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Old 07-14-2020, 08:50 AM   #41
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Bought a 2020 Cherokee Grey Wolf 23MKBL which features a new all electric Furrion Fridge. Worked great until I put food in it and then the fun began.It wouldn’t go below 50 and I Lost a fridge full of food due to a blown 15Amp in-line fuse. Had to take unit out of wall to fix! STILL won’t go below 50 degrees! Lost another load of food! what a piece of junk! Anybody else had a problem with this china bomb?!
I also have the same new 2020 23MK and mine is also a piece of junk. The workmanship is appalling. No my fridge doesn't work worth a damn either. I f you pre-cool your food in your house fridge first it will be a little better. Turned all the way up my freezer gets down to -26 and the refer to 32, then it warms up to over 40 before it comes on again and takes forever to shut off. I haven't dry camped yet but can't imagine the factory battery lasting long especially if you need the heat on too. Running the A/C all day helps too, but won't when boondocking! Sure miss propane! Then try to sleep when that noise monster of a fridge comes on! Will never,ever buy another Grey Wolf. The dealer is no help either with all the issues. I'm currently working with a list of over 20 items that were wrong/defective with ours. A true piece of junk. Wish I had my 20 yr. old Keystone back!
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Old 07-14-2020, 08:56 AM   #42
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What is the recovery time of these 12v compressor fridges?

With kids, our classic propane fridge would sit above a food safe level many days. Yes, the kids need to stop opening the door, but it’s my issue.

A 120v compressor fridge (residential fridge) has a fast recover. Do these 12v compressor fridges recover like that? I’d be tempted to switch!

My guess is that they recover like a similar res. fridge. The only difference should be a 12v motor vs a 120v motor. Anyone confirm that?
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Old 07-14-2020, 09:18 AM   #43
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What is the recovery time of these 12v compressor fridges?

With kids, our classic propane fridge would sit above a food safe level many days. Yes, the kids need to stop opening the door, but it’s my issue.

A 120v compressor fridge (residential fridge) has a fast recover. Do these 12v compressor fridges recover like that? I’d be tempted to switch!

My guess is that they recover like a similar res. fridge. The only difference should be a 12v motor vs a 120v motor. Anyone confirm that?
I find mine runs for over half an hour and off for an hour just to keep my food warm. I had to be careful not to freeze food in my 20 yr. old propane unit and it only used about 1/2 pound of gas a day. My opinion is that 12v fridges are pure junk. But so is the whole camper unfortunately.
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Old 07-14-2020, 09:44 AM   #44
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I find mine runs for over half an hour and off for an hour just to keep my food warm. I had to be careful not to freeze food in my 20 yr. old propane unit and it only used about 1/2 pound of gas a day. My opinion is that 12v fridges are pure junk. But so is the whole camper unfortunately.
The tech is sound, it’s just a residential fridge with a 12v motor. But it sounds like at least one brand of them is junk.

