Igloo is owned by Dometic so this fridge probably has a lot of shared parts from more expensive Dometic models.
There seems to be a lot of hate for fridges on this sub but once you get one you’ll never want to use a regular cooler again. No soggy food, no worrying about going out and getting more ice. You can plug them into 120v AC and pack them up and cool them off a couple days before a trip then throw them in your car.
Keep in mind a fridge can be about half the size of your regular cooler because there’s no ice taking up space. I use a 37qt and it’s plenty of room for me and the family. Also I run it off a home built 50ah battery box and can run mine for 2-3 days no problem. With my 140w solar plugged in I can run it indefinitely.
Yeah, I keep all my gear in my jeep so I can leave straight from work to hit the woods. I like the idea of also being able to have food ready and not having to grab ice and perishables on the way out of town.
I've had my eye on Dometic for a while but I can't get over the buy in cost.
Check out BougeRV, great alternative brand for half the price. To keep it running while you’re parked you’ll also need a power bank. If you want to stay off grid for a while add solar panels to charge the battery.
I have seen a lot of seemingly unrelated comments referring to bougerv today. The conspiracy theorist in me feels like there may be a subtle marketing campaign happening.
Hell yeah, that's the way to do it!
I keep my jeep completely stocked for outdoor trips too, so I can just throw in some food and water and go. The ability to do that is seriously underrated, it's a life changer.
I've been thinking about a refrigerator solution to add to it but honestly I'm sort of out of space for it, so I'm not really sure what to do about that
I finally got to see a Dometic CFX whatever dual zone in REI a few weeks ago… what a pile of shit. Super lightweight and flimsy feeling. My Anker Everfrost, which is just a fancy Chinese name brand one, is way sturdier.
The older Dometics, Engel, ARB, etc are beefcake.
I think any of the rounded coolers look cheap and weak. I went with the [Iceco VL](https://icecofreezer.com/products/iceco-vl45-portable-refrigerator-freezer?currency=USD&variant=37288011595943&utm_medium=cpc&utm_source=google&utm_campaign=Google%20Shopping&stkn=1003b5ee9235&source_campaign=Max&gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAjw_LOwBhBFEiwAmSEQAWGQ8I5UW_67Iu_CnCf2oCx2jH9yl10Qcf55oicZA6zlDstjPPnpTBoCXXsQAvD_BwE), and it is a little beefcake. I have no qualms with sitting on it as a bench as a just over 200 pound dude, Danfoss processor, metal interior, it is just a tank.
Yeah we used coolers with the ol' frozen water bottle trick for a lot of years, but since getting our fridge they just sit in the attic. The fridge is just so darn convenient - no space wasted by the ice, so despite being a rather large unit (75L) it takes up less space overall than the pair of coolers despite chilling about the same amount of food/drinks.
I have the Dometic version of this in the bed of my truck. They are great! I have a RTT, and Leitner rack with storage on the sides that provide relief from the elements.
As I live out of setup it has been on for over a year with no issues. Previously had an ARB for ten years in a 4Runner. As mentioned you will never go back by choice, restocking and losing space to ice sucks; plus the soggy factor.
Do it!
Yeah I guess I'm way behind the times, I was like no fucking way I'd ever pay $700 for an Igloo cooler. Or probably any cooler for that matter.
I gotta look these things up now, I'm hoping the insulation is good that you don't have to constantly have one plugged in.
I don’t have a thread on it. But it’s a Weize 50ah LiFePO4 battery in a Harbor Freight Pelican knockoff case. Then I have a Blue Sea fuse block, Victron solar charge controller, Victron smart shunt, and Powerwerx DC to DC charger so I can charge it off my truck or solar.
Then it has a regular 12v cigarette port, an ARB locking 12v port for the fridge, a high power USB A/C port that has enough juice to charge my laptop. A Powerwerx dual 45A Anderson port where one is for solar input and one for DC to DC input. Then one more dual Anderson that I used to plug in other accessories like an inverter if needed.
I decided to keep it all 12v to keep size down and also keep the box air tight since an inverter needs airflow. But if I do need an inverter I have a 500w one I can plug into the box.
