well, I just tried/tested one of these popular thermoelectric coolers. This is a Coleman 40 qt one.
Rating: 7.5 A fuse.
Says it will cool 40F under ambient. Also works as warmer supposedly.
Finding: forget the 40F cooling idea. I tested the thing empty. It took at least 2 hours to cool things down in there by about 10F. After several hours of leaving it on (while driving) I got about 55F in the cooler in an 85F cab. The fans are very weak, you can barely feel the air moving. And obviously the thermoelectric chip has a low heat transfer rate. It may give you a 40F difference but not at any reasonable heat flux.
Conclusion: given that the above was with an empty cooler (only air to cool down), it is painfully clear to me that there is no way this thing will cool down anything more dense than air in a reasonable time. (All above assuming this one worked as designed.)
Suggested use: would keep cold things somewhat cold. IOW put in some cold sodas or and it will help keep them cold. Put them in warm and there is no way this thing will cool them down in less than several hours. So no go for keeping meat or a sandwich edible in high heat.
Too bad... Oh well...
added: if you still want one, they are $68 at WalMart.
Rating: 7.5 A fuse.
Says it will cool 40F under ambient. Also works as warmer supposedly.
Finding: forget the 40F cooling idea. I tested the thing empty. It took at least 2 hours to cool things down in there by about 10F. After several hours of leaving it on (while driving) I got about 55F in the cooler in an 85F cab. The fans are very weak, you can barely feel the air moving. And obviously the thermoelectric chip has a low heat transfer rate. It may give you a 40F difference but not at any reasonable heat flux.
Conclusion: given that the above was with an empty cooler (only air to cool down), it is painfully clear to me that there is no way this thing will cool down anything more dense than air in a reasonable time. (All above assuming this one worked as designed.)
Suggested use: would keep cold things somewhat cold. IOW put in some cold sodas or and it will help keep them cold. Put them in warm and there is no way this thing will cool them down in less than several hours. So no go for keeping meat or a sandwich edible in high heat.
Too bad... Oh well...
added: if you still want one, they are $68 at WalMart.