New Buyer Maybe: Refrigerator Question on a 1997 TM

I'm thinking about purchasing a 1997 2518(i think it's 2518) TM from a friend who is selling because he is upgrading. Everything looks good on the TM. But he said that you have to turn on the refrig the night b4 to get it kool for your road trip or something like that. I can't really remember now but it was something like that. Does anyone know what I'm talking about, does anyone with a 1997 model or any model for that matter have to do this with their refrig?? Any feedback would help, Thank you! Oh one more thing I would love to update the inside (if I buy it) The couch fabric, floors, carpet and wallpaper and countertops.....can this be done? If so any information on how or who to speak to about doing it would be greatly appreciated. Thx!

[countrygirl]

Originally Posted by DiamondBelle

I'm thinking about purchasing a 1997 2518(i think it's 2518) TM from a friend who is selling because he is upgrading. Everything looks good on the TM. But he said that you have to turn on the refrig the night b4 to get it kool for your road trip or something like that. I can't really remember now but it was something like that. Does anyone know what I'm talking about, does anyone with a 1997 model or any model for that matter have to do this with their refrig?? Any feedback would help, Thank you! Oh one more thing I would love to update the inside (if I buy it) The couch fabric, floors, carpet and wallpaper and countertops.....can this be done? If so any information on how or who to speak to about doing it would be greatly appreciated. Thx!

I don't own a Trailmanor...I own an Outback Sydeney 30 RLS...and I have to turn on my refridgerator the night before too. I think this is common no matter what brand of camper/rv you have. I had to do this when we had a popup and I have pre-chill it now as well. If you place cold items in the fridge/freezer the unit will chill quicker.

[B_and_D]

We have to do this too. It takes much longer to cool down when it's hot outside. I usually turn it on 2 days ahead of time (it takes me a while to pack). We have a 1997 and I believe that it is a very well made trailer.

In my 2720SL, overnight works fine for refrigerator cool down. I just plug in the trailer, turn the frig on AC, and by morning it's plenty cool to keep stuff. Just before closing the trailer I switch to DC to run it off the TV, then at camp after opening up I switch to either propane or AC, depending on whether I can plug in at camp.

Even a home frig doesn't cool instantly -- it takes half a day, or so, to get cool enough to keep foods properly.

I have a different pattern for using the fridge, compared to most TM owners.

We do a lot of weekend trips. So the weekend before I pull the TM out of the garage so I can restock some items, fill water, etc.

I fill the fridge with old beverages of my choice and other non perishable items like mustard and catsup and Otter Pops. I chill the fridge all weekend on 110 volts.

Late Sunday afternoon I change the fridge to 12 volts and put it back in the garage. I disconnect the battery, and since I added a battery disconnect switch last month it means I no longer need to pull the fuse.

Wednesday evening I turn the batteries back on and plug the TM to shore power. This will chill the fridge back down and top off the batteries.

Thursday evening we load the Coleman 12 volt cooler, running on 120 voltes in the house. he Coleman now has the lettuce, mayo, etc.

Friday after work the Coleman goes into the TV and plugs in to 2 volts. We load a few last minute items and away we go.

In camp the cold beverages from the TM fridge get move to a ice chest and the perishable items move from the Coleman to the TM.

The purpose of all this is to allow us to hit the road as quickly as possible after the quitting bell blows at work on Friday. From the time I pull up to the house until we hit the road is down to about 45 minutes. This includes hitching up, adding the McKesh mirrors, loading stuff.

It works for us.

Hi, just in case you picked up that Trailmanor, a few notes on our older model fridge. We have an 87 and the fridge was not cooling well on trips. I pulled the cover on the side of the trailer and saw that there was very little insulation above the fridge and added layers of styrofoam and fiberglass. Then I pulled the fan that had been somewhat noisy. It was a little 3 blade plastic thing like you might have on the dash. I added a drain pipe elbow to get the air pick up at the top of the chamber and then replace the fan with a computer fan with a tiny amperage drain and much higher efficiency. Now I just leave the fan switch on all the time and the fridge works very well. We went the the Rally in Colorado last summer and had everything stay cool the whole way. After we got home I forgot to turn the fan off, and a few days later walked by the trailer to hear a quiet buzzing. It was still going! Have fun with the trailer.