Thoughts on the Alpicool Refrigerators?

[bandaidqueen]

In some other threads some people have mentioned having an Alpicool Refrigerator. I know it's no where near as good as and Engel or Dometic, but SOOOOOO much cheaper! I might be able to save for one in a month or two, the Engel on my wishlist is out of my reach financially right now. I only need space for a little bit of meat and cheese and possibly some probiotics, the C15 or C20 model would work for my needs. I've been living without a fridge for 3 months and have survived (I do use the fridge and freezer at work quite often). I DON'T have solar right now, but I have a small Honda by Jackery battery (208 Watt Hour version I got on a Black Friday sale) that I bring inside and charge from an outlet at work. Any feedback on these little refrigerators? Is it worth it for $180-210 bucks? (Here it is on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B073WYS3TR/)

Thanks for your thoughts!

 

[Trebor English]

The Alpicool will need at least 10 amp hours per day.  That's more than a half of the Jackery 200 watt hour capacity.  The Jackery will take many hours to recharge.  Taking the battery to work, refilling it, and then taking it back to the fridge could work except while you are at work the fridge has no electricity.  As the sole source of electricity for the fridge it seems weak.  I wouldn't expect any less than a 100 watt solar panel to work with the Alpicool.

 

[user 423]

If you only work 8 hour shifts you could plug the fridge into your ciggy socket while at work. If your van's battery is healthy, it should be able to handle the drain. Adding insulation to the fridge will help keep amp use down.

If the freezer at work is big enough, you could keep one of those blue camping ice packs frozen and put it in the fridge at the start of your shift. The fridge will have lighter work to do and will use less battery. Refreeze the ice pack at the end of your shift.

How long is the drive home? Hopefully long enough to recharge starting battery.

 

[tx2sturgis]

If you have daily access to a freezer, you can make ice cubes or blocks and transfer those to an insulated cooler in your vehicle.

 

[bandaidqueen]

I typically park at work. I try to be inconspicuous. My company does a lot of construction work so there's usually 5 or 6 company vans and trucks in the lot at all times, I pull up next to one when I get back from the gym (5 miles away - and sometimes I just workout and shower at the tiny gym we have at the office and don't drive at all). So I don't drive much during the week, on weekends I drive a bit more - my weekend job is about 20 minutes away from my weekday job (I park there too). Church is another 20-30 minutes away on Sunday, then it's back to the grocery store for an afternoon shift. If I don't work Sunday I try to go visit my mom for a day, that's a little over an hour drive. I'm trying not to put too many miles on because I have an old van (2000 - twenty years old!) and of course, not the best gas mileage. Don't want to need any major repairs soon and even the oil change every 5K, which I do myself, isn't cheap. Fortunately the previous owner didn't drive much either and she's only got 108K miles, which is amazing for a 20 year old work van. The car battery seems to be in good shape and could probably run the little fridge for a while if needed, while my "powerstation" battery is charging inside - but what I plan to store in the tiny fridge will probably be fine for a few hours while I charge the battery without plugging into the car's starter battery.

 

[vanbrat]

It works for me, but we only use it when out and about and it is ALWAYS plugged in. It is not a ice chest, so not good when not plugged in I will be trying the added insulation and the ice blocks next time out. We plugged and unplugged on and off the first time out and had to throw out a lot of good food that had gone bad..... When plugged in it worked good. When adding insulation be careful to keep vents open. They are important. We now carry both an ice chest and this little thing and that seems best for us.

 

[user 423]

Any feedback on these little refrigerators? Is it worth it for $180-210 bucks? (Here it is on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B073WYS3TR/)

OK,back to your original question. I've been using a C20 for the past 8 mos. and have been happy with it. One thing about though is the temp indicator is way off...like about 20 degrees. I use an infrared thermometer to periodically check the temp. A C20 is the same as a C15 except it has a larger top. It's still not high enough for a 1/2-gall. milk container though.

I've kept the usual fridge items in it: condiments,yogurt,cheese,lunchmeats,salsa,potato salad,milk,etc.  With a 100w solar and 105ah battery setup, when there's several rainy/cloudy days in a row, the battery does get drawn down.

I was in a hurry when I set it all up last spring and don't have wiring/solenoid connected to my alternator but am adding that now along with relocating the fridge closer to the battery.

The C20 was protected in shipping by two pieces of foam at top and bottom and I used them plus some foam board insulation to better insulate. I built a little frame from scraps that holds a foam filter over the intake for the cooling fan.

 

[nature lover]

I almost bought one last week. After looking at compressor fridges for several hours on line Amazon dangeled a great price in an email. I almost bought it but I am holding on to money right now. I need one for my meds. I asked Bob W about this brand and he said he was in the process of testing one and would do a video later.

