12V marine refrigerator

[One Chance]

I am currently in the middle of a refit/rebuild of our galley on our 36' C&C. I originally was going to add remote compressor & cold plate as an upgrade to our icebox, however after total tear out of our galley as the old icebox will not fit into our floor plan with needed additional insulation. My next step is to upgrade to a 12V/120V marine refrigerator. Can anyone recommend a unit(3-5cuft) with a remote compressor(plan to install air cooled compressor) in the engine compartment?

Thanks
One Chance

[wayne.b]

Originally Posted by One Chance

I am currently in the middle of a refit/rebuild of our galley on our 36' C&C. I originally was going to add remote compressor & cold plate as an upgrade to our icebox, however after total tear out of our galley as the old icebox will not fit into our floor plan with needed additional insulation. My next step is to upgrade to a 12V/120V marine refrigerator. Can anyone recommend a unit(3-5cuft) with a remote compressor(plan to install air cooled compressor) in the engine compartment?

===

We have a pair of Adler-Barbour's on our boat that I'm very happy with. I installed them myself without too much difficulty. You'll also need to buy a suitable evaporating unit for inside the box. They are designed to run from either 12 or 24 volts DC but with the addition of a small battery charger you'll have the ability to run from 110 volt AC as well.

Adler / Barbour ColdMachine CU-100 Condensing Unit - Air Cooled

[SV THIRD DAY]

Isotherm is one of the big makers of front opening refrigerator boxes. They will use a lot more power than a top opening traditional box, but the advantage is the convienience of a "drop in" front loader.

[ranger58sb]

Ours are NovaKool. Don't know about remote compressor possibilities.

-Chris

[a64pilot]

Were I to do a drop in, I think I may look towards Engle as they seem to have a good rep.
Engel Coolers - Engel MB40 Drop-In
There may be other models, and its not a separate compressor, but still I think I'd give them a look

[lamadriver]

I have one of these on the boat

National Luna

Its awesome! mine has a freezer well in the bottom and you can deep freeze stuff, load the baskets above it.

Its draws very little power once at temperature.

LD

[kellymj]

I second Adler Barbour. I would strongly recommend top loading. Front loading will use much more power than top loading especially if you plan on sailing in the tropics.


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[skipmac]

Hi Onestep,

If I understand your question correctly, you are giving up on the icebox/fridge that is built into the cabinets and want to go with a separate fridge unit?

If that is the case, the only standalone unit I know of that allows remote mounting of the compressor is the Isotherm. There may be others but this is the only one I know.

I would not recommend mounting the compressor, especially an air cooled unit, in the engine room. Any time you run the engine it will get very hot in the engine room and can stay that way for a few hours, dramatically reducing the efficiency of the compressor.

[Scott Berg]

Disclaimer: I used to sell all of these and still work on boat refrigeration from time to time; that said: Remote compressor refer/freezer boxes are made by Vitrifrigo, Isotemp, and Frigoboat. The Frigoboat boxes are BY FAR the best (and by far the most expensive). All use Danfoss compressors and most are air cooled but Adler Barbor and Frigoboat both offer water cooling as an option. I've installed all of them and if your budget can afford the Frigoboat boxes you will very happy; among others, Nigel Calder put two on his boat and loves them. Be prepared for sticker shock... they run about US$3K and up for the boxes; come in many stock sizes and can custom make them for your megayacht...

[woodenboats]

Originally Posted by Scott Berg

...Adler Barbor and Frigoboat both offer water cooling as an option...

So does Isotherm, both active pumped and self-pumping.