Help me choose a fridge.... - Page 3

Abitibi · 07-21-2016, 10:13 AM

All that talk about fridges... Anyone got an ARB 37 willing to let go?

Good friend of mine is looking for one. I'm in San Diego returning to Vancouver BC next week and would do him the favor of picking it up if it's on my way.

Cheers
David

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expeditionnw · 07-21-2016, 11:43 AM

I really like the ARB style fridge. we have used the 37qt for the last 5 years nearly every day. The Vault style fridge is highly space and energy efficient. There is about .75 cubic ft of space lost in a front opening fridge, so figure that in your sizing.

The main drawback for the ARB style fridge, its designed to be a self contained free standing unit. great for the back of an SUV or pickup, but doesnt work well with a built in interior.

If that style is a good fit for you, definitely stay with ARB brand. there is simply no comparison in the quality fit and finish compared to the indel/dometic/norcold version. ARB nailed it.

We are currently designing our van space. WE have decided on a 75qt built in fridge. IMO the best of all worlds. Ours is the Isotherm BI75.

EDIT: regarding the size... Our 37qt ARB was great for two people for two weeks. Standard loadout was (2) 64oz growlers, 4lbs of fruits and veggies, (1) onion, a 1lb block of cheese, 2lbs of meat(burger etc), mayo/ketchup, (1) nalgene for cold water, and other misc small stuff im sure im forgetting.

It was a tight fit but it was great!

yelnam · 07-21-2016, 11:45 AM

I'm thinking of the Isotherm CRUISE 85 Elegance in my soon to be built SMB. 3.0 cubic feet front loading.

Indel Webasto:Â*CRUISE 85 Elegance

Anyone have an Isotherm CRUISE Elegance model and can provide their thoughts? This might be a good option between SMB's "3E" and "4E" in size ... .

Thanks!
Bill

Abitibi · 07-21-2016, 11:48 AM

How much $$$ is that Isotherm setting you back? I have a very similar sized Truck-fridge that's been flawless for under $600...

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J.Spicoli · 07-21-2016, 12:12 PM

Ran across the Dometic CFX-95. It has a dedicated freezer section. It's huge too. I don't see anywhere that talks about efficiency so maybe it's a hog. Idk. I hate compromising.

Looking for videos on the specific ARB models to judge size and there's not a lot to choose from. Most are generic promotional videos for the entire line. Oh well, I found one the guy was unboxing a 50qt then loaded it up to give you an idea. You can see it

here

.

J.Spicoli · 07-21-2016, 12:14 PM

Whoa...my link isn't a link but imbedded the video right there. Cool!

Ok, moving on, lol

J.Spicoli · 07-21-2016, 12:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by expeditionnw

The main drawback for the ARB style fridge, its designed to be a self contained free standing unit. great for the back of an SUV or pickup, but doesnt work well with a built in interior.

EDIT: regarding the size... Our 37qt ARB was great for two people for two weeks. Standard loadout was (2) 64oz growlers, 4lbs of fruits and veggies, (1) onion, a 1lb block of cheese, 2lbs of meat(burger etc), mayo/ketchup, (1) nalgene for cold water, and other misc small stuff im sure im forgetting.

It was a tight fit but it was great!

Considering your point about these fridges not working well built in, I was planning on building a pullout drawer for the ARB. So when stored it would sit in it's own little cubby that I would insulate and possibly have venting for the exhaust. Would this not work well?

Also, thanks for the packing list. Helps judge size.

Picking size is hard, on the one hand you want to plan for the worst case scenario and get a big fridge. But then it would sit less than full most of the time and be really inefficient since we know they are most efficient when packed tight.

Thanks again to everybody for some great insight and ideas.

expeditionnw · 07-21-2016, 12:25 PM

Also, Id stay away from the dometic. A friend bought one because it looks like the arb in the specs. get them side by side its a cheap knockoff. it isnt well insulated either, you can feel the cold radiating from it all the way around. his is about 1/2 as efficient as my arb.

We also used a dual compartment National Luna for a short time. very pricy unit. Final result was , the carrots were always icy and the ice cream was always soft.

expeditionnw · 07-21-2016, 12:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by J.Spicoli

Considering your point about these fridges not working well built in, I was planning on building a pullout drawer for the ARB. So when stored it would sit in it's own little cubby that I would insulate and possibly have venting for the exhaust. Would this not work well?

Also, thanks for the packing list. Helps judge size.

Picking size is hard, on the one hand you want to plan for the worst case scenario and get a big fridge. But then it would sit less than full most of the time and be really inefficient since we know they are most efficient when packed tight.

Thanks again to everybody for some great insight and ideas.

Even in hot sun, the arb didnt seem to run any more often. We did buy the insulating bag for our later, but mostly to protect our investment from beatings.

If I was choosing one again, Id go to the 50-60qt. we were very space constrained, as we had it in the back of a small 4x4 suv.

wadewaydo · 07-21-2016, 12:30 PM

I have a Dometic RM2354 3cf 3-way with freezer. After two years I think I'd give it 3.5 stars out of 5. When I first got it installed, I asked an RV shop to look it over. They noticed the ammonia was leaking out of the coil. It was seeping, and the indicator was a yellow crust that was developing from one of the welds. Fortunately the units are warrantied and serviced by Camping World, fifteen miles away. Unfortunately it took 5 weeks to get the part from China. Fortunately they got it repaired two days before I was to go on a two week trip to Escalante.

Since that time it has worked pretty well. In 80 degree weather I drove to the Grand Canyon, and threw some lunch meat into the freezer. I had turned it on just before I left, and by the time I drove the 80 miles it was frozen. This surprised me. I couldn't eat lunch right away, as I had to defrost the meat in the sun for 20 minutes.

My recent trip to Moab it was 100 degrees and kept stuff in the freezer mostly frozen. We bought a large bag of popsicles and once we got home 4 days later the ones on the top of the bag were a little slushy. The ones that were closest to the metal bottom of the freezer were hard. As far as beer, if it was kept in the bottom of the fridge they stayed Mexico cold (if you know what I mean). If they were kept in the top shelf it was much better. I think on longer warmer trips, we'll be keeping the beer in our Yeti. The fridge will be for food.

I did notice that the fan installed on the coil had gotten dirty since it's exposed and the air volume had been reduced, so I'll be looking into that before my next trip.