Running long term Iceco fridge - off solar generator & panel - and issues with IceCo

[caj13]

Not sure where this fits, I posted it down in equipment - but doesn't seem like thats a good fit. someone move it to where it belongs if not here! thanks

I have a 100 watt solar panel on my suboverlander, and run that into an Ecoflow river pro 720 KW solar "generator". charges up great. so on my first extended trip - I put in the 20 Q ICECO fridge freezer ran it at 35 degrees temp, , and ran it off the Ecoflow. Essentially - the unit would stay at 100% charge during the day. at night it would only draw down about 10-12% of the charge in the Ecoflow. On the way home i switched vehicles, no solar panel, so i would run the Iceco off the car battery (ac adaptor/ cig lighter) while i was running during the day, and then at night, just plug it directly into the Ecoflow. as before, it would draw down 12 - 14% for a 10 hour night. so I ran 4 days without recharging the riverpro - worked like a charm,.

I do have one big complaint - and that's with the Iceco refrigerator. even though the temp was set at 35 degrees, the readout showed the temp varying between 29 degrees and 39 degrees - that kind of temp swing (if it was really happening) is not the best scenario for keeping food cold and fresh. I tried looking at the settings - looking for some sort of tolerance range setting, but could not find any - either on the control panel on the fridge, or in the app .

 

[OcoeeG]

Not sure where this fits, I posted it down in equipment - but doesn't seem like thats a good fit. someone move it to where it belongs if not here! thanks

I have a 100 watt solar panel on my suboverlander, and run that into an Ecoflow river pro 720 KW solar "generator". charges up great. so on my first extended trip - I put in the 20 Q ICECO fridge freezer ran it at 35 degrees temp, , and ran it off the Ecoflow. Essentially - the unit would stay at 100% charge during the day. at night it would only draw down about 10-12% of the charge in the Ecoflow. On the way home i switched vehicles, no solar panel, so i would run the Iceco off the car battery (ac adaptor/ cig lighter) while i was running during the day, and then at night, just plug it directly into the Ecoflow. as before, it would draw down 12 - 14% for a 10 hour night. so I ran 4 days without recharging the riverpro - worked like a charm,.

I do have one big complaint - and that's with the Iceco refrigerator. even though the temp was set at 35 degrees, the readout showed the temp varying between 29 degrees and 39 degrees - that kind of temp swing (if it was really happening) is not the best scenario for keeping food cold and fresh. I tried looking at the settings - looking for some sort of tolerance range setting, but could not find any - either on the control panel on the fridge, or in the app .

Power usage sounds amazing! Like to hear that!

About the temp swing, You're right that is far from ideal. I THINK I read somewhere that there are 2 eco setting, the lowest (most energy efficient) allows the greatest swing before the fridge goes back into cool down mode. Low might be 29-39, Med. might be 29-36 and max might be 29-34. Or something like that. THe least effecient setting kicks the compressor on more often, thus the less temp swing. Or I think that is what I read anyway.

 

[caj13]

Power usage sounds amazing! Like to hear that!

About the temp swing, You're right that is far from ideal. I THINK I read somewhere that there are 2 eco setting, the lowest (most energy efficient) allows the greatest swing before the fridge goes back into cool down mode. Low might be 29-39, Med. might be 29-36 and max might be 29-34. Or something like that. THe least effecient setting kicks the compressor on more often, thus the less temp swing. Or I think that is what I read anyway.

thanks for the tip, I'll see if I can run down how to change that setting. I thought it must be in the app - but so far no luck, its pretty basic.

 

[DRAX]

I didn't know that you can run a fridge with solar panels

They're not...

Power usage sounds amazing! Like to hear that!

About the temp swing, You're right that is far from ideal. I THINK I read somewhere that there are 2 eco setting, the lowest (most energy efficient) allows the greatest swing before the fridge goes back into cool down mode. Low might be 29-39, Med. might be 29-36 and max might be 29-34. Or something like that. THe least effecient setting kicks the compressor on more often, thus the less temp swing. Or I think that is what I read anyway.

The GO20 doesn't have those settings.

To the OP, I wouldn't be too concerned about the temp swings. You didn't mention how full the fridge was, but regardless of that the "ideal" fridge temperature is 40F or below. The fridge maintaining sub-40F temps is perfectly fine and will keep your food fresh. I had a VL60D and I think the temp swing was +/- 2F in normal mode. Eco mode ran the compressor at a lower speed to reduce power draw but would result in the compressor running for a longer period of time. I don't see an Eco mode on the GO20.

All in all, everything sounds fine to me. Expecting a portable 12v fridge to maintain +/- 1F is unreasonable. Not sure what your actual expectation is, but in terms of keeping food cold it's working just fine.

