Building the Generic ET

[cuyeda]

The ET is lookin' good! I do have one question... If this build is meant for an evacuation, the refridgerator requires, 110V to run. I was hoping other experienced builders could comment on a two or three way fridge design (AC/DC/propane). I don't know enough on these systems to comment, and would be nice to run a fridge on propane if possible for dry camping. To build the adequate intake and exhaust for such a set up may be out of the question in teardrop size galley.

[caseydog]

That looks like the typical "Dorm Fridge." Can those things take all the bouncing around of a trailer? I have no idea. Just curious.

When you get where you're going, do you have to wait a while before plugging it in?

CD

[mikeschn]

Cuyeda,

You caught me. The design started out as a true evac trailer, but it's morphed into a giant teardrop for us. Now we are doing as much as we can to make it an evac trailer... i.e. it has solar, batteries, propane, and a forced air furnace .

But we've cut a couple corners. We gave up the shower in order to put the electrical and the furnace in the bathroom. Normally that stuff would have gone under the counter where we put the dogs.

And we opted for the dorm fridge for about $129 instead of a 3 way fridge for about 6 times as much money. When we camp we typically have electric. If we end up rustic somewhere, we'll get a bag of ice and a cooler.

If we end up in a true evac situation we still have heat, light, and TV, all running off of 12v. We would have to do sponge baths instead of showers, and a cooler with ice.

Such are the compromises one makes when money is tight and the economy is a mess.

Mike...

P.S. CD, yes, it takes a lot of bouncing around. I don't know if that has a negative impact on it. I do know we had one in the Lil Diner, we never waited to plug it in, and we never had a problem with it. But I guess time will tell.

[GPW]

Having much experience evacuating, Propane was in short supply , electricity was "spotty" at best, and ice was scarce , at least for a few days anyway...For these extreme conditions... Solar/12V was the way to go for electric needs and heating water ...and cooking was best done over a small fire (hibachi) or my solar cooker (which can be made on the spot out of cardboard boxes ,and tin foil ..)
In such times , all resources are very limited and greatly in demand...Best to plan ahead for non refrigerated foodstuffs and several gallons of drinking water...
In such situations , certain areas are restored quicker than others ... extreme evac requires you move around till you find the services you need... Prior planning is most important...

"For inside, I might have to build a miniture version of the classic ice box,"... Mike, I'll send you my wine cork collection for your Classic Icebox insulation...

[Nut]

Mike,
For those "rustic times" you could get an inverter (or converter, I mix the two up all the time), and run the fridge right off the 12v system of the car or trailer. We do that now with some different things we take tent camping. Just start the car every once in a while.

[toypusher]

Mike,
For those "rustic times" you could get an inverter (or converter, I mix the two up all the time), and run the fridge right off the 12v system of the car or trailer. We do that now with some different things we take tent camping. Just start the car every once in a while.

Problem with that is that in a evac situation, gas for the car is probably going to be at a premium too!!

[Alphacarina]

Yup - Trying to run a dorm-type fridge off an inverter is going to leave you with a car you can't start pretty quickly . . . . unless you stash some humongous batteries somewhere

Dorm fridges are real energy hogs and unless you got up in the middle of the night every couple hours and started the car, you'd be walking come morning . . . .

A fridge which uses 2.5 amps at 120 volts will suck 25 amps from your 12 volt batteries powering the inverter - You can't get 25 amps out of a typical car battery much more than a couple of hours before it's DEAD. Even a pair of golf cart batteries would have a real hard time keeping up with your fridge . . . . and they would require the car to be running for several hours each day to recharge them

You can count on a dorm fridge taking 5 or 6 times the 12 volt energy to run as the purpose built 12 volt fridges - They are more expensive, but if power is at a premium, they are the only way to go

Don

[Nut]

Wow. Never tried to run a fridge before....... and now I know I'm not going to try. We only run things like blenders(gotta have drinks), TV's and video game systems for the kids, air pumps, things like that.

[mikeschn]

I tried to run the fridge off the 1000 watt inverter... I was trying to pull the power from the power supply... at just beeped at me. The fridge never started.

GPW, I'll keep those corks in mind!

I can see where having a couple golf cart batteries and a big solar panel so that you could run a thermo-electric until ice became available... But wouldn't having a stash of canned goods be easier?

