Just bought an ARB fridge/freezer, set to 24 fahrenheit, but no ice. Defective?

[grogie]

I keep my Snomaster usually at 32 degrees. I always pack it cold/stuff already frozen, and stuff I want to keep frozen, I place on the bottom. I've noticed meat for example is still 98% frozen three days later when I pull it out. I have also noticed ice cream at the top has gone soft. Beer however is awesome at that setting.

Plus, keep it full, and restock it as much as possible along trips when your engine is running vs. just on battery.

 

[Vanaddict]

you may be approaching the point where learning runs into overthinking. Just fill the thing with stuff that won’t make you sick if it gets a little too warm and start learning by experience!

have fun.

Right on, thank you Naters

 

[67cj5]

I've never come across an ARB that was accurately calibrated from the factory. @chet6.7 dropped the video to calibrate. I strongly suggest you do it. I've seen up to 7 degrees F and it's usually displaying colder than it is..

Everyone has already mentioned relevant info to the fridge layout and general use, but you need to think in terms of a slow cooker, but cooling down (to make ice). You're barely under freezing, so it will take a LONG time to get it to actually freeze. If you want to speed up the process, you set the temp WAY down, otherwise you are "slow freezing" the water. You need a large difference in temperature to get things where you want, faster.

Both my ARB 47L/50QT and my 78L/82Qt are spot on and are accurate to less than 0.1*c I have not had to recalibrate them at all, It all depends on what thermometer a person is using and where it is placed, The best place to fix the sensor right in the middle at the top of the Divider,

Laser Thermometers are useless for testing fridges because the inside is too reflective,

 

[67cj5]

Hi, I just bought a new ARB fridge/freezer, I've got it running in my house and just wanted to make some ice so I set it to 24 Fahrenheit. There's no ice. The internal temperature is 24 according to the freezer.

Do I have a defective unit or is there some reason I'm not aware of for why there's no ice in the freezer?

24*f is no where near cold enough to make Ice in a few hours, Depending on the water temp used it can take 2 to 4 hours with the fridge set to -18*c or 0*f,

24*f is only -4.44*c which not even remotely cold enough for any fridge to make Ice,

Hope that helps,

 

[Vanaddict]

24*f is no where near cold enough to make Ice in a few hours, Depending on the water temp used it can take 2 to 4 hours with the fridge set to -18*c or 0*f,

24*f is only -4.44*c which not even remotely cold enough for any fridge to make Ice,

Hope that helps,

right on, understanding now.

 

[dreadlocks]

If you wanna make ice boondocking, get an ice maker.. It'd actually be more energy efficient, otherwise the freezer is just for keeping stuff frozen.. not for freezing things, that sucks up a ton of power, time is a terrible multiplier.. if it takes a very long time to make ice, all that power starts to add up quickly.. We've been carrying drinking ice in a large thermos in our normal fridge for a few years now, can keep ice in there for a week.. but we run out in a few days, so this season I added an ice maker to the mix.. its pretty heavy/large, but I've got the room, its lighter than more house batteries.. in ~6mins it spits out more than enough ice for a few mixed drinks, even at 120W if you run it just when you need ice its gonna be dramatically less power needs.

 

[67cj5]

It sounds like you know a lot about these types of (chest) fridge/freezers.

Is there anyway to do freezing / fridge in these single zone units by layering or positioning things in a certain way?

Ie. Have ice, frozen meat, ice cream at the bottom, but have not frozen stuff on top, etc

In answer to your question about freezing and using it as a fridge at the same time, The Best Temp setting to do that is -12*c or 10*f that way the dairy compartment will stay around freezing point of water which is 0*c or 32*f and if you load the ARB with frozen food from the house freezer it will stay that way for around a month or Two, and the floor of the inside will be around 12*c or 10*f and as the cold Air sinks to the bottom it will drop down to -13*c to -15*c which is 8.6*f down to around 5*f,

Any single compartment fridge with a Dairy area always works the best when set to -12*c / 10*f, This not only allows you to use your fridge to do both tasks but that 6*c difference between -18*c up to -12*c OR 0********* to 10*f will save you up to 12Ah for every 24 hour period, Even if you are not going to put dairy foods in there -12*c / 10*f is the best temp to set it to for frozen food for up to a couple of months,

But if you are going to take Ice cream with you then the warmest temperature you can use is -15*c / 5*f because Ice cream has Fat in it and will melt if it is any warmer than that, So if you are taking Ice Cream on any long Trips then set your fridge to -18*c / 0*f Ok,

