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WILL1E
Moderator
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# Posted: 9 Mar 2022 08:22am
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Thinking through appliances we will need for the cabin as we continue to progress forward. I've had issues with the fridge in our camper performing properly in the winter months and I don't know if it's camper related or appliance related. It seemed like things would thaw out in the freezer or the fridge wasn't ice cold even though it's below freezing in the camper when we weren't there. Almost seemed like the outside temp would throw off the thermometer in the fridge making it think the fridge was cold enough and didn't need to cool anything down.
Anyone ever experience that?
But on the other hand, it's common place for folks to have a second fridge in their garages (beer storage) here in WI. Those never seemed to have issues being inside an unheated garage.
So is it just certain types of fridges or do they all have spec'd operating temps?
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jsahara24
Member
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# Posted: 9 Mar 2022 09:09am
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We always shut down our frigerator for the winter in our unheated barn, b/c of the exact reason you described. In an attached garage the temps usually stay above freezing, which lets the fridge continue to work.
I've always been under the impression that all frigerators won't work when temps go below freezing, but I'm curious to hear others opinions.
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FishHog
Member
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# Posted: 9 Mar 2022 09:10am
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I’ve never had an issue. I will run mine intermittently at times in the colder temps just to keep the freezer below freezing and then shut it off all night. Or if it’s not that cold out I’ll turn the fridge temp up a bit so that the fridge doesn’t freeze stuff.
Takes a bit more attention in the shoulder seasons just to avoid freezing the fridge or thawing the freezer but still works ok.
I’ll often load warm stuff like more drinks/beer jug of water in the fridge at night just so it won’t freeze stuff while running all night
I have found a wireless temp sensor in the fridge and freezer let’s me quickly see what is going on without the need to open either and allows me to adjust as needed
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FishHog
Member
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# Posted: 9 Mar 2022 09:13am
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https://www.amazon.ca/AcuRite-01094M-Temperature-Humidity-Station/dp/B01EI0MS3Y/ref=m p_s_a_1_5?crid=PHJG3GFIHIAU&keywords=acurite+temp+sensor&qid=1646835095&sprefix=acuri te+temp+sensor+%2Caps%2C167&sr=8-5
This monitor has been the best thing I’ve purchased for monitoring my fridge and freezer. I have on at the cottage and one in the camper
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ICC
Member
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# Posted: 9 Mar 2022 09:14am
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Most fridges are designed to operate in a space where people live which means usually above 65 F or so. Most do not work well in cold rooms as they do not normally have to. They may also fail to keep food in the freezer frozen.
One link to info is here. Google can find lots more info.
There are some fridges that are made for use in cold spaces and also kits to retrofit some. (a heater to trick the thermostat basically).
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Aklogcabin
Member
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# Posted: 9 Mar 2022 09:48am
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Your refrigerator should work fine. It's made to respond as the thermost tells it. When the temp inside the box goes above or below a certain set temperature it turns on or off. And ambient temperature shouldn't effect it. It's a machine. You should be fine.
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jhp
Member
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# Posted: 9 Mar 2022 10:09am - Edited by: jhp
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The ambient temperature will definitely affect the fridge performance.
In the winter my (insulated but unheated) garage beer fridge might freeze beers in the fridge or thaw pizzas in the freezer. Everything works in general but it gets weird when the fridge doesn't run for several days because of the ambient temperature.
Big stuff like frozen turkeys will tend to stay frozen but smaller items are hit and miss. My rule is don't put anything you really care about out there in Jan-Feb type temps.
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ICC
Member
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# Posted: 9 Mar 2022 10:32am - Edited by: ICC
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Quoting: jhp it gets weird when the fridge doesn't run for several days because of the ambient temperature.
Right. If the fridge doesn't have to run because the room is so cold that the fresh food section is staying cold enough, the freezer contents will slowly thaw.
Most fridges have one compressor and use air mixing between freezer and fresh food compartments. They cool the freezer compartment and "spill" freezer cold air into the fresh food section. Some more upscale fridges use two separate compressors; one for freezer and another for the fresh food section. Those allow better control of temperatures in each section. That also allows for better control of the interior humidity; keeping the fridge section humidity higher than the freezer.
Todays fridges are more than a cold box.
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Nate R
Member
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# Posted: 9 Mar 2022 10:41am
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IIRC, the $260 fridge I bought from HD says: Use in temperature below 50 degrees or above 100 degrees may result in unpredictable performance.
There are "garage rated" fridges that are better set up for bigger temp swings.
For me, so far, I've just been not starting our fridge until it's about 60 in the cabin.
FWIW, RV Fridges CAN be very different than your standard fridge in operation, refrigerant, capacity, etc. So your camper experience may not match a fridge in your cabin.
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travellerw
Member
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# Posted: 9 Mar 2022 10:58am
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Some RV fridges have that issue. It has to do with the fact that RV fridges are ammonia based (different from domestic fridges). Its well documented on the internet with the solution being to put a 100W light bulb in the vent at the back of the fridge. Crazy I know, adding heat to get cold, but it works.
