Fridg On. When?

[Quiroule]

We will be traveling to Florida for the first time at the end of December.

When leaving Quebec, it will be well below freezing. I have been told that turning the fridg On when it is below freezing outside could damage it.

At what exterior temperature should I turn the fridg on.

Thanks

[Terrydactile]

You would need to turn it on when the temp inside the fridge rises to 35 degrees or slightly over. You can monitor this by using a battery powered wireless remote thermometer. Put the sending unit/temp sensor in the fridge and the receiver/readout unit on the dash of your truck. This is what I do. I can monitor the fridge temp rolling down the road.

[hankpage]

My trailer is stored on my property and for most of the winter the fridge is on and works fine. With the thermistor slide all the way up it keeps fresh picked apples at a perfect 33°F until the holidays and the "Brown Bottles" are great at that temp also. http://www.keystonerv.org/forums/picture.php?albumid=251&pictureid=1111 I really don't want to think about winter, Hank

[hankaye]

Quiroule, Howdy;

Never turn mine off. Groceries are to expensive to re buy...
I've been thru a few winters in Central Utah with temps into
the minus 40's F. While traveling I just let it work as it is designed
to do. I do keep a bottle of frozen water in the freezer. I freeze it
while it stands up and while traveling I lay it down. When I arrive
at the end aof a days driving. I check to see if the water has changed
positions. So far works fine, no problems.

hankaye

[Outbackmel]

I use ice cubes to check constant power. Put one in form in zip lock bag in freezer. Power failure for extended time will cause it to change as it melts and potentially re freezes.

[alien_scones]

We use a wireless thermometer to monitor the fridge / freezer temperature. It tracks the max / min and also has a alarm that can chime when a range is exceeded.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Acu-Rite-Wireless-Digital-Refrigerator-Freezer-Thermometer-New-Version-986-/380481988391

http://www.keystonerv.org/forums/picture.php?pictureid=1224&albumid=250&dl=1349619679&thumb=1 (http://www.keystonerv.org/forums/album.php?albumid=250&pictureid=1224)

[Quiroule]

Thank-you all.

I will keep it on.

Have fum

[crash]

On our longer trips we freeze 4 gallon milk jugs and put 2 in the freezer and two in the refrig and it seams to work for a good 9 to 10 hour trip .Then when we stop for the night we turn it back on and start the process all over agian.just my 2cents.

[Charli]

How about the furnace. When travelling from northern climes is it ok to run the furnace while driving until a moderate temp zone is reached, which in our case, could take 2 days of driving at this time of year.

[JRTJH]

Do a forum search for furnace operation while travelling and I think you'll find that the general concensus is to follow the manufacturer's advice and NOT run the furnace while towing. If all the safety mechanisms are operable, the furnace and thermostat are functioning properly and the propane is being regulated correctly, there's probably no significant danger, but if the furnace safety interlocks should fail and the flame get blown out, you could have a problem. I don't think you'd get propane inside the RV, the heat chamber is a sealed unit that's vented outside, but you could have someone walk by the furnace vent with a cigarette or other flame and get a big surprise......

There are some people who have towed with furnace operating, I've done it in the past, but heading south this winter, we will leave it off till we stop for the night, then turn it, the oven and all the stovetop burners on until we get above the "frosty breathing" stage inside the trailer. :)

We do, however, tow with the refrigerator operating on propane. If you're going to have water in your hot water heater, you need to keep it from freezing, so either run the HWH at rest stops, or determine another way to prevent it from freezing. In "above zero" temps, if you start with hot water, I don't think it would cool down enough to freeze in a 5 or 6 hour tow, but in below zero temps, who knows how fast the HWH would freeze.

Our plan is to tow with the trailer winterized from here to somewhere south of Memphis, then camp overnight and dewinterize, hit a supermarket and go from there as we do in the summer. We'll probably stay in a motel the first and maybe the second night of travel, then stay in the RV from there on. Coming back, we'll need to winterize again, so probably will do that someplace warm (before we head back) and just stay in motels for the entire return trip.

My biggest concern is trying to clean all the salt and road debris off the trailer bottom when we get home. We'll probably still have 2 or 3 ft of snow/ice on the ground, so using my pressure washer in the drive won't be an option and I don't want to put it in the pole barn with salt on the undercarriage. That's one issue I haven't figured out yet..... Heck, maybe just leave it in the south and go back to get it in June???? LOL Nope, I don't think so....

[hankaye]

Charli, Howdy;

Never traveled with the furnace on. Personal opinion I'm not
comfortable with the thought of it running while going down
the road. It doesn't take that long to warm up the interior, unlike
cooling the fridge..... Like I said, personal opinion.

hankaye

[EricLynnAllison]

On my raptor, I accidently left the heater on while traveling home. The furnace quit working due to the slides covering the ducts and restricting air flow. The furnace has a circuit board that had a light showing an error code. I called suburban and they told me how to reset it.

[byrdr1]

......
That's one issue I haven't figured out yet..... Heck, maybe just leave it in the south and go back to get it in June???? LOL Nope, I don't think so....

I'll store it for you..:)

if not my place my friends 7 acres. he has 5-30a hookups, he is using 2 as I type. one for his camper and one for our friends 375MonsterFuzion. We use his yard for our Memorial weekend camp over.
randy :)

[JRTJH]

I'll store it for you..:)

if not my place my friends 7 acres. he has 5-30a hookups, he is using 2 as I type. one for his camper and one for our friends 375MonsterFuzion. We use his yard for our Memorial weekend camp over.
randy :)

Thanks much for the offer. We go right past you when we visit our son in Cary. But this winter, we're probably going to be headed down I-55/I-57 into Louisiana then over to either Texas or Florida (depending on budget) for some "thawing out" time. I think we'll be heading back to Louisiana before returning home, so that would put us on I-55 headed home. We won't be anywhere near your area, but certainly do appreciate the offer to "adopt" our Cougar for the rest of the winter LOL

[Outbackmel]

North Carolina is the original home of "white light'n". :eek: Leave your RV there and when you return you will likely have to evict a family of at least 9. Good choice on passing up that "southern hospitality". "bouncey:

They do have the BEST BBQ in the US though. Smithfield BBQ House or Holt Lake...mmmmmmmm, goooooodddd!

I think I'll jump in the truck right now and drive all day/night for a sandwich!
(gotta go) :cool: