Replacing the ice box with dorm fridge help

[4Campers]

After reading the post of how to use an ice box, I got thinking about my planned project of replacing our ice box with a small dorm refrigerator. My plan is to pull the ice box, measure the opening, and buy a dorm fridge closest to that size even opening the hole slightly if needed to accommodate a bigger fridge. The fridge will be placed into position and leveled by attaching it to wood strips mounted to the floor. Molding strips will finish out the edges with a possible rubber floor/cabinet molding. My thought was to splice into the power cord and run one end to the access door where it can be pulled out and plugged in to cool off the fridge before heading out, the pup down in travel mode. The second plug would be inside to the receptacle.
Here's my questions;
1) Since it runs on 110 volt only, will it be necessary to cut a vent hole in the side of the pup? I realize that with the 3 way fridges that the gas flame would need venting. Has anyone here done this mod, and what was your experience?
2) Also, for those who use this method do you find the fridge cools down quick enough after setting up camp? Or - Do you set up and plug in the fridge before travelling to cool it down?
3) Is it safe to run the fridge while the camper is down?

[dthurk]

Our first Pup had an icebox.  We used a dorm fridge, but simply set it up on a counter and plugged it in.  It cooled down quickly once we set it up and had it running.  We would transport cold food in a cooler then move it to the 'fridge when we arrived.  We used the icebox as a pantry and increase pantry space by replacing the ice tray with a shelf of flooring.  Sounds like a nice mod you'd have in mind, but it may affect the resale of the camper, something to keep in mind.  You would lose any possibility of dry camping with it, a big advantage the 3 ways have over the dorm refrigerator.

If you do this, you would want to install venting in the outside wall, even if you have no flame.  The heat removed from the interior of the refrigerator is transferred out the back.  That heat has to go somewhere, otherwise you lose much of the efficiency of the refrigerator.  You may want to consider adding a small fan in the back compartment to help move that heat out.  If you're considering running the refrigerator from 2 possible power sources by splicing into the power cord, make sure you set up some kind of switch that will only allow you to use one source at a time.  It would be bad news to plug it into 2 power sources at the same time.  I don't see any problem with running it while popped down, but you would not be able to use it while traveling and likely would have no access to it with the top down.

[tlhdoc]

I have not done this mod.  If I were going to, I would cut a hole to vent the heat that the fridge will create.  I am not sure how you would run the fridge when traveling?  Your TV will provide DC power to the fridge, but not AC (unless you you a large converter).  Personally I would leave the ice box alone and leave the dorm fridge free standing.  Placing it on a counter top when camping.  If you placed it by the access door when you are popped down, you could plug it in before leaving home, then unplug it and load it with cold/frozen food.  It will keep the food cold long enough to get to most campgrounds (at least for me).  You could also leave the food in it when you are traveling home, and then unload it.  The ice box can be used for general storage.  One thing to consider.  The refrigerator will produce heat.  In the summer you may not want the heat in the camper.  If you are camping in an area free of problem animals, you could place it outside.  Good luck with your mod.

[waterdoctor]

Hi 4Campers - We have a Coleman 'Mesa' PUP and I got real tired of dealing with the 3way fridge that came with the PUP.  I had it serviced and even a rebuild before I found out about the limitations of these things.  So in an effort to get a fridge that would keep things cool enough for us, I did the exact mod you are considering.  I purchased a dorm fridge from Wally-world and only had to enlarge the hole about 3/4" for it to fit nicely.  I, too, screwed stringers to the floor and then attached the dorm unit to those to get it nice and level (done with the PUP leveled up) and simply plugged it into the 110 VAC receptacle behind the dorm unit.  The only disadvantage I see, as has been posted here, is that you have to have shore power or a generator to power the thing.  We are long time tenters, but seek more of the amenities of home and have only camped where we have shore power.  The rear of the hole for the fridge is already vented and I added a small 12vdc fan to help evacuate the heat to the outside.  Just remember, like your home refridgerator, there is quite a bit of heat produced through the heat exchanging process and you need to get it to the outside for the process to work well.  Like one of the previous posters stated, we, too, bring our cold stuff to the campsite iced down in ice chests then transfer selected items to the fridge once we're in camp.  The dorm fridge works very well for us.
I hope this helps you to make a more informed decision.

