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Freezer to fridge guys, need a recommendation please!

I used a Johnson Control A19BAC-3C thermostat in my old freezer conversion. Or use their remote bulb version. Just wire in place of existing thermostat. It Has a differential setting also to help with freeze ups.
 
Rednecktek said:
So I had this BRILLIANT thought that if I got a chest freezer and just set the thermostat to 1 that it would hover right around the freezing mark....

Yeah, not so much... BUT having seen videos of people doing it I know there is some sort of magic relay/thermostat/probe/thingymabober out there that will go between the freezer's compressor/thermostat system and the wall to have it kick on and off at fridge temperatures.

Unfortunately I don't know the terminology involved to even start looking for that magic thermostat/contactor box.

I'm good keeping it all 110v so no inverters or low/high voltage combinations or anything, I just don't know what I'm looking for or what makes one better or worse?

Someone on here knows what I'm talking about, right? Wanna point a guy in the right direction?

Some maybe important details: It draws between 62-74 watts and only gets used 2 weeks a year at the family camping trip. It's a 7cf Magic Chef that I got for $175 new and I really don't want to spend $5000 on a relay for such a cheap freezer.
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I wrote about this earlier today!
link
 
E. Cho said:
Not exactly pertinent to this thread but adding this info below for those searching for off grid options in the future, that might come across this thread.

Convertible Danby Chest Freezer / Fridge info at the Danby Canada website. I saw a thread today that shows it on sale inside some Costco Canada stores for $249.99 CDN ($186 USD). On the Costco Canada website it shows it at $399.99 CDN. The Energy Star card shows it using 225 KWhr/year but doesn't mention if used as a Freezer or Fridge. I'd expect it to be as a Freezer, as my similar size and rated Danby freezer as a fridge uses less than half the energy of the same freezer set up, so 125 KWhr/year. Although there are variables to this rating, as in how often the lid is open and closed and the ambient room temperature, so the real world use may use more energy or less energy.

Of course there is only the manual defrost option and so use as a fridge, in humid environments, could cause considerable interior condensation that would require either more frequent sponging to remove condensation build up. In my Inkbird controlled conversion, I get very little condensation but I also don't often open and close the converted freezer to chest fridge that often each day.

The advantage with this convertible option is that with a capable inverter, the thermostat does not require power until the temperature control requires it, unlike the Inkbird Digital Thermostat option, which always needs power, however that electricity draw is minor. Also, this thermostat on a freezer will turn on with my old Xantrex SW 4 KW inverter in standby (Search) mode, whereas the Inkbird digital thermometer will not.

It is also a lower cost option than a DC chest freezer fridge and obviously a simpler control than converting an AC Freezer to a Fridge.

I have not seen any info whether the compressor is different or the technology is different other than a different thermostat being used. This to me is a nice off grid small use application option at a pretty low price and FWIW, a 5 year warranty.
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I can confirm that these Danby freezers are indeed cheaper to buy in-store than online.

Costco actually had a similar Danby freezer (almost the exact same) without the fridge temperature settings, and we picked up two of those and love them. In a bit we realized we needed just a bit more space, so went back and picked up one more, and at that point they had switched to these newer ones with the fridge option and we didn't even notice until I set it up.

So now I have one of these and two freezer-only models that live in the woodshed (they are garage-friendly, so can handle moderate temps, i think).
They never seem to draw much, even when it is warm out. They are simple but very appealing, practical units. We love that we could use the one freezer in fridge mode for when we have guests that want to have their own fridge or during harvest season for holding fresh veggies that we haven't canned/stored yet.

I can't imagine a thermostat/contactor combo being so cheap that it isn't easier just to get a unit like this that offers it built-in.
 
Haxx said:
I can't imagine a thermostat/contactor combo being so cheap that it isn't easier just to get a unit like this that offers it built-in.
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Well my MagicChef 7cu was $169 and the contriller was $35 so still much cheaper than the Danby + Costco membership.
 
featherlite said:
I use one of these Ink Birds to control my freezer for use as a refrigerator when I have shore power. I am very happy with it.

inkbird.com

Inkbird Digital Temperature Controller Dual Stage Thermostat ITC-308

Inkbird ITC-308 is an easy-to-use dual relay output temperature controller that supports temperature calibration. Heating and cooling equipment can be set up at the same time or separately, and it has compressor delay protection. The controller has multiple alarm functions to ensure safe operation.
inkbird.com inkbird.com

308_700x700.png
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I have 4 of those, they're awesome.
 
How has this been working for you @Rednecktek?

I'm picking up $50 chest freezer off of Facebook Marketplace. Something this week to convert into a fridge up at our cabin.

I'm just debating on getting one of these Inkbird ones or the more expensive mechanical thermostats.
 
Used an 8cuft simple chest freezer with an aftermarket controller for three years at 45degF for beer kegs. Last five it's been at 55 for wine. It's a good idea to put a small fan in there pointing up/down to break stratification.
 
I've run a fan for years in my chest fridge and it just doesn't work as well as I'd like. Our replacement freezer has coils on the bottom and the lower section freezes, unlike the previous one which had them on top. Going to install a L shaped section of septic drain field pipe with extra holes to get the upper air lower.
 
efficientPV said:
I've run a fan for years in my chest fridge and it just doesn't work as well as I'd like. Our replacement freezer has coils on the bottom and the lower section freezes, unlike the previous one which had them on top. Going to install a L shaped section of septic drain field pipe with extra holes to get the upper air lower.
Click to expand...
What doesn't work? It should take very little movement to keep the air even temp.
 
