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Propex under fridge
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madspaniard
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PostPosted: Thu Sep 08, 2011 11:28 pm    Post subject: Propex under fridge Reply with quote

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some text later
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climberjohn
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PostPosted: Fri Sep 09, 2011 5:27 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Love it!
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jkidd152
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PostPosted: Fri Sep 09, 2011 6:51 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

climberjohn wrote:
Love it!


x2! This is a must-do for me. Please provide details when you get a chance.

It looks great! Very clean.
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purplepeopleeater
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PostPosted: Fri Sep 09, 2011 6:53 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Soo nice, exactly how I plan on doing mine this winter.

Whats the black box? I want to put an inverter in that spot.
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Hallvalla
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PostPosted: Fri Sep 09, 2011 9:37 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Hmmmmmmm, nice.

Did Earl help you with that? Also, I thought you had this installed a long time ago, did you move it?

This is one mod my wife is actually interested in, so we'll have to meet up soon and let her take a look. Wink

~J~
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markz2004
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PostPosted: Fri Sep 09, 2011 11:04 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

jkidd152 wrote:
climberjohn wrote:
Love it!


x2! This is a must-do for me. Please provide details when you get a chance.

It looks great! Very clean.


X3. this is where my propex will go.
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dubbified
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PostPosted: Fri Sep 09, 2011 11:08 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Clean install!

Being down that low, sucking in all that cooler air.. curious about the potential for dust/debris?

Anyone making a filter for these?
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madspaniard
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PostPosted: Fri Sep 09, 2011 11:24 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

thanks for comments, I'll try to do a write up tonight.

To answer some questions:

* the black box is my fridge converter for 110v. My fridge unit is an Isotherm with ASU and it did not come stock with 12v/110v, only 12v, so I found a brand new Isotherm converter on eBay for almost no money and installed it there. My Xantrex 1000w charger/inverter is under the bench seat, too big to fit under fridge. Yes, you can put a smaller inverter or a hard-wired battery charger or some of your controls like your solar power controller, etc where my fridge converter is.

* Earl (our local marine electrician) only did the propane connection on the Propex. I can say I have learned a bunch of new trades doing this job myself. I actually enjoyed working with wood and laminate. I had to buy a bunch of tools but it felt like therapy working on this after my 9 to 6 job. Yes, my Propex used to be located under rear bench in the stardard location used for most people. Earlier this year I decided to get rid of the 4 pack UB batteries under driver seat (combined 88a/h) and replaced them with a big 110 a/h deep cycle AGM marine battery that I installed where the Propex used to be. This prompted me to move the Propex under the fridge.

* Dust and debris. That is a valid concern that didn't cross my mind but not sure of its importance. In reality, the new location for the inlet/outlet grates is only a few inches lower than the standard location under rear bench so this question would be global for all Propex installs. I don't rememeber the Propex really having much of a deep sucking effect but I will investigate.
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GBA 88West LA
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PostPosted: Fri Sep 09, 2011 12:59 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

innovative fresh idea...nice nice nice alternative to usual mounting spots
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pnwkayaker
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PostPosted: Fri Sep 09, 2011 1:20 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Madspaniard,

could you plesae provide some measurements and additional pictures ? Specifically:

1 - Height where you mounted the fridge (to clear the Propex)
2 - separation between Propex and Fridge
3 - reference points/measurements of where's the Propex installed within the cabinet
4 - any picture on how you routed the exhaust pipes ? I"m concerned/interested on how it deals with the propane tank under the van.

I'm in the exact same situation as the other people in this thread, I have a TruckFridge and a Propex under the rear bench, and want to free that space for either cargo or a bigger battery.

Thanks in advance!
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chojinchef
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PostPosted: Fri Sep 09, 2011 3:16 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I was just posting about this. I yanked my fridge and this spot makes so much sense for the install. Bravo!
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singler3360
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PostPosted: Fri Sep 09, 2011 6:38 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Mad,
Thanks for coming back and posting on your progress. I've had my TF49 sitting in my living room (serving cold beer) and just this week began prepping the cabinet space. I don't have a Propex yet but figured that mounting the fridge as high in the cabinet as it will go should leave enough space.

