wiring the fridge to battery

[Jim and Tab]

good evning all.
has anyone wired the fridge directly to the onboard battery in the expanda.
i have an anderson plug wired directly to the battery so its being charged as i drive
i know the 7 pin plug is wired to to the fridge so you can run 12 volt while driving
but i dont want to run another wire from the car to the trailer plug its to big a job
does any one know where the fridge wiring runs in the van so i can disconect it where it joins
into the trailer plug loom the i can run it straight to the battery(fused)
i asked jayco but they wernt much help
thanks heaps jim and tab

 

[Gaz70]

underneath the van on the right hand front side there a checkerplate cover where the wiring goes into the van, this is where they wired my fridge to the house batteries, however not sure if all fridges are wired this way as i had issues with mine not running on 12 volt when it arrived from the factory...

 

[bigman0510]

good evning all.
has anyone wired the fridge directly to the onboard battery in the expanda.
i have an anderson plug wired directly to the battery so its being charged as i drive
i know the 7 pin plug is wired to to the fridge so you can run 12 volt while driving
but i dont want to run another wire from the car to the trailer plug its to big a job
does any one know where the fridge wiring runs in the van so i can disconect it where it joins
into the trailer plug loom the i can run it straight to the battery(fused)
i asked jayco but they wernt much help
thanks heaps jim and tab

If you are going to run it off your house battery I would suggest this item:

http://caravansplus.com.au/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=6496

atleast if you happen to forget to unplug for some reason you are covered!!

 

[Stone Stomper]

Hi Jim,

Yes I also have done this and the fridge works as well on 12v as gas/elec and the fridge we have the thermostat works on 12v unlike our Eagle fridge that just ran all the time on 12v.

When we had a blocked jet last year we thought the fridge had gone as it was getting warmer on gas with a flame going, as we where camped in a park (unpowered) we could not run the genny to try the 240v so when we left and drove for a couple of hours on 12v to the next camp when we pulled up the fridge had pulled the temp right down and the fins at the back where all frozen so that's when I worked out about the partially blocked jet.

Just make sure you put a fuse in the line.

Also a good idea is replace the cover under the van like Gaz70 said and put all the wires in a dust/water proof box, saves hassles down the track.

Christian

 

[ElectricGuru]

If you are going to run it off your house battery I would suggest this item:

http://caravansplus.com.au/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=6496

atleast if you happen to forget to unplug for some reason you are covered!!

Good call with the switch bigman0510. That would save the car battery but deep cycle batteries dont like being discharged less than about 11V so one of these may be required to protect the caravan battery too.

http://www.baintech.com.au/battery-protectors/baintech-low-voltage-cut-out-40amp

Installed one of these in the caravan and works a treat. Have it connected in the fridge circuit after a 20A fuse. Just means that we will still have lights (previous owner installed LEDs) if there are any issues.