It would be nice if everyone would just identify where they are.

I have a very low confidence in your number. It is very difficult to get that close of a number in t real world. I have an environmental oven for testing and it can't achieve that. If you had read closely, I clearly stated that this freezer had the coils on the bottom. Prior freezer had the coils on the top and the differential was much better. I can only assume placing coils on the bottom was for some cost savings and newer freezers may end up that way. I have two temperature monitors, three if the freezer control is included. Right now at rest the bottom is 20.5F and the top is 40.5F. Running there is an extra 5 degree differential added. I do have a lot of food packed in which inhibits air circulation. In some ways it is nice. A bag of ice for drinks does not melt before it is used up and meats stay colder . Drink cans which fall low can bulge and explode. Ice that forms from condensation stays. I'd like to reduce the differential to about 9 degrees F. A tube arrangement might do that, at least for one side. Freezers with coils on the bottom should be avoided.

This is a video of the efforts to improve a refrigerator with an inkbird and a fan. Everything ended up worse.

This video covers design and efficiency and has some interesting comments about 20 minutes in
 
I did read that. I just asked what isn't working for you, and said mine is a degree delta top to bottom. Just because my system is performing better doesn't make either one of us an idiot.

It's good that you don't have confidence in my number. This is the internet, and I could have just made it up without verifying. Or verified, and still made it up.
 
We have a propane fridge freezer & we're looking to go down this route & I found this . 167Kwh a year temp range is -9.4 to 8.6 °F . It's also suitable for garage or outbuilding use, something that's important for us.
 
For another data point…I have been using a 5 cu ft Koolatron chest freezer with inkbird controller to use the unit as a refrigerator. Set up has been working flawlessly for over 4 years now. Recently did another kill a watt test to see what is used over 24 hr period in new location with high summer temps. Start up uses 650 watts for less than a second, then settles to 70 watts. Consumes 117 watts over night, and another 250 during the 12 hr daytime period for a total of 370 watts per 24 hrs. This unit is inside a RV that is seeing over 100 degree inside temperatures for at least 9 hrs of the day. I am using a 1k watt pure sine inverter also purchased off Amazon. Inverter has 6 watt idle draw, and is on 24/7.
2x200 watt 12v panels with 2x200ah lifepo4 batteries. Recently upgraded my cheap Renogy 40amp PWM controller to a Victron 100/30 and am very happy with the performance of everything.
 
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azjeff said:
For another data point…I have been using a 5 cu ft Koolatron chest freezer with inkbird controller to use the unit as a refrigerator. Set up has been working flawlessly for over 4 years now. Recently did another kill a watt test to see what is used over 24 hr period in new location with high summer temps. Start up uses 650 watts for less than a second, then settles to 70 watts. Consumes 117 watts over night, and another 250 during the 12 hr daytime period for a total of 370 watts per 24 hrs. This unit is inside a RV that is seeing over 100 degree inside temperatures for at least 9 hrs of the day. I am using a 1k watt pure sine inverter also purchased off Amazon. Inverter has 6 watt idle draw, and is on 24/7.
2x200 watt 12v panels with 2x200ah lifepo4 batteries. Recently upgraded my cheap Renogy 40amp PWM controller to a Victron 100/30 and am very happy with the performance of everything.
Click to expand...
that setup is giving me some food for thought.......Im considering a 24V system to power a chest freezer as fridge & another chest freezer.Im not sure if a 12V system could run that, along with our other (tiny) loads ?
 
My experience with a freezer to fridge project. I'm still using it.

diysolarforum.com

For Camping

I wanted a small power system for camping, so I used a lot of information gleaned from Will's YouTube vids to put together a system. My main objective was to provide enough power to run a fridge and keep it compact. The Solar Charger: As I was walking thru BJs, I spotted a tiered toolbox that...
diysolarforum.com diysolarforum.com
 
Rider said:
My experience with a freezer to fridge project. I'm still using it.
Click to expand...
So, almost 5 years?

Any issues getting the internal temps to be right where you want it?

I'm running into the same problem that some people above have been having, with the bottom of the freezer getting significantly colder.
For now I just have gallon jugs of water lining the bottom, and I'm okay with them completely freezing.
 
A neighbor is a doctor and he gets lots of medicines shipped to him with these plastic rectangular and flat liquid filled freeze packs. I have filled the bottom side walls of my freezer with them. I used to have a freezer with coils on the top which maintained temperatures pretty well with a small fan. Anyone with the idea of a fridge conversion should force the seller to plug in the unit to check where the coils are. Absolutely avoid any with coils on the bottom regardless of price. It is a very hard situation to correct.
 
efficientPV said:
Freezers with coils on the bottom should be avoided.
Click to expand...
FWIW, stand-offs from the bottom (wire racks, bar mats, whatever avoids direct conduction and provides an air gap) make it perfectly viable to circulate air. The refrigerant is around 0°F IIRC, so of course the coil will be much colder when the compressor runs, but the fan will improve that.

Condensation is a bigger problem though.
 
I figure having contents pressed against walls is to be avoided (like bags of frozen food). Round containers would be OK.
Heat is transferred from contents to air and chilled by cooling coils, but contact with walls means conducted thermal path to outside (or even to hot coils of some freezers.) At that point you've got a resistor divider, with thermal energy conducted between warm exterior and frozen cooling coils, your food half way between at an intermediate temperature. Letting air circulate around outside of food containers means they can all be uniform low temperature.
 
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