Sea Freeze custom marine refrigerator

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Sea Freeze custom marine refrigerator

September 05, 2014, 03:02:02 pm

As promised, here are the photos of my new refrigerator. It was a custom-built Sea Freeze marine unit, built to drop-in fit where the Dometic was removed. It has more capacity, and used two 12-volt DC compressors, one for the refrigerator and one for the freezer, with separate thermostats. I have only had it for a day, so my limited report is that it cools down very quickly and is quiet. It was about the same cost (to my insurance company, the old refrigerator caught fire) as a residential counter-depth unit with cabinet mods, but I didn't want to lose the cabinet and drawers under the refrigerator. And I can live without an ice maker and the need to run an inverter to power the refrigerator. I can also live without another refrigerator fire.

I have attached the build sheet and some photos. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions. The installation and woodwork (door panels and trim) were performed by Temecula Valley RV Service in Murietta, Ca.

Re: Sea Freeze custom marine refrigerator

Reply #1 – September 05, 2014, 05:39:56 pm

Very interesting! Certainly appears to be a reasonable solution. Please provide additional reports as you gain more experience with it.

Re: Sea Freeze custom marine refrigerator

Reply #2 – September 05, 2014, 07:27:48 pm

@Tom That looks great. I'm going to have to give it some thought when it comes time to change out my fridge.

see ya
ken

Re: Sea Freeze custom marine refrigerator

Reply #3 – September 05, 2014, 07:33:59 pm

Tom, is there any type of warranty for the refrigerator?

Richard B

Re: Sea Freeze custom marine refrigerator

Reply #4 – September 05, 2014, 08:31:19 pm

Tom - Looks great. What Dometic model did the Sea Freeze replace?

Looking down the road to replace our rare NDR-1402 (zigzag doors) I found out RV Cooling Unit (Amish) do not make a cooling unit replacement for it. To compound matters further all the intellitec lighting circuitry for our coach is under the fridge and I'm not going to have that relocated. So far my searching has not turned up an equivalent sized residential fridge given the limited height of 64". So, a custom built Sea Freeze looks very interesting and your specs show about the same fridge/freezer capacity as my NDR-1402. Seems like a great solution for us. Please report back on how it performs.

Re: Sea Freeze custom marine refrigerator

Reply #5 – September 05, 2014, 08:45:35 pm

The Dometic that caught fire was a ndr1492.

Honestly, I didn't look into the warranty. I had more immediate concerns at the time. I expect the two compressor driven Dan Foss refrigeration units to be reliable for a very long time. The cabinet is quite sturdy where it matters.

Re: Sea Freeze custom marine refrigerator

Reply #6 – September 05, 2014, 10:04:00 pm

Hi Tom,
Real nice install. Looks very nice. Keep us informed as to it's performance.
Raymond

Re: Sea Freeze custom marine refrigerator

Reply #7 – September 05, 2014, 10:24:54 pm

Dan Foss compressors are the gold standard for this technology.

Keep in mind this technology is used mostly in boats, where reliability is a big concern.

Ours has been clicking along, hour after hour ...

best, paul

Quote from: rbark – September 05, 2014, 07:33:59 pm

Tom, is there any type of warranty for the refrigerator?

Richard B

Re: Sea Freeze custom marine refrigerator

Reply #8 – September 05, 2014, 10:49:39 pm

very nice! a great alternative to residential.

Re: Sea Freeze custom marine refrigerator

Reply #9 – September 05, 2014, 11:31:38 pm

Quote from: Tom Lang – September 05, 2014, 08:45:35 pm

The Dometic that caught fire was a ndr1492.

Honestly, I didn't look into the warranty. I had more immediate concerns at the time. I expect the two compressor driven Dan Foss refrigeration units to be reliable for a very long time. The cabinet is quite sturdy where it matters.

Does sea freeze make frostless?

Re: Sea Freeze custom marine refrigerator

Reply #10 – September 06, 2014, 03:27:26 am

Quote from: Caflashbob – September 05, 2014, 11:31:38 pm

Does sea freeze make frostless?

