12v to 240v Fridge

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maryjmcgeough

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Hi There

Can anyone help me please. I have a 12v fridge and I want to convert it to 240v as I have electric mains at my marina. I have tried several sites and no-one has come up with a solution. Can anyone suggest a converter or something for this.
I have photos of the back of the fridge that I can send to someone if they feel they can help me out.

I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Thanking you
Mary
 
Do you not have batteries and a battery charger aboard? If you have then no need to convert, if you dont, a cheap battery charger will do the job for you, or go to Maplins and get a 12volt power supply, also cheapish. Although a cheap battery charger from halfords/Ebay would be my choice.
 
12V to 240V Electric Mains Fridge

Hi There

Thank you for your reply. Yes I do have a battery and a charger on board but the fridge drains the battery after approx 1.5 hours so that is why I want to change it over to 240volts electric.

Any advise would be very much appreciated or suggested products.

Regards
Mary
 
A cheap computer power supply could provide the power you need.
To improve on things, connect the mains power via a power-sensing relay, which can automatically change between 12v and 240v,depending on what is available. These are available commercially (around £35 inc power supply, if I remember correctly), or can easily be home-built, if you are handy with a soldering iron.
Nikki
 
maryjmcgeough said:
Hi There

Thank you for your reply. Yes I do have a battery and a charger on board but the fridge drains the battery after approx 1.5 hours so that is why I want to change it over to 240volts electric.

Any advise would be very much appreciated or suggested products.

Regards
Mary
Click to expand...

Sorry...............but just leave the charger connected to the batteries and run the fridge, it wont flatten the batteries then. Also if you have a fully charged battery and the fridge flattens it in 1.5 hours, your battery is duff.
Can you tell me what battery and charger you have, I may be able to help further.
 
ccscott49 said:
Sorry...............but just leave the charger connected to the batteries and run the fridge, it wont flatten the batteries then. Also if you have a fully charged battery and the fridge flattens it in 1.5 hours, your battery is duff.
Click to expand...
Agreed. Plus, the fridge will use a lot more juice when it's first turned on, and power consumption will eventually fall to virtually nothing. It would significantly lower start-up power consumption if you were to fill the empty space in the fridge with scrunched up newspaper.
 
Hi CCScott

Thanks for your reply. The details of my battery are as follows
Leisure 5D6110L
Voltage 12V

The battery Charger is a 5 Amp and 12 Volt.

The details I have of my fridge are as follows
Lec
Inlander Refrigeration England
Model No R250W
Serial No 0145965
Voltage 12VDC
Charge 45 Grams R4091A

On the back of the fridge the details are as follows
Model No R/R 290W
Serial No 5D004907
12VDC
Fuse 15A
102N3030
TC CDF
BD2.5
12V-DC
Compressor, black, 3012, Made in Germany

I will try to add photos of the back of the fridge.

Thanking you for your help.
Regards
Mary
 
maryjmcgeough said:
Hi CCScott

Thanks for your reply. The details of my battery are as follows
Leisure 5D6110L
Voltage 12V

The battery Charger is a 5 Amp and 12 Volt.

The details I have of my fridge are as follows
Lec
Inlander Refrigeration England
Model No R250W
Serial No 0145965
Voltage 12VDC
Charge 45 Grams R4091A

On the back of the fridge the details are as follows
Model No R/R 290W
Serial No 5D004907
12VDC
Fuse 15A
102N3030
TC CDF
BD2.5
12V-DC
Compressor, black, 3012, Made in Germany

I will try to add photos of the back of the fridge.

Thanking you for your help.
Regards
Mary
Click to expand...

OK no worries, your charger, when connected, should keep up with the fridge without problems, when the fridge kicks in it will draw maybe 10 amps, for a short time, after which it will drop to probably less than 5 amps, then cycle on and off during the day/night, it should not flatten your 110ah battery. To be honest I would want a 10 amp battery charger for your 110ah domestic battery. If you are going to buy one, get a "smart" charger, which you can leave connected all the time you are in the marina and it will keep your battery topped up, without damage.
Most boat fridges are already 12v DC and 230v AC, but I dont know the unit you have and dont know the wiring. So it may be worth getting somebody to check it out, because I think the black box in your pictures, is an inverter, especially for the fridge.

I reckon you will have no worries, with a smart charger and as long as your battery is in reasonable condition.
 
Hi CCScott

Thank you for getting back to me. I will try tomorrow turning on the fridge with it connected to the battery and also with the charger plugged into the mains and see how it goes.

As regards the black compressor you reckon this is an inverter, what would that be used for can I ask you ? Do you think this was added onto the fridge from when it was originally bought ?

Could this be used to hook it up to 240v mains ?

Thank you once again for all your help and information.

Mary
 
maryjmcgeough said:
Hi CCScott

Thank you for getting back to me. I will try tomorrow turning on the fridge with it connected to the battery and also with the charger plugged into the mains and see how it goes.

As regards the black compressor you reckon this is an inverter, what would that be used for can I ask you ? Do you think this was added onto the fridge from when it was originally bought ?

Could this be used to hook it up to 240v mains ?

Thank you once again for all your help and information.

Mary
Click to expand...

