Refrigerator on propane

Meadows11 · 10-01-2019, 01:08 PM

How long will the refrigerator run on a tank of propane?

Jagiven · 10-01-2019, 01:29 PM

An extremely long time!

The furnace is probably the biggest propane consumer. The water heater can use a lot too (related to how much water you consume).

We rarely cook inside our TT. We use our frig on propane a lot. We use the furnace and water heater a bit each season, and I have never consumed a full 20# tank in a season.

The frig just uses a pilot light to change phases of the ammonia gas. So it is not using much, and it has an electronic ignition, so it is not even on all the time. The initial cool down will be the major consumer, after that it is just maintaining temperature. So if you can precool on electric, you will drop your propane consumption dramatically.

I read somewhere; If the pilot light ran consistently; 1 pound of propane would be consumed every 14.5 hours. Again, there is a thermostat, and auto ignition, so except for precooling, you should get a lot more run time than that, on a pound of fuel.

JimD · 10-01-2019, 01:35 PM

How big a fridge and how big a tank?

My old camper had 2 - 7 gal tanks and a 4 cubic foot fridge. 5 days in the desert would go through about 1/2 of one of the tanks. Hard to tell for sure as it also had a propane generator that was used now and then.

My 2017 Greyhawk has a 12 cubic foot fridge and a 13 gal (56 pound) tank and I can go on multiple 3 day trips before it goes below 1/2 tank on the gauge, which I think is a bit off. I think it reads lower than the actual level. I feel I could get 10 days before I would want to refill just so I wouldn't be constantly looking at the gauge.

Remember, tank capacity is not what is advertised due to safety features which prevent filling beyond a certain amount.

I highly recommend using tanks with gauges on them. If you have a trailer with external individual tanks, you can just watch the automatic tank crossover to see when one tank goes empty and switches over to the full one.

I have never used the stick on labels that measure the propane by pouring hot water on it. You can weigh the tank when full and empty to know what is left, although this is a pain.

geezerbob · 10-01-2019, 02:30 PM

Jim d
I sometimes weigh the tank and subtract the tare weight listed on the tank and that tells me how many pounds I have left.
Bob

GarlicDude · 10-01-2019, 03:06 PM

We just finished 9 days of camping. We ran the frig on propane as well as the water heater the entire time. Did some stove cooking and maybe about a1/2 hour of heater use and have approximately 5 lbs. left on a 20 lb. tank.

JimD · 10-01-2019, 06:47 PM

GarlicDude,

I glanced and saw your name and wondered why you picked that. A lover of garlic? A person with a vampire problem? Then I saw where you are located. I've driven through Gilroy in the past and seem to remember it is the garlic capital of the world.

GarlicDude · 10-02-2019, 11:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JimD

GarlicDude,

I glanced and saw your name and wondered why you picked that. A lover of garlic? A person with a vampire problem? Then I saw where you are located. I've driven through Gilroy in the past and seem to remember it is the garlic capital of the world.

Jim, Yes Gilroy is the "Garlic Capitol of the World". They don't grow as much garlic here is as they used to, but Christopher Ranch and others still process a lot of garlic here. The town has grown but you can still smell the garlic in the air from the processing plants.

A buying tip, American grown bulbs will have the roots still attached, Chinese garlic

will have the roots planed off.

Gilroy is the only town I know where you can marinate a steak by hanging it on the clothesline

Will Rogers

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