outside refrigerator in kitchen gets hot

[daywalker567]

I noticed that the outside refrigerator gets very hot to the touch with the outside door closed. is this normal or should there be a vent hole in the compartment? My concern is about running down the road with the generator running and the refrigerator turned on. Or do you just use it when stationary and not for supplimental food storage?

[HopHed]

You did not say, but I assume you have the 2861. I have not noticed ours getting hot as you say. You could travel with the generator on and keep the outside refrig on but there are other options.

We do not use ours for food. We use it for drinks only which frees up space in the inside fridge for more food. We turn it on a few days before trip to get it cold and also freeze several 16oz water bottles and before travelling put them around the drinks while travelling which seems to work until we get to our destination where we can plug in.

I have also added an inverter which I can run while travelling on longer trips if needed. The alternator or solar I have will keep the batteries charged while using the inverter to run the fridge while driving.

I will check the fridge today to see how hot it gets but dont believe it is an issue with ours.

[Flybob]

You don't say what model RV you have. Behind our outside fridge, there are two round vents to the inside of the TT. They are covered inside by standard heat vent louvers. This allows for air flow, but on hot days the outside of the fridge still gets warm. If you have these vents, be aware that ( at least on ours) there are no screens and the heat attracts insects who then fly thru the holes if the outside kitchen door is open. I popped the louvers off the vents and hot glued a piece of window screed over the holes and no more bugs.

[Mars]

Most of the compact fridges do this for the first few hours. The condensing coils are hidden and transfer heat to the sides and/or top of the units. It will still feel warm once the set temp is reached.

[Myrle]

Mine does the same thing, I don't run my generator since we only drive around 6 hours everything stay cold or frozen from campsite to campsite.