1. My preliminary measurement for the aluminum angle supports is 21 3/8" from the top of the cabinet space or 5" from the bottom. Sound similar?

EDIT: On the right half, I was thinking of using undermount drawer glides to create a pull-out shelf for all the gadgets (Battery-Minder, solar controller, etc...). Also a master SPST switch to the fridge. Overkill?
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Sam Bateman
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PostPosted: Thu Sep 15, 2011 8:30 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Where did you find the best price on your Isotherm?

Sam Bateman
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madspaniard
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PostPosted: Thu Sep 15, 2011 10:09 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Sorry I have not had time to do a write up on this, coming up

singler3360 wrote:

1. My preliminary measurement for the aluminum angle supports is 21 3/8" from the top of the cabinet space or 5" from the bottom. Sound similar?


yes, more or less, I think I was close to 21" to the bottom of fridge when the fridge rubber legs are off.

Sam Bateman wrote:
Where did you find the best price on your Isotherm?
Sam Bateman\


Prices were about the same everywhere I looked, The difference is that some distributors were not allowed to ship to CA (some weird arrangements with manufacturers and vendors) so I ended up buying mine here

http://www.defender.com/

I'm assuming you are aware of other fridge options like Truckfridge and Vitrifrigo. The only reason I went with Isotherm was the ASU option. Check out this thread if you haven't yet.

http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=359831&highlight=fridge
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scobax
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PostPosted: Thu Sep 15, 2011 10:55 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

With regards to dust getting in, I took some metal screen material from the hardware store and formed it over the outlet and inlet vents before clamping the hoses on. It keeps a fair bit of the larger particles (or bugs) out and the metal screening will not melt.

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madspaniard
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PostPosted: Thu Sep 15, 2011 11:17 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

scobax wrote:
With regards to dust getting in, I took some metal screen material from the hardware store and formed it over the outlet and inlet vents before clamping the hoses on. It keeps a fair bit of the larger particles (or bugs) out and the metal screening will not melt.

yup, I did the same.
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PDXWesty
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PostPosted: Thu Sep 15, 2011 11:23 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

madspaniard wrote:
scobax wrote:
With regards to dust getting in, I took some metal screen material from the hardware store and formed it over the outlet and inlet vents before clamping the hoses on. It keeps a fair bit of the larger particles (or bugs) out and the metal screening will not melt.

yup, I did the same.


This might be a good idea only if the Propex unit can handle reduced airflow. The wire screening reduces the free area of the opening by 70-75%. That means the grill has 25% of the open area it had without the screening. This will make it noisier and make the fan work a lot harder to get air into the unit. It probably significantly reduces the airflow. The units are specified for 60-80 CFM which is already a lot through the small opening. Your performance may be greatly affected and the unit may act funny or get a fault happening.
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madspaniard
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PostPosted: Thu Sep 15, 2011 11:32 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

PDXWesty wrote:

This might be a good idea only if the Propex unit can handle reduced airflow. The wire screening reduces the free area of the opening by 70-75%. That means the grill has 25% of the open area it had without the screening. This will make it noisier and make the fan work a lot harder to get air into the unit. It probably significantly reduces the airflow. The units are specified for 60-80 CFM which is already a lot through the small opening. Your performance may be greatly affected and the unit may act funny or get a fault happening.


good point, not sure about those numbers, 70%-75% opening reduction sounds like a lot to me, where did you get those numbers? honest question. I have used my Propex with this set up (screen) for 2 years now, maybe 15 nights of total use, and haven't noticed any performance issues, noise has never been an issue with my unit, other might have different experiences...
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PostPosted: Thu Sep 15, 2011 11:32 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Madspaniard,

do you have any pictures on how you routed the exhaust lines ? I'm interested to see how the exhaust ports clear the propane cylinder.

Thanks a lot!
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madspaniard
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PostPosted: Thu Sep 15, 2011 11:36 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

pnwkayaker wrote:
Madspaniard,

do you have any pictures on how you routed the exhaust lines ? I'm interested to see how the exhaust ports clear the propane cylinder.

Thanks a lot!


not my pic but mine looks exactly like this

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