Engel Fridge

[Rev]

Anyone here run an Engel or ARb fridge/freezer or anything similar?

How do you like it?

I'm seriously considering ditching the old cooler and ice set up for my camping adventures. Not sure where to buy in Canada though.

[Xtrapol8]

Hilarious avatar, Reverend.

[Pezzy]

We have a Coleman fridge, which works well for us. Usually run it all day when we are wheeling, and then turn it off after we're camped for an hour or so. It will drain a battery pretty quick. If we leave it running while sitting, we typically run the truck every couple of hours to recharge.

[deeker]

Another brand to check out is National Luna. http://www.nationalluna.com/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

They got some very good reviews from the folks at Overland Journal. I've been tempted by the whole fridge idea many times. Up to this point I have been of a strong will... just not sure how long this can last!

[Scotto]

Rev's avatar made me choke on my Fruit Loops.

[Rev]

Thanks Xtrapol8. Should that be the title of Sunday’s sermon? Could you imagine that on the church sign out front? (we put the sermon title on the sign each week).

Pezzy, that is exactly why I’m thinking of biting the bullet and spending some significant scratch on a good fridge. I’d like to let it go for 8 hours at night with no worries about starting in the am.

Thanks Deek, I’ll check it out. I wonder if they have dealers in Canada.

Scotto, that would be a horrible way to die! Sorry, I should have warned you.


Ninja Asshat Assasin out.

[Bender]

Its an oldie, but it still is funny!


I would love one of those fridges, but I have seen people at AW or where ever, kill their battery cause they ran it too long, or forgot to unplug it/run the vehicle. Major downside IMHO.

[Rev]

Really? Were they the good Engel and ARb type fridges? The guys at Expedition Portal claim to run them all day with little problem.

[Bender]

I don't know what brand they were, but I can't see running a fridge for hours with out the vehicle running. I don't want to be bothered to have to remember to start the truck every so often. I think I will invest in one of those coleman xtreme coolers before anything that plug's in.

http://www.colemancanada.ca/Catalog/COO ... n.products" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Rev]

Well that is what they report with the high end fridge, that it runs for days and draws very very low power.

I'm just so done with ice chests. I'm done with soggy bread and water logged cheese slices.

[Jayman]

I like the idea of having a cooler that plugs in to the AC outlets in the truck, keeping things cold while the truck is running.

It makes everything last that much longer when camping and what not.

That was one of the things that I found at the Adventure weekend this past year, was that by the time Monday rolled around, nothing in my cooler was the least bit cold anymore.

Having something that plugs into a power outlet is very handy.

Of course, I hear what you are saying Jay, if the cooler is plugged in and running, but teh truck is not, I would not want to have to think about starting the truck every couple of hours in order to NOT get stranded...

[Pezzy]

We usually leave the cooler off over night, when it's cooler outside. As long as everything is really cold when we shut it down, it's still cold in the morning. (that said, you gotta plan ahead, make sure you have enough cold beers to last the night!)

I think my cooler has left us with a dead battery twice... and we're never stranded... we're camping with a bunch of guys with trucks!

[Bow_Tied]

Those cooler from south africa look nice. If someone finds a local dealer, let me know.

I think this is the kinda of thing that make dual batteries sweet.

[Rev]

I've done some more looking around and everyone who runs the high end fridge says it can run 2-3 days without a recharge so long as you set it above freezing. The Engel 45 draws 0.7 - 2.5 Amps per hour. A larger truck batter can easily handle that over night and then some. I'm sold. I just need to find one cheap.

[Nd4SpdSe]

Wondering if maybe if your that serious, to maybe look at getting a second battery. I don't know what the second gen's can do for mouting a second battery, but maybe look at getting one of those small Optima batteries in deep cycle, the D31A, and squeeze that somewhere, maybe have a temporary mount setup with the fridge, and run it with an isolator, so if you kill the battery, you won't kill the one that starts the truck.

*Edit. It seems that there's a Diehard Platinum 31M PM-1 battery of the same size that has a 205RC as opposed to the Optima's 155RC, but I don't believe it's a deep cycle, so it wouldn't handle the constant discharge as well.

[mookie]

Really? Were they the good Engel and ARb type fridges? The guys at Expedition Portal claim to run them all day with little problem.

You are correct. With the ARB and other high end ones, you can leave plugged in all day/night with very, very minimal battery draw. Under $200.00 vs. 700.00 -1200 I guess. Another point, with the ARB you can leave unplugged for many hours and it will remain cold unlike the others which cool off in a matter of a few hrs. That was the selling feature for me - not that I have bought one, but I've justified it I think...?!

A guy in the club went in with a group buy and they ordered from the states. 750.00 and I think that included the mounting shoe. At the Off Road Expo, they had the "Expo price only" for still around 1000 or slightly higher - no real savings at all.

The Coleman Cooler Bender has his eye on is fantastic...but it keeps freezing some of my food over night so I only use it for camping in July or non Mountain camping.

[Pezzy]

750.00

egads!

[mookie]

750.00

egads!

Yah, *sigh*...I'm sold on them, but won't be closing the deal for a looooooonnnggg time.

[Rev]

Ya they are pricey. We decided not to buy a trailer though, so a good tent, screen house, and cooler will cost a lot less than the money we would have spent on a trailer. We will be camping at least four times this summer, at least once for a week, plus who knows what road trips may come up, or wheelinge vents where the fridge would be great. So i think a solid fridge would get a lot of use and pay for itself time and again in convenience and functionality.

nd4spd, I am going to look at a second battery, but all I have seen in that regard for the 2nd gen X is in the trunk. Not interested in that.

[Rev]

I don't know if they ship to Canada, but here http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/s ... hp?t=23350" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; I found a thread suggesting that this http://www.compactappliance.com/FP430-C ... s-Freezers" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; is a suitable and much cheaper version of an Engel or Arb fridge. They have tried it out and find it works well.