Who has a COMPRESSOR FRIDGE

I have checked 10 pages on 'search' without success to my enquiry - please can anyone help.  I am thinking of changing my Coachbuilt Nuevo (2016) for a small Van Conversion but..... they all seem to have Compressor Fridges due to space available. My way of travel is mostly Wild Camping with my fitted Solar Panel  -  very rarely use 'hookup electric connection' ..... so I cannot understand how a Compressor fridge will keep going without draining battery. Every salesman i speak to declares "it will be fine- no problem" but i get the feeling they just want 'the sale'. Only one salesperson told me that the first choice should always be 3 Way Fridge.  I'm Very confused!! Please can anyone help with their experiences. Many thanks for any comments.

I think I'm right to say that the only van AS have produced (so far) with a compressor fridge was the Stratford a small panel van conversion.

The compressor fridge cannot be operated on gas and using a 12 volt electrical supply consumes several amps continuously (simple explanation) so the leisure battery will barely last overnight from being fully charged. I am aware of a Stratford that did regularly rally without hook up. That had three leisure batteries, a large solar panel and a careful user.

You really need to stay with a hook-up if you have a compressor fridge and a normal 12v installation.

Peter is correct that only the Stratford has (had as it's no longer made) a compressor fridge. The only 'small' van conversion made for the last 10 years or more is the Symbol which has normal 3 way fridge.

Also I think another con with a compressor fridge is noise.
A plus would be better cooling performance in hot weather.

I have met people who have both! An Absorption for the van and a compressor fridge for the awning.

THANKYOU for your replies confirming my thoughts. I just knew my way of thinking was correct - 3 way fridge is fabulous and just what I need for my travelling. Shame I cant find a small van conversion (5.41) with fixed bed and 3 way fridge. I understand why because of space available. Again thankyou to my friends on ASF for your promp replies. If anyone out there finds a small van conversion with my requirements, I think you would make a fortune ££££ in sales. I'm off to NEC in October - on the hunt. I love my Nuevo 2016 but now on my own travelling, I would like to downsize with a fixed bed. THANKYOU EVERYONE X

The smallest AS with a fixed bed would be the Warwick Duo with 2 single beds or the Kingham  with a double bed but they are    5.99  and 6.3 metres which are longer than your Nuevo. The Symbol fits the length you're after but the bed is not fixed but only takes seconds to make a single bed.

As said in another thread - I've had direct experience of a compressor fridge in a small (5m long) conversion, during the last 6 years.

I was apprehensive at first, but in my experience, power consumption is not as much of an issue as some people suggest.

For the first year or so I ran it with one 110Ah battery and no solar - and it would manage 2 days "wild" no problem, without trashing the (then new) battery.

I then added 100W of solar on the roof, and that will run it indefinitely during 3 seasons, again without trashing the battery - which is now 6 years old and still holding up well. I did a full week wild on Mull last year and the same this year on Islay, with only relatively short daytime engine runs, with no problem at all. I suspect you would need more solar for winter wilding, but I don't do that, so can't quantify how much more panel capacity you would need.

The only further mods I've made is a couple of computer fans on a thermostat, because air circulation at the back (without external vents) is poor, plus upgrading the solar controller earlier this year, though the latter wasn't really necessary.

I should add that I'm definitely a fan of 3-way fridges, having had them in all of my previous vans, going back to the 1980s. But I don't agree that compressor fridges are vastly inferior - there are pros and cons to each, and I definitely wouldn't avoid having another, as long as I could fit enough panel capacity.

I should also add the question: Do you really have to have a fixed bed?

Up until the current van (not an A/S conversion I should add) I had always had vans that could be used with one single bed "fixed" (i.e. always configured for use as a bed). But then I discovered how incredibly quick and easy it is to convert a proper rock&roll double bed for sleeping - it really does only take 30 seconds to flip the back over and roll the bedding forwards. Note that although the Trooper/Tridents have similar-looking beds, they are not actually rock&roll beds.

A good rock&roll style conversion will get you a decent sized bed in a 5m (or 5.4m in typical LWB form) package.

