New 2020 28RL owner here. Refridge question.

[eteacher44]

Previously owning a pop-up, I recently upgraded to a 2020 White Hawk 28RL. My question is how can I travel with food and beverages in the fridge? I don't think I'd run it off gas, would I? I'd hate to blow-up enroute to its first destination. Thank you.

[JFlightRisk]

Originally Posted by eteacher44

Previously owning a pop-up, I recently upgraded to a 2020 White Hawk 28RL. My question is how can I travel with food and beverages in the fridge? I don't think I'd run it off gas, would I? I'd hate to blow-up enroute to its first destination. Thank you.

We precool our fridge the day before, and then load the freezer with pre-frozen food, and the fridge with cold food, and add a frozen jug of water. We've driven for about six hours, and it's still cold. How long are you going to travel before stopping?

You're going to get a lot of responses here, both for, and against traveling with the fridge on gas. Be prepared!

[MichaelO]

That’s a pretty good trailer, I like the floor plan. Precooling the fridge is a good idea. I’ve never had any problems towing my trailers with the fridge running off of gas. As already said you’ll get plenty of people for and against. It’s going to come down to what you’re comfortable doing. If pulling it with the fridge running makes you I’m comfortable then don’t do it. Whichever way you choose to go precooling the fridge the day before and put already cooled or frozen food in it.

[eteacher44]

Since I'm pulling for about 6 hours, I think I'll precool and leave the gas off. I surely appreciate your responses. Thank you.

[JFlightRisk]

Originally Posted by eteacher44

Since I'm pulling for about 6 hours, I think I'll precool and leave the gas off. I surely appreciate your responses. Thank you.

You're very welcome!

[TaftCoach]

I even turn the gas off in my truck, just to be safe
Although it doesn't seem to go very far.

I was a never while driving guy. But on longer road trips I started leaving it on now I prechill for a day and load food and go.

If you do close the valve at the tank you may have to light the stove to start pulling propane to the fridge to get it running at your destination. I spent a frustrating hour with the fridge shutting off until someone here taught me that trick.

[RetiredOne]

Originally Posted by eteacher44

I don't think I'd run it off gas, would I? I'd hate to blow-up enroute to its first destination. Thank you.

Originally Posted by TaftCoach

I even turn the gas off in my truck, just to be safe
Although it doesn't seem to go very far.

This topic has been talked about a lot here. Concerns about driving with the propane tank (bomb) turned on, forgetting about a tank full of gasoline (bomb) in the tow vehicle.

I haven't been able to find any stats, but I don't believe there's been many blown up trailers on the side of the road due to their propane tanks leaking, cars on the other hand....

Most new trailers have a safety valve, that shuts off propane flow if there's a sudden break in the system (broken hose).

[TaftCoach]

Exactly.

I even heard a salesman recommend not putting any pin or lock through the hitch latch in case your TT is on fire and you want to quickly disconnect to avoid having your TV engulfed in flames. I'm amazed that anyone buys these death traps.

[Grumpy]

Originally Posted by JFlightRisk

You're going to get a lot of responses here, both for, and against traveling with the fridge on gas. Be prepared!

Yep!

I for one towed or drove (mh) for over 40 years with the fridge on, that is how they are designed to operate. If it was a safety issue you can be sure the government would be involved by now.

[Ohiofinlander]

Welcome! We tow with the gas on! No issues yet. Been doing it for years.

[TaftCoach]

Originally Posted by eteacher44

Previously owning a pop-up

Welcome to the darkside

[jimmoore13]

We also tow with the gas on. ALWAYS.
We pre-cool the fridge on shore power, then about 6 or 7 hours before departure, I switch over to propane. As I finish prepping for the trip...including loading items into the fridge...I monitor the fridge performance to ensure there is no "fault."

Modern propane tanks have safety valves that will automatically shut off flow if a line ruptures. In most "disasters" this safety system will stop the supply of fuel at the tank. You sometimes experience this when connecting a new tank to an appliance. If there is a significant length of hose prior to the regulator, it will be depressurized and filled with ambient air. If you open the valve on the tank too quickly, it will sense a "ruptured line" situation and the valve will automatically shut off flow. In those cases you must shut off the tank, remove the appliance from the OPD valve fitting, and allow the tank's safety mechanism to "reset." You should always open OPD valves slowly to prevent this. You'll note that many newer tanks have valves that require MANY turns to fully open them. These valves prevent fooling the valve into thinking there's a leak in the line.

