Fridge survey.

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hawkeye

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I am in the market for a onboard fridge, and I am also desinging a drawer system that will work univeraly with most fridges. So I need to know some things, First What fridge do you have and would you recomend that I buy one like it. second I need to know the size, how many quarts it holds and what are the out side dimensions.

Thanks
 
I have a Norcold 60L. It has worked great on trips, but is a bit big. I'm welding up a drawer system that has a drawer on one side and the fridge slide on the other. This keeps the over all height down.
 
Fridge

Here is what I have --> LINK <-- It has the dimensions and such on there. It's a 45L/47q Fridgefreeze brand.

Works awesome! Has a smaller footprint that Engel/ARB, but it is taller. Overland Journal did a comparison test a while back. I purchased the actual one that they did the test with. It ranked 3rd overall behind the National Luna and the Waeco in the tests.

Two cons:
1. I don't like where the cord plugs in. It is right on the control panel, and really gets in the way.
2. The temp display, is solar powered, so at night, you are out of luck to check it.

Well three if you pay full retail. Very pricy.

Ex
 
I have a 40qt engel and like it. Now that my two boys are getting older something bigger would be nice. If money was no option I'd get the 52qt national luna. It's easier to clean the inside, it's capacity is larger but the footprint insn't much bigger at all.
 
I have the National Luna 95L SS double door fridge freezer and it is great. But then we do longish overland trips and need the space .... :cheers:
 
fridge

I have a 45 qt ARB and a 14 qt Engle. The 14 qt Engle is great inside the cab for drinks and lunch. I useit for day trips all the time.
 
I have a Waeco 35. I got it used and it works great. It pretty light and cools food and drinks in no time. They seem to go for cheaper too.
 
I have a 50 litre waeco and an 80 litre waeco. The 80 needs a thermo sensor(its a few years old and done a lot of work) but both normally perform well.
They both have the same size compressor ,so the 80 works a little harder but can still freeze 10 litres of water in a day

Sizes and specs for all waecos here WAECO mobile solutions

Whatever you buy it will probably have a Danfoss compressor which means you can get parts anywhere.
The Engels have a Sarafuji wing motor ,ok and still good parts availabilty from a Engel dealer

I think all round Waeco are the best for the price,in aust anyway.
The weaco 40 litre proved to be the best in its class under stringent testing done at the Aust Army testing lab in 2003.
Approx 10 brands and models were tested.
That was based on power usage, the abilty to hold a stable temp and insulation quality
 
tmarx said:
I have the National Luna 95L SS double door fridge freezer and it is great. But then we do longish overland trips and need the space .... :cheers:
Click to expand...

Theo ,what kind of money do they want for them in SA? They are much dearer than other fridges with the same compressor here
 
Charles the one I have is an 110qt waeco....
 
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I have an Engel 45. I like the original style (metal) versus the new plastic ones...Saw them at CruzMoab this year and the locking clamps just looked like they would snap off if they got in a bind or hit. The original cover for the Engels aren't the most user friendly with the zipper. The ARB version accomidates the front clasp a lot better. I'm still running a single battery setup and haven't had any problems with battery drawdown even after a week of use.

Good luck....
2008 Colorado Trip 044.jpg
 
ARB 45. Great for my personal needs. Rests on Slee's sliding drawer system.
 
hawkeye said:
Cool. Do you guys have any out side measurements?
Click to expand...

Unless anything new comes out I'll likely upgrade to this...HERE You can also orient the fridge lid to open from the side or the back to accommodate your mounting.

If you're looking for a slide National Luna has them as well...HERE
The slide is super nice. The fridge still sits low so the slide doesn't raise the height of your fridge much. Which could mean a lot if you're putting them on top of drawers in a lifted truck. It slides really smooth and doesn't add much to the footprint.
 
I love my Engel 45 ( or is it 43, can't recall) , had it for over five years. It works great, wife loves it, blah, blah, blah. However, at 60 lbs empty, it's a pain in the back just to move that SOB around! I know nothing about the Waeco's but the weight of a CF-50 was about half of my Engel and it was great to move it around.

So, take that into consideration.
 
I have a National Luna 40L Stainless. I have not used it as it is not installed yet ... but it sure looks mighty awesome when I peek inside the box...:)

I purchased this unit based on reviews and a shootout between fridges that I read in Overland Journal. National Luna was the winner of that competition.
 
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