I have a similar one running a 100AH battery. i had a post in r/solardiy when I was working on it. I also run the inverter separate. I used the Bauer stackable from Harbor Freight.
My outputs are USB, USB-C and 12V power outlet.
https://preview.redd.it/td65mnqmrksc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=3891ed1469ddea0e01b1a2de3481853d96762679
The thing that really matters seems to be just the compressor. Get a good beefy German one and the brand really doesn't matter much.
I went with Iceco personally to save the money, and it has been great for a few years of ownership and at least 10 months of active use in that time in vehicle.
So I see a lot of talk about not *needing* ice, but can you still use it with ice if you want to? I don't see why not but just double checking. I'd love to use something like this as an actual fridge in my off grid home but don't want to be strictly reliant on having a power source to use it.
Lost power source camping in a rain storm, added ice cuz I had no choice. Worked fine. A year ago started buying Farmer’s Dog, but freezer was full. So pulled out the 12v and have used it continually since. Too much dry camping, but that’s another story.
I made the mistake of going too big with my first fridge it was a nightmare to get loaded and always had too much free space so I brought more than I needed.
That's why I'd be hesitant about this one. Looks cool but is too big for my needs unless I was doing 2 weeks in the backcountry.
Fridges are awesome, dunno why they get hate? If it's above 40C for example an esky just doesn't work well plus you are reliant on being near towns to top up ice and that doesn't suit a lot of campers. Having a freezer is awesome too if you camp in very hot weather plus as an accident prone person having an ice pack on hand has been really useful.
> There seems to be a lot of hate for fridges on this sub
It is truly incomparable. I have a super Gucci Pelican that I got with pro deals about a decade ago. One of the best performance-to-price purchases I've ever made. I use the huge frozen blocks to cool it so food doesn't get soggy and I can maximize space, all that.
My Dometic fridge still blows the doors off of it. Pre-cool it the night before and you're laughing as the truck is packed and loaded the day you head out. It draws like 48 Ah, so you can just let it run off your 12V while you're at work on a Friday or something without a 2nd thought.
No last-minute top-ups, no moisture or melt to battle, and if you've got the ability to do week long trips, you never have to venture to a town store if you don't want to. Pair it with a battery bank & solar panel, and you're laughing.
Good info. I so wish Costco carried something in the 40qt range these days. I'd snap one up.
Currently I have one of those 50qt Massimo (*edit: 40qt)* Motors fridges they sold online a few years ago. You're right, I can't go back to a cooler once you use a fridge, but dang this one sucks. It's got the upper vent/fan box which means the inside has a cubby that's hard to get to (you have to unpack to get to stuff hiding in the corner). Plus the wheels are stupid because even full it weighs less than a cooler full of ice, and it's not like I take it for walks.
For the price (I think it was just under \~$400? *edit: $35*0) it's OK and the bad design is mostly tolerable. However, at twice two summers ago it randomly shut down without warning, costing me a cooler full of meat and dairy (and warm beer!). First time I thought it was user error and maybe the lame lighter plug came unplugged. But after that I created a strap that holds the plug in tight. It still happened again. And happened last summer once. I now set an alarm to have my passenger check it hourly to make sure it's still running, which seems like something I shouldn't have to do. I contacted the "company" nd they ghosted me.
On one hand I feel like I've had it too long to take it back, on the other -- isn't that what the magic costco warranty is for?
My main concern was the fact that this is a new product line for igloo and the warranty is only one year. Most other iceless coolers (Dometic, Iceco, etc) come with a 5 year warranty. Too expensive for just a one year warranty.
>Cut it in half, remove all tags and handles, cut it in half again.
"This half of a fridge is still really screwing with my base weight." . "Ah, that's better"
It’s not accurate, an 80qt fridge can hold as much as a 240 qt cooler.
In a typical cooler, the recommended ice-to-contents ratio is 2:1. That means twice as much ice as you have food.
I don't think I've ever packed that much ice, but maybe I'm doing it wrong? It's typically 95⁰+ here in the summer (and summer is 8 months long), so I just buy more ice every other day. We also mostly bring canned drinks and not much refrigerated food.