Mike...

[Alphacarina]

I can see where having a couple golf cart batteries and a big solar panel so that you could run a thermo-electric until ice became available... But wouldn't having a stash of canned goods be easier?

Canned goods are great, but the only time we need an evacuation trailer down here is during hurricane season and it's always 90 or 95 degrees then . . . . having cold drinks and ice is just about mandatory

We lived in a 27' trawler, on a trailer, parked on our daughters property for about 3 months after Katrina (until FEMA got us an FT [formaldehyde trailer]) so I had A/C and all the necessary electrical goodies available . . . . and 4 golf cart batteries plus a generator to power them

If you use golf cart batteries but don't have a generator, they better get you some ice pretty darned quickly . . . . you won't make it 2 days powering a thermo-electric cooler on a pair of golf cart batteries . . . , even with a BIG solar panel to help out

A 'minimal' evacuation trailer down here would have to have A/C so you would need a minimum of a 2KW Honda inverter genset to power that which means you can recharge your batteries which power the fridge when the genset is running. Your 1KW inverter will run your dorm room fridge easily enough, but you would need golf cart batteries to power the inverter. With a solar panel and running the genset 8 hours per day to have A/C while you sleep, you should be OK with battery power . . . . but an Engel sure would be nice!

Don

[GPW]

Alpha , I heat ya' Dude !!! AC and ice is a must really ...
We've located a dozen places to evacuate to (friends across the Country) from Atlanta to San Deigo as far UP as Indiana... assuring that we'll have some place to plug in ...somewhere...
... and take a shower...
The only real reason we have a trailer is we don't want to be a burden on our hosts... There's something QUITE different from living out in their driveway or in their house...for months ... Grrrrrr!!!!!
" after three days , guests , like fish , begin to stink ..."

We're too old for "Primitive" camping any more , but try to be ready for it ...just in case...given that yearly evacuations /traffic jams have become common...Best to leave early , before the other million people...

[GPW]

We've modified the ET trailer into a Shipping container home ... Probably better than one of those poison FEMA trailers , and probably cheaper and more safe from wind/storms ...see our album ...

[GPW]

Did you know that you can get get a "second home" tax break if your trailer has sleeping, cooking , and sanitary facilities... We could use the extra money to pay tribute to the Gasoline Barons...

[the dog]

The ET is lookin' good! I do have one question... If this build is meant for an evacuation, the refridgerator requires, 110V to run. I was hoping other experienced builders could comment on a two or three way fridge design (AC/DC/propane). I don't know enough on these systems to comment, and would be nice to run a fridge on propane if possible for dry camping. To build the adequate intake and exhaust for such a set up may be out of the question in teardrop size galley.

It can be done. If you can fit a dorm fridge you can fit a propane fridge. Mine did not have a motor or compressor, (1 way, propane only) reducing size and weight. Only ac/dc has compressors and motors. Heat the refrigerant, it splits into cold and colder (fridge and freeze coils) then returns to the reservoir. It's "ammonnia absorption principle"
This is a great short article on propane, elect, why, really a must read. http://www.rv-coach.com/current_category.83/FAQ.189/faqs_detail.html
Refrigerant can be heated with profane, kero flame (alladin burners) or elect which in my opinion is the most in efficient. Intake is nothing more than some air flow into the cabinet, a small grill for a vent. The stack is small, they are low profile, vents heat from the flame and moisture from propane burning. I lived in a 16 footer for 18 months, dry camp (eventually got a water supply). Nothing in it worked at first but I kept at it till everything worked. The profane fridge was a trick, it wouldn't get cool! I finally found someone had tarred over the stack vent which was such low profile it was hard to even see (nice feature for tears). Once fixed I had a 34 degree fridge and hard freeze. Fridge, range, hot water and furnace were all propane, in the coldest stay indoors season I used 2 tanks (5 gal) in 5 or 6 days to power all 4 fulltime. Once it was warmer, I turned the hot water on just before I needed (on demand is better), cook outside as much as possible, no furnace and the propane consumption went WAY down. Dog

[GPW]

Now wait... if we can get cold from heat , why can't we heat the refrigerant with Solar ??? Wouldn't have to burn anything ... and get solar cooling and ice box