Fridge Performance

[dannosail]

I had cause to store some 40 ice creams in the Fridge at the weekend but before doing this threw a thermometer in. As a 2006 Cali with -18C set the thermometer did not ready below 5C. The outboard side where the fridge cooling plate is was frosted and I know that the fridge keeps stuff cold but I'm pretty sure it wasn't cold enough.

It's possible my thermometer is duff but does anyone's fridge go below -10C? Also, I know the compressor are sealed, but can the Cali fridge be recharged? The temperature distribution in a Cali fridge is pretty uneven but it would be good to know if anybody else gets anywhere near double figures in minus temperatures?

Thanks.

 

[GrannyJen]

There are limits on just what a 12v fridge can achieve and for most makes I hear around 25 degrees cooling down from ambient.

I've had stuff frozen solid in my fridge but only up to about April. Currently with temperatures in the 35c mean, more in the Cali when still, I cannot achieve chilling, let alone freezing. Currently my bottles of water are fridge cold with my temp setting at maximum, -18C

 

[jts46]

There are limits on just what a 12v fridge can achieve and for most makes I hear around 25 degrees cooling down from ambient.

I've had stuff frozen solid in my fridge but only up to about April. Currently with temperatures in the 35c mean, more in the Cali when still, I cannot achieve chilling, let alone freezing. Currently my bottles of water are fridge cold with my temp setting at maximum, -18C

Hope you are not freezing the wine?

John

 

[GrannyJen]

Hope you are not freezing the wine?

John

that would be sacrilege

 

[snowy55]

It is after all a fridge and not a freezer, is this why Vw changed the calibration settings from degrees c to just numbers so as to avoid disappointment ?
Hope your ice creams survived ok.

 

[dannosail]

Ice creams survived partly because they were devoured in short order!

GRANNYJen experience sounds about right. If I stick frozen stuff on the outer side of the freezer it will stay frozen for a while but not deep frozen.

As snowy says, perhaps the change in calibration settings is a reflection of reality.

Can you regs the fridge though?

 

[SimplyDubs]

I regularly carry ice creams for group picnics etc (Got one this Friday)... Set to -15 and measures at around -5 so no real problem.

Admittedly typically for no more than 8 hours

Need to ensure there is space around the edges of whatever is stored in there to ensure the heat is adequately transferred away... packing it full will stop the airflow.

Equally, need to ensure the fridge offset is checked and set.

I hear around 25 degrees cooling down from ambient.

This is true for Peltier units but compressor units shouldn't have this limitation... It does however increase the duty cycle and hence the battery drain.

Rgds
M

 

[snowy55]

"Can you regs the fridge though?"

Don't understand what you mean.

 

[Bramco]

Surely a fridge and a freezer are one and the same thing, it's just convention that says if the set point is below zero (freezing point) we call it a freezer.

Realise everyone is talking about the built in fridge/freezer but on our dual voltage cooler, on 12v it cools to about 20 below ambient, so will freeze on a cooll day. On 240 the setting dial on the front works and you can set it to run from high to low (being cheap there's no indication of what that means of course, so I'm going to make up a temp gauge I can check over wifi some time).

I'm guessing the built in coolers in the SE are always on 12v and work like our cooler and simply cool to a set level below ambient. Hence warm stuff in summer and frozen stuff in winter.

Simon

 

[GrannyJen]

My fridge had a graduated result.

Three days of 35 -40 degrees C and the internal heat in the van obviously higher during daytimes sat still.

After 3 days driving to the South of France:

top container, partially defrosted

centre container, cooler,

Bottom container still frozen.

Fridge packed with frozen contents 9am Saturday, unpacked 1400 today, outside temperature 37C.

The wine (just room for a bottle of chablis picked up in Nuit Saint George Sunday) chilled nicely.

 

[jts46]

A domestic refrigerator temperature should be 4'c to 8'c for foods. A domestic freezer should be able to maintain a temperature of -17'c to -23'c for the safe keeping of frozen food.
When I worked for Electrolux the control knobs were always marked 1 to 6. 1 was always the warmest setting and 6 was the coldest.

john

 

[jts46]

My fridge had a graduated result.

Three days of 35 -40 degrees C and the internal heat in the van obviously higher during daytimes sat still.

After 3 days driving to the South of France:

top container, partially defrosted

centre container, cooler,

Bottom container still frozen.

Fridge packed with frozen contents 9am Saturday, unpacked 1400 today, outside temperature 37C.

The wine (just room for a bottle of chablis picked up in Nuit Saint George Sunday) chilled nicely.

That sounds about right. Remember the fridge is a box and cold air cannot escape (As it can on a side opening cabinet), hence the cold air drops to the bottom of the box.

John