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Thread: 12V fridge - increased power consumption with a cover on

  1. #1
    VladTepes's Avatar
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    12V fridge - increased power consumption with a cover on

    A mate of mine has posted this elsewhere:

    Been running factory cover on my Waeco 65L DZ fridge for about 10days now. Gone from 220-250watts to 320-360watts/24hrs.
    Temp is set -10'c

    Very interesting result.
    The fridge sits in the back of a ute tray, partly shaded by a 'roof' but at the back of the tray, so does still cop direct sun.

    My assumption was that it's an airflow issue.

    Does anyone know if the mesh on the vents on the Waeco covers impedes airflow to any significant extent?

    Anyone else experienced such a thing? What was the cause? Solution?
    It's not broken. It's "Carbon Neutral".


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    Maybe it is because dust has partially blocked the mesh and is restricting the airflow or the cover isn't being zipped up completely and the mesh is "sagging".
    I have a cover on my small Primus 40l fridge that I run at -15 that actually uses less power than if I run it "Naked".
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    Interesting,

    i would assume an air restriction also,

    out of interest...what colour is the fridge and what colour is the cover?

    assuming the cover is Black/ Grey and the fridge is a lighter colour?

    regards

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    VladTepes's Avatar
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    Fridge is 'Waeco Grey'

    cover is grey.
    It's not broken. It's "Carbon Neutral".


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    1994 Defender 130 HCPU "Rolly"
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    My 40l Waeco uses about a 1/4 less juice with it factory cover on, I run it at about -6.

    Not trying to imply your mate drives a patrol, but does he have it on the right way?

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    VladTepes's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Dorian View Post
    Not trying to imply your mate drives a patrol, but does he have it on the right way?
    It's worse than that.. a Hilux.

    Yeah its on the right way.
    It's not broken. It's "Carbon Neutral".


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    1994 Defender 130 HCPU "Rolly"
    1996 Discovery 1

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    If the exhaust fans are up against the side of the tray then the cover will definitely reduce the airflow.
    Giving these 12v fridges room to "breathe" is absolutely essential.
    You only get one shot at life, Aim well

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  8. #8
    VladTepes's Avatar
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    It's not that.

    He's going to do some more testing and see if he can get enough information to do a proper diagnosis.

    Cheers all
    It's not broken. It's "Carbon Neutral".


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    Quote Originally Posted by VladTepes View Post
    A mate of mine has posted this elsewhere:

    Been running factory cover on my Waeco 65L DZ fridge for about 10days now. Gone from 220-250watts to 320-360watts/24hrs.
    Temp is set -10'c

    Very interesting result.
    Does anyone know if the mesh on the vents on the Waeco covers impedes airflow to any significant extent?

    ....
    The quoted text from 'mate' is a bit ambiguous. It says been running the fridge with cover for 10 days. It says power has gone from 220-250W/day to 320-360W/day.

    Is that 220-250W/day without cover? ... and 320-360W/day with cover?
    Or does this mean after 10 days of operation with the cover(on all the time), the power consumption has increased suddenly without other notable changes?

    Obviously with the cover on, the mesh will attract dust being exposed to the ambient environment, so flow will decrease through the fan.
    But what about ambient environment? Has he gone from the freezing cold southern high country to warmer/tropical climate up north in those 10 days.
    Is the comparison being made in a static environment? .. etc

    No point chasing his tail if other things have changed in the meantime.
    Other aspects that will affect power usage is how full is the fridge/freezer too.

    Simple test is to run the fridge with cover off(if not already done) to see if power usage falls.
    Arthur.

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    On many occasions one my fridges cops a fair bit of sun because I don't have a cover for it and something as simple as putting a good thick towel over the top of the fridge will make it run more efficiently, So I find it hard to believe that an uncovered fridge will work better.
    As has been already said there are many other ways to increase efficiency such as not opening and closing it too often and keeping them full, Also in high temperatures something as simple keeping them out of the hot wind will do wonders as well.
    You only get one shot at life, Aim well

    2004 D2 "S" V8 auto, with a few Mods gone
    2007 79 Series Landcruiser V8 Ute, With a few Mods.
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