Should I redo the insulation of my 35 year old built in fridge? With what?

[Cheechako]

As mentioned, assessing the condition of your current insulation is a good thing. But assuming you dont have foam bits under the floor, or it is wet etc, it's probably fine. Filling in any space between the hull, cabinet etc could help. I probably wouldnt worry too much about it myself.
-How big is your refridge box? I went to the trouble of using the vacuum panels on a small fridge in one boat. This fridge was less than 2 cubic feet. I literally saw no difference in charging time to charge the batteries when I was done.
-On another boat, I found I could glue that pink or blue foam between the cabinets etc and the fridge box. I had to use small squares of it to get it in there. That fridge box was next to the engine compartment so it really helped by having it on that side.
-Another boat had a huge stainless steel lined fridge it may have been 10 -12 cubic feet! But it had minimal insulation, 2-3" tops. I abandoned that as a fridge and had a small one elsewhere. I used the SS box as a dry goods/food storage which worked great.

It's all about your particular boat and your plans though. Some people with solar claim they make too much electricity. So why spend a ton of time and $ reconstructing a fridge box if that's the case?
...or maybe you are just sailing locally. "Dont worry about it"

[stormalong]

I would not use spray can foam. I just did a refer repair and had to redo the space between the inner lid and the countertop - about a 4 inch thick area. The spray can stuff did not harden. It needs air to cure. I had to remove the sticky goop and spray again in layers to get it to harden. Use the two part pour in instead.

YMMV

[S/V Alchemy]

Originally Posted by ColdEh Marine

Redoing your ice box insulation really is different for everyone . It always depends on your long term goals . Are you a weekend sailor or a live aboard sailor in the tropics. Also depends on your boat. You don't spend 20000$ dollars on a 1000 dollar boat . Also the other side of that coin is you want to protect the value of your boat if it was a substantial investment .

Regards John

I concur. Sometimes the answer is a Koolatron and a little solar panel, other times, it's a chest freezer.

[skipmac]

Originally Posted by stormalong

I would not use spray can foam. I just did a refer repair and had to redo the space between the inner lid and the countertop - about a 4 inch thick area. The spray can stuff did not harden. It needs air to cure. I had to remove the sticky goop and spray again in layers to get it to harden. Use the two part pour in instead.

YMMV

I had the same problem using spray can foam (Dow Greatstuff) that I was using to fill small cracks between sheets of polystyrene. Never hardened and left a really, really messy, sticky goo. Call Dow tech support and was told that it was the moisture in the air it needs to cure. I redid the job but as soon as I sprayed the foam I misted it with water before sealing it up and it cured perfectly.

[Typhoon]

Originally Posted by stormalong

I would not use spray can foam. I just did a refer repair and had to redo the space between the inner lid and the countertop - about a 4 inch thick area. The spray can stuff did not harden. It needs air to cure. I had to remove the sticky goop and spray again in layers to get it to harden. Use the two part pour in instead.

YMMV

Foam in spray cans are for small areas and gaps , they need plenty or air to expand and cure . Using it in closed confined areas will surely result in a disappointing result that you will have to clean up. Two part part foam like this Urethane Foam , Expanding Marine Polyurethane Foam can yield great results . There are precautions you must take . First, this stuff is messy , you will get it on everything and its a bugger to get off , next, the expansion power of this foam will destroy any enclosure you put it in. The secret is to lay this stuff in a couple of inches at a time and let it expand upward . If you put to much down at one time it will expand sideways and destroy you cabinetry . Also never forget to encapsulate any insulation with a vapor barrier.

Enjoy, have fun , and good luck.

Regards John.

[wordsmithereen]

After that long I can tell you if it isn't broken down, I would be surprised. I have been thinking about this for myself and one thing I found out is the insulation that is used in Yeti coolers is now available in sheets. That's what I am going to use, and since I will have the fridge out, I might as well replace it or at least add to it.

[Cadence]

Originally Posted by Reefmagnet

My wife just redid our fridge in a near identical scenario. She used an aerosol can (or two) of spray foam and bean bag balls packed down as hard as she could manage. She gained access via a number of pre-existing external holes but finished off by drilling holes in the interior liner of the fridge itself. When done, she filled the holes with thickened epoxy and painted the interior liner with white epoxy paint and the exterior with a paint matching the original gelcoat in colour.

One tip I can suggest is to use a laser contact-less thermometer to map the external temperature of the fridge. This will reveal the cold spots that indicate where insulation is lacking. We monitored these locations as the job progressed to ensure that the insulation was improved at these points. One annoying aspect of our fridge was that it had an area of no insulation where it extends under a cupboard. I guess the purpose of this was to create a cooler area for stuff. We intend to line this cupboard with Styrofoam insulation panels as we don't require this "feature".

At the end of the day I don't think this repair would be as good as tearing everything apart and replacing the insulation with the "proper" stuff, but with the alternative being to have to perform some fairly major surgery, I think it was the best compromise.

Give my grats to your wife for her ingenuity. She sounds like a keeper.

[john61ct]

Originally Posted by wordsmithereen

the insulation that is used in Yeti coolers is now available in sheets.

Links please!

[KWISPEL]

Use close cell PU and place your electric and copper hoses in a plastic pipe through the foam. So can you remove them later very easy if you have to replace the unit.

[KWISPEL]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EKAVeSB3YTs

I never tried this brand but there are a lot of different brands on the market wit close cell foam. you fill it from the top. Do this little by little and make it not all in one mix, so will you have also no pressure in the things around it! Tape the edges with tape so stick it not every where on the top blade in you kitchen.

This is one way, but there are also other good way’s.

[KWISPEL]

If you use something that stick well to the wall of your fridge, than will you have not have anny condensation between the fridge and foam, you will avoid moldy vitamins around your fridge!

[rotorman]

Thanks guys, unfortunately the fridge is not working currently so I can not test it. I am replacing the components (for which I have to cut the side out anyway). BTW the fridge is around 2.5 cubic feet (70 l)

[Quadrille in JB]

Has anyone tried using Aerogel?
Developed for the space shuttle it has an R value of 10-30 per inch. I was talking to my Marina neighbor and his molecular biologist son and they are planning on using this on their boats.

[newhaul]

Originally Posted by Quadrille in JB

Has anyone tried using Aerogel?
Developed for the space shuttle it has an R value of 10-30 per inch. I was talking to my Marina neighbor and his molecular biologist son and they are planning on using this on their boats.

yes people use it all the time . John from coldeh has a test running with it I do believe. After the first of the year I will be beginning my refer build. 3 of the sides on my ice box only have 2.5 inches for insulation so I will be going with aerogel at r5 per 1/2 inch which will mean r25 for my icebox conversion. My only issue is spending the money on a good box and refer system for it. (I paid 2k for the boat.) I estimate the total refer cost when done to be about 3 grand.