Freezer and cool chest

[jdsackett]

Hello all. Does anyone use a 12 volt freezer, like Engle etc and use an ice chest for refrigeration? You could freeze your meat and other perishables. Leftovers (Just as easy to cook a lot as a little). You can even make the ice to keep your milk, eggs, etc cool. Power draw looks acceptable. Food is cheaper the more of it you buy. Many times chicken, hamburger, bacon, etc are on sale but in family packs. Repackage and freeze. Would appreciate your thoughts on this. Regards, J.D.

 

[coolmom42]

It sounds like a good idea for a full-timer. But in my general experience with freezers, you have to be careful with:

1) packaging food, especially meat and 2) remembering to use it before it gets freezer burned and 3) labelling and dating. I use a vacuum sealer at home. But for a van-dweller with limited space, that's probably not practical. Meats should be tightly wrapped in aluminum foil, and then in a ziploc bag. Other items should be in bags with as much air removed as possible. It's best to use items within about 3 months and 6 months maximum.

One thing that works well is to go ahead and cook foods and freeze them in liquid--some sort of sauce or broth. Make spaghetti sauce, soup, stew, things like that. They are easy to thaw and re-heat.

For short trips like I do now, I will take things already frozen, and they will hold for several days in the cooler.

If you freeze ice in blocks, in containers, it lasts a lot longer in a cooler. I freeze it in half-gallon milk jugs or even 20 ounce soft drink bottles.

 

[Willy]

I have an Engel (used to also have a Waeco CF-50) and that's what I do. Generally, the temp is set to -3 C and it's stuffed with frozen family paks of meat and veggies. Been doing this for years. ..Willy.

 

[akrvbob]

I've never done it but i know people who do and it works very, very well. The one big drawback is it takes up a lot of precious space. But, having a real freezer and cooler is a really big plus for many of us.

Can anyone say Ice Cream! But to be fair, keeping the freezer that cold will put a very big demand on your batteries. You'll need lots of solar.

Bob

 

[Almost There]

But to be fair, keeping the freezer that cold will put a very big demand on your batteries. You'll need lots of solar.

Bob

How much demand is 'very big'.

I'm seriously thinking of setting aside the room for one in the van.

Living without a deep freeze is the one and only drawback to not having a stick and stone home IMO. My only regret about the breakup years ago with the SO is that he got the 20 cu ft. freezer and I got the 7 cf one....

Once it's cold and given that it would only be opened once or twice a day, in reality, how much power would it consume??

 

[ccbreder]

Bob wasn't clear. He has a 12 volt fridge/freezer but only uses it for a refrigerator. I use mine as a freezer in an out building from a battery with a solar charger. Mostly beer.

---

is kept in the house. But deer and fish sit in the shed.

 

[highdesertranger]

I do it and it works very well. if you start out empty it does take some amp/hrs to get everything frozen. I find between 6 and 10 hours(depending on the temp of the food you want to freeze and ambient temp), so between 15 and 25 amp/hrs. however once everything is frozen solid I can turn my engel temp down, everything stays frozen fine and the engel only runs slightly more than it would in refer mode. in fact even if you turn it down to refer mode it takes a long, long time to thaw over a week with temps in the high 80's ambient. so what I am trying to say is after the initial power draw(freeze) it takes almost the same as using it as a refer. note if you already have frozen stuff in the freezer and just add some more, you don't even have to put it in freezer mode. hope this helps. highdesertranger

 

[akrvbob]

I wasn't clear. I meant that if you want to keep ice cream, it will demand a big draw because it needs to be down to about zero. As has been said, once you get it frozen cold and are swapping in and out your frozen jugs to put in the cooler you can probably set it into the 20s and everything will work fine.

It's a small difference in draw from setting it in the mid 30s as a cooler and mid 20s as a freezer. It's a huge difference to set it to Zero for ice cream.

Bob

 

[Almost There]

I wasn't clear. I meant that if you want to keep ice cream, it will demand a big draw because it needs to be down to about zero. As has been said, once you get it frozen cold and are swapping in and out your frozen jugs to put in the cooler you can probably set it into the 20s and everything will work fine.

It's a small difference in draw from setting it in the mid 30s as a cooler and mid 20s as a freezer. It's a huge difference to set it to Zero for ice cream.

Bob

Haha, good thing then that ice cream (and most dairy products) are never allowed to pass my lips!!

Has anyone had any experience with Edge Star products?

Or better yet, recommendations for brands of chest type coolers/fridges/freezers.

Can most of them be run on either 12V or 120V?

 

[kranky]

I have an 86qt Edgestar, it runs on both 110 or 12v. Been running it 24/7 for 18 months and haven't had any problems with it. I don't believe it takes any more energy to maintain 0 degrees than it does to maintain 20 degrees.

I have 330W of solar power charging 3 - 12v 114AH el cheapo walmart deep cycle batteries. In the summer I run my generator once a week to top off the batteries, in the winter I have to run it about every third day. Mostly because I can't tilt my panels, yet.

