Thetford Fridge 3-Way on Gas

[Jenrai]

I have not had it serviced as such but the bloke says he checks it as part of my habitation check. I do find now and again it clicks for some time before lighting. I also find on gas it runs really cold once the inside is down to temperature it happily runs on bar one.

 

[wildebus]

I have not had it serviced as such but the bloke says he checks it as part of my habitation check. I do find now and again it clicks for some time before lighting. I also find on gas it runs really cold once the inside is down to temperature it happily runs on bar one.

I'm leaving the fridge on its head for around a week or so and once uprighted will see what goes on (I'll need to buy a calor reg first before I check it out on gas though )

 

[jeffscarborough]

Just to add to this post. If you are using Auto Gas via a Gaslow bottle or similar then the burner area does seem to soot up more frequently. I have cleaned mine annually using compressed air and a bottle brush in the flue.

 

[nabsim]

Have you asked he previous owner what fridge performance was like Dave? I know the fridge freezer that Charlie had in that fancy Hymer never worked properly, he could never keep an ice cream in the freezer. The dealer looked and said it wasn’t fit for purpose and contacted Theford for a replacement. They said it was still writhing specification and when you looked closely the spec was just a cool box.

 

[wildebus]

Have you asked he previous owner what fridge performance was like Dave? I know the fridge freezer that Charlie had in that fancy Hymer never worked properly, he could never keep an ice cream in the freezer. The dealer looked and said it wasn’t fit for purpose and contacted Theford for a replacement. They said it was still within specification and when you looked closely the spec was just a cool box.

When we went to look at the Motorhome, there was a well-frozen steak in the freezer I think it generally worked but after I bought it it was not on that much and I am thinking non-use = refrigerant not circulating and eventually settling at bottom?
So that - plus the gas not reliably lighting, so when I was using it it was essentially switching itself off without me knowing it, meant it is hard to be sure.
I think once it is uprighted it will be a fully-operational Fridge/Freezer on all energy sources
But I have 99.9% made the decision to switch to all-electric anyway regardless (99.9% as never say never!).

Looking at the manual which I happen to have in front of me (been checking dimensions) it says:
"The freezer compartment is unsuitable as a means of freezing food, the freezer will maintain the temperature of already frozen food"
it also says "do not place any other products in the freezer compartment when you are making ice cubes".
I don't recall seeing any "Star rating" on the fridge, but based on this info - https://www.smeg-service.co.uk/supp...do-the-star-ratings-mean-on-my-fridge-freezer - it would maybe be 1* or 2*. Most home fridge/freezers are 4*, which apparently is what you need to actually freeze food.

The new Thetford freezers are 3* (down to -18C but still not freezing food ideal) and it is -18C which is what is recommended for Ice Cream (the SMEG link does seem to contradict that a bit though)

 

[Markd]

I think that they work better when they have stuff in them!
We always put ours on overnight before loading with pre-chilled and frozen food.
Then later if you put an ice tray in the existing frozen food will provide the 'coolth' to freeze the cubes reasonably quickly while the system catches up.

 

[wildebus]

I think that they work better when they have stuff in them!
We always put ours on overnight before loading with pre-chilled and frozen food.
Then later if you put an ice tray in the existing frozen food will provide the 'coolth' to freeze the cubes reasonably quickly while the system catches up.

I like the idea of having the fridge ready to use

For that reason I used to just leave the Fridge running all the time in the Campervan - 240V Domestic 94L Fridge with a manufacturers energy usage value of 230Wh/Day (confirmed by my numbers). This is the same model fridge that is currently in my Motorhome and the solar kept it going except in depth of winter.
The Thetford 3-way I just can't warrant leaving on in case I want to use it The manufacturers energy usage on AC is 3700Wh/Day (I thought my compressor fridge was 7 times more efficient but actually it is 16 times more efficient based on the official numbers )

 

[mistericeman]

I like the idea of having the fridge ready to use

For that reason I used to just leave the Fridge running all the time in the Campervan - 240V Domestic 94L Fridge with a manufacturers energy usage value of 230Wh/Day (confirmed by my numbers). This is the same model fridge that is currently in my Motorhome and the solar kept it going except in depth of winter.
The Thetford 3-way I just can't warrant leaving on in case I want to use it The manufacturers energy usage on AC is 3700Wh/Day (I thought my compressor fridge was 7 times more efficient but actually it is 16 times more efficient based on the official numbers )

Same here with our compressor cool box ... Its always loaded/running and ready to go.