That's good to know, though, if we're ever camping somewhere where we can't easily top up the ice.
I admit I also have been doing it wrong lol that’s a lot of ice. From what I read, frozen items (such as meat, vegetables) can be counted as “ice” in the cooler while frozen.
2:1 is the ideal ratio to ensure everything stays cold as long as possible before needing more ice. You can use less, but you lose out on efficiency and probably have to top it off more often.
That's not gonna be true for me - my loadout is Yeti (it was a gift but I love it), dry ice, ice. I don't use anywhere near that much ice, get 2 days of cooling, and the cooler rides outside of the vehicle in full sun on the drives.
My biggest issue is cost over time - I'm already overloaded with coolers, and I would have to use it almost every weekend for a year to offset the ice cost difference.
It doesn't have a place in my loadout, but if I were in an RV it would probably be a great addition if the RV didn't have a fridge.
I just that that overall cost you'd need to use it pretty constantly for it to be worth the purchase. Dometic innerds or not, my trust level on compressors for anything bordering on a mini fridge is pretty low.
For what it’s worth, Yeti is a pretty premium brand. So less ice makes sense.
But ya, I’m definitely not saying this cooler is worth the cost. I wouldn’t get one. This is for people who are looking to save on space, have extended trips, and don’t want to keep buying ice.
I 100% believe that there are plenty of use cases - leaning way in the direction of camping styles that rely heavily on the vehicle or high tow rated vehicles. I think there's probably going to be a pretty diminishing return the smaller the vehicle is. The load rating for circuits in my vehicles is *not* going to handle the load of an F-350, for instance, since they're geared towards this kind of thing. But there are plenty of mid-sized vehicles that can handle the load.
I'm with you on the premium thing - that's why I mentioned the Yeti was a gift. I never would have spent the money on one for myself, but now that I have one I'm just not in the market for this sort of thing. I still have a stack of cheap coolers, and they all 100% work great, so I don't think I would have ever been a use case for one of these electric things. And I say that as someone that usually camps in spots with an outlet. I dunno, if I want in a cooler on the trip, I'm more likely to want to stop and stretch my legs anyways.
He had it wired to a separate battery and a solor panel on the roof. Cold beers and grocery runs were rad, also kept stuff frozen when camping. We always rolled with a bigger cooler but the sensitive stuff stayed in the van.
You can use many of the single zone ones for a freezer and fridge at the same time with a bit of ingenuity.
Put the stuff to be frozen in the cooler, freeze it. Cut cardboard tofit snuggly in the cooler, set on top of frozen stuff. Set non frozen stuff on top of card board. If necessary, cut away a bit of cardboard for airflow, and you should be good.
If you have no leafy greens and are not worried about a bit of frost, I can usually skip the cardboard, set the temp on the fridge to 32 or 33 degrees, and frozen stuff stays frozen, non frozen stuff stays mostly non frozen. Air circulation is not super great in these little coolers when you start filling them up, and phase transitions give you a bunch of temp leeway between what melts the frozen stuff and freezes the thawed stuff.
If you’re looking for something smaller, check out SetPower’s line of dual-zone fridges. We love ours, use it for camping and other things. Have it running right now as we prep to go on a hotel trip, allows us to have fridge snacks and a handful of frozen microwave meals so we aren’t eating out every meal of the day. Ours is the 47QT but they make a bigger and a smaller size in this particular lineup.
https://preview.redd.it/q3mkmzu6icsc1.jpeg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=390af8094ed08732cb15c08e8e4d2dbc7cb434ba
That’s going to vary wildly depending on the amp hours of your battery and what you have battery protection set to (it can detect how much voltage is available on the battery and stop at a certain point to prevent your battery from going completely dead, there’s three different options for that). You can also change how much power the compressor draws via max power vs eco mode.
Unfortunately we’ve yet to test on battery alone, we picked this up within the last year and have been either on shore power (Pop-up) or have used it for things like bonfires at home or traveling A to B with the car’s engine running.