 

[pcstockton]

A better fridge might get you what you are looking for. My Dometic is VERY stable temp wise.

 

[DRAX]

A better fridge might get you what you are looking for. My Dometic is VERY stable temp wise.

The OP's GO20 is definitely more of a budget fridge, but ICECO isn't about making low-quality products. If the ICECO VL60D we had would've fit the fridge slide of our new trailer I would've kept it instead of adding the optional Dometic CFX3 55IM to the build, but the ICECO was too big. I'd argue the ICECO VL-series are at least as good as the Dometic, if not better, and at a lower price. ICECO also offers excellent customer support and a 5-year warranty on the compressor, which matches the Dometic compressor warranty.

Don't get me wrong, the Dometic units are great but there are better (and worse) values out there for 12v fridges.

 

[Wellspring]

A better fridge might get you what you are looking for. My Dometic is VERY stable temp wise.

I can't speak about this person's model, but my ICECO JP40 which cost me just a little above $500 on sale uses the same Germany SECOP Compressor that both ARB and Dometic use. I couldn't justify paying over $800 doallrs for the same capacity and the name. When we are not traveling, we have it plugged into AC in a spare room, keep cool beverages in it as opposed to cluttering up the kitchen refrigerator. Been running like a top for over 3 years.

 

[pcstockton]

Dometic CFX3 units do NOT use a Danfoss/Secop. Dometic uses an in-house compressor that kicks booty.

I go for better than cheaper in these situations. Get the best, it will last the longest.

 

[OcoeeG]

Get the best, it will last the longest.

There is no guarantee of that!

 

[Wellspring]

Dometic CFX3 units do NOT use a Danfoss/Secop. Dometic uses an in-house compressor that kicks booty.

Previously known as Danfoss, SECOP is one of the founding fathers of modern compressor technology, going back to the 1950s. There’s a lot to like about SECOP camping fridge compressors. They are also incredibly reliable and because they are very commonplace, they are well known by fridge repair/service agents.
Who makes Secop compressor?

Originally Danfoss Compressors GmbH, the company was renamed Secop when it was acquired by German industrial holdings company Aurelius in 2010. Secop then acquired ACC Austria GmbH in 2014. Nidec acquired Secop for EUR185 million (about USD203 million) in 2017.

What compressors does Dometic use?

Dometic refrigerators use a DanFoss compressor which are highly rated and have been around for a long time as well.

Is Danfoss and Secop the same? – SidmartinBio

www.sidmartinbio.org

 

[DRAX]

...

CFX3 fridges use the VMSO3 compressor which was developed and built in-house by Dometic. The non-CFX3 fridges did/do use the Danfoss/SECOP compressors.

 

[Wellspring]

CFX3 fridges use the VMSO3 compressor which was developed and built in-house by Dometic. The non-CFX3 fridges did/so use the Danfoss/SECOP compressors.

Whatever.

I still saved a chunk of cash and have a perfectly working fridge with a compressor that has a good reputation, and a 5 year warranty. Brand names and high prices do not impress me. My refrigerator doesn't need a Bluetooth connection, and I don't really need ice cubes, either. I'll take the several hundred dollars I saved and invest it into something else that's practical for overland travel.

 

[DRAX]

Whatever.

I still saved a chunk of cash and have a perfectly working fridge with a compressor that has a good reputation, and a 5 year warranty. Brand names and high prices do not impress me. My refrigerator doesn't need a Bluetooth connection, and I don't really need ice cubes, either. I'll take the several hundred dollars I saved and invest it into something else that's practical for overland travel.

Not sure why the attitude, I'm pro-ICECO (you did read my previous posts in this thread, right?) and was just clarifying the previous statement made about the CFX3 fridges not using the Danfoss/SECOP compressors as it appeared that you were trying to dispute what was said but missed the mark due to missing context/details.

Anyway...

 

[Wellspring]

Not sure why the attitude, I'm pro-ICECO (you did read my previous posts in this thread, right?) and was just clarifying the previous statement made about the CFX3 fridges not using the Danfoss/SECOP compressors as it appeared that you were trying to dispute what was said but missed the mark due to missing context/details.

Anyway...

Sorry, I didn't remember your other post, and yes I was rather "chip on the shoulder" gruff. My apologies. At the time I bought my ICECO, the top manufactures were using the Danfoos/SECOP compressor, and hence my purchase was with a manufacturer's product that was less expensive, but using the best technology of the day. In all fairness, I had no idea that Dometic is using a different compressor in their updated line, because I am not reseraching them anymore, as I have a refrigerator.