freeagent Posted April 22, 2006 Share Posted April 22, 2006 ok, i've got one of those plug in cool boxes, its a good one, made by Camping Gaz, but ive never used it when its been realy hot.. is it going to be any good on my Morroco trip this summer? or is it asknig to much of it.. i know its just a cooler and not a fridge, so it'll only cool to a certain amount bellow the ambient temp... or do i start mentioning the word Engel around the mrs.... and see what she thinks about us splashing out on one? there are some good deals on the 'bay at the mo, from a 4x4 place near brighton... cheers m@tt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve King Posted April 22, 2006 Share Posted April 22, 2006 They're fine for keeping food over the weekend, particularly if you stuff a freezer block or two in them before setting out. However I don't think they'd be much cop in Morocco. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simonr Posted April 22, 2006 Share Posted April 22, 2006 The solid state heat pumps they contain can achieve a max temperature difference of 70 degrees C. In practice however, inside a cool box, they will rarely do much better than 20. The reason? The heat sink on both the hot and cold side cannot transfer heat fast enough. Solution? Stick bigger fans on, particularly on the hot side. The closer you can get the hot heat sink to ambiant, the colder the cold side will be. In hot weather a couple of 6" computer fans to augment the (usually feeble) fans on the hot side will do wonders. Another fan on the cold side will help too - but just tends to make the contents cool faster rather than to a lower minimum temperature. Si Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dasterdly Posted April 22, 2006 Share Posted April 22, 2006 ok, i've got one of those plug in cool boxes, its a good one, made by Camping Gaz, but ive never used it when its been realy hot..is it going to be any good on my Morroco trip this summer? or is it asknig to much of it.. i know its just a cooler and not a fridge, so it'll only cool to a certain amount bellow the ambient temp... or do i start mentioning the word Engel around the mrs.... and see what she thinks about us splashing out on one? there are some good deals on the 'bay at the mo, from a 4x4 place near brighton... cheers m@tt evening, i drove to the south of spain last august, with a cooler type device in place of the centre seat in the defender, but i found that the unit generated quite alot of heat into the cab,via its external cooling fan,after it had been running all day ! the contents were kept cool though, had it been in the back of the vehicle it would have been ok, but then i wouldnt have been able to get at the contents whilst driving etc. the more expensive ones should be ok. cheers... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freeagent Posted April 22, 2006 Author Share Posted April 22, 2006 thanks guys, interesting idea Simon... i've got a few PC fans, as i hang on to everything 12V (sad i know) so you reckon if you place an extra fan over the 'exhaust' side it'll pull more air through and help cooling...? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hillbilly Raider Posted April 22, 2006 Share Posted April 22, 2006 check out Towsure they have a Weaco fridge/freezer at the mo for £189. just got one for our travels... not as good as the "E" (wont say the word incase your better half is listening!) and well under half the cost. Some say they arent much good but we are quite happy with it. HTH MANDY. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freeagent Posted April 22, 2006 Author Share Posted April 22, 2006 is this the one? http://www.towsure.com/product.asp?p=9679 its only available in 240V format.... which i guess is ok.. but i reckon running my inverter 24/7 might not do much for my batteries.... even though the 'house batteries' are not connected to the engine start batt unless the alternator is charging... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkieB Posted April 22, 2006 Share Posted April 22, 2006 I had one that I think of as a mini-fridge, although it sounds as though it is what you call a cool box, must have cost less than $60 from wal-mart, basically the size of a [normal non-electric] cool box, could fit maybe 6 bottles, didn't seem to have more than a basic heat pump on it, 12V, while travelling round the states, including the hottest parts; summer in Nevada, Arizona, Florida. kept food + drinks as cold as you would want them, would have stayed fresh for ages, although I eat & drink quicker than that no probs 'cept when you weren't driving, the power drain unless you've got a backup. I'd stick with what you've got, try to eat your food a bit quick is all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jamesm Posted April 22, 2006 Share Posted April 22, 2006 If you're camping, I recommend the Sibir fridge shown on this page. Runs on gas, 12v or 240v and keeps stuff cold even in hot weather. I've been very pleased with mine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hillbilly Raider Posted April 22, 2006 Share Posted April 22, 2006 is this the one?http://www.towsure.com/product.asp?p=9679 its only available in 240V format.... which i guess is ok.. but i reckon running my inverter 24/7 might not do much for my batteries.... even though the 'house batteries' are not connected to the engine start batt unless the alternator is charging... yes thats the one. you dont need to run it 24/7 as long as you keep the lid closed at night it should stay at a resonably cold temp till you start it up again in the morning. Even where you are going the temp drops at night, no matter how hot it is during the day. this way you dont drain the batteries. