Fridge Settings and Temperatures

[willwander]

Where are you guys measuring the temp, find there is a fair difference from the bottom of the fridge at the back vs. in the basket.

I’m measuring half way up, on wall next to wardrobe and yes there is a big difference depending on where you measure.

 

[westfalia]

Don't want to take this thread off topic, but there is a fridge upgrader
that is quite popular on the german cali forum, i don't know how
effective it is but your temp checker would see how good it is.
it glues to the back of the fridge covering the inlet and looks
like this.

 

[thehorse]

Don't want to take this thread off topic, but there is a fridge upgrader
that is quite popular on the german cali forum, i don't know how
effective it is but your temp checker would see how good it is.
it glues to the back of the fridge covering the inlet and looks
like this.

View attachment 61515

I’d be very interested in that. Do you have a link?

 

[westfalia]

I’d be very interested in that. Do you have a link?

I cant link it at the moment, the shop is shut due to the
reprogramming of the system, VAT changes coming soon.
I can add a link later though.

 

[thehorse]

Can anyone also confirm what current draw they see on the overhead controller when the fridge is on?

 

[ThomasHJ]

I see 0.0 A. The fridge has been turned on, set to 'max' since 1930 last night and the van is not on EHU.

 

[thehorse]

I see 0.0 A. The fridge has been turned on, set to 'max' since 1930 last night and the van is not on EHU.

Sounds like the Thermostat must have clicked it off, I assume it’s not making a humming sound at the moment.

Mine is usually around 3.8A, but it doesn’t vary with the temp the setting, looking at the Danfoss data for unit it does have a variable speed compressor so I’d expect the current draw to change with motor speed, but it could be VW aren’t using this feature and just cycle it on and off.

 

[willwander]

Added Level 5
Between 7.9 and 9.2 degrees


Yesterday evening I started a test with a full fridge (mainly gin).
This morning...Well the test is still running !!! The graph is looking very different !!!
Exciting times ahead Lol

 

[thehorse]

Added Level 5
Between 7.9 and 9.2 degrees


Yesterday evening I started a test with a full fridge (mainly gin).
This morning...Well the test is still running !!! The graph is looking very different !!!
Exciting times ahead Lol

Out of interest, when it cools down and the temp is cycling between the min/max does your compressor switch off or does the speed of the compressor change?

mine just seems to operate at a fixed speed, but the manual suggests it has a variable speed controller.

https://assets.danfoss.com/documents/DOC327540281404/DOC327540281404.pdf

 

[willwander]

E

Out of interest, when it cools down and the temp is cycling between the min/max does your compressor switch off or does the speed of the compressor change?

mine just seems to operate at a fixed speed, but the manual suggests it has a variable speed controller.

https://assets.danfoss.com/documents/DOC327540281404/DOC327540281404.pdf

I'm not sure, I'll have to keep an eye on it.
Maybe the compressor speed is related to the fridge setting.

For further reference this is the model number of my fridge.

 

[willwander]

Found these other two Danfoss documents
Instructions

https://assets.danfoss.com/documents/DOC147286416541/DOC147286416541.pdf

Adaptive Energy Optimization

https://assets.danfoss.com/documents/DOC000086436940/DOC000086436940.pdf

The graph at the end of the second one, matches my data with a 24 minute cycle time.

If the compressor does not reach cut out temperature within 48 minutes the speed is set to 4400 rpm.

After a thermostat cut out the start up speed is calculated as speed at stop minus 300. The speed will be adapted automatically so that the thermostat runtime will be approximately 24 minutes.

 

[thehorse]

I must admit, I haven’t noticed the pitch of the hum change that would indicate the compressor speeding up or slowing down. It’s worth noting to some extent some of the control of the compressor is overridden by the Cali controller, so VW might not necessarily be implementing this feature.

one thing I’d like to do is calibrate the thermostat to a more usable range, so the 1-7 settings were more useful.

 

[Benh76]

I must admit, I haven’t noticed the pitch of the hum change that would indicate the compressor speeding up or slowing down. It’s worth noting to some extent some of the control of the compressor is overridden by the Cali controller, so VW might not necessarily be implementing this feature.

one thing I’d like to do is calibrate the thermostat to a more usable range, so the 1-7 settings were more useful.

Yes agreed, I am really interested to see how the settings on the control panel corroborate to the temperature in a loaded fridge.

 

[thehorse]

Just checkEd the fridge, ambient temp in van is 38degC, fairly full. Bottom is at 10degC basket at 12degC. Could really do with being 5 degrees cooler. Controller set to max.

 

[Benh76]

Just checkEd the fridge, ambient temp in van is 38degC, fairly full. Bottom is at 10degC basket at 12degC. Could really do with being 5 degrees cooler. Controller set to max.

yes I would also prefer cooler than that at max setting.

Couple of questions

1. Were the items already chilled when you put them in the fridge ?
2. How long has the Cali fridge been running for once loaded ?