I believe a 12v fridge could be made well. And be a better option than 120v with invertor. Doesn’t mean any mfg actually makes a good one though! Of course I sort of think that about all appliances now.
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Old 07-14-2020, 10:28 AM   #45
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I do not have a 12V compressor type reefer.
I have wondered about these as they seem more common in the newer RVs. I have to wonder if the longevity of the compressor in the system... Maybe better service than a 120V compressor... I dunno. Personally I would replace my 12V/LP reefer with a 120V in a minute.... even thinking of it as we speak. Mostly electric sites.
We camped a couple weeks ago. Temps in the 90s and cloudy most of the time. I have remote temp sensors in the reefer... ~40-45 reefer/5-7 freezer temps when it was at its best. I have a computer fan outside and one of those 12V fans in front of the evap. It runs all the time...when the reefer is turned on.
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Old 07-14-2020, 10:28 AM   #46
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I guess quality control seems to be a major issue with these fridges. Fortunately I'm very happy with my Furrion DC fridge. The freezer keeps things frozen and the fridge keeps everything cold. I never put a thermometer inside, but it feels like my fridge at home feels. It is a bit of a power hog, and we mostly dry camp, but bigger batteries help. I'm also not opposed to daily generator use to top off the batteries. To me the larger capacity of the fridge is worth the additional power consumption.
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Old 07-14-2020, 10:30 AM   #47
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I do not have a 12V compressor type reefer.
I have wondered about these as they seem more common in the newer RVs. I have to wonder if the longevity of the compressor in the system... Maybe better service than a 120V compressor... I dunno. Personally I would replace my 12V/LP reefer with a 120V in a minute.... even thinking of it as we speak. Mostly electric sites.
We camped a couple weeks ago. Temps in the 90s and cloudy most of the time. I have remote temp sensors in the reefer... ~40-45 reefer/5-7 freezer temps when it was at its best. I have a computer fan outside and one of those 12V fans in front of the evap. It runs all the time...when the reefer is turned on.
Something I've always wondered about 120 volt fridges. How do you keep food cold on the way to camp? Do you buy food after you get to camp? Do you run an inverter while towing it?
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Old 07-14-2020, 10:40 AM   #48
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Something I've always wondered about 120 volt fridges. How do you keep food cold on the way to camp? Do you buy food after you get to camp? Do you run an inverter while towing it?
Most/all 120v residential refrigerators have an inverter in the R/V to run the refrigerator. I've never seen one that didn't but I'll never say never.
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Old 07-14-2020, 10:42 AM   #49
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Something I've always wondered about 120 volt fridges. How do you keep food cold on the way to camp? Do you buy food after you get to camp? Do you run an inverter while towing it?
Every residential fridge, that I know of, has a dedicated inverter. And you need at least two 6v golf cart batteries, AGM or Lithium batteries.
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Old 07-14-2020, 10:52 AM   #50
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I have a 10 day old Wolf Pup 16fq... never left the driveway...Furrion 12v fridge stopped working...shore power, battery, breakers, fuses... all fine. Taking it back to the dealer today... Im pissed!! Supposed to leave Thursday for the first trip with it. Not a great start for my first camper...
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Old 07-14-2020, 11:01 AM   #51
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I have a 10 day old Wolf Pup 16fq... never left the driveway...Furrion 12v fridge stopped working...shore power, battery, breakers, fuses... all fine. Taking it back to the dealer today... Im pissed!! Supposed to leave Thursday for the first trip with it. Not a great start for my first camper...
There are tons of 12v fridge issue posts here and on other RV forums.
They are relatively new to the RV market and IMHO, not a proven item yet.
I personally wouldn't have one but only because we dry cam a lot and prefer 2-way fridges.
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Old 07-14-2020, 11:06 AM   #52
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Most/all 120v residential refrigerators have an inverter in the R/V to run the refrigerator. I've never seen one that didn't but I'll never say never.
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Every residential fridge, that I know of, has a dedicated inverter. And you need at least two 6v golf cart batteries, AGM or Lithium batteries.
Makes sense. Thanks for the replies. I pictured the 120 V fridge as being similar to the microwave or A/C, in that they needed a generator or shore power to run.
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Old 07-14-2020, 11:26 AM   #53
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Something I've always wondered about 120 volt fridges. How do you keep food cold on the way to camp? Do you buy food after you get to camp? Do you run an inverter while towing it?
If that is a concern.. I don't figure a couple of hours would hurt anything. We hardly ever go any further than that. If I did I would use ice chests to protect or buy along the way, but I don't/have never camped in a wilderness area. We are(I am) a woosy when it comes to camping... seems to either be miserable hot or miserable hot when we camp. I would have a good generator if I did.
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Old 07-14-2020, 11:26 AM   #54
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Makes sense. Thanks for the replies. I pictured the 120 V fridge as being similar to the microwave or A/C, in that they needed a generator or shore power to run.
Inverters take 12v DC power and invert it to 120v AC.

120v refrigerators do not draw near the current of a A/C or a microwave (well maybe a small microwave) so the refrigerator can run off a smaller inverter and a good/capable battery while going down the road or at a campsite with no shore power... BUT... at some point, you need to replenish the current in the battery so a generator or plugging into shore power accomplishes this. You also put 'some' charge into the battery while traveling down the road from the tow vehicle's alternator.

