| Pblais is exactly right.
We have cruised with people who didn’t have any form of refrigeration at all. They were happy eating canned and dry food.
Others we cruised with had to run their engine or generator 2-4 hours once or twice a day to freeze their cold plates . Others had to have icemakers, more engine running. They used 1-2 gal/day of diesel.
It is always nice to have a freezer for when you land that giant fish and there is no one to share it with. Or have ice to put in your drink. Or keep a nice cut of meat for the middle of nowhere.
A fridge at 33-35F will keep green peppers fresh for 3-4 weeks, vacuum packed cheeses for up to 4-6 months, vacuum packed meats 2-3 weeks.
It must be said that if you buy unblemished green-red tomatoes you can keep them for close to 3 weeks if you are very very careful with them (at room temp 85-90F). Winter squashes last forever.
We use about 110-120 AmpHrs a day all of it from the sun and wind. 50-55 is for the fridge/freezer (10/4 cuft. 6-10 inches of foam, high efficiency system). The rest , 55-65 Ahr, are for lights, music, SSB, computer, watching videos, etc.
It all depends as Pblais says on your lifestyle. |