The only thing you have to know about this freezer (and possibly others) is that the 12v plug they send with it has a 10A fuse in it and it will not work. You can spend hours arguing with tech support or you can just replace the 10A fuse with a 15 or 20A fuse. problem solved.

 

[gypsychic]

I don't believe it takes any more energy to maintain 0 degrees than it does to maintain 20 degrees.

You just made my day. I had resigned myself to single serving ice cream after starting fulltiming in a van. Not being able to stand up I can handle. Not having ice cream, now that's really roughing it

No really, I LOVE ice cream and I have always had a stocked freezer. In my planning I was trying to wrap my mind around not using a freezer anymore. That's hard for me to do since it's always been a part of my routine and available. Now I know it is at least possible. Whether it's practical or not for me is a different story.

Great discussion. Thanks

GypsyChic

 

[Almost There]

You just made my day. I had resigned myself to single serving ice cream after starting fulltiming in a van. Not being able to stand up I can handle. Not having ice cream, now that's really roughing it

No really, I LOVE ice cream and I have always had a stocked freezer. In my planning I was trying to wrap my mind around not using a freezer anymore. That's hard for me to do since it's always been a part of my routine and available. Now I know it is at least possible. Whether it's practical or not for me is a different story.

Great discussion. Thanks

GypsyChic

Me Too - not about the ice cream but about the viability of using one of these as a deep freeze while full-timing.

It wasn't a deal breaker if it wasn't possible but it sure makes being able to boondock and use no facility campsites a whole lot more of a great thing. That means I can travel more since the money either goes in the gas tank or into FHU sites.

I'll be pre-wiring the van to handle 2 units, one to be used as a fridge, the other as a freezer.

 

[jdsackett]

Thanks for the input...It looked like a good idea to me, now I know. Y'all take care and have a nice Christmas. Regards, J.D.

 

[HarmonicaBruce]

I don't believe it takes any more energy to maintain 0 degrees than it does to maintain 20 degrees.

Actally, it does take more energy to maintain 0 than it does to maintain 20. Simple laws of physics.

 

[kranky]

Almost There: My freezer takes up a LOT of room, you may want to look at a fridge/freezer combo like this: http://goo.gl/3qQ1A7 . If this had been available when I bought my freezer, I would have gotten this instead.

Ice cream is essential!:heart:

 

[Almost There]

Almost There: My freezer takes up a LOT of room, you may want to look at a fridge/freezer combo like this: http://goo.gl/3qQ1A7 . If this had been available when I bought my freezer, I would have gotten this instead.

Ice cream is essential!:heart:

Thanks but I've done some serious studying on it already...

I lived with a regular RV frig in the Winnebago, the freezer was never big enough and I spent extra money having to buy single serve meats at the butcher. The alternative was to eat the same thing until the package was used up. I often had to resort to a cooler for the first few days until I'd used up fresh fruits and veggies so that everything would fit in the frig.

I'm planning this layout to give me all the comfort items I need and that includes whopping amounts of fridge and freezer space.

I eat meat, veggies and fruit, always fresh, not canned and not much else. If I want to be able to go boondocking for 10 to 14 days without having to move the van, I'm going to need two 80 L units, one for a freezer and one for refrigerator use.

Good thing I bought the Savana with the high top & a hitch so I can use a hitch hauler for things that don't *have* to be inside the van.

The 'kitchen' gets priority over most everything other than the toilet and a bed.

 

[cdiggy]

Almost There: My freezer takes up a LOT of room, you may want to look at a fridge/freezer combo like this: http://goo.gl/3qQ1A7 . If this had been available when I bought my freezer, I would have gotten this instead.

Ice cream is essential!:heart:

That is a smoking good price for 60 quarts of storage.

 

[akrvbob]

I'm no physicist, but it's my understanding that the law of physics say it is harder to maintain 0 than 20.

The greater the difference between the inside and outside temperatures the more force drives the heat through. No, I have no idea what that force is. R-Value is an items resistance to that force.

That's why the roof needs the most insulation--heat rises so it's the warmest place in the van/house so there is the most force driving heat through so it needs the most resistence.

The floor needs the least insulation because the heat rises and the floor is cold. Since they are so close in temperature inside to outside, little or no resistence is needed.
Bob

 

[bcbullet]

Hi Everyone,

I am fairly new to the site but have been around the block a time or two!

One thing that nobody mentions is "Phase Change". This is what occurs when water is turned to ice or steam and vice versa. It takes an enormous input of energy to make the change from almost frozen water to ice. Water to steam is the same...have you ever noticed how you can get a pot of water to simmering fairly quickly, but that last jump to a rolling boil takes forever? Phase change. This is why ice is such a great cooling means. The ice draws massive amounts of heat out of food and the surrounding air in the cooler. It can occur over days, but the moment the ice turns to water it comes up to ambient temperature very very quickly because the heat transfer during the phase change has occurred.

Using a 12v freezer to make ice to keep things refrigerated in a cooler is actually far less efficient than running a 12v fridge to keep things cool because there is no phase change involved with the fridge unlike the freezer.

Just my $.02, but google "phase change" for some interesting reading on a chilly January night.