Completely agree with Rooperts comments about fridges above. 
I’m also a big fan of 3-way fridges but have had plenty of experience of compressor fridges in 2 of my previous vehicles. I wouldn’t hesitate having another but ONLY if I had the solar power to back up my usage needs. Obviously, if you generally use EHU then solar isn’t as important.
From my days on a VW forum, most VW conversions used compressor fridges and a 120W panel was generally recognised as being plenty for typical spring/summer/autumn use.

I believe that the Mercedes based A/S Wave model in both poptop and hightop featured a compressor fridge, though it was a portable type that was stored in a dedicated slot in the furniture.
I'm not sure what happened to my earlier post about the compressor fridge in my current van. They don't need vent grilles in the body, so mean less chopping the van about and you just switch on, no changing over fuel options. Noise is minimal, a light drone when the motor is running, only really detectable at the dead of night and then not loud enough to keep you awake. Also compressor fridges operate no matter whether the van is parked on a slope.
The length of operation without battery charging depends on a lot of variable factors - how cool you set it, the ambient temp., the ah of the battery, the battery's state of charge, whether it's being topped up by solar, so it's hard to be specific. In adverse conditions, with no solar and a 75ah battery ours will run 24 hours, whilst in more normal UK conditions that may stretch to nearly 48 hours.
You do have to remember that whilst an EHU will charge your leisure battery quite quickly, the van's alternator will normally prioritise recharging the van battery with relatively little going to the leisure battery. So you need a lengthy trip to recharge the leisure battery that way.
As to beds, do you need a double if you're on your own? There are lots of PVC that have fixed benches, one of which could be left made up as a bed. Not wishing to besmirch Mrs SDA but when I use our van on my own, there's an awful lot more room and everything is easier to organise. We have 4 belted single seats but tend to travel with the rear offside seat flattened and the central bolster fitted as a back rest to it, turning it into a Symbol type sofa. Turning that into a bed requires removal of the bolster and swiveling the drivers seat. That gets you a 5ft 10ins bed. You can make it longer by flattening the driver's seat back and fiddling it under the steering wheel, but at 5ft 10ins it's fine for Mrs SDA. It's easier on the offside as there's no steering wheel in the way and the bed can be up to 7ft long! 
It's really a question of quart into pint pot. If you want a bed that will accommodate 6ft or so, then for comfort it has to be about 3ins longer than your height. I'm almost 6ft 2ins, so 6ft 5ins is my ideal bed length. To get that in a PVC on a fixed basis it has to be lengthways and with other facilities like kitchen and washroom the very minimum length needed would be 6m, preferably 6.4m, though I've seen East Neuk's 5.4m unique layout though the facilities are cramped. In our case we need 3 or 4 belted seats so a rear lounge van like the Fifer M iisn't really an option, but it could work well if you're on your own.

“Not wishing to besmirch Mrs SDA but when I use our van on my own, there's an awful lot more room and everything is easier to organise”........ 
I made the mistake of mentioning the same once SDA. Never again 

Is the plaster off yet Dbvwt?

I feel privileged to belong to an exclusive niche in the AS world.

Never really had an issue with the fridge with the style of touring we do. Two nights in the summer without ehu pushes the battery to the limit if you haven't driven anywhere.

I have a portable 21 litre Dometic compressor fridge that fits neatly between the two front seats that I set to freezer temp which augments my 3 way fridge. When the compressor fridge is set to fridge temp 0 - 5C, it draws an average of 1amp per hour so will easily last 2 to 3 days on a 110amp battery. With a decent solar panel it will run indefinitely.

When working out how long a battery will continue to power a compressor fridge you do need to bear in mind that it's power consumption will vary, depending on the ambient temperature and the amount of work it has to do to get down to and maintain it's set target temperature. You also need to bear in mind that running a battery to below half capacity will severely shorten it's life and that a compressor fridge has a limiter that stops it working well before the battery runs out of power. You also need to factor in other things that will be using power from the leisure battery and that the battery may not start off fully charged, or it's performance may be limited by age and condition.

