Will my fridge be damaged by running on AC 20AMP?

[Burnpd]

Hello all,

I recently purchased a new Heartland Trail Runner. I was told by a friend that the refer will not work properly and may burn up the motor if I run it on 20AMP AC power instead of 30AMP. Can anyone out there let me know if that is true? I wanted to get it cold before our trip without using the gas. It is a Norcold N61 series.

Thanks,

Scott

 

[cookie]

You won't have a problem running the refer on a 20 amp circuit, but you may have issues running AC unit.

Peace
Dave

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk 2

 

[lwmcguir]

Hello all,

I recently purchased a new Heartland Trail Runner. I was told by a friend that the refer will not work properly and may burn up the motor if I run it on 20AMP AC power instead of 30AMP. Can anyone out there let me know if that is true? I wanted to get it cold before our trip without using the gas. It is a Norcold N61 series.

Thanks,

Scott

The refrigerant heater is what pull the amps. If you have decent voltage and a shot run you might be able to operate the fridge and AC. As Dave noted the AC is what pulls the amps not the fridge. Operating the fridge out of level will cause issues however. The incredibly slow forum speed sure makes spelling a chore

 

[Tombstonejim]

Unless you have a residential refrigerator it does not have a motor or a compressor. It has maybe a couple fans and a heating element.

 

[pegmikef]

We keep our BH at the house and I have a dedicated 20 AMP circuit to run it. I run the reefer the whole time and occasionally the A/C if it is not too hot. I would change the breaker to 30 AMP, but the romex is only 12 gauge (20 Amp).

 

[danemayer]

The refrigerator should run on a 20 amp circuit. As mentioned, also running air conditioning or other appliances would probably trip a main breaker. If using an extension cord to reach the outlet, make sure it's rated for the combination of distance and amperage. And make sure the ground plug is good.

If you want to conserve amperage, switch the refrigerator to LP mode. In AC mode, the electric heater draws most of the power. In LP mode, the circuit board draws only a little.

 

[Jimmy]

if you are concerned, open the outside access panel on the rear of your refrigerator and you will see the cord to the unit plugged into a receptacle, just unplug it and plug it directly into your heavy duty extension cord.

 

[danemayer]

if you are concerned, open the outside access panel on the rear of your refrigerator and you will see the cord to the unit plugged into a receptacle, just unplug it and plug it directly into your heavy duty extension cord.

I think the refrigerator circuit board may also need a 12V supply from the trailer. Not sure how long it would take to run the battery down if the trailer isn't plugged in.

 

[Jimmy]

I think the refrigerator circuit board may also need a 12V supply from the trailer. Not sure how long it would take to run the battery down if the trailer isn't plugged in.

Your are correct, I apologize. I must have been camping too long, I remember when you could take the Fridge out of the RV and plug it in or hook to Propane and it would run fine, then they had to modernize things... sorry.