Was not an option. I guess you could add an electric heating element to the freezer and a timer. All they do in residential refrigerators is either that or turn the refrigeration unit into a heat pump on some timed interval.

Personally, I'd rather keep it as is. Just like in the deep freezers, just freeze, no unfreeze.

Re: Sea Freeze custom marine refrigerator

Reply #11 – September 06, 2014, 10:11:48 am

I just turn mine off for the night to defrost. And empty the container the ice melted into.

Saves DC, too.

Re: Sea Freeze custom marine refrigerator

Reply #12 – September 06, 2014, 11:11:49 am

That looks like the ideal solution to me. Propane risk is gone. Almost certainly lower BTUs for operation (however they're generated). Fits. Works. And yours was covered by insurance.

What's not to like?

I'm not sure which way we'll go... right now I am considering buying that ACL protection device just to cover the bases until we make the switch. Like so many others, finding something that will fit the space and retain storage areas that we really cannot do without is a major issue.

We had a compressor refrigeration on Kibitka our 32' Westsail cruising sailboat for most of the 5 years we cruised on it and it kept the food cool and made enough ice for one "sundowner" for each of us in the evening. All on twp 33-watt solar panels I bought in 1981 and simply moved around on deck to face the sun. Later on I added wind power with a propellor I carved on the beach in La Paz, Baja.

So, at least in my experience, DC powered compressors is the best way to go. Sweet install!

Craig

Re: Sea Freeze custom marine refrigerator

Reply #13 – September 06, 2014, 01:30:27 pm

And all the more importantly, Lynne loves it. Including the latching handles that look like they came out of a 1950's Phlilco. Those doors aren't flying anywhere.

Re: Sea Freeze custom marine refrigerator

Reply #14 – September 06, 2014, 09:00:23 pm

Tom,

What was the total cost for the system you specified?

Thread Hijack in process...

Reply #15 – September 09, 2014, 03:13:01 pm

OK Maybe a hijack but it feels related/appropriate.

The Sea Freeze unit shown in this thread use a pair of the Danfoss 12V compressors and some sort of condenser arrangement not clear to me in the pictures...

Ignoring costs for a moment why couldn't a person follow this exact arrangement using the existing fridge carcass and a pair of the easily sourced icebox conversion systems?

Marine Outfitters - boating electronics accessories supplies hardware sailboat

The OP said his final unit was about the same price as a residential conversion when you factor in the cabinet work... This would use the exact same cooling units without the box work so it should end up being a pretty decent value... What am I missing here?

Re: Sea Freeze custom marine refrigerator

Reply #16 – September 09, 2014, 03:59:44 pm

I believe you are correct, not missing anything. When my Dometic side by side conks out, I'm going to strip it out, leave the box intact, and install the Danfoss 12V compressor with cold plate(hold over plate) in the fridge, and use the existing compressor driven ice maker to keep the freezer cold. I have the RM 7130 Dometic.
I have a 2 ton cold plate system in my boat, and it's been trouble free for 20 years. It takes care of cooling 24 cubic feet of freezer and 10 cubic feet of refrigerator. It runs about 2 hours a day and I have frozen ice cream all the time. A little pricy to begin with, but not much cost after initial cost, and no fire hazard. That system is a home made one using Grunert cold plates and a large air cooled AC compressor unit.

Re: Thread Hijack in process...

Reply #17 – September 09, 2014, 05:25:46 pm

You would be missing the 4 inches of insulation that is in the Seafreeze box sidewalls. and I suspect the build quality of the Seafreeze unit is better than the build quality of the box that came on the Dometic or Norcold units. Not to mention some expectation of warranty... however, adding that Danfoss compressors to an existing fridge would be A cost-effective solution, but not without it's labor and a few challenges such as integrating the controls.
Don

Quote from: squeezer – September 09, 2014, 03:13:01 pm

Ignoring costs for a moment why couldn't a person follow this exact arrangement using the existing fridge carcass and a pair of the easily sourced icebox conversion systems?

