running frig while traveling

[Tlwells]

I would like to know how to run frig on travel days?

[Sunseeker16]

Originally Posted by Tlwells

I would like to know how to run frig on travel days?

Not sure what fridge you have but there should be an auto setting of some sort. If so it should take cae of itself as long as the propane is left on.

[Tlwells]

I understand u r not supposed to run on gas on travel day. Mine has auto for gas or electric.

[Sunseeker16]

Been doing it for over 30 years.

[rracer5]

Originally Posted by Sunseeker16

Been doing it for over 30 years.

X2 Except if you travel through highway tunnels. You'll need to stop prior to and turn off the propane.

[Believer45]

Originally Posted by Tlwells

I understand u r not supposed to run on gas on travel day. Mine has auto for gas or electric.

Originally Posted by Sunseeker16

Been doing it for over 30 years.

We are assuming you have a propane/electric refrigerator. I have also been running mine while traveling for well over 30 years without issue. Turn it off for posted tunnels and when near fueling islands.

You should shut off any flame before you pull up to fuel pump area when fueling tow vehicle. Pull well away from the pumps before turning the fridge on again.

Dave / Belliever45

[Bob K4TAX]

Ours has the AUTO mode that switches from electric to LP. When we get to the campsite and have shore power available it switches back to electric. If there is no electric, it stays on LP.

So when pulling the trailer, it is automatically on LP.

Bob

[Mr. Dan]

Originally Posted by Bob K4TAX

Ours has the AUTO mode that switches from electric to LP. When we get to the campsite and have shore power available it switches back to electric. If there is no electric, it stays on LP.

So when pulling the trailer, it is automatically on LP.

Bob

Same here.

[bikendan]

Originally Posted by Tlwells

I understand u r not supposed to run on gas on travel day. Mine has auto for gas or electric.

RV owners have been running their fridges on propane over 75 years.
Where did you get the idea that you're not supposed to?

The only places that you aren't supposed to, are a few tunnels on the east coast and ferries.

There are some people that have a fear of the possibility of a fire so they don't. But it makes it difficult to keep a 2-way fridge coolness while traveling.

It appears that you have a motorhome so run the generator while traveling, if running it on propane bothers you.

[Ballistic]

An open flame at a fueling/propane station seems totally legit.

[flyflotrtim]

Originally Posted by Sunseeker16

Been doing it for over 30 years.

6X me too.

Several earlier threads on this if you want extended reading.

[5picker]

This is one of those horses (topics) that's been beaten to death and there's always those on both sides of the fence. There's days of prior post reading on this.

With that said, one must make the decision to do whatever one is comfortable with. With the exception of the aforementioned tunnels and ferries, there's no law prohibiting one from running a LP refrigerator while going down the highway.

There's also been great debate as to whether the burner flame located inside the rear of the refrigerator and inside the burner chamber is considered an "open flame."

I've yet to find anyone that has provided empirical evidence that R/Vs will/have burst into flames (while running the refrigerator on LP) any quicker when going down the highway -vs- sitting at a campsite.

[BarabooBob]

I turn mine off for east coast tunnels and gas stops. It only takes a minute to open the door and turn off the fridge before fueling. My fridge is on the same side as my fuel fill so I always turn the fridge off and pull away from the pump before turning it on again.

I work a couple of days a month at a gas station and we have to watch safety videos annually. One of the required videos is of a travel trailer going up in flames at the pump. You can see thee flash at the refrigerator vent where the fire started. The truck, travel trailer, station awning, and a couple of other vehicles were destroyed.

[Mike134]

I always leave mine running on propane even at gas stations.

Just as a point of reference about the safety of having it on at a filling station, homes in the southern states typically put the gas fired water heater in the garage. Only building code requirement is it needs to be on a platform with a height of 18" or greater. Reason for the elevated platform, gasoline fumes are heavier than air so if the heaters flame is up at least 18" no worries.

[Mr. Dan]

Originally Posted by Mike134

I always leave mine running on propane even at gas stations.

Just as a point of reference about the safety of having it on at a filling station, homes in the southern states typically put the gas fired water heater in the garage. Only building code requirement is it needs to be on a platform with a height of 18" or greater. Reason for the elevated platform, gasoline fumes are heavier than air so if the heaters flame is up at least 18" no worries.

That’s my operating procedure… and 18” is how high my home propane water heater is above my garage floor.

[Ballistic]

I suppose this topic can be "picked and chosen" based on the relevant state code elevated water heaters are not to prevent the gas water heater from igniting fumes (although that is laughable), rather its to prevent the gas water heaters' pilot from being extinguished from flood waters and then cause secondary issues.

It's like a "chose your own adventure" based upon where you want to go.

[Reverse_snowbird]

We also leave the propane on while traveling. We have the option of flipping a switch on the propane tank in the motorhome which makes it convenient when stopping at gas stations which is a whole lot easier than turning valves to close off the propane on a tt.

It's also possible to just leave the refrigerator off while traveling depending on how long the drive is. Food will usually keep for a few hours, but you could also put a bag of ice in the fridge and freezer if you're going to be driving longer.

[rjshiflet]

Originally Posted by Sunseeker16

Not sure what fridge you have but there should be an auto setting of some sort. If so it should take cae of itself as long as the propane is left on.

We've always kept our propane refrigerators on AUTO during travel for over 20 years and never had an issue. Our current RV has a 12-volt refrigerator that runs off of our trailer battery and is re-charged by the truck as we travel. In addition, we have two more refrigerators (beverage cooler and outdoor kitchen fridge) that are 110 volt. We just have them cooled before heading out, then for our 5-6 hour travel days it says cool enough until we plug back in to shore power.

[MGD1961]

Originally Posted by Mike134

I always leave mine running on propane even at gas stations.

Just as a point of reference about the safety of having it on at a filling station, homes in the southern states typically put the gas fired water heater in the garage. Only building code requirement is it needs to be on a platform with a height of 18" or greater. Reason for the elevated platform, gasoline fumes are heavier than air so if the heaters flame is up at least 18" no worries.

People aren’t actively fueling multiple vehicles in their home garage. This is a non-comparable in my opinion

[MGD1961]

Originally Posted by Reverse_snowbird

We also leave the propane on while traveling. We have the option of flipping a switch on the propane tank in the motorhome which makes it convenient when stopping at gas stations which is a whole lot easier than turning valves to close off the propane on a tt.

It's also possible to just leave the refrigerator off while traveling depending on how long the drive is. Food will usually keep for a few hours, but you could also put a bag of ice in the fridge and freezer if you're going to be driving longer.

When we had a propane fridge we would turn it off with a couple bags of ice in it. Never had an issue with it getting to warm.

Then we would toss the ice in the beer cooler when we got there. Worked out great