WOK Cooking in a Class B - Yes or No

[GallenH]

Originally Posted by themexicandoctor

Yes, I use high quality, organic Essential Oils everyday in my Practice so I like the Rig to smell like a Spa - somewhat impossible when I cook, albeit temporarily.

Gallen, I can see the benefit of removing the Propane Tank from underneath in terms of not just safety but weight & extra available space, its a Man Option.

But I also know that many of you who travel do so in traditional pairs & without being sexist, I see the possibility of whoever is doing the cooking to at least demand that the Gas cooking stays. It used to be a Woman Option.

Now increasingly both sexes love to cook.

As for cooking outside, because I live & work in suburban & urban areas, I can see the Stealth Aspect evaporate.

Interesting comment. Well as one who operates off of propane and a single 100AH battery I'd have to say that in my rig adding 800AH of lithium and converting to a different type of funace/water heater is most likely impractical. I could do it. But at what cost to a PW that is over 20 years old?
Both my wife and I are avid cooks. Chinese, Korean, Indian, Mexican plus all the American favorites. I just smoked a brisket, a rack of ribs and chicken (for enchiladas) on the 4th.........at home. So, for example, we may take some smoked pork ribs and chorizo camp beans for a meal on our next trip. But it's all prepared. Just needs reheating which we do in a covered fry pan. I do a margurita which is one part tequila, one part triple sec and one part fresh lime juice so I'll probably mix up a quart to take with us. Everything doesn't have to be cooked on site to work. The burners I sent links to are something that I've contemplated buying for at home.....outside.....to keep the heat of out of the house........In PHX it's now projected 117 for Sunday!

[themexicandoctor]

Originally Posted by GallenH

Interesting comment. Well as one who operates off of propane and a single 100AH battery I'd have to say that in my rig adding 800AH of lithium and converting to a different type of funace/water heater is most likely impractical. I could do it. But at what cost to a PW that is over 20 years old?
Both my wife and I are avid cooks. Chinese, Korean, Indian, Mexican plus all the American favorites. I just smoked a brisket, a rack of ribs and chicken (for enchiladas) on the 4th.........at home. So, for example, we may take some smoked pork ribs and chorizo camp beans for a meal on our next trip. But it's all prepared. Just needs reheating which we do in a covered fry pan. I do a margurita which is one part tequila, one part triple sec and one part fresh lime juice so I'll probably mix up a quart to take with us. Everything doesn't have to be cooked on site to work. The burners I sent links to are something that I've contemplated buying for at home.....outside.....to keep the heat of out of the house........In PHX it's now projected 117 for Sunday!

Gallen,

STOP!

I don't have a fridge & you are making me hungry & thirsty for a Margarita.

You must have a good fridge.

[GallenH]

Nope. It's a 23yr old absorption. It does keep the ice frozen so that chills the margaritas. Will eventually convert over like you to compressor.

[themexicandoctor]

Originally Posted by GallenH

Nope. It's a 23yr old absorption. It does keep the ice frozen so that chills the margaritas. Will eventually convert over like you to compressor.

Are you serious?

Are you always parked level?

In Arizona temps of 115 & 117?

What year & model is your rig, any modifications to the fridge?

[GallenH]

Originally Posted by themexicandoctor

Are you serious? Yup

Are you always parked level? Reasonably. Dometic says to keep part of the bubble in the center circle of a bubble level. It doesn't have to be perfect.

In Arizona temps of 115 & 117? Nope. It won't cut it in those temps. In general I get 50-60 degrees cooler than the outside air maximum. But we don't camp in PHX.....we escape PHX to the high country where it is cooler. So the night before we leave the outside temp getting down to 90(!) means in the morning the fridge is 30-40deg. We load up and head out getting to the high country within 5 hours or so.

What year & model is your rig, any modifications to the fridge?

1997 PleasureWay. Venting fans added. Battery operated fan inside.

best.glenn

[JohnnyFry]

The factory spec for leveling (from the Dometic Rep at FMCA rally) is ±3º side to side (of the fridge, in most installations that would be front to back of the vehicle) and ±6º front to back of the fridge.

Screaming hot weather is always problamatic: I have 2 fans in the space behind the fridge switched by the ARP controller and one inside the fridge on the fins running all the time. I also have 1 inch foil backed foam insulation on the inside of the body panel. I always run on gas and I still have trouble keep it inside the food safe range on hot days. It can run up to 48-49º if the side is in the sun. The fridge is a Dometic RM-2354 3 way (Gas, marginal and useless!)