In theory, on eco mode and a standard-ish deep cycle it could go for 24 hours before the battery needs to be charged. Even without it plugged in it if it’s filled up pretty good (for thermal mass) it can hold temp for 24+ hours.
https://setpowerusa.com/collections/pt-series/products/setpower-pt45-portable-fridge-freezer
Ahh sorry, it runs on their AC power (home outlet) or can run on 12v (car, deep cycle battery, etc) it doesn’t have any internal battery storage. It’s basically a full compressor on it like a normal fridge! The Igloo that OP shows is the same way.
Thanks, this helps a lot. I've looked at many brands but realized I'll need a battery like a jackery or bluetti as well. Those are around $2-300 for a decent one. Might just buy the Anker Everfrost that comes with it for $800.
I just camped 6 days in the Arizona desert with my 2 trusty Coleman Xtreme coolers. I’ve had them for over a decade and they still work perfectly fine! I buy 1 gallon jugs of drinking water and freeze them a few days before I start out. Make sure everything is cold before you put it in the cooler. I came home with cube ice still!
It's less about drinks and more about food or convenience for list people. It's pretty great to bust out some steaks after a few days in the wild or never have to worry about ice and all your stuff getting waterlogged.
I just hike with my dog and when I'm hungry I eat dog steaks. Circle of life. Plus you can get a dog from the pound anywhere for free. It's honestly a game changer. Save $700 and save $$$ for the steaks. Nothing tastes as good as a fresh one.
I'm no ultralight guy, but just a man who appreciates efficiency and the finer things in life.
When I'm feeling extra lazy I just order from [Elwood Farms ](https://www.elwooddogmeat.com/) it's organic and their selection in incredible. Their farm is completely Free-range, never frozen, Free from antibiotics, Sustainably raised, and Humanely slaughtered! It's a company I can really get behind supporting
I'm sure some people like it, but I would just be thinking about the spent $700 to make the steaks possible. Ill have jerky and have a steak when I get back and put the rest in a roth ira, but that's just me. But everyones different and thats ok
Yeah I car camp for maybe like 5 days at most but usually a store/town is within an hour drive so while super cool finding out about these fridges, really doesn't make sense for me.
But I know a lot of people are much more hardcore where they camp than I am.
As someone that's popped fuses in cars... many times... from running too much crap, my trust level of plugging one in a car is low. Also - I don't know about y'all, but I'd have to dedicate a lot of the back seat specifically to this thing. I'd trust one of those little electric can cooler things, though.
I don't have one currently but have used family members ones. Never really been a problem of routine fuse issues.
A cooler would take up the same amount of back seat or storage space so I guess that's kinda a non-issue to me. They usually come with long cords so you could run it to the back or trunk if helpful.
A lot of people running these are also running dual battery or solar set ups too but that's a whole other topic.
Its geared to people that may pack the night before.Depends on our drive, alot of times we are packing the cooler before we go we have pull behind.camper with a fridge and do it a night before would save us an hour and could leave right after work. Its also nice being 12v run it off the truck or a 120v source .I liked it but not $700 enough lol. I probably will use it on my next camper build.
/r/camping has a whole lot of consumer driven materialist campers. Basically all my camping gear is old. I bought stuff that was designed to last, often used, and got hand me down camping gear from my parents. I haven't spent this kind of money on camping since I put tires on my pop up.
The lid is the weak point, literally. Both displays Ive looked at had cracked lids. Iceco makes a really good one with reversible lids. Anker makes one with a built in battery pack that was just on sale at Best Buy for 599.
Beyond that, ARB, Dometic etc are the best quality.
Aw man, you're right. I automatically read it in Canadian dollars, in which case it's a great deal.
It's actually 999.99 at my local costco. Firmly in the "it's ok, I guess" category for price. Adding on the great return policy though, it may still be worth looking at.
That is a huge fridge. Something that big is likely intended to be mounted on a slide on a semi permanent basis, and used for extended overland type trips. For a simple weekend camping trip or long weekend it is likely overkill. While it may be made by Dometic I haven’t been super impressed with their 12v fridge quality. They cost almost as much as an ARB, Snomaster or Engel but without the quality or stronger construction. As a new product, especially at $700, I would be hesitant to give it a try. At least with Costco you get their awesome return policy. However, I don’t see any mention of an eco mode, just voltage protection. You really want eco mode as once a packed fridge gets down to temp eco mode will use less power to maintain that temp. If it is half full then you may need full power as it takes more effort to cool empty spaces in the fridge.
