Enthusiast III
I am wondering what temp do you all set your fridge to for trips?
what temp do you set your 12v fridge on?
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Explorer I
Enthusiast III
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28-34 depending on the outside temperature .
Enthusiast III
Mine is set for 35, but it will cycle between 32-37ish normally. I also put an ice pack at the bottom of the fridge and it stays about 95% frozen over 3 days, which is great because knowing that I will bring some ice cream bars with me next trip.
Enthusiast III
Explorer I
Remember, some fridges like the legacy ARB only have cooling plates on the bottom. My Snomaster has them in the walls and bottom. So, for some fridges you'll freeze the bottom row and stuff on the top may not even be cold. Be mindful of that when purchasing a fridge.
Off-Road Ranger I
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I like to put all of my items in to the fridge the day before I load it up for camping. At home on shore power I set it at 34 and then when I put it into the Jeep for camping, I usually run it up to 37 degrees. If I have the fridge set on Econo mod it will fluctuate 4 degrees (2 above/2 below) but if I put it on max mod it will only be 2 degrees.
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If you want to carry ice cream in your fridge, why not set the temp lower than the freezing point? Mine can be set as low as 0 degrees. Set it to 25 degrees and you won't need an ice block taking up valuable space inside the fridge.
Enthusiast III
Because my fridge has the cooling plates all around the inside and 25 would probably chill everything a little too much. Based on what I've seen with my fridge so far, a small bag of ice at the very bottom stayed about 95% frozen melting very little. It's worth a test to see if I put some ice cream bars while still set at 35 degrees for the rest of the fridge that I can probably get a day's worth of ice cream enjoyment out of it. Mine can also be used as a freezer as well operating down into the negative degrees, but typically I need my meats, fruits and dairy not-frozen. It's a 52 quart fridge and space has not been an issue so far. Thanks for the recommendation.
Enthusiast II
I think I'm going to make a freezer bag pocket for icecream in my fridge. Use a frozen blue gel inside a insulated bag. My fridge stays at 33 and I hope that I can have a freezer area in it. Fingers ctossed
Influencer II
So all the fridges alternating between high and low points and you need to check what the highest point is before it starts to cool down again, your highest point should not be higher than 44°F for fresh goods.
Your high point will always be a little higher than your set temperature.
Your high point will always be a little higher than your set temperature.
Enthusiast I
I set my dometic between 28 and 40 depending on what I load and the length of my adventure. I cut a square piece of insulation similar to the material that windshield shade are made of and lay it over things I want to keep frozen in the bottom of the fridge. Just finished 45 days and 12000 miles from North Carolina to Death Valley, Moab, Montana etc. kept fish and steaks frozen without freezing everything else
Enthusiast I
Sorry about fat fingers. That’s 28 and 30 not 40
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The ice pack is a great tip! Thanks for sharing that "PRO" tip.
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Member III
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run my dometic around 37...plenty cold since i dont carry frozen items and it doesnt seems to cycle as much at this temp and hopefully prolongs the life of the compressor. also, even the nastiest of beer tastes good at this temp....
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Enthusiast III
I will test to see if it works and will lower accordingly
33-35. I like cold beer and the temp does vary depending on what is in the fridge and how things are layered. I keep most everything in tubs which also likely keeps the food a little warmer. Thus the lower setting. Best thing to get is an IR Temp Gun. Then you can really see what is going on in your fridge. You don't want to put an ice pack near any temp sensor that controls the fridge temp because that would defeat the purpose. Find out where yours is in your brand of fridge.
