Fridge or freezer?

[Willy]

I used my Engel MT45 chest cooler as a freezer and had a somewhat smaller cooler to which I'd added an inner container with spray foam filling the gap. This was during summer and it was a major PITA rotating freezer packs. My memory just isn't good enough to keep on top of it. bought a used Engel CF-50 in the fall and it's now my fridge. A few years ago I only had a CF-50 and found that I could freeze stuff in the main compartment while food in the smaller 'chiller' one didn't freeze. Of course, I couldn't use it as a 'deep freeze' 'cuz everythingwould have been frozen solid. ..Willy.

 

[surfmore72]

I used my Engel MT45 chest cooler as a freezer and had a somewhat smaller cooler to which I'd added an inner container with spray foam filling the gap. This was during summer and it was a major PITA rotating freezer packs. My memory just isn't good enough to keep on top of it. bought a used Engel CF-50 in the fall and it's now my fridge. A few years ago I only had a CF-50 and found that I could freeze stuff in the main compartment while food in the smaller 'chiller' one didn't freeze. Of course, I couldn't use it as a 'deep freeze' 'cuz everythingwould have been frozen solid. ..Willy.

What type of power systems did you have in place during this time?   I plan on driving just about every day and thought if I changed out before we hit the road it would help with the extra draw and phase change stuff.   I live in Hawaii right now and just used my friends $100 Igloo 5 day cooler and was pleased with its insulation on a 3 night beach camping adventure.   Ice for drinks even on the last day!  

I appreciate everyones thoughtful  input here.   Thanks! 
e

 

[SternWake]

Driving every day is great when the alternator is well wired to the depleted house battery, but there is a problem,

It takes no less than 3.5 hours to get a healthy battery from 80% charged to 100% charged, no matter how powerful the charging source. If the battery never gets to 100% charged, it loses capacity, permanently, and will fail prematurely.

So driving is great, when the battery is depleted and one is needing to move from A to B. It seems outright foolish to not take advantage of this charging source. But unless one drives for 4.5 hours or more every day, the battery will be less than happy to some unknown degree, and fail preamturely.

Now An early morning drive followed by adequate solar wattage for the rest of the day can be a recipe for a happy battery, as the solar has the time needed to complete the charge, hopefully.

But alternator alone recharged battery systems are pretty much doomed to a short battery life, and so many can never seem to grasp this reality, thinking the alternator is some magical instant battery charger than can defy physics. I was one of them, long ago.

one other factor in the 4.5 hours clause, is that 4 hours from 80% to 100% is when the vehicles voltage regulator seeks and holds battery voltage in the 14.4v range. Almost NO vehicles hold this voltage for this long, so that 4 hours minimum from 80% to 100%, takes about 3x longer at 13.7v.

One mistake many people make is to measure voltage after engine starting and assuming that is the voltage that is always present. Usually after 15 minutes or so it will drop from mid 14's to mid 13s which greatly slows charging.

Making the alternator, an effective charger, that is being choked into performing at a mere fraction of its capability. And even if one forces 14.4v by various methods, it still takes 4 hours from 80% to 100%, even if one has a 300 amp alternator and 0000 copper cable between it and depleted battery.

4 hours, 4 very important hours, at ideal absorption voltages. When the battery is less than new and healthy, add another hour, then another......

But batteries are just rented. the length of an acceptable rental contract is subjective, but so many have no idea that a battery needs to be fully reinflated regularly, or the ballon skin can no longer restretch to its former size.

 

[TrainChaser]

ZZZ: "I've come to expect some elitism in the RV communities but for a bunch of people living in vans there sure is some animosity toward not being able to afford everything all at once."

YOU NOTICED!

I've got a question that I haven't seen answered, or it's so dumb that everyone but me knows better: I read on a survival forum that you only need to run a REGULAR freezer (like the kind you keep the elk in, in the garage -- not a 12v) for 4 hours a day to keep the food frozen during a power outage and you don't want to run your genny 24/7. Due to the smaller size, may I assume that this isn't possible with a 12v?

 

[Almost There]

I've got a question that I haven't seen answered, or it's so dumb that everyone but me knows better:  I read on a survival forum that you only need to run a REGULAR freezer (like the kind you keep the elk in, in the garage -- not a 12v) for 4 hours a day to keep the food frozen during a power outage and you don't want to run your genny 24/7.  Due to the smaller size, may I assume that this isn't possible with a 12v?

There's too many variables to be able to say anything definitively. As a long range plan it's not a good idea. As a short term thing (like in a power failure) it's feasible.

While I was on my fall tour last Nov/Dec. and found that the electrical system was failing, I was running the power to the deep freeze (Whynter 65Qt.) ONLY when the engine was running (running the 12V power cord to an accessory plug on the dash). When I was parked there was no power to the freezer.

I had the freezer set on 0 F and by morning it would be up to somewhere in the 25 - 28 F range. BUT, the freezer was pretty full and the overnight air temps were down from a daily high in the 50's to overnight lows in the high 30's.

Ice cream wouldn't have stayed healthy with the daily fluctuations of temperature and hot dog weiners became defrosted. Larger chunks of meat were barely soft by morning and would freeze hard again by the time I quit driving for the day.

I had to do this for almost a week before being able to get plugged in to shoreline and charge the battery bank properly with the battery charger. No meat was lost but had the weather been warmer, the freezer would not have stayed cold enough to ensure safe keeping of the meat.

 

[highdesertranger]

when I use my Engel 12v as a freezer here is what I do. I fill it up and turn it on max cooling for 12 to 24 hours depending on ambient temps. this freezes everything rock hard then I turn the temp down to about 3. the Engels go from 0-6 with 0 being off and 6 being the coldest. setting them at 3 after everything is rock hard keeps everything rock hard even in 90+ ambient temps. in fact even if I turn the temp up to 1-2 it takes weeks for stuff to defrost, in other words once stuff is frozen in them it is virtually impossible to defrost it in the refer, I guess you could but you would have to turn it off for days. highdesertranger

 

[surfmore72]

Now An early morning drive followed by adequate solar wattage for the rest of the day can be a recipe for a happy battery, as the solar has the time needed to complete the charge, hopefully.
.

I've been creaping on here for awhile now!   I am 2 months away from starting my build!   This is the plan I have gathered from you all!   I hope to do you all proud 

 

[Willy]

What type of power systems did you have in place during this time?   I plan on driving just about every day and thought if I changed out before we hit the road it would help with the extra draw and phase change stuff.   I live in Hawaii right now and just used my friends $100 Igloo 5 day cooler and was pleased with its insulation on a 3 night beach camping adventure.   Ice for drinks even on the last day!  

I appreciate everyones thoughtful  input here.   Thanks! 
e

 I was running off solar, abt. 350W on the roof, with abt. 210Ah of AGM's. ..Willy.