need information, my son has purchased three of these with a controller. Total amp hours of 78 amphoursThe problem is that the low battery alarm activates at 12.3 volts which activates about 2 am in the morning when operating his fridge. The three way fridge draws probably 7 or 8 amps .Has anyone been able to find a way to disarm the alarm. OK when bush camping but not acceptable in caravan park.
Bjr1 said
11:22 AM Aug 8, 2020
Best to run 3way fridge on gas or 240v (when available). 78 amp hours does not seem enough for running a fridge on 12v.
Jaahn said
12:51 PM Aug 8, 2020
Hi
As Bjr1 said' that battery capacity is not any way enough to run a 3 way fridge. Use gas ! Not enough to run a compressor fridge either.
Simple arithmetic will say that if using 7-8 amps then 78AHrs will only last for 10 hours to fully flat as a tack. Do that for a week and they are dead as a dodo ! Perhaps that is what the low battery alarm is trying to tell you. Do not disable it, use the gas.
Jaahn
.
OLDFIREE71 said
04:15 PM Aug 8, 2020
Thanks for the quick responses and your advice. He was hoping to avoid lifting the fridge out of the car at night but it is the obvious solution. He has solar panels for daytime use but hoped the batteries would hold the fridge overnight.
Warren-Pat_01 said
09:13 PM Aug 8, 2020
OLDFIREE71,
I get the impression your son's fridge is a portable 3way? Perhaps a Chestcold (50L) or Finch fridge (32L)?
I had Finch fridge years ago, thought it drew about 5-6A on 12v but it was a constant draw. It worked very well on 240, even better on gas.
Some did not have a thermostat, some did - one way of getting around the problem would be to wind the thermostat up to the max a few hours before dark & turning it off for the night, meaning things might freeze!
While you might be able to disable the alarm it might not do the battery(ies) any good by constantly dragging the battery down lower than 50% on a regular basis.
Whenarewethere said
09:51 PM Aug 8, 2020
It's either gas or get a compressor fridge.
Some ideas here to make a compressor fridge more efficient. I did have 3 x 26Ah gel batteries (now 4) & 78Ah is perfectly ok for a few days for a small compressor fridge at about 15Ah per 24 hours.
Hi
As Bjr1 said' that battery capacity is not any way enough to run a 3 way fridge. Use gas !
Not enough to run a compressor fridge either.
Simple arithmetic will say that if using 7-8 amps then 78AHrs will only last for 10 hours to fully flat as a tack. Do that for a week and they are dead as a dodo ! Perhaps that is what the low battery alarm is trying to tell you. Do not disable it, use the gas.
Jaahn
.
I get the impression your son's fridge is a portable 3way? Perhaps a Chestcold (50L) or Finch fridge (32L)?
I had Finch fridge years ago, thought it drew about 5-6A on 12v but it was a constant draw. It worked very well on 240, even better on gas.
Some did not have a thermostat, some did - one way of getting around the problem would be to wind the thermostat up to the max a few hours before dark & turning it off for the night, meaning things might freeze!
While you might be able to disable the alarm it might not do the battery(ies) any good by constantly dragging the battery down lower than 50% on a regular basis.
It's either gas or get a compressor fridge.
Some ideas here to make a compressor fridge more efficient. I did have 3 x 26Ah gel batteries (now 4) & 78Ah is perfectly ok for a few days for a small compressor fridge at about 15Ah per 24 hours.
https://thegreynomads.activeboard.com/t65059593/extra-fridge-insulation-wattage-test/