Fridge (and accessory) recommendations (7 Viewers)

[1world1love]

Probably too late to matter but I have to agree with @TeCKis300 - a smaller fridge will be more suitable for most people. We have a 55L and more times than not, we are not using all the space or we put things in that don’t need to be just to make use of the space (usually bread).

We buy and pack to optimize for the most precious resources - space and energy. We keep everything in ziplock or vacuum packed, and freeze everything we can. While a frozen ribeye may not be the absolute best at home, it does a damn good job helping to keep beer cold while it thaws for the next days dinner at camp. It also helps the fridge work less.

In most cases, things can either be frozen or do not need refrigeration in the first place.

I think 55L is probably good for a family of four, but two people could easily do 35L.

 

[CharlieS]

My 2 cents and it would seem against the grain here.

I prefer a compact <50 qt single zone fridge. It's easy to get caught up in more - capacity, dual zones, features. At the end of the day, it's one dimension of the trip loadout, which will have to be traded with other parts for space utilization, weight, ergonomics, and importantly power (which then drives the need for more batts/charging/solar).

As with most things, it's a balance and less can be more.

Instead of more capacity, I try to pack more efficiently. Using ziplocks, vacuum sealers. I may not be able to load all my drinks at once but it's a fridge and will cool drinks when rotated in.

I have an Iceco 42 and it's all I need.

Same, we have the 50 liter for the reasons you mentioned.

 

[CharlieS]

Have had my Waeco CF40 in the back of my 80 series since 2005, never missed a beat and still works perfectly
Recently picked up a dual zone 75L which I only use for longer trips with the family

whichever fridge you go for modify the power lead to use an Anderson Plug

Anderson or Powerlet plugs make so much sense in this application. Positive engagement is key - the last thing you want is the cigar plug coming loose and losing power on a hot day. The NL comes with the Powerlet.

 

[mdh384]

I think 55L is probably good for a family of four, but two people could easily do 35L.

Partner and I did a 3 week trip and our 35L was great. Easily holds enough food and beer for 4-5 days, repackaging in ziplocs to minimize wasted space. One nice thing was the ability to keep beer/wine/water stashed elsewhere in the vehicle, and add those containers to the fridge on an as needed basis.

 

[linuxgod]

Probably too late to matter but I have to agree with @TeCKis300 - a smaller fridge will be more suitable for most people. We have a 55L and more times than not, we are not using all the space or we put things in that don’t need to be just to make use of the space (usually bread).

We buy and pack to optimize for the most precious resources - space and energy. We keep everything in ziplock or vacuum packed, and freeze everything we can. While a frozen ribeye may not be the absolute best at home, it does a damn good job helping to keep beer cold while it thaws for the next days dinner at camp. It also helps the fridge work less.

In most cases, things can either be frozen or do not need refrigeration in the first place.

I think 55L is probably good for a family of four, but two people could easily do 35L.

Never too late!

I’m one of those who puts bread in the cooler if there’s space. But I’ve also found it lasts a lot longer in the cooler than in a plastic bin in the vehicle when somewhere hot like Moab.

I have a tendency when packing food to generally plan out meals but not plan so tightly as to use everything up every few days. So something like bread or fruit I like keeping cool and knowing it’ll be good 6 or 7 days into the trip. It sucks to be 4 days into a trip and overnight in the desert and find the bread and grapes have mold on them. Speaking from experience.

Also the difference in 55L vs 65L fridges is mostly length. Since I’m not going to mount the fridge way back and load gear in front, and I’m not going to try to stack anything behind it except stuff which is permanent for the trip (like the ecoflow) because it’s inaccessible, a slightly longer fridge isn’t a big deal.

 

[linuxgod]

Anderson or Powerlet plugs make so much sense in this application. Positive engagement is key - the last thing you want is the cigar plug coming loose and losing power on a hot day. The NL comes with the Powerlet.

Yeah I have to admit it didnt occur to me when I ordered the Ecoflow River 2 that the 10A DC output is cigarette lighter and then it has two 3A barrel plug outputs. So I probably need to bind them in parallel to get 12V 6A. It’s still not quite the Anderson connector but should be more reliable than a cigarette lighter socket.

 

[TheIcemanCometh]

In preparation I ordered a refurbished Ecoflow River 2 as they're $300 through ebay right now (EcoFlow RIVER 2 Pro 768Wh Portable Power Station LFP Certified Refurbished | eBay - https://www.ebay.com/itm/145074928569). Props to that 20% off sale. I plan to run the fridge off that and run that off a switched circuit so as to avoid running down my starter battery.

Given the huge number for sale as being refurbished by the mfg I would want to know why there are so many as that is a red flag for me.