If your accident is bad enough that the propane tanks become separated from the rig, all bets are off if, for example, the valve is broken from the tank. That risk is there whether you're running the fridge or not.
More on Propane: https://www.propane101.com/valveopennopropane.htm

Most RV fridges will run well on the highway with the propane powering the fridge, BUT THERE ARE EXCEPTIONS. In rare cases, aerodynamics will bugger the burner operation on the fridge when going down the road. You'll know this, because your fridge will "fault" and shut off. In that case only, you might need to fabricate some sort of wind blocker for the combustion area that does not completely deprive the combustion area of fresh air. But, again, this is a rare problem.

THREE CAVEATS:
1) One can't run propane when going through most tunnels and on most ferries, and so on. You may be required to shut down the fridge and turn off the propane...in that order. Don't just turn off the propane and allow the fridge to fault. It may be a struggle to get it going again.
2) You must shut off the fridge and propane before entering a fuel station.
3) There are RARE jurisdictions that prohibit running propane on the road. Check the laws where you travel, but I just checked, and I couldn't find any such jurisdictions.

NOTE: When starting the fridge on propane, first turn on the gas at the tank, then go to your range and light a couple burners for a moment to purge the lines of any air bubbles. This will prime the lines with gas, and the fridge (and hot water heater) won't struggle to start. This is a good practice whether you have removed the tanks for filling or not, but it's especially important when reinstalling newly filled tanks.

ADVICE: If you boondock (no shore power), set your fridge to "gas" only rather than "auto." If you're on auto, every time you fire up the generator, the fridge will automatically switch over to electricity. If you're trying to run the micro and draw water at the same time and the fridge fires up, you'll overload a 2KW generator, because an absorption fridge is an AC power hog, the water pump may draw as much as 7 amps, and the micro is already a pretty good load on the genny. Save the brain damage of having to reset your genny (or in my case shut down and restart), and set the fridge to gas only. This is one less load on the genny, and it will typically leave a bit of reserve power to charge the battery bank even when running the micro.

[Route 66 Traveler]

Originally Posted by eteacher44

I don't think I'd run it off gas, would I? I'd hate to blow-up enroute to its first destination. Thank you.

I’ve been towing trailers for 30 years with a running fridge. Always turn it off when getting fuel, but otherwise it’s always on.

Do a search on this topic and you will see a thousand answers both pro and con.

[Scott_Trailer_Newbe]

This has been a “HOT” topic quite often on the forums. I will simply state what we have done with our 28RL. Many of our trips are 4-5-6 hours, so before we head out I switch the fridge over to propane, make sure she lights, then hit the road. Did the same with our 24RKS before that. I always stop from time to time and make sure it is still all good, then head down the road.

[TaftCoach]

I’m not certain if the never on folks have given up arguing or turned on the gas, but the fridge running crowd seems much larger than ten or fifteen years ago.

[2edgesword]

We get our fridge and all the contents cold or frozen before we leave and have gone 4 ~ 5 hours with the fridge not run and everything is cold or frozen when we arrive at the campground. If the seals are sealing around the doors properly things will stay cold for hours without running the fridge.

[MichaelO]

Originally Posted by TaftCoach

I even turn the gas off in my truck, just to be safe

Although it doesn't seem to go very far.



I was a never while driving guy. But on longer road trips I started leaving it on now I prechill for a day and load food and go.



If you do close the valve at the tank you may have to light the stove to start pulling propane to the fridge to get it running at your destination. I spent a frustrating hour with the fridge shutting off until someone here taught me that trick.

That’s why I turn off the fridge and other gas devices before turning off the gas at the tank. That way I’m not using up all the gas in the lines and relight is easy peazy.

[Marmot]

Yes, run the fridge off gas while traveling. Just be sure to choose a LEVEL spot if you stop for a couple hours during your trip. Running the fridge off-level is very bad.

[Groveite]

I'm coming up 46 years towing with gas on. Turn it off when asked for tunnels and ferries ��

[Gord60]

When I get my MH out of storage and am ready to load for our first trip I put the fridge in Auto, and leave it that way until we empty the fridge to put the unit back into storage. In other words we set-it, and forget-it.... Never had a problem, and never worried about food temperature and safety. But,, do whatever makes you comfortable.