way fridge in August in Charleston, Beaufort and Edisto SC with solid hacks. I've personally logged an interior temp of 74' inside our larger pop up at midday in August in Charleston SC.)
The 2 way fridge/freezer combination in the hard sided travel trailer was
immaculate running off of propane.
I
finally got used to running it off of propane while we were enroute, rolling down the road. (Traveling as far south as The Keys rather mandates it.)
It is
imperative that one learn 'The Rules of The Road' when operating a propane fridge/freezer while traveling, not only
what they are but
why they are, otherwise you'll never keep them straight.
1. One must PULL OVER AND SHUT OFF ALL PROPANE TANKS PRIOR TO ENTERING ANY TYPE OF TRANSPORTATION TUNNEL. This was to prevent open flow lines of propane from causing or fueling a fire inside the tunnel in the event of a collision. IIRC, AFAIK it was not required that one shut off the RV fridge, although in retrospect, concerning the generation of sparks, it probably wouldn't be a bad idea to shut the fridge off (and the water heater, if you tow/travel with a full, operating water heater, we did not) as you are shutting off the propane in preparation for entering a tunnel while traveling. Fewer sparks = fewer combustion opportunities.
2. One must PULL OVER AND SHUT OFF THE FRIDGE/FREEZER (AND THE WATER HEATER, IF IT IS FULL AND OPERATIONAL) BEFORE ENTERING ANY FUELING LANE AT A GAS STATION. This is because ignition sparks can light up gas fumes. ALSO PULL WELL OUT OF THE FUELING LANES BEFORE RE-STARTING SAID APPLIANCES.
All this being said:
RV fridges/freezers, which run off of condensing units rather than off of compressors, run
extremely efficiently on propane. They
sipped propane and stayed super cold- MUCH colder than on shore power, which was honestly not enough sometimes on the best days, and subjected your precious and expensive rv appliances to damaging level brown outs on the worst days.
When traveling up and down the mid Atlantic to southern Atlantic coast during the colder months, we ran the rv fridge/freezer on shore power and saved the propane for the gas furnace primarily and for hot water and cooking secondarily. When traveling in the same areas during the hotter months, we relied on an electric griddle and a Lodge hibachi for cooking outside and saved the propane for running the fridge/freezer on the road and in camp.
One advantage that tri-fuel/dual-fuel rv appliances have over similar residential appliances is that the RV appliances, by design, vent their heat and fumes OUTSIDE.
I'm honestly not sure, in this regard, about RV propane and/or natural gas appliances employed for residential use, or even about standard residential propane appliances.
I would assume that residential gas appliances either vent fumes by code or are rated as operating in a safe manner re: gas fumes and interiors. Example: approved, unvented gas fireplaces, both natural gas and LP fueled.
Our first house: all electrical, no combustables, no pilot lights.
In our second home we had 2 natural gas fireplaces, one in the master bedroom, one in the family room. We soon learned to turn those pilot lights OFF during the summer, due to the heat they produced and the gas they burned, uselessly, during the summer months. The natural gas water heater was in the garage so we didn't feel that heat inside during the warm months. Ditto the two natural gas furnaces: one was in the attic, one was in the garage. The pilot light heat wasn't in the conditioned envelop of the living space of the house. Electric range.
In our third home, the gas furnace and the gas water heater, both natural gas, were in the laundry room inside the conditioned space of the house. Not sure about shutting off the pilot light for that furnace during the warmer months, never tried, but the pilot light for both the water heater and the furnace were inside the house and ran all year long. The heat from the pilot lights in the laundry room were palpable during the summer. Electric range. We strongly supplemented the natural gas furnace/carried the house with a pellet stove. During those years a pellet stove vs. natural gas was a toss up in terms of cost, except:
Our natural gas provider increased our rates in one year, by one year alone, by 25%.
I often bought pellets 'on the margin': toward the end of the heating season, say in March, I'd walk the aisles of the local big box stores that carried heating pellets. IF, 1. They had pellets that I liked, and 2. They had pellets, I'd politely ask for the store manager and I would politely, with all kinds of exits and back out clauses, offer LET'S MAKE A DEAL. We'd renovated that house in town using those vendors so we were well known as reliable. Our credit card charges went through, and
I was going to use our cash back/rewards credit card, because, CASH BACK. Furthermore, my truck was in their parking lot and they knew me personally as someone who would pull right up and sling bags of pellets right along with their staff, and I/we did not complain overall.
Our fourth house, this house:
CAT wood stove, which so far has carried the house.
Heat pump, rarely invoked.
Condensing gas furnace, in the crawl space, rarely invoked, we don't mess with the pilot light.
Gas range, sealed pilot lights, we don't mess with them.
On demand gas water heater, we don't mess with the pilot lights.
^^^ All gas appliances powered by LP.
We are and have been actively engaged in Operation Keep the LP Gas in the Tank.
We have stood in Amish/Plain Orders homes in the summer.
Their ranges/stoves, fridges, washers, and residential lights, and I'm
only guessing here whatever appliances their individual congregation bishops approve run (largely) on propane (a small amount on a small amount of bishop approved solar.)
AFAIK the vast amount of heat from the use of and the pilot lights from those appliances ends up inside their houses. In our limited experience, that heat was palpable inside the house.
IMHO, the use of tri-fuel and/or bi-fuel RV appliances is quite interesting, especially given the impacts in either direction. Advantages, disadvantages, caveats.
But yeah, interesting, rv appliances in semi-grid/off-grid applications.
