Frig use while travelling

[Joesjunk]

I'm about to take delivery on a 2000 TM 2720. The dealer said that the refrig was two way (gas/110Vac). I'm a little concerned about traveling down the road with the gas open to run the refrig. Is the refrig 2 way or 3 way(12Vdc,gas,110Vac) on the 2720? Is it dangerous to pull a camper down the road with the gas open? Does the frig have a ignitor or pilot?

How would I go about getting a User's manual?

All info is helpful. Thanks for your help,

Joe's Junk (Joe Makarczyk Raleigh, NC) ;)

[B_and_D]

Could you post the make and model of your referigerator? That might help.

D

[cmc211]

Mine is a 3 way so I run it on 12vdc when traveling. First I run it on 120ac to get cold then flip it to 12vdc. Dave

[Jim-NY]

Joe,

I am new to this myself, but I read a lot of previous posts on this board and recall seeing that you should do just as Dave suggests. Cool it down w AC then switch to DC when you leave. Turn off propane tasnks while on the road. Have the fridge very level before you turn it on at the campsite. Another thing is you need to be careful if you stop for very long along the way your fridge might drain your TV battery. Search the posts for more info.

Jim
:new_newbi

[Denny_A]

I'm about to take delivery on a 2000 TM 2720. The dealer said that the refrig was two way (gas/110Vac). I'm a little concerned about traveling down the road with the gas open to run the refrig. Is the refrig 2 way or 3 way(12Vdc,gas,110Vac) on the 2720? Is it dangerous to pull a camper down the road with the gas open? Does the frig have a ignitor or pilot?

How would I go about getting a User's manual?

All info is helpful. Thanks for your help,

Joe's Junk (Joe Makarczyk Raleigh, NC) ;)......reefer with propane whilst the trailer is closed, whether towing or parked. It's not safe, and I believe (from input in this forum) that it is illegal (in many states?). One could hypothesize any number of scary scenarios.

If you do NOT have a DC mode, then the reefer must by inop whilst towing. Fortunately the reefer resists heat transfer very well and shouldn't be a problem if cooled properly before moving out.

Can't answer the user's manual problem - but, someone will, sooner or later.

Denny_A

[Freedom]

There's a good write-up on the refrigerator on this forum. Go to "TrailManor information you won't find anywhere else" at the beginning page and then down to " Intro to the TM refrigerator " by Bill. It will tell you a lot about the refer. also you can go to http://www.gasrefrigeration.net/dometic_manuals.htm and download manuals . You will need the model number which is on the refer.

[aldebnj]

As some have experienced, running a fridge on propane when a TrailManor is closed results in scorching and discoloration due to heat from the flame. When the trailer is closed, there is not adequate ventilation for the fridge to work properly and to prevent damage to the trailer. Even running on DC, the TrailManor has a special fan to keep the fridge working properly and dissipate the heat.

Happy Camping,
Al

[hal]

Your manual expressly states that you must have the refer fan running, anytime the refer is in the on position and the roof is down. Otherwise you may burn out your refer. It is my understanding that damage should not occur if the roof is down and the refer is turned on. Before leaving on a trip, our refer is hooked up to 110 and the roof is down for 12 to 14 hours (during the night). We can see no effect of discoloration.


NO! absolutely NOT, you should never run your refer on Propane while on the road. Not only does this require your bottles to be left in the open position but there is a danger of the pilot light igniting gas fumes while at a service station and you or someone else is gassing up. You wouldn't hold a lit cigarette while the fumes are flowing around you. Recently, an RV was completely destroyed and all the gasoline pumps were put out of operation because the pilot light was on.

By the way, when we travel, the refer is not turned on. We found that the least effective source of power is 12 volt. Once your refer is cold, and you do not repeatedly open its door, is should remain cool for a day. We traveled in stop in go traffic in temperatures above 100° on a highway from Las Vegas eastward. Our Calfornia stawberries were still cold that evening. At first we ran our refer on 12 volts but were amazed after stopping for an hour, our tow vehicle's battery was dead when we tried to restart the tow vehicle

Hal.

[cmc211]

If I have my fridge on DC and I stop for anymore then 30 min I unplug the trailer from the TV just to be safe.

[Freedom]

You need to have an isolator on the charge line from the TV. It will automatically take the TV out of the circuit so the refer, or any other thing that draws power in the TM when parked, cannot draw down the TV battery. That last sentence reminds me of a college professor I know named Verbal Snook! He had a way with words, but sometimes they didn't work well for him. Any way, it's a good idea to not leave the connection from the trailer hooked up when parked - I don't trust myself to plug it back in, so I have an isolator to do it for me.

[RockyMtnRay]

During a recent trip, I had to make an 8 hour enroute stop to do some consulting for a client. The truck & trailer were parked in a strip mall parking lot from 8 am to 4 pm with the refer running on DC the entire time. My truck does have an isolator so I had no worries about the refer running down its battery. Fortunately, the day was intensely sunny (no clouds or haze whatsoever) all day...which meant my solar panels (with an output of about 11 amps) almost were able to keep up with current drain (around 12 or 13 amps) of the refrigerator running on DC. After finishing the consulting job, I had a two hour drive to my destination for the day. Upon arrival I found the TM's batteries (I have the dual 6V T105 Golf Cart batteries) were quite close to being fully charged...hardly any discharge at all.

Oh...and although the temps during the day were in the mid 80s and the trailer was setting in full sunlight all day long, the refrigerator (at a setting of about "3") had kept the contents properly cold while running on DC...ice cream in the freezer compartment showed no signs of melting and lettuce in the refer compartment was crisp with no signs of being frozen.

Morale(s) of the story...if you will be making extended stops while towing, an isolator on the tow vehicle is good insurance. And a sizable solar panel array (around 180 watts) on the TM roof in good sunshine will provide enough power to run the refer on DC and keep the TM battery close to fully charged. Solar Rules! :D