insulated reefer lid

zdunc · **Joined:** 24 Sep 2013 09:20 **Posts:** 393

I agree Conch. I'll have my 2" piece of foam by the end of the week and hopefully work on it on the weekend or next week. Will post up on how it goes and hopefully get some advice from puffcard too.

puffcard · **Posted:** 20 Jul 2016 22:46

It was a pretty easy upgrade. The tools I had was a very sharp serrated knife, tape measure, metal framing square and two sided 3M 2in extreme mounting tape (20lb). On mine I still had the teak cutting board on it, so that needed to be removed. Rough cut two pieces of foam a little larger, so to sit on the flange. I use the factory edge in the middle, so they butt each other right at the lid seam. With one piece in place, come from under and mark the opening. Take your sharp knife and cut the outline out. You can use an electric knife and you can use sandpaper to smooth it out if needed. Place the the double sided tape one the foam, I went around the perimeter and two strips across the midsection. Set foam in the half of the opening and place lid on top. Reach from under and press foam with tape against the lid. Repeat for the other side.

You can also buy the minicell foam with the adhesive already on it, might make it easier. I'm not certain if 3M still makes the 2in tape anymore, only see the 1in now. But the tape does stick, not affected by moisture. The minicell is a great product and it holds up very well. I looked at a lot of different products before going that direction. Makes a huge difference, the refg runs a lot less and the temps are cold top to bottom. I know a guy who installs marine reefers and AC, he was impressed how well the box was insulated. Try to talk to me about adding fans before he checked it out, but they aren't needed.

conch · **Joined:** 21 Jan 2010 12:57 **Posts:** 168

Thanks for the "directions", Puffcard. Which brand of refridgeration do you have? Holding plate or evaporator/freezer? When I bought "Aurora" there was a 110volt compressor + holding plate. I like the concept of the "Isotherm" unit w/Danfoss compressor that uses the galley sink thru hull as a heat exchanger. So many options it confuses the poor boy.
Aurora - on the Piankatank summer, Fla keys winter

zdunc · **Joined:** 24 Sep 2013 09:20 **Posts:** 393

Thanks for the directions. I've got the teak cutting board too. Why do you need to remove it? For ease of access to draw on the bottom? Not at the boat and can't picture it. Did you put the board back on after?

puffcard · **Posted:** 22 Jul 2016 08:13

We have the Adler/Barbour ColdMachine, nice unit. We kept the freezer frozen packed all winter, it also kept up with the ice making. The large cube silicone ice trays are perfect, two fit in the bottom of the freezer.

The wood cutting board overlaps the lids and makes an uneven surface for adding the insulation. You'll see once you look at it again. Used my teak block under a small safe in the locker just forward of the nav station. It got the safe up so the door could swing fully open.

conch · **Joined:** 21 Jan 2010 12:57 **Posts:** 168

Jeez, do I feel like a dunce: I didn't realize that was a cutting board. Thought it was a cleat. Duh...

zdunc · **Joined:** 24 Sep 2013 09:20 **Posts:** 393

I got my foam in and checked the fridge and see what you mean about it. What you are saying is it will raise the lid above the level of the rest of the counter, right? So, not so much because I care about the cutting board, but because I'm interested in having a larger flat work area in the kitchen, I'm thinking of trimming the foam so that it goes over and down the lip and keeps the lids flush with the rest of the counter (like a "T" shaped lip around the whole edge). Obviously, would reduce interior fridge space by the distance of the lip (give or take, about an 1"). The difficulty will be trimming it just right so that I get a good seal all around. May abandon this idea if don't think it will be plausible once I start laying it all out. Any thoughts?

puffcard · **Posted:** 26 Jul 2016 20:50

My lids are flush to the counter top. The foam goes inside on the bottom of the lid and you want it to fit into the recess. I'll take some pics. When I swing up the lid you can hear it pulling a vacuum.

zdunc · **Joined:** 24 Sep 2013 09:20 **Posts:** 393

Ok. Got ya. Yeah, pics would help out. I guess what is throwing me off is the need to remove the cutting board. With the insulation on the bottom of the lids and the cutting board on the top of the lids, I'm not seeing how they interfere. Everything else described is how I originally thought. Thinking there is a need to remove the cutting board has me going all kinds of crazy ways. Very Happy

zdunc · **Joined:** 24 Sep 2013 09:20 **Posts:** 393

Finally got around to tackling this project. More detailed pics here: http://funonholiday.com/index.php/2016/ ... e-reefer/. Went very well. I followed puffcard's directions and ended up with a vacuum seal too. I didn't end up needing to remove the cutting board. My set up must be different. Hinged lid on the port side and lid on the starboard side pulls out after you open the hinged door to port. cutting board on starboard lid overlapping counter outboard of reefer. Didn't seem to be in the way of anything. One thing I did different was off set the seam so that it wasn't directly below the seam of the lids. I did this by marking the seam between the lids on the fridge lip, then making another mark 1/2 inch to port and using that as my guide for trimming. Also, since my port side lid is hinged, I had to trim back the lower lip of the foam opposite the hinge to make closing and opening easier. Let me know if anyone is attempting and has any questions. Zach

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insulated reefer lid

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