At -18*c / 0*f with the fridge not being opened will turn Legs of Pork or Beef as hard as Marble because the longer it stays closed for the harder it gets, And what ever you do, Do Not Touch the inside Walls with Wet hands because the Cooling Element / Walls Do get as cold as -28*c or -20*f and they can reach as low as -30*c and if you touch them with wet hands you will stick to them Ok,

Good Luck,, Hope that Helps,

 

[Hoooogan]

Both my ARB 47L/50QT and my 78L/82Qt are spot on and are accurate to less than 0.1*c I have not had to recalibrate them at all, It all depends on what thermometer a person is using and where it is placed, The best place to fix the sensor right in the middle at the top of the Divider,

Laser Thermometers are useless for testing fridges because the inside is too reflective,

Glad your fridges are good, but there is a reason ARB decided to add a calibration feature to their control panel. When I got my fridge i found the temp setting was definitely off. The test shown above yielded a 5* difference.

Coincidentally, I had this conversation with a buddy today and he said the same. His was set to 32 and he felt like things never seemed to get as cold as they should. We readjusted for 4* and he's going to assess over the next week or so.

 

[67cj5]

Glad your fridges are good, but there is a reason ARB decided to add a calibration feature to their control panel. When I got my fridge i found the temp setting was definitely off. The test shown above yielded a 5* difference.

Coincidentally, I had this conversation with a buddy today and he said the same. His was set to 32 and he felt like things never seemed to get as cold as they should. We readjusted for 4* and he's going to assess over the next week or so.

The variation in temp that you both are seeing depends on the where you place the thermometer sensor also how long you have allowed the Fridge Temp to stabilize, What ever you set the fridge at it takes a few hours for the cold to sink in to the insulation to allow the fridge to reach the correct temperature, Also when loaded the fridge will get colder if you leave a gap around the edge of the basket to allow the Cold from the cooling element to spread throughout the fridge,

To put it in simple terms, A fridge is a living breathing thing, Sounds stupid yes but it behaves like it just the same,

1) when empty set it to 0*c/32*f for about 6 hours then add a thermometer sensor to the top rail of the basket divider right in the middle and allow it to cycle a couple of times and it should reach 0*c/32*f, and it should go either lower or a bit higher, The fridges sensor is in the middle of the base of the fridge and when the fridge has cycled you will see the fridge display drop a few degrees lower as the cold Air from up the top sinks down to the bottom at this point the Air in the top can rise up to 5*c and as that Air sink to the fridges sensor the base warms up and then the Fridge powers up and repeats it's Cycle,

2) How the fridge is loaded has a Huge effect on performance which will effect the Average Temperature and how long it cycles meaning longer or shorter run times which will have a big effect on how much power it uses, This is more noticeable with 4x4 fridges compared to a household fridge because all it's temp changes are in a smaller Area, where as a household fridge has multiple Temp zones and the fact that every time you open the door the cold air drops straight out the bottom of the door every time it's opened, With a household fridge you will see internal temp changes of up to 15 to 20*f which is why Milk only lasts 4 or 5 days at the most, where as Milk will last up to 10 times longer when kept in the ARB,

3) If a 4x4 fridge is packed like a suitcase then it will never achieve the set Temperature, Like your house hold fridge they require space between the products away from the cooling element and through the centre where the divider is. In Freezer Mode this this is not as important because at big negative Temps the Cold sinks through the contents and becomes as hard as Granit, I left a Gammon joint in there for a week or 2 and it took me 2 days to thaw it out ready for use,

Just because you set Any fridge to 32*f / 0*c does not mean that is what it's temperature is going to be because all of the above and the temperature can Swing +5* to 8* and drop 5 to 8* during it's on and off cycles, At the moment the Fridge compressor shuts off the Base will be at 32*f / 0*c and then it "Will" drop down to about 24 to 26*f and slowly warm up to around 32 to 34*f as it powers up and goes through it's cycle, And this Drop is why you must be careful when putting cans of drink in the bottom because that temperature drop is enough to burst the Cans, This past week I loaded a new fridge with cans with the fridge set to 37*c but being a small fridge the Temp drop was such that 2 cans split as the Temp Dropped down to -4*c / 25*f and all the cans around the edge had turned solid,

Just because your fridge does not read the same Temp as your thermometer does not mean a thing because what happens inside a fridge is way more complex than just setting the Dial and expecting your thermometer to match what the fridge is reading,

A quick and simple test for this is to set your fridge at 0*c / 32*f once it has had a chance to equalize for a couple of hours and the next time it cycles the moment it shuts off open the lid and see if there is light Ice forming on the front right hand side of the element when you are facing the front of the fridge which is the panel on the right nearest to you, and if there is Ice on it and anywhere on some of the other panels then it is working correct.

Hope that helps,