 

[TimCFJ40]

Isn't that the truth. Funny how Dometic has less than a shiny reputation in the RV market but they are almost the default for RV gear.

Lowest possible price drives the vast majority of the RV market, and Dometic has figured out how to meet that need, quality or not. As I am sure you have seen, everything that goes into most RVs is lower quality than even builder's spec products for the non-portable housing market....

 

[rlynch356]

IMHO... Anderson plugs are the way to go with 12v power out's for the fridge and other bits (I have 2 Dual Anderson plugs in my truck, one for the fridge (or 2 fridges are possible... ) and the other for stuff like my 12v electric blanket, Karibe water heater pump and whatever else, I just convert the cords to Anderson plugs.

Quick, easy, universal.

I use a 50L National Luna fridge, but also have an ARB and can support both if needed.

 

[1world1love]

Have had my Waeco CF40 in the back of my 80 series since 2005, never missed a beat and still works perfectly
Recently picked up a dual zone 75L which I only use for longer trips with the family

whichever fridge you go for modify the power lead to use an Anderson Plug

Maybe I am not visualizing things correctly, but how does the conversion to anderson work in this context. I have a 12v power cable for my fridge that has a proprietary connector on the fridge side and a cigarette plug on the power end. The battery has a female cigarette for 12v out.

So where do the andersons go?

Seems like the problem that @CharlieS is describing where the 12v cigarette comes loose is still a problem on the battery side.

Unless you have on-board power where you have more flexibility.

 

[CharlieS]

I think some battery packs have Anderson connectors built in? Or maybe I was just assuming that.

And yes, you are describing the problem that I was referring to of the connector coming out of the power source side. I have both cigarette/cigar and Powerlet connectors in my cargo panels to preserve options.

 

[staggrlee]

No matter what brand you go with, probably the most important, and frequently overlooked, thing to consider is the quality of the power at the fridge. Typically this is a long cable run from the front to back and the wiring is often undersized and leads to inefficient operation and premature shut down of the fridge -- well before your battery has entered its danger zone. It's not about the amperage carrying capability of the cable, it's the resistance and voltage drop.

Even a .5V drop from source to fridge is huge when considering the voltage range for fully charged to shutdown. Try to get your power source as close to the fridge as possible and use the shortest length of quality oxygen-free (i.e. marine rated) heavy gauge cable that you can. This means either a DC-DC charger & battery in the rear, or a portable power station. Barring that I would run no less than 4-6ga from under the hood. The most expensive fridge in the world is still subject to Ohm's Law.

 

[robnicko]

Maybe I am not visualizing things correctly, but how does the conversion to anderson work in this context. I have a 12v power cable for my fridge that has a proprietary connector on the fridge side and a cigarette plug on the power end. The battery has a female cigarette for 12v out.

So where do the andersons go?

Seems like the problem that @CharlieS is describing where the 12v cigarette comes loose is still a problem on the battery side.

Unless you have on-board power where you have more flexibility.

I remove the cigarette plug from the fridge lead and solder in an Anderson plug. I have two anderson plugs in the back of my 80 Series that are connected to the 2nd battery in the engine bay

They provide a much better transfer of power and do not work their way loose when off-roading

 

[linuxgod]

Given the huge number for sale as being refurbished by the mfg I would want to know why there are so many as that is a red flag for me.

No idea but they provide a 2 year warranty on the refurbs. I have a buddy who bought a used Ecoflow Delta 2 and loves it.

The big question for me is can I use both DC5521 ports and tie them to a single anderson connector to get 12V/6A instead of two independent 12V/3A outlets. When the time comes I'm going to try it because physics says it should work, hopefully I don't short anything...

 

[UPR LC]

My vote for Dometic 55L fridge, I would not go bigger. Benefit is the fridge will make ice cubes for mixed drinks

I have used my fridge for 5+ years with no issues, knock on wood.

I don't know if you shop at REI, but they sell Dometic and you can use your rewards / coupons on fridges.

Just to note, the fridge needs to have air space to exhaust the compressor heat. There was a pic of a packed rear trunk, you will want to make sure there is ventilation space.

I have a simple setup in the cruiser, starter battery to a Bluesea panel in the back trunk (I use thick wire to minimize loss). If I am driving during the day, battery is fine. If I am parked for a long time I deploy a portable 100W solar panel that I connect directly to the starter battery (with charge controller), solar panel is good for ~5amps and fridge uses on average 1 amp of power.

I have a lithium jump pack in the car just in case of dead battery (fridge or not).

 

[TeCKis300]

No idea but they provide a 2 year warranty on the refurbs. I have a buddy who bought a used Ecoflow Delta 2 and loves it.

