Fridges

[Nonimouse]

I'm really pleased with the Alpicool. It does what it says on the tin.  I've been very sad and downloaded the app, so I can check up on it

[L19MUD]

1 hour ago, Nonimouse said:

I'm really pleased with the Alpicool. It does what it says on the tin.  I've been very sad and downloaded the app, so I can check up on it

Think this is what I am going to buy. Do you have a link to the model you have please?

[Nonimouse]

6 minutes ago, L19MUD said:

Think this is what I am going to buy. Do you have a link to the model you have please?

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Alpicool-Refrigerator-Portable-Campervan-Electric/dp/B091KYMC5G/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?adgrpid=126874395064&gclid=Cj0KCQjwspKUBhCvARIsAB2IYuuupA7MiN9KaKUUvzpeO3QqPwQKTmNknPcZQEEB3Xsjl-rzDeICEFwaAl5-EALw_wcB&hvadid=510026603925&hvdev=c&hvlocphy=9041126&hvnetw=g&hvqmt=e&hvrand=961074662370939413&hvtargid=kwd-930264628201&hydadcr=7036_1761131&keywords=alpicool%2B45l&qid=1652882253&sr=8-1-spons&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEyNjJEWFhBQzFLTTcwJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwMjg3NzM0MktNNEgzTlFGTUtYUSZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwMjE3ODY0MTkyWEJLN0hUVlM3WSZ3aWRnZXROYW1lPXNwX2F0ZiZhY3Rpb249Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU&th=1

when you set it up, after letting it sit level for a while, you will find yourself sitting next to it, watching the temp on your phone, via the app

 

[Bowie69]

And this is mine, dual zone:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Alpicool-Freezer-Portable-Refrigerator-Electric/dp/B091KXZZ6Q/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?crid=1U55KLNHDD6G4&keywords=alpicool+t60&qid=1652894738&sprefix=alpicool%2Caps%2C104&sr=8-3

 

I had the one Nonimouse has now, but thought twice and went for the twin zone slightly bigger one, so I can have plenty of BBQ meat in the freezer, and bring home local ice cream and other local goods when I've been away on hols.

[reb78]

They are good prices and some confidence given they are recommended from experience by folk on here. 

[Bowie69]

Had mine running for weeks now, all good.

And the app is addictive, when you couple that to a Bluetooth solar charge controller you barely have time for looking forums.

[tommobot]

Just for the future, I'm curious how you guys have wired them in? Is it a direct (fused) feed to battery or just off a cig / usb port?

[reb78]

Mine has a 12v socket in the back fed from the aux battery.

When I originally got it though we went touring round France for two weeks before I had time to install extra batteries etc. I made an extension to run to the front of the car and the 12v sockets there so it was powered off of the starter battery. I think we ran it for four days without starting the car and the battery still fired the engine up first turn of the key.

I had slung a spare fully charged 12v battery in the back just in case but I didnt need it. I have one of those USB jump packs now for the just in case occasions.

[Bowie69]

The alpicool comes with a cigar lighter plug on a long lead, I fitted a new socket in my camper where I wanted to use it. 

It's only 60W when running, so the socket is only running about 50% of capacity. 

[L19MUD]

The 45 is £240 on amazon currently (with voucher), the 60 £310. I have gone for the 55 which is the bigger brother of the 45 without wheel like the 60 that I don't need. That is currently £260 with the voucher

The way I will use it in 90% of cases is to fill it with food whilst running on 240v at home and get it down to temperature, 12v off a socket in the back of the 90 on the trip to camping and then straight back to 240v. 

[Bowie69]

Just to clarify  there are two version of the CF range, one with an LG compressor, and one not. Depending on your power setup the choice of compressor is possibly important. I think the LG version is about £30 more.

If you are running on 240 when camped, then obviously that's fine

The T60 was £310 last night, but there was a £30 voucher, making it £280. The T range all have LG compressors.

[L19MUD]

9 minutes ago, Bowie69 said:

Just to clarify  there are two version of the CF range, one with an LG compressor, and one not. Depending on your power setup the choice of compressor is possibly important. I think the LG version is about £30 more.

If you are running on 240 when camped, then obviously that's fine

The T60 was £310 last night, but there was a £30 voucher, making it £280. The T range all have LG compressors.

