Powering fridge when towing

[Highpeak]

Hi all,
I would like some advice regarding correct settings for powering my caravan fridge when towing the van with my car. I have a Seargeant EC400 control unit fitted in the caravan and a Thetford fridge. The question is when towing am I correct in setting the fridge power to be ON and the mode switch set to show "hook up" on the fridge LCD display. Then do I also need to have the main switch on the EC400 unit in the ON position to ensure the fridge is powered up when travelling?

I am unsure of the correct procedure and would appreciate any comment, thank you.

 

[Thingy]

Fridge needs to be on and set to battery, not mains. Make sure the system shutdown button is not activated on the consumer unit. It will be a simple black button, clearly marked.

The battery symbol on the fridge will flash until you are connected and the engine is running.

 

[otherclive]

My van has the EC400. For towing the fridge should be set to battery. The small button that activates the EC 400 should be pushed in. That allows power to the fridge and lets the cars alternator charge the battery. The handbook says it does other functions to set the outfit up for towing. But doesn’t define what those functions are.

To check things are working you can connect the car to the van. Start the car and then look at your caravan systems panel. With the car on fast tick over you will see the caravan and car battery symbols flashing. It’s well explained in the caravan owners manual for Swifts.

 

[Buckman]

I have been told that there is an issue with newer cars that have SMART alternators and unless a modification is fitter, the 12v to the fridge would be ineffective! Maybe someone else can confirm?

 

[JTQ]

If you can cool the fridge down well, or load it with say a few bottles of frozen milk, before the journey, then our experience is it remains remarkably cool as a "cool box" for several hours. EG our ferry trip takes about 6 hours between recooling the fridge, and it remains adequately cold.
I would not invest too much in seeking to get it "working" from the car, unless your circumstances make achieving that essential. Then to get it being effective will need rewiring with some heavier cable than most cars and vans come prewired with.
And as already flagged up, if a modern car with smart charging, thats energy saving operation could defeat your best efforts.

 

[Woodentop]

If you have the towbar and electrics fitted by an outfit that knows what they are doing you don't need to worry about the smart alternator as the ECU will do all that is necessary.
The one thing to remember is that EU caravans do not have all the mod cons that we take for granted - like a fridge or battery! Thus the 13-pin socket wiring assembly has the live 12V connected on pin 9 but does not have the fridge wiring in pin 10. IT IS VITAL that you tell the installer (and get it written down so it is part of the contract) that you need the fridge wiring - which is normally an extra bit of wiring kit supplied with the towbar which not only powers the fridge but also switches everything else 12V in the caravan off so that the battery gets charged as well as you tow (this is standard caravan internal wiring/operation.) The fridge wiring is only active when the car engine is running: if the smart alternator cuts off there will be enough power in the car battery to keep the fridge running until the alternator comes back on line. In some vehicles when the ECU has been told about the caravan and it detects the caravan is connected it stops the smart alternator operation.

 

[otherclive]

If you have the towbar and electrics fitted by an outfit that knows what they are doing you don't need to worry about the smart alternator as the ECU will do all that is necessary.
The one thing to remember is that EU caravans do not have all the mod cons that we take for granted - like a fridge or battery! Thus the 13-pin socket wiring assembly has the live 12V connected on pin 9 but does not have the fridge wiring in pin 10. IT IS VITAL that you tell the installer (and get it written down so it is part of the contract) that you need the fridge wiring - which is normally an extra bit of wiring kit supplied with the towbar which not only powers the fridge but also switches everything else 12V in the caravan off so that the battery gets charged as well as you tow (this is standard caravan internal wiring/operation.) The fridge wiring is only active when the car engine is running: if the smart alternator cuts off there will be enough power in the car battery to keep the fridge running until the alternator comes back on line. In some vehicles when the ECU has been told about the caravan and it detects the caravan is connected it stops the smart alternator operation.

Yes mine switches auto stop start off with the caravan connected. And I turn it off at all other times too.

 

[Guzzilazz]

Yes mine switches auto stop start off with the caravan connected. And I turn it off at all other times too.

Interesting, I turned off the fridge yesterday before we left the site to go back to storage, and stop/start worked. It only doesn't work when the fridge is on...