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bush65 Posted April 22, 2006 Share Posted April 22, 2006 The engel and danfoss (used by weaco and others) compressor units are among the most efficient. The 3-way (gas, 12V, 240V) are very poor. A 240V unit running from 12V using an invertor would be more demanding of the batteries, because inverters are not efficient. But there is more than compressor unit that should be considered. Does it have to be used as a freezer Insulation Top opening Durable construction and vibration isolation to withstand miles of corrugated roads Cooling air flow around the condensor - leave plenty of space Heat load where the fridge/freezer is kept - lots of window glass and poor ventilation is bad How often will the lid be opened The humidity and temperatures in the tropics place a big demand on refrigeration. The difference between day and night time temps does not change very much in the low latitudes and the fridge/freezer does not get a break over night. I use a custom built unit with danfoss compressor, 125mm thick insulation and 2mm aluminium casing. A 12mm plywood separator allows the bottom section to used as a freezer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cols110 Posted April 22, 2006 Share Posted April 22, 2006 Engel is the best, but best value for money has to be the Waeco, if you arn`t going to get either one of those I`d save your pennies, for something else that needs your cash, as travelling without a fridge really is`nt the end of the world. We have an engel permanently mounted in my 110 and I would be without it, but I spend 5 months travelling around Europe in summer without one, and once you get used to buying things like UHT milk etc, you dont even notice you dont have one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bathtub Posted April 24, 2006 Share Posted April 24, 2006 Ive use mine in this country & France it worked fine up to 80 Degrees But if you read the instructions on most of the plug in type they work but chilling -30 degrees below the outside temp or something like that . So in Morocco it wont work too well i think Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GBMUD Posted April 24, 2006 Share Posted April 24, 2006 The solid state heat pumps they contain can achieve a max temperature difference of 70 degrees C. In practice however, inside a cool box, they will rarely do much better than 20.The reason? The heat sink on both the hot and cold side cannot transfer heat fast enough. Solution? Stick bigger fans on, particularly on the hot side. The closer you can get the hot heat sink to ambiant, the colder the cold side will be. In hot weather a couple of 6" computer fans to augment the (usually feeble) fans on the hot side will do wonders. Another fan on the cold side will help too - but just tends to make the contents cool faster rather than to a lower minimum temperature. Si Never knew a 70 degree difference could be made! So, covering the heatsink in some slightly absorbant material and arranging a water drip onto it to keep it wet might help keep the temperature down by virtue of evaporation heat loss? With good fans and in a dry (low humidity) country like Morocco this could be a go-er. Not the most elegant solution but cheap and ideal for a student - especially if it should turn out effective! Chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FridgeFreezer Posted April 24, 2006 Share Posted April 24, 2006 I have a genuine LR fridge (which I'm pretty sure is Wabco with a LR sticker on it) and it's brilliant, not used it abroad but have used it locked in the 109 during a very hot summer and it kept frozen things frozen for an entire weekend (not bad for just a fridge) and didn't use much battery power, much more efficient than the "chillers". Don't know how much they cost though as I swapsied it, did rather well out of the deal too I reckon B) I found packing any spare space with freezer blocks helps keep the temperature constant even when you keep opening the lid, which keeps the load on the fridge down too. When I moved house I used it as a temporary fridge connected to an old car battery under the stairs, it went for about two/three days on a very tired metro battery if that's any indication. Manual says current draw is 3.9A but the motor runs less than 20% of the time in my experience so the average is more like ~1A, morocco may up that a bit I guess Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jules Posted April 24, 2006 Share Posted April 24, 2006 This is my brother site listing what was done for his trip round Aus were the temperatures are similar http://www.reads4x4.com/readying_the_90_for_australia.htm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reads90 Posted April 24, 2006 Share Posted April 24, 2006 This is my brother site listing what was done for his trip round Aus were the temperatures are similarhttp://www.reads4x4.com/readying_the_90_for_australia.htm As my Brother Jules has said we have an Engel and today it was 42 degress in the car and inside the fridge it was -0.5 So i would say they keep it pretty cool . They are surpose to work art about 40 Degrees below ambiant temparture. We are very happy with ours and the day time tempature has realy gone below 30 and the fridge still keeps the beer cold and the Steaks frozen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
will_warne Posted April 24, 2006 Share Posted April 24, 2006 I've got one of those 'cool box with a heat pump' things and its great for in the UK and Europe. IIRC it manages about 25 - 30 degrees below ambient so, as long as it doesn't get rediculously hot, it'll keep food and drinks cool. If you really want to push the boat out, the Engel's are excellant. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freeagent Posted April 24, 2006 Author Share Posted April 24, 2006 thanks for all the replys.. that thermal overcoat on Ali's fridge is very cool...... B) i'm gonna see how the cash flow goes, got a bit of money left over from selling the 110... but the words 'engagement ring' got mentioned last night.