Probably does not matter but that is annoying, there is nothing whatsoever on the Amazon listings I have looked at to indicate one has a different spec compressor from the other? If the CF

 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Alpicool-Refrigerator-Portable-Campervan-Electric/dp/B091KYMC5G/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?adgrpid=126874395064&gclid=Cj0KCQjwspKUBhCvARIsAB2IYuuupA7MiN9KaKUUvzpeO3QqPwQKTmNknPcZQEEB3Xsjl-rzDeICEFwaAl5-EALw_wcB&hvadid=510026603925&hvdev=c&hvlocphy=9041126&hvnetw=g&hvqmt=e&hvrand=961074662370939413&hvtargid=kwd-930264628201&hydadcr=7036_1761131&keywords=alpicool%2B45l&qid=1652882253&sr=8-1-spons&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEyNjJEWFhBQzFLTTcwJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwMjg3NzM0MktNNEgzTlFGTUtYUSZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwMjE3ODY0MTkyWEJLN0hUVlM3WSZ3aWRnZXROYW1lPXNwX2F0ZiZhY3Rpb249Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU&th=1

 

The link here shared by Nonimouse has both the CF45 version he has and the CF55 I have orded.....no way of telling if the compressor is different

[Bowie69]

3 minutes ago, L19MUD said:

Probably does not matter but that is annoying, there is nothing whatsoever on the Amazon listings I have looked at to indicate one has a different spec compressor from the other?

Ah, it seems the LG version is out of stock, no doubt due to the global shipping market issues:

Alpicool CF45 Car Refrigerator, 45L Portable Mini Freezer 12v Campervan Car Fridge Boat DC Electric Cooler for Camping, Driving, Boat, Picnic : Amazon.co.uk: Automotive

The difference is shown by the sticker, and the small price hike.

Either that or I suppose it is possible they have now switched over to LG for all of them???

 

[L19MUD]

2 minutes ago, Bowie69 said:

Ah, it seems the LG version is out of stock, no doubt due to the global shipping market issues:

Alpicool CF45 Car Refrigerator, 45L Portable Mini Freezer 12v Campervan Car Fridge Boat DC Electric Cooler for Camping, Driving, Boat, Picnic : Amazon.co.uk: Automotive

The difference is shown by the sticker, and the small price hike.

Either that or I suppose it is possible they have now switched over to LG for all of them???

 

Ah I see. I found elsewhere that the other compressor comes with a 3 year warranty. The power consumption is much less important for me so hopefully it will do what I want

[Bowie69]

Just now, L19MUD said:

hopefully it will do what I want

No doubt, makes a huge difference having cold stuff on hand without having to worry about gas running out (which is what I moved from).

FWIW, I think the CF range is possibly slightly better made -the lid for example snaps down nicely with a proper clip holding it shut, the T series lid is more lightweight and relies on just a couple of tangs. The rest of the fridge is almost identical in build, same plastics and most likely same insulation.

[Nonimouse]

I was sold on the three year warrantee

[Peaklander]

My Dometic CFX35 ‘Coolfridge’ pictured earlier in the thread, is working hard. It’s very hot here in Andalucia, >30C for a few days but it is performing well.

It’s the best camping accessory / upgrade we have ever bought, transforming warm weather camping. 

Edit: it’s been in for five or six years. Wired to the Aux battery  and solar panel controller, through a distribution fuse box and on a flying lead with cig lighter connector (with 20A fuse) that seems to be high quality. 

[Bowie69]

So.... thought I would bring some SCIENCE to the party.... running from the 'load' port on my solar controller, I have had the Alpicool T60 running for weeks now, -12C in the freezer section, and target of 4C in the fridge section.

The final figure on all of the following graphs is for today, hence the low numbers, as today is not yet over

Firstly, daily power usage:

 

Note, I said 'Power' this is in watt-hours or kilowatt-hours, just like your house. To use amp-hours to measure power use is not that helpful, as the voltage of the battery changes with load/charge state and therefore messes with the calculations. e.g. power = volts * amps, so power = 12.5V * 10A = 125W, but if the battery voltage was 11.5V * 10A = 115W. Quite a difference....

So Watts are very useful here, but sometimes knowing your 110Ah battery has been depleted by 30Ah is also quite useful, as it gives a dead-reckoning feel to things. Will come back to this later, as I have data....

Next...  Daily power generation: 

 

This is fairly constant, and I think proves my solar set up is more than adequate for running the fridge -it is always generating more than is used (from the previous power use graph), the difference I assume to be charging losses in the battery. Remind of setup: 2*100W Renogy panels and 20A Renogy MPPT smart charge controller. Also note that power generation can never be more than the battery and fridge consume, so it is quite possible the setup can produce more than shown in the graph above.