[Nic7320]

It sounds like you should take a wok in the park.

[themexicandoctor]

Originally Posted by JohnnyFry

The factory spec for leveling (from the Dometic Rep at FMCA rally) is ±3º side to side (of the fridge, in most installations that would be front to back of the vehicle) and ±6º front to back of the fridge.

Screaming hot weather is always problamatic: I have 2 fans in the space behind the fridge switched by the ARP controller and one inside the fridge on the fins running all the time. I also have 1 inch foil backed foam insulation on the inside of the body panel. I always run on gas and I still have trouble keep it inside the food safe range on hot days. It can run up to 48-49º if the side is in the sun. The fridge is a Dometic RM-2354 3 way (Gas, marginal and useless!)

Maybe its just us owners of RM2354's whose units are particularly affected by days hotter than 75% & further compromised by imperfectly level street parking?

[themexicandoctor]

Its the a bizarre conversation with Dometic over my 8 years of ownership where in response to the reasons why our RM2354 units are not performing they repeat the one & only 5% Mantra.

Only recently* after being particularly dogged that they admitted that the 3 Way units are not a viable choice for my needs versus the imperfect conditions of urban street parking can they go to thier new mantra "Dometic have a new line of compressor type fridges that would suit your needs ..."

*since they became available as a Dometic product

[Nic7320]

Another option is to add a 12 volt chest type refrigerator between the two front seats.
This one fits in a Dodge Roadtrek or a MB Sprinter van (and probably a lot more):
Amazon.com: Whynter FM-452SG 45 Quart Slimfit Portable ...

[themexicandoctor]

FOR NIC,

I looked at that Whynter unit & their dual zone units (I wanted both the fridge & freezer).

https://www.amazon.com/Whynter-FM-45...74349749&psc=1

I don't know if you have already purchased it but its a power hog & real world use in southern states like California results in far greater amp draw than what is published, especially when you have two separate cooling needs.

This fact was explained naively to me by the ICECO Rep.

And of all the others DC Compressor units on the market & if I would choose one to go between my seats it would ONLY be the Engel MT45 Combination Fridge AND Freezer because of their amp hour efficiency & track record;

https://engelcoolers.com/collections...ble-car-fridge

But in the end I went with a traditional upright DC Novakool with the AC option because I cannot fit even the smaller Engel in the cut dimensions of the original Dometic 3 Way because the unit would need to be installed on a slide & it would extend 6-10 inches into my Aisle/Shower area.

Great idea (I just invested 20 minutes looking at all angles as to how I could make it work despite my modified Roadtrek setup), when I check the between seat option for even the Engel at 25.5 on my Roadtrek with;

1. The handles removed

2. With the center/dash console storage opened, it would extend at 25.5 inches, 3 inches past where on the Roadtrek there is a dropped floor of over two inches.

3. Therefore if I was to support all four legs I would need a 25.5 inch ply platform & then I have a second & third issue;

I removed the existing passenger seats out of my Roadtrek & installed at some expense Storage Cabinets for clothes on one side & Medical equipment on the other which preclude me from accessing the RV from the traditional side doors so the only way in is through the drivers or passenger seats & yhen a big 26 inch hurdle over the fridge itself.

The third issue being that whenever I wanted to access my fridge I would lose the Stealth aspect because the fridhe would require me to be in full view from the Windscreen.

4. The other concerns would be placing a fridge up front as the hottest part of the rig is up front because of the solar effect on the windows & my fan is in the middle of my rig - the cabinet doors restrict some hot air being exhausted by the Fantastic Fan because when I am in the rear of the unit by opening the cabinet doors, it gives me privacy.

5. There would be limited air flow around the business end of the unit.

[Nic7320]

I have both; the Whynter FM462SG, and the Iceco VL60S. I use the FM462 as a freezer in the cab, and it opens up facing the RV interior. The VL60 sits behind the passenger seat. So even with a curtain blocking off the cab (and the heat coming from the cab) I can access the freezer easily.

The Iceco rep may have led you astray. I find there isn't much difference between the power of these two single zone fridges. I run both off of solar with power to spare.

When I checked the power drain, it averaged 60 watts for both units running on 120 VAC (AC Watt-hours divided by total hours). And running off DC power is probably more efficient.

I did use some of the packing material for extra insulation. The VL60 came with a closed cell foam pad at the bottom of the box, so it was the right size, and it helps keep the unit from sliding around.

[themexicandoctor]

Thank you Nic.

Photos to come.

I tried to make this work.

