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Galley Ventilation

Randy

Randy

Ranger
Donating Member
It would be nice to have ventilation in the galley for towing with the Dometic plugged in. Perhaps a fan on each side covered on the outside with "hockey puck" metal covers? I've seen someone fabricate this on a Little Guy. Venting Galley

Randy
 
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I like the idea of venting the galley, but those exterior cowbells are the ugliest things I've ever seen. I'd never buy a teardrop with those on the exterior. (Maybe your hockey puck covers would be acceptable, though.)

I'd be curious how much little vents like that help to keep the galley cooler. I'm guessing you'd need a fan.

-Al
 
I'm not by any stretch of the imagination a technical / "how to vent" person. But I'm wondering if 'keep it simple' as a first attempt might make sense here. Instead of punching holes in stuff... what about just a fan (or fans) strategically placed to circulate the air? It doesn't have to vent outside as long as the air is moving, right? (or am I showing my ignorance of 'venting 101' basics?)
 
A fan going with no vent would just add more heat.
I've thought about this too but I can't say I've come up with any easy answers. The space really does need to be vented, especially with a fridge in there but I think it would have to be designed in from the start. You would also need to be concerned about filling up the galley with dust on the road. I've propped the door open a little overnight when I've had the Dometic in there. It improves the efficiency of the fridge a lot and still makes it difficult for critters to get in. Bears are another matter though.

I bought a second deep cycle battery to run the fridge. It worked nicely in Yosemite and let me keep the Dometic in the bear box and still running.
 
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Wait, are you not supposed to travel with your food in the fridge, and the fridge plugged in? Ruh, roe! Can you not do it at all? or can you do it for short distances? Do people not pack up their food for going n the road?
 
My opinion...I do so all the time...fridge in the galley with food while traveling. But... I’m in the upper Midwest, nothing like crazy temps which can happen in the southwest
 
Food in the fridge, and the fridge plugged into a 12V outlet in the back of the tow vehicle. The cooler is pack with stuff that might include frozen water bottles and other liquids like fruit juice for breakfast, soda, beer, flavored coffee creamer (Baileys), eggs in carrier. Thing that are not effected if they get a little wet. Additional ice in plastic bags. Cooler in Raindrop and fridge in tow vehicle. This has worked out well for use on many a multi day trip including long hauls. Each day we check the ice in the cooler, drain as necessary, cooler has one of the cozies which extends the ice. Been using thing this way for years.
 
The problem with circulating a in a closed environment ,while generating heat is it will never get cooler. we dealt with the fridge faulting when down on the south rim of the grand canyon by moving it to the tow vehicle. Our first tow vehicle was a Toyota Highlander Hybrid which had the 12V at the back by the hatch which was being Air Conditioned. Our second two vehicle is a Toyota Tacoma with a cap over the bed which is not air conditioned, we open the rear most windows to the outside to exchange air and had (3) 12V resepticals added to power the fridge. Been down south as far as Georgia in the summer with the truck haven't had a problem yet. Making A closed system larger is not a solution. You really need to exhaust your heated air or it will fault.
 
My idea would be consistent with your cap over bed. There are windows in the CI cabin, and I've never had an issue with keeping one or both slightly opened while underway unless it's raining, in which case it would be cooler. I prefer a larger fridge anyway, so I keep it in the back of my 4Runner. It's been enclosed for multiple days without the vehicle being used an never had any issues, and it's a 60L SnoMaster.
 
Keeping the fridge in the closed galley on a hot day will suck the TD battery down too quickly if it's a warm sunny day.

Our current solution:
When driving: fridge is in Tow Vehicle

When in camp and using fridge, fridge is on side table
When in camp sleeping: fridge is in TD, in galley, closed (or on side table)
When the fridge is in the camp and we are not in the camp, the fridge goes onto the bed in the cabin (on top of piece of plywood)

I don't yet have a battery in the TV that can run the fridge when the vehicle is off.

-Al
 
I think the best solution is an auxiliary battery in the tow vehicle to run the fridge. Solves so many problems at once: ventilation, takes the pressure off the camper battery, eliminates need to move the fridge onto the side table and into the galley at night, frees up the side table and lessens bear concerns. Rotus provided step by step instructions and a couple of other installs of his setup are outlined in this thread including my own.

Auxiliary Battery For Refrigerator
 
I concur with Alcat's and Randy's comments above, and perform both of their routines, most of the time. The only time I have the fridge plugged in, in the galley, is when it's 60F or below, and the trailer isn't parked or pulled in the sun, but when you still need refrigeration. The fridge comes on so infrequently, and the temp differential between the exhaust and the ambient temps effectively disperses the heat, even in the enclosed space. Under these circumstances I make sure there's nothing else in the galley and there's as much space for the air to move around as I can give it. No faults or excessive trapped heat yet.
 
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