The 3 way has been temperamental from when we got the van and its frankly hopeless...
Old technology that is massively surpassed by compressor types (direct 12v OR hybrid systems with 240v fridges/inverters)

Ill shortly be ripping the damn thing out and replacing with compressor technology.
And retiring the Waeco cool box to reclaim the space under the dinette.

 

[wildebus]

I mentioned I was getting that Temp Sensor with the logging? Well I got a pair of them in fact and they arrived on Saturday and put into the 240V Inventor Fridge that is now residing in the Motorhome for the time being

Info is quite interesting -
This is the fridge temp over the last 24 hours. It is pretty tight in terms of range but it is affected by the ambient temp - For each change of 3C in the room, the fridge temo changes by 1C (I would say that is pretty typical for a fridge operation where you don't set an actual temperature)

The bit of a jump after 08:00 was me adjusting the thermostat as it is probably a bit cold for a fridge. I think I probably should turn the thermostat up a touch more in fact. (it is just a basic dial thing with min-mid-max).


The icebox graph (note it is not advertised as a Freezer compartment)

The temp range has more varience here as you can see - ignoring the jump when I changed the 'stat, there is a range of around 3.5C, but at least it is always below zero.

These Sensors and the features for the price really is amazing

 

[Markd]

So presumably once you've raised the single thermostat a couple of degrees the ice box won't always be sub zero?
And it will become a 'bit cooler than the fridge' box - a great spot for fast chilling beers

 

[wildebus]

So presumably once you've raised the single thermostat a couple of degrees the ice box won't always be sub zero?
And it will become a 'bit cooler than the fridge' box - a great spot for fast chilling beers

Yup. Finding the 'sweet spot' could be tricky. The ice box ideally would be a few more degrees lower then it is, but 'it is what it is'

 

[Markd]

You're going stick with this rather than get a fridge-freezer then?

 

[wildebus]

You're going stick with this rather than get a fridge-freezer then?

Unlikely TBH.
The fridge is really good but I want both a bigger freezer space and one that goes colder.
If someone wanted a good sized fridge it is an excellent purchase, and the fact it uses so little power makes it ideal for a camper. (And the little locking catch I made works brilliantly as well).

Just about every box ticked - but when I first looked at the Motorhome before buying I loved the fact it had a freezer. And so I want that feature to stay

 

[Markd]

Just got to find one that goes in the hole and is energy efficient
Width is likely to be main constraint and getting rear coil cooling - side skin is very neat but effectively adds significant width.
Presumably you've got a bit to play with on height as converters never seem to put fridges on the floor?

 

[wildebus]

Just got to find one that goes in the hole and is energy efficient
Width is likely to be main constraint and getting rear coil cooling - side skin is very neat but effectively adds significant width.
Presumably you've got a bit to play with on height as converters never seem to put fridges on the floor?

I have a cupboard underneath, but that is basically there due to the wheelarch - the fridge is directly above.
I am not wanting to chop the furniture around so basically anything bought will be the same physical size or smaller. I could potentially go wider in terms of fitting space - but if I did that the fridge would neither get though the door (too narrow) or get into the kitchen area (walkway same narrow width as hab door), so not actually an option anyway.

This is the primary contender for a 240V AC Option - https://amzn.to/3kAMa8i
The height is near-ideal. The width means easy to get in and can make some kind of side fillets to make it look neat. Over twice the power consumption of the Inverter fridge, but a lot of that is due to the Freezer section. As soon as you add a 'proper' freezer, you more than double the power consumption - the cost of ice cream!
It doesn't really look like a Motorhome fridge due to it being a "white goods", but could put some vinyl covering over the doors easily enough. The modern trend for Motorhomes seems to be black fridges - so could turn it black, or maybe a dark silver-grey to match the heater frontage. I think easy enough to sort that

I do have another contender - an actual Motorhome Fridge of the 12V variety! Would be a slot-in fit (which means another door struggle though ) and a lot more expensive inevitably, but actually pretty well priced compared to the 12V alternatives or the 3-way alternatives.
This one appeals despite the price as you can control the Fridge and Freezer independantly (that is a rare feature) and so if you need to save power, you can even use the fridge but turn off the Freezer and halve the consumption (obviously not keeping any frozen products in there anymore!). That could be very handy if wildcamping in the Winter say and solar no use. Just waiting to see how much my price will be to decide which way to flip.

