What to do with fridge between trips?

[TechTonics]

Hi all,

I have a 12v Norcold fridge that runs off of 2 house batteries (2x 90Ah lead acid) that are charged by a 150w Samlex solar panel (or the alternator when running)

This time of year I’m using the camper 2-3 weekends per month (so maybe 4-8 days/ month).

When the fridge is off, it drains (condensation from the freezer?) so I don’t want to have to turn it on and off every trip. But if I just leave it on all day/everyday, that seems like a lot of work for the fridge to stay cold (even set at “1”) and a lot of cycling for the batteries.

So what’s better? Draining and re-turning on every trip? Or just keeping it on all the time during the week?

It’s convenient to keep some stuff out there waiting for the next trip (beers, condiments, etc) but that’s not a reason to keep it on all the time.

Thanks for your insight.

[BoxterRocks]

Dont suppose you can fab up some sort of fiberglass drip tray to put underneath of it with a drain tube going out the floor? Just a thought.

[Twoxentrix]

We plug into shore power between trips, but still turn ours off (turn it back on a day or two prior to leaving on the next, but fill it first so everything is cold when we unplug from shore power). Don't normally get too much condensation, just whatever builds up in the freezer...for that we leave a towel inside, and also leave a towel tucked under the fridge door (stuff one end into the gap where the exhaust vent is located, and let it drop to the floor where we double or triple the leftover so it sits just below the fridge). Remove them after a day.
If, however, we plan on another outing within a week of the last, we just let the fridge run.

[Oogs]

We leave our fridge on all the time unless it's time to defrost the freezer.

[boywonder]

I turn the Fridge off and leave the door open....

[Marcel Huijser]

same here:
1. fridge off
2. door open

[marret]

Same.

Fridge off, towel inside until freezer thawed, door open for a few days until totally dry.

If I will be going on another trip soon, I leave it on and plugged in at home.

[vandiesel]

Shore power fridge on all the time here.

[1der]

Fridge most of the time is on, and chest freezer is on nearly 24/7.
360w solar and 400 plus amps of batteries covers the electric needs 90% of the year w plug-in to shore power for about four weeks due to shadows on the panel. The batteries are usually still above 90% SOC overnight.

Re: defrosting - we added a hair dryer to the Beastie stuff and use it to defrost the fridge freezer portion. A rectangular Tupperware container and a couple of faux chamois has the freezer portion defrosted in about 10 to 15 minutes. I use the inverter or shore power to power the hair dryer. Dry out the surfaces put the food back in and power up the fridge and we are back in business. The cold food usually goes into a box or under a towel to help keep it cold.

If shutting down the fridge for a period of time then a towel, door open until dry. Clean all surfaces and then leave the door slightly open.

[gahamby]

Fridge off, door open.