Residential Refrigerator Does Not stay running

[cavie]

Originally Posted by scusset1

Great feedback folks, thank you. I have had battery issues from the day we bought the unit. Initially there were only 2 house batteries and I wasn't smart enough to know that wasn't enough to power the fridge. We now have 4 batteries and still have an issue. So, I am thinking that one or more of the batteries are not working properly, the inverter is not powerful enough or the controller is not working properly.
I can take the coach to a battery place and have the batteries checked. How would I know if the inverter is enough to run the fridge? And how would I test the controller?

Again, Many thanks folks. Obviously I have limited knowledge but I am willing to learn.

Your invertor has an output wattage. It must be greater than the demand wattage of the fridge.

[CHICKDOE]

i have both the refrigerator and inverter mentioned in post #19. i am not aware on any known issue with this combination. if it known can you post where i can learn about it? i have never had a problem running the refrigerator off the inverter. as i posted earlier the refrigerator has a data plate on it that says it uses 8.5 amps which is just around 1000 watts ac. the inverter is rated for 2000 watts. i run the refrigerator using batteries only or while towing using both batteries and charge from the tow vehicle.

[garbonz]

Why is your alternator not proving power while you are running down the road. Something ain't right here and no amount of chatter is gonna fix it without a hands on examination of your whole system.

[Farmboy98922]

Just a heads up. I found that when i am plugged in to shore power I have to shut the inverter off or it shuts off on its own and won't come back on until I take the low voltage fuse out to reset it. This was on a 2015 keystone fusion. It was in the shop a number of times and they could not find anything wrong. Even though it was supposed to be a pass through inverter

[mkekflyers]

Had that same problem with my 2018 Georgetown. Found out that the GFCI OUTPUT plug on the front of the inverter popped. The plug is impossible to see without a mirror and flashlight. The plug is to the right of the LED display. The inverter is behind a removable plastic panel above the propane tank on my XL 378. They mounted mine sideways which didn’t help either. You can reach the plug once you take the panel off. Mine has the fridge plugged in the plug closest to the outside, blocking the view of the breaker buttons. Go to the inverter mfr web site and download the users manual. Has a complete drawing of the inverter and you can see everything on the drawings. Hope it’s that simple for you.

[360true]

Originally Posted by 360true

Can you be a bit more specific. When you say the fridge is not running, do you mean that there is no per to the appliance? Is there a lot control panel on the door? When you open the doors, does the light come on?

If no power, check the GFI on your inverter. It is located in a panel above the propane tank on the driver's side of your 2014 378l. What model fridge and what inverter? There is a known issue that the Frigidaire model fghf2366pf2 has too long of a startup time for the xantrex pro watt 2000 inverter. We experienced the problem, went thru several inverter failures and it is now fixed.


Let us know more info, many folks here with applicable experience and knowledge.

We replaced three prowatt 2000 inverters. The GFCI blew (not just popped, but refused to reset). Xantrex was excellent as each was under their two year warranty. Discussions with both FR and Xantrex determined that this particular fridge had too long a startup surge for the inverter. That FR only built this combination for less than 200 rigs - then switched to the LG "linear start" fridge. Finally we replaced prowatt with xantrex freedom x inverter. Seemed to solve the problem. (Keeping fingers crossed).

[scusset1]

Working on getting access to the inverter. As for the refridge, I will have to check on the model. You indicated that a change in the inverter was necessary. Which inverter did you end up with? Did you install it yourself?
Thanks again for the input!!!

[CHICKDOE]

to 360true:

thank you for the info on the refrigerator / inverter combination. as i stated earlier i have both so i must be one of the 200 units that were made using this combo. so far i have not had a problem. but i guess i'll keep my fingers crossed.

i'm thinking of how we use the refrigerator on the inverter and that may be why we have not had the problem. we rarely dry camp. perhaps electric and water without sewer but not without shore power. so the refrigerator is running on shore power. when we go to leave the inverter is turned on before we disconnect from shore power. when we disconnect the inverter should then supply power to the refrigerator in a very short amount of time. perhaps this happens fast enough that the refrigerator is not putting a full start up load on the inverter so that it is not overloading the inverter. this is just a theory. again i do appreciate the heads up. for what it's worth we had an LG refrigerator in the house and the linear compressor went out within two years.

[formerFR]

... the normal process for an inverter, is to immediately assume the 120v power when you 'unplug' from Shore Power, if the Inverter is ON, of course. It has a built in relay that tells it when you have other power, such as Shore Power or Generator Power, and simply passes thru that 120v power to each of the circuits in your electrical panel that the Inverter is supplied to.
When you 'unplug', or turn off the generator, the Inverter's relay then switches back, immediately, to Inverter power, providing a continuous supply of power to all of your Inverted circuits, without interruption. This is great for tv satellite receivers so that they don't lose power and having to go thru the 'reset' process, etc.