I actually sent you a pm about a week ago asking for your performance figures of both units.

Where do you live or travel to?

The ICECO rep meant when you are not running the units as single zone units but as two separate colling systems ie; as one zone set for Freezer & the other set for Fridge that both the Whynter & Iceco units run the compressor more often.

When you say 60 watts you are talking about wattts per hour correct?

And that figure is to be split between 2 units, both the Whynyer & the Iceco correct, on AC correct?

Have you measured them independently?

And independently on DC?

Looking at the measurements of just a single zone VL60S I see that it would fit; 26.5*15*23.5

But if i wanted to address my needs for a Combination unit a VL60 or VL65DZ wouldn't fit; 31.1*18.3*18.7

So the unit wouldn't fit even between the 17.5 inches of my seat belt attachments & then it would hang over 9 inches & I would not be able to open my cabinet doors let alone tearing my hamstrings stretching over the unit from the driver's seat.

The measurements above are correct whereas even on the Iceco website, the measurements of a VL60DZ is listed incorrectly as only 26.5*15*23.5 because the dual zone units are longer & thicker.

[themexicandoctor]

This photo will be of value showing the Cabinets running to the back of the seats & drop off/lowered floor design of a Roadtrek 190.

I much prefer adding a Chest Dual Zone Refrigerator simply because of their efficiency. And only an Engel after much consideration. And the MTT45 after exhaustive research but the btween seat option is too much of a compromise.

But as I stated earlier, your great idea had me excited!

Unless I did away with the little Chevrolet Cubby up front ...

But isn't all that heat generated by the sun on the Windscreen simply difficult to vent out?

[Nic7320]

<quote> When you say 60 watts you are talking about wattts per hour correct?

And that figure is to be split between 2 units, both the Whynyer & the Iceco correct, on AC correct?

Have you measured them independently?

And independently on DC?
<End quote>

Watts are already a measure of the rate of energy transfer, so "watts per hour" is incorrect. Watts measure power, watt-hours are energy, and calculated by multiplying watts with hours. Units divide and cancel just like algebraic variables, i.e. WATT-HOURS (energy) divided by HOURS you measure over, gives you WATTS (average power). And this averages out the refrigerator's on-off cycles, if you take a long enough measurement.

I had them running direct off the 24 volt battery, but the fridge's shutdown voltage didn't agree with the 20 -24 VDC Tesla battery voltage range. It would shut down below 21.5 volts. So it was better to regulate the 24 volts down to a constant13.5 volts where it didn't have issues.

I can rewire them back to the solar controllers DC outputs, and get the history metrics you ask for, but that will take some effort.

I could also measure one unit on AC with the kill-a-watt meter, rather than measuring both.

DC operation is probably 5 or 10 percent better.

I'm about 80 miles north of you, near Santa Barbara. At least for the next few days.

[Pentex3]

[uQUOTE=themexicandoctor;111433]Have a 2005 Roadtrek 190 & waiting for the new DC Fridge to arrive - suddenly after years of owning & living with the vagaries of a 3 way Absorption Fridge I having starting to salivate on being able to keep an abundance of fresh vegetables, protein, etc in a reliable environment.

Starting dreaming about Wok Cooking.

Has anyone tried it before?

Is it even possible?

Too much smoke

Not enough space?

A fire risk?

Too much clean up?

Or is it too much of a compromise?

I am a Bachelor from 200 years ago so my cooking skills are described as Minimal at best.

Very interested in your learned opinions?[/QUOTE]



WOK cooking ois basically high heat with minimal oil but can generate a lot of cooking aromas you wouldn’t want to linger. I don’t think your cooktop will give enough BTUs to get the heat intensity needed so suggest you try this skill outside buying an electric Wok skillet to plug in. Good luvk!!

[themexicandoctor]

Thank you it looks like consensus is the only was I can cook anything properly with high heat, I need to be outside the rig.

Would work if I used Campsites but in Los Angeles, it wouldn't.

[Nic7320]

Originally Posted by themexicandoctor

Thank you it looks like consensus is the only was I can cook anything properly with high heat, I need to be outside the rig.

Would work if I used Campsites but in Los Angeles, it wouldn't.

Go to a public park and use a portable butane unit on picnic table.

So "Take a wok to the park". wasn't entirely... a joke.

[themexicandoctor]

If I went to most parks in LA, I wouldn't be alone - I be sharing my food like that Jesus guy ...

[rvsprinterguy]

Now, if you could just get your loaves and fishes to multiply like that guy did, you'd really be on to something.