Hadn't seen that ISOTHERM yet, looks pretty nice. I got (2) of the Dometic CD-30s for the price of that one though (~$550 each on sale). But if you wanted to plug in AC that's an add on for the Dometics whereas it's built into that ISO unit (which is also slightly larger). It doesn't specifically say on the ISO, but on the Dometics you can relocate the compressor up to 5' away. This is huge. For me, I put it to each side (the wings of the drawers) which freed up a large space behind the fridges. My plan is to fill that space w/ lithium battery and associated electronics, plus enough room for about 18g of water, basically right behind the 2nd row. That's only the plan though, for now it's just extra storage.
The benefits to not having a fridge on top of your drawers is that you still have a flat surface. You also don't need a slide which saves some cash and is one less step to getting a cold one. And no digging around since it's not super deep. Downsides are, they aren't deep so you can't fit tall things, and they are relatively small so I went with (2), meaning twice the power draw. And for me it took a custom build of the drawers, and reduces actual draw space. I built the drawers to be able to fit only what I wanted in the truck at all times (tools, recovery gear, misc odds n ends like compressor attachments, etc...) and nothing more. It's my DD so I felt no need to have all my camping gear in the truck, always. Plus, my load-out varies almost every trip depending if it's just me, me + my two boys (11 and 8), or plus the wife and our two small dogs - so I just find it easier to grab a bin or two depending on who's coming with.
It was important for me to still be able to sleep in the tuck, this is the setup when I go out solo or w/ my two boys (though this won't last much longer!). Also ample tie down points. So I added some aluminum plates that slide back and sit on legs (ie don't rest on the seats). Takes a few minutes in existing state to setup, but I have ideas on how to make it a much faster transition, it's just not that high on the list atm.
Some pics:
200 Series Not-a-drawer "Drawer" Project
At some point, I'm going to rebuild the entire thing. If I use better material I can accomplish the same thing and cut ~3" of height from it, which would make it better to sleep on even though that doesn't sound like it, it is!
I have the base plate "jig" here in SD if anyone wants it.
www.westmarine.com