Your Inverter, if left always ON, also provides your 'backup' power outage supply if the campground or rv park loses 120v power, whether during a storm, or really anytime.
We always leave ours on, for this reason, and really see no need to every turn it off - except in storage, of course.
While the AGS to start the generator is also available, when needed, if power is lost for a substantial time, the Inverter is simply the interim power supply during the time between shore power loss and the generator starting, when parked, but also the power while traveling, for the regular usage of desktop computers, tv on the road, using the microwave, and of course, powering the fridge.

When you unplug from shore power, and your fridge's compressor happens to be running at that moment, the Inverter takes over and continues providing power so that the fridge continues - but, the compressor comes on and off, as needed, so the idea that the 'transfer' of power when you unplug from shore power is somehow making the Inverter's job 'easier' is probably not really true, since the next time the compressor comes on, while under Inverter power, the same 'start up' amps will still be needed.
If the Inverter is having issue when the fridge's compressor 'starts', then it's more than likely not the inverter, but the battery supply - as in cell(s) are below the specific gravity minimum and are 'pulling down' the initial and sudden draw of 12v power output when the fridge's compressor is asking for power, causing the inverter to cut off, thinking that it has no 12v power, even for just a moment.

[360true]

Our setup worked fine for a couple of years. Then each inverter blew within several months. The last Prowatt was sent to me last summer. I installed it while on a trip out west, and within two weeks - blew again. Had to run the generator while driving just to keep the fridge cold. I think the issue is with the gif I outlet itself. Was told by FR to remove the gif I and replace it with a regular outlet. Xantrex told me not to.... Replaced Prowatt 2000 with Xantrex Freedom X 1000. As fridge is exclusively powered by inverter, 2000 was not necessary. The Freedom has the transfer switch built in (Prowatt is separate) and the cord that runs through the chassis to power to outlet for the fridge has to be hard wired to inverter (Prowatt has gif I outlet to simply plug in). While I probably could have done it, I was so ready for it to just work finally, I had my Tampa dealer install it.

[scusset1]

Thanks... After the dealer switched out the equipment have you had any issues?

[360true]

Originally Posted by scusset1

Thanks... After the dealer switched out the equipment have you had any issues?

So far so good, but we have been in our winter spot plugged in for the winter. Leaving for a couple weeks at the end of this month, so we are hopeful.

[scusset1]

Hope it is the solution. Let us know when you get back.
Safe travels!

[The Newsoms]

I replaced the gfi outlet with a regular one in my 2000 pro watt. It would run about 5 minutes and then would trip.

[koller1509]

Originally Posted by scusset1

Does anyone that has a residential fridge in their RV have a solution to keeping it running while on the road?
The inverter is on, the fridge is running but when I stop I notice that the fridge isn't running and have o turn the inverter switch off and on again.
Thanks in advance for your thoughts.

I would check your voltage when it does that, be willing to bet that the inverter is shutting down on low voltage. Check your batteries

[Sbryant]

We were having a problem of our residential refrigerator turning itself off while traveling. Checked the inverter (Paralex brand). It had a code on the readout (can’t remember now what the code was). Checked on line for a manual and there were no lists of error codes in it. So I called Paralex customer service. The rep told me that the code meant low voltage. I asked him what they considered low voltage. 10.5 out of 12 volts. So after checking and double checking we determined that we needed to purchase new coach batteries. We taken 2 trips since then and the refrigerator is staying on like it’s supposed to.

[scusset1]

Thanks! It appears to be a general consensus that the batteries are the primary concern. As soon as the snow melts a bit, I plan on bringing the coach to have all the batteries checked. Some suggest doing so with a load upon them as well.

[Logcabiny]

There are 2 other possible issues I have not seen mentioned elsewhere. Our fridge has an icemaker. When it is dumping the frozen ice into the bin it will draw a very high amp load due to the heater required to release the ice. This high load will cause a low voltage error which shuts the inverter off. My fix is to switch the ice maker to Off whenever we do not have shore power.
Second problem is the high amps pulled when the freezer section goes into defrost mode. Again the high load causes a sustained low voltage and inverter shuts off. I am trying to determine how I can install a switch in the defrost powerline but have been unsuccessful so far.
I have 900 Ahr of AGM batteries and a Magnum 2000 watt inverter which powers everything else just fine in our 40' MH. Switching the ice maker Off fixed most of the problem. Still working on the defrost issue.

[scusset1]

That makes perfect sense. I was under the impression that if there wasn't any water being sent to the ice maker then it didn't really go on. When we are in transit we rarely leave the H2O pump on unless using the bathroom.
I will definitely try this. If you find a solution to the defrost cycle can you post it please?
many thanks in advance!