To run HUGE current draw appliances, you need a really LARGE inverter and LOTS of battery(ies). At that point, most folks just us a generator instead of inverting from a battery although there are those that have lightened their wallets considerably by investing in large solar arrays and hefty battery banks to not have to run a generator.
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Old 07-14-2020, 11:26 AM   #55
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The tech is sound, it’s just a residential fridge with a 12v motor...
Actually it is a compressor driven unit with a dedicated internal inverter driving an AC compressor. Nothing novel...nothing more.
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Old 07-14-2020, 12:33 PM   #56
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Picked up my Arctic Wolf last Friday. They had it hooked up about an hour before I got there and the 12v Reefer was already cold. It was about where a propane would be after 6-8 hours.

On the dial there are 7 position plus off. They had it at 7, I turned it down the next day to 4 because ice was forming in the fridge part on the back wall. The next day the freezer was still frozen, but the fridge part was about 50*, so moved to the 5 position. I just went and checked the temps, the fridge is 43* on average and the freezer is 11*. So it looks like for my unit the #5 position is working well. Haven't stuck anything in it yet, but once it stabilizes the food, it should work well. It works faster than the LP/Electric, will see if it is as stable as one once it is put to use.

I don't know how much a difference it makes, but I always have my RV plugged in with the AC set to 74*, mainly to keep it dry inside, so the reefer doesn't need to work as hard when it is cool inside. If I were to shut it off and let it reach 90-100 inside, the function of the reefer may be completely different, so will have to wait and see how it holds up on long trips when there is no AC.
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Old 07-14-2020, 12:58 PM   #57
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Actually it is a compressor driven unit with a dedicated internal inverter driving an AC compressor. Nothing novel...nothing more.
On some fridges like the Everchill that is true. Not for this one and many others. They actually uses 12V compressors.
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Old 07-14-2020, 01:44 PM   #58
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Try a fridge fan

I have a 9.9 CU.F GE 12v fridge that will freeze food in the fridge part if I turn it too low. I installed a pair of 120mm automatic vent fans.
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Old 07-14-2020, 04:40 PM   #59
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Picked up my Arctic Wolf last Friday. They had it hooked up about an hour before I got there and the 12v Reefer was already cold. It was about where a propane would be after 6-8 hours.

On the dial there are 7 position plus off. They had it at 7, I turned it down the next day to 4 because ice was forming in the fridge part on the back wall. The next day the freezer was still frozen, but the fridge part was about 50*, so moved to the 5 position. I just went and checked the temps, the fridge is 43* on average and the freezer is 11*. So it looks like for my unit the #5 position is working well. Haven't stuck anything in it yet, but once it stabilizes the food, it should work well. It works faster than the LP/Electric, will see if it is as stable as one once it is put to use.

I don't know how much a difference it makes, but I always have my RV plugged in with the AC set to 74*, mainly to keep it dry inside, so the reefer doesn't need to work as hard when it is cool inside. If I were to shut it off and let it reach 90-100 inside, the function of the reefer may be completely different, so will have to wait and see how it holds up on long trips when there is no AC.

All I can say is I've had the same experience with mine since we picked our rig up in April. I'm sure just like anything man-made, YMWV.
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Old 07-20-2020, 07:10 PM   #60
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Bought a 2020 Cherokee Grey Wolf 23MKBL which features a new all electric Furrion Fridge. Worked great until I put food in it and then the fun began.It wouldn’t go below 50 and I Lost a fridge full of food due to a blown 15Amp in-line fuse. Had to take unit out of wall to fix! STILL won’t go below 50 degrees! Lost another load of food! what a piece of junk! Anybody else had a problem with this china bomb?!
As a postscript to this situation, I lost a third fridge of food including my walleye and bluegills..What a mess! Called Furrion the same day and unloaded on them, they passed me off to Forest River Sevice in Lagrange, IN. I talked with Ron Levitz in service. He was amazing! Had a replacement delivered to my site in Port Clinton, OH the next day and installed. Thanks, Forest River!
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