Agreed. I was replying on the assumption that he would be aware of that and giving him some idea of how long the fridge would run, as no one else has yet answered his question, which was 'how long it would run without draining the battery'. There are many variables involved so giving a concise answer will be difficult, but working on 1 amp an hour should give him some idea. A decent solar panel 80+ watts should keep it running in whatever circumstances.

Maureen57 wrote:I have checked 10 pages on 'search' without success to my enquiry - please can anyone help.  I am thinking of changing my Coachbuilt Nuevo (2016) for a small Van Conversion but..... they all seem to have Compressor Fridges due to space available. My way of travel is mostly Wild Camping with my fitted Solar Panel  -  very rarely use 'hookup electric connection' ..... so I cannot understand how a Compressor fridge will keep going without draining battery. Every salesman i speak to declares "it will be fine- no problem" but i get the feeling they just want 'the sale'. Only one salesperson told me that the first choice should always be 3 Way Fridge.  I'm Very confused!! Please can anyone help with their experiences. Many thanks for any comments.

I also am thinking of  changing my Trident to a non AS van with 85l compressor fridge, 230Amp battery and 100w solar panel. Another 100w solar panel can be added for about £6oo.
Like Maureen 57 all my travelling at home and abroad is done Wild Camping. 
If Maureen 57 sees this post, have you made any decision and how are you managing now?
I would also like to hear from anyone else how they manage with a compressor fridge and if they think my intended set up would be sufficient for all season use.
Thanks.

Are you sure about the battery size? Most leisure batteries are 75 to 125ampere hours, 230 would be enormous. I have no experience of solar but I would've thought the current 100W would be sufficient to cope in normal touring weather.
And if the 230ah is the sum of two batteries I'd suggest they'd keep a fridge running for about 4 days with no input from alternator, EHU or solar.

Hi, Yes I've checked the advert and 230Ah is correct. May be two batteries.

East Neuk motorhomes use compressor fridges and have two batteries mounted under the floor.

I'm sure Roopert on here has a compressor fridge.

Hi, 
 
Aye, that's the one. And 4 days is not very long off grid.
Also I can't imagine how many miles driving would be need to fully recharge that battery capacity.

Recharge is a function of time in this case. You would need to run the engine for about 15 hours to fully recharge 250Ah. A friend has had east neuk fife with that set up for 12 years but never off hookup for more than one night.

As Paul says, I have a Waeco 50l compressor fridge, and I can say that from my experience over a period of 6 years, 100W of solar panel will not be enough for "all season" use - if by that you mean camping wild for extended periods at any latitude at any time of year.

It really doesn't matter how big a battery you have, because in midwinter in Scotland the panel won't be generating enough power to put back into the battery enough during the day to compensate for what is being used while it's dark. As steamdrivenandy says, after 4-5 days the batteries will be flat - you might make 6 days with solar if you get several sunny winter days.

I have doubts about whether 200W would be adequate either in the middle of winter with no input other than solar. However, if you plan to be driving as well, or if you only intend to wild camp for, say, 1 night in every 4, then the conclusion would be completely different.

If you really do want to wild camp for extended periods in winter then you may have to consider movable panels - the sun is so low (especially at Northern latitudes) that the ability to tilt the panel up from horizontal will make a significant difference, and it may be worth considering stand-alone panels in that situation - though they are a pain to store.

As Roop indicates your set up, even without extra solar would be fine for southern UK in summer and you might never need any driving or EHU input and southern Continent you might find the extra sun cancels out the extra heat demanding more compressor use. However Cape Wrath in the depths of winter is the total opposite.
It really all depends on when, where and for how long you intend using the van without other types of input.

Hi, thanks for your comprehensive replies.
I seems then that the East Neuk set-up might be just about sufficient for me.
However I don't want to spent that amount of money only to worry if the batteries might run down when I'm up a glen hillwalking for a few days in winter.
For me it's much easier to replace diesel and bottled gas on the go, even lpg stations are few and very far between.