 

[sephson]

I have an Alpicool C15. I've had it for about a year-and-a-half. So far I've had two minor issues with it. First, the 12 volt plug occasionally vibrates loose from the socket where I plug it in. I've been meaning to change this to a different type of connector, but haven't gotten around to it yet. In the mean time, I just re-seat the connector in the socket and the fridge starts right back up. The other issue is that the compressor will sometimes get stuck in it's on cycle, leading to temperatures well below my settings. Unplugging the refrigerator, counting to ten and plugging it back in has fixed this issue every time.

My power system is 200 watts of solar panels and a single, 105 amp hour, 12 volt, Deep Cycle battery.

 

[bandaidqueen]

I was on lightening deal for $145 so I got one. I had a $45 credit in my account so I only had to pay a hundred bucks. Hope it works out!

 

[nature lover]

bandaidqueen - keep us posted. I have looked at them many times that Amazon is offering a deal on them for me at least every other week.

 

[Oldwolf]

I am also interested to see how it works out for you. I am going to need a refrigerator in a few months.

Sent from my SM-G960U using Tapatalk

 

[frankgibbons]

In some other threads some people have mentioned having an Alpicool Refrigerator. I know it's no where near as good as and Engel or Dometic, but SOOOOOO much cheaper! I might be able to save for one in a month or two, the Engel on my wishlist is out of my reach financially right now. I only need space for a little bit of meat and cheese and possibly some probiotics, the C15 or C20 model would work for my needs. I've been living without a fridge for 3 months and have survived (I do use the fridge and freezer at work quite often). I DON'T have solar right now, but I have a small Honda by Jackery battery (208 Watt Hour version I got on a Black Friday sale) that I bring inside and charge from an outlet at work. Any feedback on these little refrigerators? Is it worth it for $180-210 bucks? (Here it is on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B073WYS3TR/)

Thanks for your thoughts!

I'm just sharing my experience. I was suspicious about it being new on the market and its low price. I own an $800 Engel 12v freezer and I have researched the products, so I gave it a try. The compartment is rectangular, (13 by 9 by 7), amounting to .5 cu. ft. That's like, 15 quarts. I plugged it in with a watt hour meter and it froze solid using 2 amps at 12v average. This will drain a marine battery in a day, but hook up solar and it is sustainable. My plan is to freeze food at home, keep it frozen while driving, and enjoy the food before it defrosts while camping.

 

[hausmutti]

Slim Potatohead has been very happy with his Alpicool.

 

[hausmutti]

The Alpicool will need at least 10 amp hours per day.  That's more than a half of the Jackery 200 watt hour capacity.  The Jackery will take many hours to recharge.  Taking the battery to work, refilling it, and then taking it back to the fridge could work except while you are at work the fridge has no electricity.  As the sole source of electricity for the fridge it seems weak.  I wouldn't expect any less than a 100 watt solar panel to work with the Alpicool.

That's handy to know.  My Inergy apex should work fine for several days. But I can recharge with solar or car.

 

[hausmutti]

I'm just sharing my experience. I was suspicious about it being new on the market and its low price. I own an $800 Engel 12v freezer and I have researched the products, so I gave it a try. The compartment is rectangular, (13 by 9 by 7), amounting to .5 cu. ft. That's like, 15 quarts. I plugged it in with a watt hour meter and it froze solid using 2 amps at 12v average. This will drain a marine battery in a day, but hook up solar and it is sustainable. My plan is to freeze food at home, keep it frozen while driving, and enjoy the food before it defrosts while camping.

I plan to buy mine from Walmart.  That way I can return it anywhere if I have a problem.

 

[bandaidqueen]

My tiny little battery wasn't powerful enough to run this fridge so I returned it. The few times I did try to run it, it didn't seem to get very cold, even with the help of an ice pack. I'll get a fridge after I install solar, so I have a decent way to power it, and if I can afford it I'll get an Engel. I think I'd have to set the temp 20 degrees lower than what I really wanted to get the Alpicool to work properly. I've done okay for the past four months without a fridge, so I'm sure I'll be fine for a little bit longer.

 

[highdesertranger]

thanks for the follow. highdesertranger

 

[user 423]

I think I'd have to set the temp 20 degrees lower than what I really wanted to get the Alpicool to work properly.

That's what I found with mine. To keep food at 38-40 deg. Fahrenheit it needs to be set at 20 on the temp indicator.

The documentation that came with it refers to centigrade so 40F would be 4 deg. Centigrade, so the temp indicator is off with either scale.

A fridge thermometer is a must.

 

[maki2]

Before Engel had a USA outlet they were being branded with the Norcold name. But not all Norcold units were made by Engel. Therefore you need a cheat sheet to help sort out which of the used Norcolds were the Engels. Here is a link to the list from the Engel website. https://www.engelcoolers.com/norcold


I live in a boating community so I was able to find my smaller sized used 17 liter Engel from a neighbor whose business is helping people upgrade their boats to new equipment. I got a good neighbor pricing, he was short on rent money that week Saved me $550.00 over the cost of the new model of that same unit. It had been lightly used as most small boat owners don't go out all that often except in fishing season.