 

[WelshGas]

Just checkEd the fridge, ambient temp in van is 38degC, fairly full. Bottom is at 10degC basket at 12degC. Could really do with being 5 degrees cooler. Controller set to max.

Something not right if that is on Max.
On Level 6 my temperature is below 0c so things freeze. Except for the Gin.

 

[ArunAlec]

Something not right if that is on Max.
On Level 6 my temperature is below 0c so things freeze. Except for the Gin.

The gin won’t freeze if you keep drinking it

 

[ArunAlec]

Ok, can’t resist .... just set up a cheap LIDL indoor/outdoor thermometer to do some data gathering.

 

[ThomasHJ]

Something not right if that is on Max.
On Level 6 my temperature is below 0c so things freeze. Except for the Gin.

I dunno @WelshGas, remember, the fact that things freeze in your cali-fridge in some spots, under some circumstances doesn't really say much. Sure, soda cans and a carton of orange juice freeze in my cali-fridge when I put them against the back wall and leave them there for a while, but that doesn't tell you much about the temperature in the rest of the fridge. And there's quite some factors that are to be considered. Outside temperature, temperature in the van, amount of stuff in the fridge, original temperature of stuff when you put it in the fridge, how many times and how long you open the fridge to get stuff out or put stuff in, etc.

 

[WelshGas]

I dunno @WelshGas, remember, the fact that things freeze in your cali-fridge in some spots, under some circumstances doesn't really say much. Sure, soda cans and a carton of orange juice freeze in my cali-fridge when I put them against the back wall and leave them there for a while, but that doesn't tell you much about the temperature in the rest of the fridge. And there's quite some factors that are to be considered. Outside temperature, temperature in the van, amount of stuff in the fridge, original temperature of stuff when you put it in the fridge, how many times and how long you open the fridge to get stuff out or put stuff in, etc.

I do monitor my fridge temperatures. 4 or 5 keep the temperature measured in the centre of the fridge in an acceptable range. Level 6 or Max freezes everything, except the Gin, even stuff against the front wall, as far from the heat exchanger coil as you can get. Coke cans explode.

 

[ThomasHJ]

Ok, these are helpful numbers to compare mine with. Because it's good to benchmark against them. So set at 4 (or 5) the temperatures measured in the middle of the fridge stay between the 4 and 6 degrees celcius? Or how do you define 'acceptable range'?

 

[Volkywagen]

Ok, these are helpful numbers to compare mine with. Because it's good to benchmark against them. So set at 4 (or 5) the temperatures measured in the middle of the fridge stay between the 4 and 6 degrees celcius? Or how do you define 'acceptable range'?

It all depends on the external temperature, how much stuff you have in there etc.
I parked with the sun on the side of the van last year for example and i had to have it on 6 all the time to keep things cool, when the sun went down i reduced it to 4 which was acceptable as on 6 it started to freeze up.

 

[ThomasHJ]

It all depends on the external temperature, how much stuff you have in there etc.
I parked with the sun on the side of the van last year for example and i had to have it on 6 all the time to keep things cool, when the sun went down i reduced it to 4 which was acceptable as on 6 it started to freeze up.

Sure, as said above, I often have stuff freeze in the fridge when I set it to 'max' also, but I'm not sure that really says all that much. Because that doesn't automatically mean the temperature in other parts of the fridge cant be too high at certain times. Just wondering if there's a situation possible where your stuff in the back freezes when temps are low enough in the back and still stay frozen when other food in the front is for example at 7 degrees celcius after opening the lid of the fridge a couple of times when its hot outside/inside the van.

 

[thehorse]

yes I would also prefer cooler than that at max setting.

Couple of questions

1. Were the items already chilled when you put them in the fridge ?
2. How long has the Cali fridge been running for once loaded ?

Most of the stuff was cold, apart from a 2l bottle of tap water. Went down to around 8-10degC after a while, but I’ve ordered a Bluetooth logger and have it booked into the garage on Monday just before the warranty expires just in case!

 

[AlisonF]

Just checkEd the fridge, ambient temp in van is 38degC, fairly full. Bottom is at 10degC basket at 12degC. Could really do with being 5 degrees cooler. Controller set to max.

I’d be interested to know
- do you have stuff in the fridge?
- if so, was it cooled before putting in the fridge?
- how long after setting on max did you check the temp?
- had the fridge been opened in the meantime?
All these things could have an impact whilst the fridge may still be functioning correctly.

As an aside, I regularly freeze raw dog in Kongs for the dogs dinner. I notice a lot of variation in the time it takes to freeze, for example,
- when I have recently put other items in the freezer,
- I put the Kongs in the same drawer,
- I open and close the freezer for other stuff...

Whilst comparing a home freezer to a Cali fridge may be questionable, the physics of heat capacitance and heat transfer are the same.
.