<html><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"></head><body style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; line-break: after-white-space;" class="">HI Will,<div class=""><br class=""></div><div class="">Here are my recommendations</div><div class=""><br class=""></div><div class="">1. try to find out how loud it is. Most new ones are much louder than your old SF. Fans and all that. And they do run a lot of hours per day due to small compressor size.</div><div class=""><br class=""></div><div class="">2. get one that is repairable locally, much higher failures today than 10 years ago.</div><div class=""><br class=""></div><div class="">3. energy star</div><div class=""><br class=""></div><div class="">4. features that you want. The only features we\u2019ve got are ice maker. Love it and wouldn\u2019t get one without it. </div><div class=""><br class=""></div><div class="">5. As to defeating the defrost, if its even possible I would argue against doing that. While yes it uses more energy on any given day for auto defrost, overall unless you defrost often, ice is a wonderful insulator and it can and will end up using more energy to keep the freezer cold with an ice build up. And you won\u2019t be able to turn off the door seal heaters, defrosters in the fridge part etc. And heck isn\u2019t that also part of the fun of the new fridge, no defrost?</div><div class=""><br class=""></div><div class=""><br class=""></div><div class=""><br class=""></div><div class="">Happy shopping</div><div class=""><br class=""></div><div class="">jay</div><div class=""><br class=""></div><div class="">peltz power</div><div class=""><br class=""></div><div class=""><br class=""><div><br class=""><blockquote type="cite" class=""><div class="">On Sep 8, 2018, at 10:25 PM, Tom at wagonmaker <<a href="mailto:tom@wagonmaker.com" class="">tom@wagonmaker.com</a>> wrote:</div><br class="Apple-interchange-newline"><div class="">
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<div class="">Almost 25 years ago, when we built our off grid home, we looked at the
limited options then available one of which was the Sunfrost. After
looking into things like relative efficiency, initial purchase cost and system
requirements, it became pretty obvious that the Sunfrost was an overpriced
option that had too many problems. For half the cost we bought a Vestfrost
and then simply added a bit more generating capacity to our array at far
less than the difference in cost between the Vestfrost and the Sunfrost.
It was the best decision on appliances we ever made. The 120 vac Vestfrost
was a bit less efficient but since we were generating our own power that
difference was irrelevant as the cost to provide the necessary capacity to
handle the efficiency difference actually resulted in us saving money and also
gaining a very reliable appliance.<br class=""><br class="">That was then and the Vestfrost was
massively more efficient than the standard refrigerators then available.
Now, that model of Vestfrost is nowhere near as efficient as the newest Energy
Star compliant refrigerators available at most appliance stores. Don\u2019t
waste time or money searching for another DC refrigerator, there simply isn\u2019t
any benefit. It will be cheaper to buy off the shelf and if you have to
add a bit of generating capacity getting another panel on your system will be
way cheaper than than it was for us back in the day...and back then it was still
the better option.</div>
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<div class="">Tom</div>
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<div style="font-color: black" class=""><b class="">From:</b> <a title="will@solarenergy.org" class="">Will
White</a> </div>
<div class=""><b class="">Sent:</b> Saturday, September 8, 2018 3:20 PM</div>
<div class=""><b class="">To:</b> <a title="re-wrenches@lists.re-wrenches.org" class="">RE-wrenches</a>
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<div class=""><b class="">Subject:</b> [RE-wrenches] Off-grid refrigerator</div></div></div>
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<div class="">Hello Off-grid Wrenches,</div>
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<div class="">After 10+ years my Wife is finally sick of our Sunfrost RF-12. We'd like to
upgrade to something a little more modern that doesn't leak water all over the
floor when it's humid</div>
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<div class="">For you off-grid installers what's your go to refrigerator recommendation?
I'm going to go through the energy star website but I thought I'd consult with
the experts too. I'd like to find something that has a form factor similar to
the Sunfrost although I know that's going to be hard to find.</div>
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<div class="">Thanks,</div>
<div class="">Will White</div>
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<div dir="ltr" class=""><b style="FONT-SIZE: 12px" class="">Will White</b>
<div style="FONT-SIZE: 12px" class="">Curriculum Developer</div>
<div style="FONT-SIZE: 12px" class=""> </div>
<div style="FONT-SIZE: 12px" class=""><img src="https://docs.google.com/uc?export=download&id=12H3Cu2gnX7TKTeETn1WsYqa8cp6gsEj1&revid=0B7yAwArWHgPbNzhGK00wT0diY1c1NWhlRlNocDRVd045eTFjPQ" width="420" height="52" class=""><br class=""></div>
<div style="FONT-SIZE: 12px" class=""><span style="FONT-SIZE: 12px" class="">e: </span><a style="FONT-SIZE: 12px; COLOR: rgb(17,85,204)" target="_blank" class="">will@solarenergy.org</a><span style="FONT-SIZE: 12px" class=""> </span><br class=""></div>
<div class="">
<div style="FONT-SIZE: 12px" class=""><span style="FONT-SIZE: 12px" class="">w: <a style="COLOR: rgb(17,85,204)" href="http://www.solarenergy.org/" target="_blank" class="">www.solarenergy.org</a> </span></div>
<div style="FONT-SIZE: 12px" class="">p: 802-272-3092<br class=""></div>
<div style="FONT-SIZE: 12px" class=""><span style="FONT-SIZE: 12px" class=""><br class=""></span></div>
<div class="">
<div class="">PV Installation Professional</div>
<div class=""># 093006-34</div></div></div>
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<div class=""><p style="FONT-SIZE: 12px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0pt" class=""><font color="#666666" size="1" class=""><i class=""><span style="FONT-FAMILY: arial,sans-serif" class="">FACT: </span><span style="FONT-FAMILY: arial,sans-serif; LINE-HEIGHT: 10px" class="">If we covered 0.33% of
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change</a>.</font></span></font></p></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div><div class="">
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