Marine Outfitters - boating electronics accessories supplies hardware sailboat
What am I missing here?

Re: Thread Hijack in process...

Reply #18 – September 09, 2014, 06:03:45 pm

It's not clear to me that the Dometic solution uses a coldplate.

In my 12cf Sea Freeze I have one compressor and one cold plate. Works fine for freezer and refer.

Does the Dometic solution require two Compressors and two Evaporators?

Plus, Sea Freeze makes some claims about Cold Plate efficiency that bear review:

Sea Freeze of America - Marine Refrigeration - Cold Plates

Re: Sea Freeze custom marine refrigerator

Reply #19 – September 09, 2014, 06:33:17 pm

I talked Sea Freeze before this refrigerator was ordered, and the original thought was to use a single Dan Foss unit. Upon calculating the needs based on cubic feet, they decided to go with two units.

I was aware to the conversion kits, but went this way mostly because of the insurance involvement. With a conversion kit, there would not be any room for the compressor(s) and evaporator(s) without using remote locations.

I do not know if the refrigerator section uses a cold plate or some other form of condenser, but it is hidden from view behind a false back panel with a fan for air circulation.

I know the refrigeration parts are mass produced and of the highest quality. The box itself is hand made and shows very high quality but is lacking some of the glitz you see in mass produced units.

I went to to the coach last night to get it ready for a trip, and had some issues, None of which tarnishes my views on this refrigeration solution. I was having trouble dialing in the temperature and also noticed a lot of condensation right above the refrigerator door. Last night I noticed i could see the light on through the seal with the door closed.

It turns out the installer monkeyed with the temperature settings, and I have them correct now. The installer also seems to have lost the washers used as spacers to set the height of the door on the hinge pins, leaving the door too low for the seal to work and too low for the light switch to make contact with the plunger. An easy fix.

Re: Sea Freeze custom marine refrigerator

Reply #20 – September 09, 2014, 09:50:28 pm

I'm sure I could get by with one compressor and a single cold plate by modifying the "box", but the ice maker compressor and evaporator are already ad will keep the freezer at 0 degrees without modifying the "box".
Right now it's just on the drawing board, the Dometic is still working fine.

Re: Sea Freeze custom marine refrigerator

Reply #21 – September 09, 2014, 10:27:56 pm

I strongly recommend to anyone planning to keep the still-working RV refrigerator for a while, that you buy and install both the ArpRV unit (to prevent most of the conditions that can lead to a fire) and a fire suppression system (as a backup). Also keep a handheld fire extinguisher in the bedroom.

I was lucky in that my refrigerator fire (in a refrigerator that was working very well to that point) was small, happened while running on ac and not propane, and that I noticed it in time to put it out with the factory-installed handheld extinguisher. I want you to be even more lucky.

Re: Sea Freeze custom marine refrigerator

Reply #22 – September 13, 2014, 05:25:42 pm

The refrigerator has been running for a while now, and I am impressed. Temperature has been triple digits outside and high nineties inside, refrigerator is exactly 35 degrees and Freezer exactly 2 degrees every time I look.

I bought this Thermometer on Amazon, and love it too. It has magnets on the back and sticks nicely to the side of the microwave.

Re: Sea Freeze custom marine refrigerator

Reply #23 – September 13, 2014, 08:13:07 pm

Tom, any measurements yet on power consumption?

We just put in a Samsung RF197. Based on data provided, without the icemaker, it looks like its average use is about 40 watts.

Roger

Re: Sea Freeze custom marine refrigerator

Reply #24 – September 16, 2014, 06:27:53 pm

Two more bits of information:

I cannot hear it running from inside the coach, and can only hear a little fan noise from out back. The compressors are silent.

There is an on/off switch inside, near the back.

I hope to have power consumption measurements soon. My DW is in the hospital and I spend all my time with her.

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