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bush65 Posted April 24, 2006 Share Posted April 24, 2006 Ah! - not so freeagent afterall Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reads90 Posted April 25, 2006 Share Posted April 25, 2006 ok, i've got one of those plug in cool boxes, its a good one, made by Camping Gaz, but ive never used it when its been realy hot..is it going to be any good on my Morroco trip this summer? or is it asknig to much of it.. i know its just a cooler and not a fridge, so it'll only cool to a certain amount bellow the ambient temp... or do i start mentioning the word Engel around the mrs.... and see what she thinks about us splashing out on one? there are some good deals on the 'bay at the mo, from a 4x4 place near brighton... cheers m@tt The important thing about fridges is to see how many amps it draws. As you need it to work all night and not just during the day when the car is on. The ones you get from Halfords and the like are ok for short trips, but draw alot of amps and therefore will drain your battery over night. The other thing is to remeber is to have a dual split charge battery system with the spare battery being a deep cical battery. We have this and our fridge was turned on in January and has not been turned off since . The othe usefull bits of kit are the engal Fridge temp indicator. This tells you what temp it is in the car and what temp it is in the Frideg so you know what temp the fridge is working at and if you need to turn it up or not. And a batery indicator to tell you when the battery is going to die or if it is getting charge. The fridges may be expansive but when it is 38 out side and you pull an ice cold beer or can of Coke out of the back the back it will seem really cheap and usefull bit of kit . Belive me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simonr Posted April 25, 2006 Share Posted April 25, 2006 I said that the heat pumps are capable of achieving a max differential temperature of about 70 degrees (which I stand by) The reason you do not achieve anything like that in practice is down to the efficiency of the heat sink at removing and getting rid of heat. The effectiveness of heat-sinks is usually quoted in degrees C per watt. If you had one that was say quoted as '1', i means that for every 1 watt of heat you stick in to it, you get a temperature rise of 1 degree C. The heat sinks they use for getting rid of the heat are generally pretty hopeless in terms of their rating - and are only improved by the use of a fan. One like this, without a fan, is quoted as 0.65 deg/wat. This is about the same size as the one in my cool box. An average heat pump is about 70W - so, without a fan, the heat-sink temperature will rise to 0.65 x 70 = 45.5 degrees. This gives a max temperature differential of 70 - 45.5 = 24.5 degrees A fan can roughly double that figure. If most people are only getting 30 deg difference - then, either the heat-sink is too small or the fan is somewhat under-rated for the job. Easiest answer - fit a bigger fan (on the exhaust is fine). You should be able to achieve a temperature drop inside of 10 to 20 degrees without too much trouble. The reason they fit little fans is a mixture of cost and noise. Do you want the sound of a jet engine in your truck? They do consume a fair bit of power (8A typically) - which is a problem overnight (flattening your batery). I use a Land Rover VSS (voltage sensitive switch), normally used in line with the rear window de-mist. It switches the de-mist off if the battery goes below about 11v - hopefully giving you enough to start the engine and not to damage the battery. These are very expensive to buy new - but only 50p or so at sodbury & the like (as they look just like a relay). You can identify them as they have VSS printed on the side. My box will run as long as it can and then switch off before the battery is dead. It's usually cool enough over night not to matter too much anyway. Si Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bush65 Posted April 25, 2006 Share Posted April 25, 2006 The important thing about fridges is to see how many amps it draws. As you need it to work all night... It is not that simple. What you need to know is amp hrs / 24 hrs (maybe that is what you meant) for your fridge. This depends upon more than the current draw. It depends upon the compressor efficiency (Engel and Danfoss are among the best), the cabinet design, the insulation, the ambient temp and humidity (and how both of these change over 24 hrs), how good the air circulation is around the cabinet (particularly the condensor), whether it is in direct sun, whether it is used as a freezer or fridge (or combination), how often they are opened to get drinks etc. and whether you are adding goods that need their temps brought down. Many fridges work well in higher latitudes (where they can be turned off overnight if you are camped for several days), but can't cut it in the humid tropics. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hillbilly Raider Posted April 25, 2006 Share Posted April 25, 2006 [quote name='Bush65' date='Apr 25 2006, 01:17 PM' post='53978' Many fridges work well in higher latitudes (where they can be turned off overnight if you are camped for several days), but can't cut it in the humid tropics. On Topic Did so want the Engel but couldnt afford it, hence why we went for the Weaco. The above comment is what we based our thinking on as we will mainly be in that situation. Regards Mandy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freeagent Posted April 25, 2006 Author Share Posted April 25, 2006 power hopefully wont be an issue, as i've got a pair of 110ah leisure batteries, charged via a merlin equipment voltage-sensitive relay... (VSR) i had this set-up in my 110 and it worked realy well. its basically a small version of a marine setup, engine start battery and 'house batteries' separated when the alternator isn't charging, and linked in parallel one the alternator is charging. I don't want to loose too much boot space in the new truck so might just fit one of the leisure batteries under the bonnet, rather than both in the back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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