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Diversion loads for freezer possible?

kanelr

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Mar 1, 2022
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Hi Just saw a video "here" about simply plugging in a chest freezer and, using an secondary thermostat, running it at "idle" to be a sort of storage refrigerator. Has anyone done this? Am retiring a C40 and want to set up as a diversion load.
 
I haven’t done this but have seen descriptions. Seems to work well. Very efficient. Not sure what a c40 is.
 
I suppose I do that. chest fridge only operates when battery full. After 5 minutes it checks to see if the battery is still over 13.8V and shuts off if it isn't. And it only operates during the day and stores cold in liquids for night.
 
Not a lot of amperage available on those Load terminals historically. Even if you had 10a that's only 120w of power to feed your freezer. Or are you thinking of using it just to power a 120v contactor/thermostat assembly?
 
Not a lot of amperage available on those Load terminals historically. Even if you had 10a that's only 120w of power to feed your freezer. Or are you thinking of using it just to power a 120v contactor/thermostat assembly?
you mean the C40 charge controller terminals? (who are you "quoting", op?)
 
Nevermind, my internet was timing out trying to google Trace C40 and I was thinking it was a 40a PWM SCC that you were trying to use the Load ports on.

My bad... stupid satellite ship interwebs...
 
OK so this is how it would work
Nevermind, my internet was timing out trying to google Trace C40 and I was thinking it was a 40a PWM SCC that you were trying to use the Load ports on.

My bad... stupid satellite ship interwebs...
I think #6 wire fits and that will be ok OK so this is how it would work. If this works it may help a lot of us.
The low wattage energy efficient chest freezer gets set to full on, no internal thermostat needed.
An inexpensive temperature probe and switch, probably from the wine or cheesemaking industry gets placed into the freezer compartment. it's a probe an inch long on a thin wire which won't cause a door leak when dropped in.
IT gets set to the refrigerator temp range, and the freezer plugs into the device, which is plugged into the power outlet..
Now you have a refrigerator that will only run for short cycles. (gee I hope so)
You plug this into an AC circuit from the inverter, controlled by a relay that only kicks on above whatever "Houston, we have surplus battery" state you prefer. ( you will have to make a relay switch device),
When that charge state is reached the fridge/new thermostat assembly gets power and kicks on. (The new thermostat was already looking for power but didn't get it until the inverter relay allowed it.
Keep it in the cooler basement, and because it's a chest style, the cold air stays in when you lift the lid. I suppose to save more energy you can have a chart on the wall showing what food is where in the chest so the lid can be closed asap......?
now to re find the link for the thermostat
 
I use a $4 micro to run mine deciding on temperature, preventing hot starts, minimum run time, battery voltage, auto reset after 20 minutes in case something goes wrong and extended running time. Refrigerators are real battery killers. Timers and logic prevent anything from ever going wrong. I don't have a worry if I go away for a week. Just hoping everything goes right with minimum control is not a strategy.
 
Any detail on the $4 micro would be appreciated. I’m just learning this stuff.
 
I put a solidstate relay in a deep electrical box and on top of the relay, mounted a normal 120v outlet. I used one of these boards to control the solidstate relay. You can get longer temp probe leads if needed. I ran if for a few days to see if I could use an old freezer to "hang meat", basically chill to just above freezing and hold it there. The test worked well.
 
The arduino NANO is cheap and there is a lot that average people can do with it without really learning programming. Start with their simple boiler plate programs and add in timer functions and voltage readings. $4 isn't a lot to spend on learning something new.
 
The arduino NANO is cheap and there is a lot that average people can do with it without really learning programming. Start with their simple boiler plate programs and add in timer functions and voltage readings. $4 isn't a lot to spend on learning something new.
I did a lot of single chip computer work 15+ years ago and forgot half of what I knew. I have been thinking about getting back to some level with the Arduino approach. I don't want to hijack this thread but if you have some links to some starter information, it would be appreciated.
 
I did a lot of single chip computer work 15+ years ago and forgot half of what I knew. I have been thinking about getting back to some level with the Arduino approach. I don't want to hijack this thread but if you have some links to some starter information, it would be appreciated.
IT'S MY THREAD, so please feel free to hijack for a while as we can all benefit. The more the merrier!!
 
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