(PS. The 'proper' 12V motorhome fridge above in normal use (freezer on) is at best only a couple of percent more efficient than the 240V fridge/freezer in my link. Decent domestic appliances nowadays really are just as good as the 'energy efficient motorhome' ones)

 

[Jenrai]

I spoke to soon!! Just arrived back from a few days away running the fridge off gas. No problems until the last day when is started flashing with error code 11.
The manual says its a supply issue but I have 3/4 tank of LPG. It runs on battery, with the engine running and 230v on hook up but not gas.
So I am desperately ringing every place in Sussex I can find to get it fixed before next Thursday
I just dont have the confidence or skill to be poking around in the fridge workings.

 

[Markd]

Yes - quite a lot of van's have 'wheelarch' fridges and using that reduces bending down too for oldies
That LEC is available Black and Silver as well I see.
I'd have thought that your 12v set up would handle running it for a couple of days without any support but some travelling would soon put the power back.
Is it c40Ah per day nominal consumption?

 

[wildebus]

Yes - quite a lot of van's have 'wheelarch' fridges and using that reduces bending down too for oldies
That LEC is available Black and Silver as well I see.
I'd have thought that your 12v set up would handle running it for a couple of days without any support but some travelling would soon put the power back.
Is it c40Ah per day nominal consumption?

the average for that 240V fridge is 528Wh/Day, so at a nominal 12V, would be 44Ah/Day.
Along with taking in the other loads into account, I would think I could run for quite a few days even without solar. The B2B puts in a good charge on a drive indeed - would stuff in a days worth of fridge back into the battery within an hour
Bit contradictory maybe, but I like efficient products so I don't have to think about using the battery power up

The cost saving between the 240V and 12V options typically is such that you could get a 100Ah lithium battery for the difference so even if they were a fair bit less efficient you could compensate.

Available in Black and in Silver? I did not know that! where did you see this?

... Just did a search ... It looks good in black (might not be as efficient and absorb heat though?)
Something else I noticed when taking the old fridge out and I would want to deal with ... there is a gap either side between the fridge and cupboard walls that are crying out for some insulation sheets which would make any fridge more efficient. I'd be wanting to fill that gap whatever slots into place

 

[Markd]

I take you point about starting with efficient kit to minimise supply requirements.

Be careful about packing insulation against the sides. So many fridges nowadays dump the heat out of the sides rather than the back - presumably because a nice efficient convection condenser stands off the box and needs 20mm behind it for air flow.
Going for sides allows fridge to be deeper I suppose.
In my internet rummage to get one step ahead of you in shopping I found a video that showed this machine has flat metal back - so it may yet have rear cooling.
Which would be great in motorhome a you already have built in vents and would allow full side packing for additional insulation.
You need to check because otherwise only having 25mm either side and 'sealed' at the front might not be wonderful for dispersing heat.

I allowed 50mm either side of my domestic fridge freezer particularly because one side has the oven tower!

 

[Markd]

I spoke to soon!! Just arrived back from a few days away running the fridge off gas. No problems until the last day when is started flashing with error code 11.
The manual says its a supply issue but I have 3/4 tank of LPG. It runs on battery, with the engine running and 230v on hook up but not gas.
So I am desperately ringing every place in Sussex I can find to get it fixed before next Thursday
I just dont have the confidence or skill to be poking around in the fridge workings.

Multiple clicks to light earlier and not lighting now is probably just a sooty burner.
Particularly if you run bulk lpg - which is perceived as slightly 'dirtier'.
It really would be worth taking covers off and seeing if you can clean up burner with a tooth brush and check that the electrode is in right position for a good clean spark.
It really is DIY and might be all you need - plenty of vids on you tube showing g how to to do it.