So now to move to the 'amp-hour' graphs, which may help some peeps more:

First,  daily discharge Ah :

 

And..... daily total charge Ah:

 

Very similar shapes to the previous two graphs, nothing else to really takeaway from them, I think?

 

Moving on to peak discharge power, as measured by the load port:

 

 

The only thing that is running off this at the moment is the fridge, and a USB socket with nothing plugged into it. Fridge is specced as 60W peak, the values above this I presume to be start up current, which is expected.

Next, something that is interesting for the solar gurus out there, daily peak solar charge power:

 

The 200W panels have managed a peak of 191W, which is honestly a bit surprising, I am somewhat sceptical of 191W, but certainly I have been seeing regular peak charge numbers above 150W, and the fact the battery is getting charged says it is a pretty efficient set up. I'm sure the MPPT controller really helps here.

Final two are Max/min battery voltage, note that the min will be the on-load voltage, not float, so is not indicative of the state of charge. The important bit is whether it is switching the fridge off at 9V or not, which I am happy to say it is NOT:

 

 

A note on the 'Max' graph, when charging, the controller has a 'boost' mode which gives the battery a bit of a kicking, in order to try and prolong its life.

So... conclusions:

• Fridge uses ~400Wh daily, when just left running
• Solar system seems more than adequate
• My old knackered 32Ah capacity battery was very borderline, and the new 110Ah really isn't, should run the fridge 2-3 days without any solar input.
• Cold snacks are great.

One unknown is the power use when adding room temp stuff to the fridge, to that end I have added 4 litres of room temp water to the, and will be able to see any increase in power use when I grab more data tomorrow.

That will give us the two answers that every one is after:

• How long will it take to cool my beer?
• How much power does that take?

 

Will report back tomorrow.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Bowie69]

So, after adding 4 litres of water to the fridge, it used nothing more I could consider being significant, it was ~420Wh, which was the same as on the previous two days.

Make of that what you will, but maybe it means chilling beer is free? 

 

One can hope.

[Bowie69]

Also, I'm away with this for a week from Sunday, will report back after 😀

[Bowie69]

Well, what a lovely week in Cornwall, dry every day except the day I left (Saturday), fairly constant temp 16-18C, and got some good day to day running data.

So a few key figures while running 4C fridge and -12C freezer:

• Power use went up as expected to between 450Wh and 530Wh, or about 40Ah
• Solar system never failed to keep up, fully charging each day easily, even on one of the more overcast days

The final two days I switched the freezer compartment to 4C, as I wanted to defrost the remaining food in there for barbecuing, this dropped power usage to around 250Wh or 20Ah per day. Pretty significant, though on balance not unexpected.

The fridge was quiet, and kept things at just the right temp, only issue was when I failed to pull the curtain late in the day, and the outside of the fridge was hot to the touch(!), that pushed the power usage up a bit -so yes, as someone above mentioned, shade is a significant factor in power use.

All in all very happy with it, and the solar set up. If running in fridge mode I could get maybe 4-5 days out of my 110Ah battery without any charge, albeit dropping the voltage lower than ideal, but it would do it. With solar, I am pretty certain there would be no issues to run it permanently like this. If running in just fridge mode, very much suspect 100W panel would be sufficient, especially in summer, freezer, maybe.....? 200W feels safer.

Hope that's useful

 

 

[tommobot]

I've manged to get hold of an Alpicool CF45 with the LG compressor, happy with it so far.

Its been running 24/7 for just over a week via a 150w solar panel and a 85ah lesiure battety without issue and without starting the car at all which I was very impressed with!

At the moment I'm not using the fridge, should I still be running it? - Or leaving it cranked open slightly to breath when not in use? - Thoughts please.

[Nonimouse]

16 minutes ago, tommobot said:

I've manged to get hold of an Alpicool CF45 with the LG compressor, happy with it so far.

Its been running 24/7 for just over a week via a 150w solar panel and a 85ah lesiure battety without issue and without starting the car at all which I was very impressed with!

At the moment I'm not using the fridge, should I still be running it? - Or leaving it cranked open slightly to breath when not in use? - Thoughts please.

Ideally leave it slightly open, or you can put a few silica gel capsules in there and leave it shut

[Bowie69]

Impressive, and in line with my experience.

And yes, no need to run it all the time, and leave it cracked to avoid condensation - a wipe down with anti-mould kitchen spray helps to stop any bits you missed while cleaning it turning into green fuzz.

[Anderzander]

Wow - great data Bowie. I had missed those.

Amazing how close to states output your panels are ….  A good indictment of the brand perhaps.