Steve

[4Campers]

Thanks for the input so far.
Sounds like the general consensus is to install a vent. Not a hard job, but one I was hoping to avoid. Adding a small fan is a great idea too.
We're not worried about the resale value of this pup, it's already 15 years old and looking to keep it at least another 10 years or until I'm too old to crank it up anymore. Counter space is limited already, so that's why we're looking to install the fridge. There's enough stuff to haul in and out already, so keeping the fridge portable is out of the question. As far as the dual plug, since the fridge will only be used when we're set up, and it's cools down quickly, it's seems silly to go through with this mod. We'll just continue as always and carry in the food in a cooler and transfer it to the fridge.
The best thing will be not having to buy bags and bags of ice. My cheap cooler holds better ice than that ice box. With a bag of ice at campgrounds now around $3 a bag, each weekend savings should be $9-12. What a good reason to camp more!!!!

[ScouterMom]

by not installing the fridge in a cabinet space, you don't have to vent it, and you also have the option of going for a slightly larger fridge.  We're big milk drinkers in our family, and a regular 'cube' fridge simply couldn't hold what we needed, even if we limited it to just milk and meat.

We use a 'dorm fridge' in our PUP, too - but what we did was to take out a 'closet' thingy that had to be raised and lowered each time the camper was opened, and put the fridge on the floor in the 'closets' spot. This leaves air space around it for the ventilation of the fridge.

Since our camper is a 1973, and has higher walls, I was able to get a slightly taller fridge, that fits just perfectly under the bunk slideouts (there are three sizes of dorm fridges, I found, and ours it the sometimes harder to find Medium height fridge- I found it at Menards)

this leaves the 'icebox' in place under my lift up galley - I had intended to tear it out, and put in a salvaged 3-way fridge I got from a friend, but it has come in handy as storage until i put in the 3-way.  Consider, too - that even if you don't put ice in it, it's insulation will still keep things relatively cool - as in keeping thing from getting melted in the heat (marshmellows and chocolate) or keep fruit from getting over-ripe or bread from getting moldy because of heat and humidity.

We try to camp with hookups, but don't always get those sites.  I've never 'boondocked' but would like to be able to - When I don't have power available, I just use coolers.  The 'iceboxes' in the two vintage PUPs I've owned aren't very effective coolers, so I've never actually used them as intended.

[ckpopup]

Thanks for the input so far.
Sounds like the general consensus is to install a vent. Not a hard job, but one I was hoping to avoid. Adding a small fan is a great idea too.

I ran into the venting problem also with my icemaker install.... I added a 12V fan with a switch. I run the fan when the icemaker is running and it keeps it well ventilated in the tight area....

Here's a few pics maybe for some ideas...

[mike4947]

Yes it will need venting. You have two options that don't put the heat back into the living area.
Leave an opening under the fridge where it can draw air in from the front and add your standard upper fridge vent to the back of the compartment, or just use the two vent system that the three way fridges use.
If your camper was a couple of years newer when you pulled the ice box out you would find an outlet they would have used for a fridge. Newer years had it as part of the wiring on all models with or without fridges.
If it's not there we'd add one in the back connecting it to the 15 amp C/B on the converter and plug in the dorm fridge there.
Using the two vent system allows you to open the lower vent and use an extension cord to cool the fridge rather than pull out the shore power cord.

[4Campers]

ckpopup-
That's a great job on your mod. I like how you added the 12 V fan and switch for power. Do you remember where you purchased the fan? What does the outside vent look like? I have seen a few fridge vents in some RV catalogs, but they are expensive. All of the vents I've seen so far are really designed for a larger 3 way fridge.
I'm hoping to get this mod done by early May when we head out for our first weekend.

[ckpopup]

ckpopup-
That's a great job on your mod. I like how you added the 12 V fan and switch for power. Do you remember where you purchased the fan? What does the outside vent look like? I have seen a few fridge vents in some RV catalogs, but they are expensive. All of the vents I've seen so far are really designed for a larger 3 way fridge.
I'm hoping to get this mod done by early May when we head out for our first weekend.

I obtained the fan at my workplace. I work on RF transmitters, so this is just a fan out of one of our radios. The fan is vented into the open area of the ABS tail panel of my popup, where the tailights and wiring are.....