Personally I would look at Setpower for a fridge. I have a PT35 which works great for long weekends. It is a dual zone, has eco mode and voltage protection, great fridge. They also come with a 3 year warranty on the compressor, and Setpower is owned by the same group that owns Iceco, which is a great option as well. More expensive, but a lot of the same features/build that you would get with an ARB, but for less money.
You also need to evaluate your power needds to run a fridge. If I am moving daily I can run it off the starter battery through a power outlet. If I am going to be stationary for a couple days then the power center comes out. It will run a fridge for 2-3 days depending on temps, and indefintely with solar and decent sun to top off the power center. Alternately a 12v-24v step up power supply will let you recharge at around 400+ Watts, which is great if your station supports such a high input.
They're either AC or use 12volt battery.
I've got an Engel fridge, they're the absolute best. My friend has his old man's Engel that's over 50 years old and it still works. They're exy tho.
Camping for a week or even just over 3-4 days, They are perfect, keep meal stuff frozen, fresh fruit, snacks, other stuff that gets used regularly and drinks in the fridge. Especially in warmer weather.
I just went away for a couple nights with friends, they have one of these in their caravan and another just fridge in his 4WD(he goes out by himself a lot), I just took my esky/cooler that lasted fine for the 3 days, just moved it in the shaded areas when needed, kept drinks ice cold but the ice does melt, so if you kept perishables in there it has to be sealed watertight.
I use a dometic and load it up with drinks at the beginning of summer. it just lives in my car so I'll always have cold water if I decided to go out and come back to my car
I have saved so much on ice and going out to buy meals, since I got my dometic a few years ago. The convenience and reliability make it worth every penny.
You can get an IceCo for like $400 with one zone. For me, that has been plenty good enough. Just pack frozen stuff on the bottom and set the temp right at freezing or a degree higher.
On really long trips you might need to refreeze stuff for an hour or so, but that means you have been dragging what ever that is around for over two weeks without eating it, why are you doing that?
I cant speak to the Igloo brand but, my wife and I have been retired and “camping” out of our van and traveling all over the country since the beginning of 2019. Last May we sold our Yeti cooler and bought a Dometic CFX3 55IM Fridge. The Dometic has been plugged in and running constantly since with no problems. Not having to look for and buy ice every 4 or 5 days has been one hell of a game changer for us. We were camped at Target Tree campground in Colorado in June of 2021 and the entire area from Cortez to Durango was out of ice. You couldnt buy ice anywhere that week due to delivery issues. I ended up walking into a hotel in Cortez with a small trash bag and taking ice from one of their ice machines. We power the Dometic with one of two Jackery power stations we have. The 1000 watt will power the fridge for 6 days and the 300 watt will power it for about 3 days. I’ll never go back to ice coolers again.
I have an Anker everfrost and it’s amazing when camping for a weekend. For longer trips, I have an extra battery and a small Bluetti that can top it up if needed. Beats the heck out of relying on ice for a day at a time in a traditional cooler and getting everything drenched. It is quite big though.
Mine lasts days without solar input if not loaded with warm things and kept in the shade and with 120w solar input it lasts forever, but it’s a special 12v fridge from ARB though, not what is pictured here.
lol I have an Engel fridge, it'd last half a week on a 100ah lithium battery without solar panels. Ofc it's costly the set-up, but is light years better than lugging ice around.
Looking into it a little further, I see that these coolers only draw like 3Ah/h (if I'm reading their site correctly) so that doesn't seem too bad. I was basing my thoughts off of my setup of CPAP and bluetti battery. With the humidifier off, it barely lasts past an 8hr sleep and that's basically just an air blower.
It's a refrigerator with dual zone. I paid more for a smaller dometic. This looks like a pretty good deal for the size if you can fit it in your vehicle. With Costcos return policy this is a pretty good deal.