The big question for me is can I use both DC5521 ports and tie them to a single anderson connector to get 12V/6A instead of two independent 12V/3A outlets. When the time comes I'm going to try it because physics says it should work, hopefully I don't short anything...

From what I remember from my friends Ecoflow Delta 2, yes you can gang the DC5521 ports together to get 6A. It should work fine for that use case.

Where these batteries run into challenges, and why I'm aware of that detail, is serving up 12V draws above 10A. Like what would be needed for the light-off stage of a diesel heater. These draw 140W+ momentarily and there is no useful way to gang 12V outputs to serve above ~120W. This is true for many of the more value oriented lithium batts.

 

[linuxgod]

From what I remember from my friends Ecoflow Delta 2, yes you can gang the DC5521 ports together to get 6A. It should work fine for that use case.

Where these batteries run into challenges, and why I'm aware of that detail, is serving up 12V draws above 10A. Like what would be needed for the light-off stage of a diesel heater. These draw 140W+ momentarily and there is no useful way to gang 12V outputs to serve above ~120W. This is true for many of the more value oriented lithium batts.

Thanks the only load I’m planning to put on this is the fridge. I may occasionally use the 120V ports and inverter to make a quick pot of coffee since I don’t have an inverter in the trailer, but the amp limits should be fine. The dc5521 isn’t positive locking like an Anderson connector but they typically also don’t fall out and work loose like a cigarette lighter socket so it should serve my purpose

 

[linuxgod]

My vote for Dometic 55L fridge, I would not go bigger. Benefit is the fridge will make ice cubes for mixed drinks

I have used my fridge for 5+ years with no issues, knock on wood.

I don't know if you shop at REI, but they sell Dometic and you can use your rewards / coupons on fridges.

Just to note, the fridge needs to have air space to exhaust the compressor heat. There was a pic of a packed rear trunk, you will want to make sure there is ventilation space.

I have a simple setup in the cruiser, starter battery to a Bluesea panel in the back trunk (I use thick wire to minimize loss). If I am driving during the day, battery is fine. If I am parked for a long time I deploy a portable 100W solar panel that I connect directly to the starter battery (with charge controller), solar panel is good for ~5amps and fridge uses on average 1 amp of power.

I have a lithium jump pack in the car just in case of dead battery (fridge or not).

Thanks. I didn’t realize the dometic will make ice.

Ventilation is tricky. I’ve considered this but I’m not sure how it’ll work out. In my setup the compressor will be near the tailgate. I can leave space between the fridge and tailgate and straight above it up to the glass, but as you can see from my original pic my trunk gets packed pretty tight, so there’s not much ventilation back into the cabin.

I have very few REI points so scoring a new one at a discount is unlikely for me. There is someone on FB selling a used 55L for $700, I just struggle to pay that for a used fridge with no guarantees

 

[rlynch356]

Re: Anderson plugs....

I have 2 of the Dual pole Anderson panel mount sockets mounted in my truck (I may add another)...
Powerwerx PanelPole2, Panel Mount Housing for Two Powerpole Connectors with a Weather Tight Cover - https://powerwerx.com/panelpole-panel-mount-powerpole-black-dual

these are wired to a fuse box (you can use a single fuse or dual as you prefer for your circuit based on the load)...
then the cords are adapted to Anderson plugs -

Anderson Powerpole and SB Connectors | Powerwerx

Anderson Power Products Powerpole and SB Series connectors are available at Powerwerx. Shop for different gauges today!

powerwerx.com

Above links are everything you need.
I pretty much convert everything over to Anderson plugs on the cords since it makes it easy.
it will support up to 45Amp so way more than a fridge pulls... just use the appropriate cable (12g in my case) and a fuse (15amp in my case as well)
This wires into my 100ah lipo4 battery and fuse box in the rear.

FWIW... my recent 3 day trip, my 50L fridge was maybe 1/3 full, and that includes a full case of beer, soft drinks and food... 50-75L is totally fine for a week or so for 1-3 people... you will be resupplying before you run out of room..I sometimes use the freezer compartment to store frozen meals I pre-made and then just transfer to the fridge the day before you need them, or I just set it to be another fridge compartment and keep mostly smaller stuff in there. just depends on how you travel really.

 

[TheIcemanCometh]

View attachment 3561856

Ok, talking you out of it. I moved away from the slide and chest style.
So I moved to a vertical Dometic , everything is now easy reach and in a smaller footprint, the fridge makes its volume with its vertical height.
I made the box the fridge is mounted to removable with 4 bolts. Which gives me the flat floor back when not installed.

I would be interested in more details on the mounting. Is the fridge mounted "permanently" in the box which you then mount as needed?

What size of fridge did you go with ??