As to domestic fridges, they make "cold rated" ones that will state the lowest operating temp. Probably a good idea to source one for the cabin.
Our plan is to just not turn the fridge on for the first night when we come out in the cold. There is no way the heat will soak through the insulation of the fridge in that first night and warm up the contents. Then we will turn it on in the morning as the cabin and fridge components should be up to temp where it won't be an issue.
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WILL1E
Moderator
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# Posted: 9 Mar 2022 12:45pm
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We'd like to be able to leave things up there so i'd like a fridge/freezer that would work all the time. This way we can leave condiments and such in the fridge and things like burgers, hot dogs, etc. in the freezer. Hauling things like clothes, food, etc. back and forth every time get's old.
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travellerw
Member
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# Posted: 9 Mar 2022 01:11pm
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Quoting: WILL1E We'd like to be able to leave things up there so i'd like a fridge/freezer that would work all the time. This way we can leave condiments and such in the fridge and things like burgers, hot dogs, etc. in the freezer. Hauling things like clothes, food, etc. back and forth every time get's old.
You installed some electric heating correct? My brother has an outbuilding on his property with a fridge in it. He sets his baseboard heaters to just keep the interior at +5C. This seems to keep his fridge happy.
I think you will probably have no other option if you want the fridge to operate continually.
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jsahara24
Member
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# Posted: 9 Mar 2022 01:19pm
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Quoting: travellerw He sets his baseboard heaters to just keep the interior at +5C. This seems to keep his fridge happy.
This is what I do, I have the kitchen separate from the rest of the cabin and keep the pressure tank/water heater/etc in there. I keep that heated to 40* or so. I still drain the waterlines, but it helps with the food/frig/etc.
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Al Burton
Member
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# Posted: 9 Mar 2022 04:59pm
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I live in Canada and have domestic fridge in my garage. When it gets really cold the compressor never kicks in and the freezer would thaw. I just jumped the switch for the fridge light so that the light always stays on. That little incandescent light provides enough heat so that the compressor has to run occasionally. Works great!
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WILL1E
Moderator
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# Posted: 10 Mar 2022 07:44am
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Good ideas!
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BRADISH
Member
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# Posted: 10 Mar 2022 12:35pm
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My 30yr old fridge/freezer in my shop (beer fridge) still works great while keeping the shop at 55F all winter long for the last 5 winters. From the comments It sounds as though that may be the bleeding edge of the acceptable limits though. Perhaps I will pay more attention to it now.
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Fanman
Member
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# Posted: 10 Mar 2022 05:22pm
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Another issue is the oil in the compressor, in cold weather it may become too thick for the compressor to start. Years ago I was using an old air conditioner compressor as an air compressor. It worked great indoors and in warm weather, but in the garage in the winter it would continuously try to start, you could hear it turn a couple of slow revolutions before overloading and stopping.
But as ICC pointed out there are fridges (and especially freezers) made to operate in cold temperatures.
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ryates
Member
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# Posted: 10 Mar 2022 11:41pm
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i sold appliances here in ne alabama for 15 yrs. unless a fridge is sold as a ''garage ready'' , it will not operate correctly in temps higher than around 100 deg f. or lower than about mid 40's. check the manual or owners guide. also to bradish, older units mainly freezers, are on a different coolant and are not as affected as newer units.
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DryCreek
Member
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# Posted: 11 Mar 2022 01:27pm
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Not exactly on point, but FWIW: We bought a 'garage ready' upright freezer last year.
I was interested in its cold weather electrical draw, so I could size a solar system for unattended operation in the winter, i.e. making sure food wouldn't spoil in a long winter storm when we weren't there.
When we brought it home I set it up outside for a few weeks on a Kill-A-Watt. Ambient temps were 0 to 40 (fahr).
It worked fine in the cold weather. Its daily electrical draw was linear with the daily temp (and that trend held when I brought it indoors). The draw wasn't zero even on the coldest days, probably because it was frost free (when it's time to get a cabin freezer, I'll get a manual defrost for that reason).
In any event, at least that 'garage ready' freezer works in cold temps. Refrigerators may have issues with the temps being different in the two sections, as stated above.
My eventual plan is to have a freezer at the cabin, and a picnic cooler, and use the cooler as a fridge by rotating bottles of water from cooler to freezer while we are there, and not have a 'fridge' when we aren't.
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WILL1E
Moderator
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# Posted: 11 Mar 2022 02:47pm
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I have thought about just having a fridge inside the cabin and then getting a small chest freezer and keep that in the garage or someplace like that. But i wasn't sure if i'd still have the same problem as i've experienced in this thread or not.
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snobdds
Member
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# Posted: 11 Mar 2022 03:28pm
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make sure you put an ice cube in a cup before you leave the cabin. When you come back, see if the ice cube is still there or mostly there. If it's just a puddle of ice in the bottom of the cup, throw everything out.
Ask me how I know.
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