Reefer unit fuel burn rate?

It varies. There are at least two modes on most units. Intermittent, or continuous run. Intermittent is generally used for less sensitive freight, and uses less fuel.

The amount of fuel can vary significantly, based on the type of reefer, the temperature setting, the outdoor temperature, the insulation of the box, and, of course the mode it is running in.

If you are seriously running the numbers, I would contact reefer manufacturers Carrier / Thermoking and get official information from them about their fuel usage. What you get from us, even if well-meaning, might not be accurate.

 

Whatever you have, it probably burns much less fuel then this blast from the past did ..

 

FWIW:

I topped off a newer Carrier 7500 X4 [in a 2018 trailer] today, roughly 24 hours after last top off. Running at 33F set point, continuous run mode, across Arizona and New Mexico and TX Panhandle. Put in 12 gallons ... so about 1/2 gallon per hour. It does defrost cycle every 6 hours, but otherwise ran low speed all the time. (A Carrier's low speed is more like a ThermoKing's mid speed)

 

These figures could very quite alot depending on the how cold your running the fridge van and how hot the temps are outside during summer if your running in the hotter states she's going to chew quite abit of fuel compared to running in the fall or winter only way your really going to know is when you actually start hauling and see how long a 50 gal tank of diesel lasts.

 

With the 2018 great dane i use i go through about .5 gallon per hour with doors closed and about 1 gallon per hour with doors open, wether im at 32 degrees or -10 degrees it doesn't seem to vary much when its at temp, the great danes are pretty well insulated, even with doors open on continous at -10 never really seems to burn much over a gallon per hour unless its like the 115 degree weather we had here 2 months ago

 

Rule of thumb for Ice Cream WAS , 1 gallon per hour at -20 Breyers / Gold Bond.
We never dropped a load in the yard ever or anywhere unattended.
Back before digital controls and satellite GPS temperature tracking , CDLs and ELDs.
It was a hold your breath nonstop run Green Bay to Sikeston that paid 3 times the headhaul rate out of GB.

 

Not necessarily.. Drive too slow and may not be there when you run out.

 

Rule of thumb I've seen is 1 gal/hr but like everyone else said it depends on how hot it is outside, if you're running start-stop vs continuous, what temps you're running, and how old your system is.