Mary,
its possible the unit is 230v AC, and the black box, not the compressor, is an iunverter, especially for the fridge, to run the 230 v AC compressor from 12 volts DC. But I'm not sure, so thats why I suggested getting somebody local to have a look at it. But dont worry about any of that, if the fridge runs fine on battery and charger. BUT if the battery charger is not a 3 or 4 stage smart charger, you cannot leave it connected, it's just for charging the battery, then switching off.

Sorry, wish I was closer, but I think you need somebody who knows these systems to have a look for you and advise, difficult to do from miles away.
 
maryjmcgeough said:
Hi There

Can anyone help me please. I have a 12v fridge and I want to convert it to 240v as I have electric mains at my marina. I have tried several sites and no-one has come up with a solution. Can anyone suggest a converter or something for this.
I have photos of the back of the fridge that I can send to someone if they feel they can help me out.

I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Thanking you
Mary
Click to expand...

I will throw in my two pennth - we have a Waeco Coolmatic fridge with a danfoss compressor. This is powered by a wee box on top of the fridge which is basically an inverter. One connection goes to fridge, one to the domestic battery bank and the third one to the mains. The first two are fused and we tend to leave the fuse from the battery bank out when on shore power.

Hope that helps.
 
Hi All,

Thank you for your help. What is a 3 or 4 smart charger ? Is this a battery charger that you connect to a battery and it charges the battery and then turns off. While power is being taken from the battery does the charger then kick in and keep charging the battery so it won't go flat ?

I'm not very knowledgeable re batteries and chargers ?

So you also think that the black box might be useful for connecting up to the mains ? I will try and get someone to look at this and maybe get myself linked up to the 240v mains here on the marina and not use the battery at all for the fridge. I will only use the battery to pump the water into the sink and also the lights at night.

Thank you once again
Mary
 
I have a similar setup. The black box is NOT a mains inverter. It is a special type of controller for the danfoss compressor which includes a inverter for the compressor only.
 
Hi Rodger

Thank you for your email. Can you let me know if you are able to connect your fridge to the 240V electric supply ? What kind of equipment do I need to do this ?

Regards
Mary
 
Hi You have here a Danfoss BD 2.5 compressor and they are extremely obsolete now they have not been made for at least 10 years so it is unlikely that you will find the 240V converter that they used to build for them( it will not work directly with 240V itself). The problem is that it also will not work with any new converters for danfoss compressors as they draw almost half the current of yours. If you can find a transformer/ rectifier that will supply 15A with no voltage drop you will be OK or better still use your charger or upgrade it so it will cope with your battery and other usage and the fridge too.
 
12V converter from 240V

I just had a quick look on Ebay and found this that would be suitable to run it and I have asked them if the "Switching" part of it would be suitable to use to allow connection to 240V and 12VDC simultaneously then you would not have to switch it iver yourself. ie. If mains is available it will use that if not it will use battery( like a U.P.S.) I will let you know what they say. If it does not work like that I can soon make up aa relay diagram to do that for you if necessary. otherwise if you wish to run on 240V all the time then get one of these and wire it up and you will have your fridge directly from 240V.
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Silver-Tone-DC-12V-15A-Output-Switching-Power-Supply-/400222502329?pt=UK_BOI_Electrical_Test_Measurement_Equipment_ET&hash=item5d2f1ebdb9
 
It seems its now obvious you cannot run your fridge from 230v witout some more equipment. However a 10-15amp smart charger would do the job for you and be better for your battery. Thats the way I would go, have a look on Ebay, lots of them on there. Yes, by the way a smart charger will balance your load (fridge, lights etc) and charge your battery and can be left connected.
Remember your charger might be the smart type already, best get someone to check it for you.
 
Hi CCScott

I did my experiment yesterday with the charger plugged in all the time and the fridge also turned on. It lasted for about 4 hours and then it started making noise and the light on the outside started flickering. I think the battery just was not able to cope with the fridge being on for that long. The fridge was cold and the ice box was also working.

I got onto the people suggested from the previous thread and they reckon the product suggested would work. Can you have a look at this on ebay and give me your opinion.

Thanks again
Mary
 
I seriously think your battery is shot, even at the maximum current your fridge would draw, it cannot be more than 15 amps, (as the reccomended fuse is that size) your battery should last at lot longer than 4 hours, without a charger attached, about 8 hours at least, for a fully charged battery and a fridge should not run all the time anyway. You need to get somebody in to test your battery and charger, both are just not putting out what they should. The fridge also needs looking at.
I have suspected your battery since the first post. A 5 amp charger is not really man enough for your usage, its basically a occasional use charger, to keep your battery topped up. What engine do you have? What alternator? This problem is not easily solved from a distance, I still say get somebody local to look at it.

You do not need a power supply, its of limited use, mainly for use at home, (as suggested by others) you need a good battery (first) and a good marine 3 stage charger at least 15 amps. Have a look at sterling products, which are made for the job. Even with a duff battery a 15 amp charger would run your boat.
 
Last edited:
Hi CCScott

My battery is only a few months old. I bought it back in April. I will ask one of the guys here on the Marina and show him all the posts on the forum and see what he comes up with.

Any ideas on that item I asked you about on Ebay ? Do you think it might be suitable for me to attach to the fridge and plug it into the mains ?

Sorry to be a bother with all my questions, but I am determined to get this fridge working properly.

Mary
 
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