UNIQUE brand DC Refrigerator

[lovetofix]

So I came across these refrigerators on an "off grid living" forum and the people there seem to really like them. They are advertised as solar refrigerators and they use a 12/24V DC Danfoss compressor. They automatically detect/switch line voltage, have a fault indicator built in for faults like low battery, bad thermostat, etc. and are manual defrost.
The model I am looking at is a 10.3 cu.ft. and is rated at 28Ah/24hr on 24V. I talked to the main internet supplier and they said they have sold several to people in bus conversions.
Has anyone heard anything good or bad about them?
The parent company is in Canada but I am pretty sure they are importing their appliances. Several models are available from Home Depot, who will sell you an extended warranty if you want it.
The "Retro" 10.3 cu.ft. has a bottom freezer (a plus for my wife) and is narrow enough to fit through the door of our MC9(a big plus for me)!
They are pricy! But not much more than an "inverter compressor" AC refrigerator and significantly less money than the leading brand DC refrigerators.

[TomC]

Also look at NovaKool. They make RV/boat refrigerators. I have the 9cu/ft that only pulls 5.4 amps when running (about 50% of the time). But now they have come out with the same refrigerator but with two compressors-one for the refrigerator and the second for the bottom freezer. 4.5 amps and 2.1 amps at 12vdc. We also have a 2.1cu/ft chest freezer. Good Luck, TomC

[luvrbus]

The DC units all use the same compressors and none are made in the US they are all made by Secop,it will shock you when you find out most use propane for gas ,my Norcold chest freezer is charged with propane   

[Jim Blackwood]

Propane is an excellent refrigerant. It does burn if released and ignited but there is probably not much more than a pound in those refrigerators. Hydrocarbon based refrigerants are coming back btw. Some of the new ones are flammable.

Jim

[chessie4905]

newer GM trucks and probably others are using a new "more enviornmently friendly" refrigerant. Price around $50 per pound. R1234 or something like that.

[lovetofix]

Not that it makes much difference but both Unique and Nova Kool use r134a refrigerant.
They are both using the DC 12/24Volt compatible Danfoss/Secop compressor.

The price is up there in the $1,300-$2,000+ range and Nova Kool runs higher per cu.ft. than Unique.
Nova Kool is designed for mobile use so has built in latching doors etc. but their largest is 9cu.ft. and those are only offered in a flange Mount configuration (must be mounted in a cabinet).
I'm still on the fence about wether or not to go with a DC refrigerator or just get a really efficient AC model and run it on the inverter.

[lovetofix]

newer GM trucks and probably others are using a new "more enviornmently friendly" refrigerant. Price around $50 per pound. R1234 or something like that.

Almost all automotive systems are now using r134a and a lot of residential units as well. That is one of the things that has made heat pumps able to heat down into single digits.

[luvrbus]

Not that it makes much difference but both Unique and Nova Kool use r134a refrigerant.
They are both using the DC 12/24Volt compatible Danfoss/Secop compressor.

The price is up there in the $1,300-$2,000+ range and Nova Kool runs higher per cu.ft. than Unique.
Nova Kool is designed for mobile use so has built in latching doors etc. but their largest is 9cu.ft. and those are only offered in a flange Mount configuration (must be mounted in a cabinet).
I'm still on the fence about wether or not to go with a DC refrigerator or just get a really efficient AC model and run it on the inverter.

[luvrbus]

All the new residential fridges now have the cooling coils built in the cabinet they are pretty useless built in for RV use,The instructions like the middle of a air condition room.Our new Samsung doesn't use R 134a and I have to run the ac in the RV  or the damn thing won't cool here in Arizona, that was never was a problem with the Amana. I am about ready to put it back and toss the Samsung makes no sense to run AC units for a fridge to work     

[richard5933]

Like most things, you get what you pay for.

Most residential refrigerators nowadays are built to the absolute minimum as related to the actual cooling components. They are designed to be placed in a climate-controlled room where they will lead a pampered life. They are not designed for use in moving vehicles, especially vehicles which will sit in the AZ sun and reach pretty high temps between being plugged in and having the a/c units run.

Residential fridges are built to meet energy efficient standards and not a single BTU of extra capacity is added. Components are lightweight to accommodate overseas shipping and to minimize materials needed.

Gone are the days when a residential fridge was so overbuilt that it would last 20+ years and still sit in the sun on a hot back porch and keep your grandma's leftovers and beer cold.

We've got a Vitrifrigo 12vdc fridge on our bus. On our trip to Santa Fe and back over the past few weeks the temps inside the bus reached 100 degrees for a few days while we stayed at my cousin's place. The frozen food was still hard and the milk still good when we picked up traveling again.

Both Nova Kool and Vitrifrigo makes high-quality units primarily aimed at the marine world. I don't believe they make very large units, but truthfully we've never felt the need to have a very large fridge in the bus. Even if we were to full-time in our bus, there is limited space to put things and we're never really that far from a store to resupply. If we wanted to do extended dry camping away from stores, we'd probably add a 12vdc cooling chest in a bay to add extra capacity. That way, when we didn't need it we could shut it down and still have the main fridge in the galley.

[sledhead]

I replaced my old 20 year old Amma fridge with a Samsung as it is really quiet and uses very little power . It has been working now for 2 years with no problems and lets hope it lasts as long as the old Amma . As for size my wife likes the larger units 

https://www.samsung.com/ca/refrigerators/top-mount-freezer/17-6-cu-ft-real-sts-rt18m6213sr-aa/

dave

[luvrbus]

The SunFrost was the best RV fridge  ever built IMO but like all good quality made in the US it no longer made lol we live in a throw away world now

[Dave5Cs]

http://www.sunfrost.com/Sunfrost_refrigerators.pdf