Fridge /Freezer

[accrete]

Stern Wake... yuppers on all you said on the AGM...
Once we were in civilization and doing laundry for a day/night... an Optima 1200 digital charger took care of the AGMs above what would have taken place during the day's drive off the mountain(s).

 

[compassrose]

And some of us also want to be able to live completely off the grid with a minimal amount of solar power which means that the dorm fridges and upright freezers aren't practical for us.

I'm putting the money into solar and compressor fridge/freezer units so that I can live life the way I want to which is not tied to a power cord in an RV park.

We all differ in what is important to us.

Got it. I shut the hell up now.

And it's STILL over priced!

 

[jimindenver]

There are many ways of doing many things. There isn't a right way as long as each is getting there needs met. Personally I enjoy the different solutions even if they don't work for me.

 

[karl]

They ain't cheap, for sure.

I'm glad this thread came along- got me thinking outside of the box I had built myself into.....

I finally pulled the trigger( actually paypal) on a fridge-http://www.equipt1.com/item/travel-box-30-liter-fridge-freezer
Had a Whyner in my cart, but Amazon jacked the price 60 bucks while I was procrastinating.

Originally I was going to buy a front opening Truckfridge but a top load with a pull out makes better use my space.
This fit the space I had and seems roomy enough.

I am rarely impressed with the fit and finish of anything I buy these days, but this appears to be quality. Time will tell.....

Used it for the first time on a two day trip and was impressed with how quickly it cooled, how quiet it was. I was charging tool batteries, phone, laptop and using lights so never checked how many amps it was drawing in each mode.

Sure did like reaching in for stuff and it all being dry! and there is a pretty blue light in it.

 

[jimindenver]

Reading the comparison is interesting. I wonder what the Db reading distance is. The high 60's is as loud as my generator....really?

The draw is impressive.

 

[SternWake]

So in the absence of alternate charging facilities, a longer road trip is in order?

One should put a digital voltmeter on   dashboard connected to their house battery to see what voltage is actually making it to the distant battery, and how long the maximum voltage is allowed to try and make it there.

Vehicle platforms vary widely as to what voltage they allow. My 89 Dodge van allows upto 14.9v, but other times it will only allow 13.7 when the battery(s) are still under 80% charged, and recharging slows to a crawl.  This really irritates me as the battery might need 55+ amps to be held at 14.9v when discharged to around 60%, but when 13.7 is the maximum voltage allowed, only 12 to 13 amps flow to the battery which can accept 3x that much at a higher electrical pressure of  14.9v.

Some other times it will hold 14.9v, even when the batteries are fully charged and no longer need to be held at 14.9v, and this is no good either  I've seen my VR allow 14.9v for 4 hours straight on a highway drive once when i knew the battery was already completely charged.

I am working on a solution to this, and it involves tricking the vehicle's engine computer and employing a manual adjustable voltage regulator.

If successful, I will start a thread in case anybody else is similarly frustrated with the whack job of a voltage regulator in their dodge's engine computer jumping from 13.7v to 14.9v willy nilly with no regards toward logic.

 

[highdesertranger]

Stern it's not just Dodges doing the wily nilly charge thingy. I would like to see what you come up with. highdesertranger

 

[Ballenxj]

I am working on a solution to this, and it involves tricking the vehicle's engine computer and employing a manual adjustable voltage regulator.

If successful, I will start a thread in case anybody else is similarly frustrated with the whack job of a voltage regulator in their dodge's engine computer jumping from 13.7v to 14.9v willy nilly with no regards toward logic.

If you do, please post a link to it here? I would like to read it.