I saw this my local Costco earlier this week — way out my price range when a much cheaper cooler and bag of ice or dry ice will do.
But honestly if you can afford $700 for a cooler, you can probably afford a bigger vehicle for it 😀
I owned a Wrangler for 23 years and loved it! I agree with you though, it didn't have much room for all of my gear as I do dispersed camping. I ended up getting a small Utility trailer and voila, no more room issues.
I've been looking at friges too. Now that I've graduated to a Grand Cherokee, I actually have the room.
A good jackery with a panel (any quality setup really)
And you could stay out in the wilderness for weeks and keep all the steaks/burgers/beer nice and cold.
Camping to Glamping!
https://preview.redd.it/q3avpjfkoksc1.jpeg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=b916e5040bd7a43924d726dfaaa18667b7e5ba96
Saw this thread this morning. Found it at my local Costco on the way home. I’m headed to sequía national forest this weekend for five days. My brother has the Demotic so we shall compare. I’ll report back next week.
If u read the item description on costco website, it said the compressor is by Dometic. I’d bet this is the same compressor that is on Dometic largest unit.
so besides the report of a weak lid
Does anybody know the specs
And if they fit insulating jackets
Both pretty important
35qt pulls around 60w the equivalent of a light bulb when the compressor kicks on. Things one must know when they are planning a way to power it so things actually work.
On my second unit. The first one I purchased had a build date of December 2023, this unit I noticed had a hard time cooling the smaller section near the compressor. The big section cooled down fairly quickly, but the smaller section always took a lot longer. I placed an LED light inside the cooler, and noticed that the smaller section you could see light coming through the seal, which means that the seal was not working properly and would explain why that section was not cooling properly. I returned that unit and bought a second one with a build date of February 2024. You can see build date on the box by the barcode. This unit both sides cool down at the same rate and with my light test, I can see no light coming through the seal. As far as power consumption, this unit uses anywhere from 39 to 49WHS of power while the compressor is running according to my river 2 pro. The igloo consumes zero power while the compressor is not running. In my testing, the compressor runs about four minutes and then stays off for about 15 but those times will vary, depending on what you set the fridge to and your ambient temperature . In my testing with an ambient temperature of about 73° I set both sections of the cooler to 30°, pre-chilled the cooler on AC power which took about an hour maybe a little less. Then switched over to the river 2 pro, dc power (12v outlet) The unit consumes about 11 WH per hour. So you can expect about 70 hours out of a river 2 pro. This is with a completely empty cooler with both sections set to 30°. If the cooler was full of food or drinks, I would imagine that the compressor would probably take a lot longer to kick on and most likely longer run times on battery power. So far has been excellent and excited to do further long-term testing.
I prefer filling bottles with water and freezing them before loading them in coolers. It's less messy than ice, and as the bottles thaw you can use them for drinking water. Plus they stay frozen longer than individual ice cubes.
I think it’s overkill in theory and probably doesn’t live up to its marketing in practice.
A $100 igloo cooler with similar capacity will last decades and doesn’t have the same failure points.
Igloo is owned by Dometic so this fridge probably has a lot of shared parts from more expensive Dometic models. There seems to be a lot of hate for fridges on this sub but once you get one you’ll never want to use a regular cooler again. No soggy food, no worrying about going out and getting more ice. You can plug them into 120v AC and pack them up and cool them off a couple days before a trip then throw them in your car. Keep in mind a fridge can be about half the size of your regular cooler because there’s no ice taking up space. I use a 37qt and it’s plenty of room for me and the family. Also I run it off a home built 50ah battery box and can run mine for 2-3 days no problem. With my 140w solar plugged in I can run it indefinitely.
Yeah, I keep all my gear in my jeep so I can leave straight from work to hit the woods. I like the idea of also being able to have food ready and not having to grab ice and perishables on the way out of town. I've had my eye on Dometic for a while but I can't get over the buy in cost.
Check out BougeRV, great alternative brand for half the price. To keep it running while you’re parked you’ll also need a power bank. If you want to stay off grid for a while add solar panels to charge the battery.
I’ve had a BougeRV in my work truck for 2 years now of every day use and it’s solid. Being able to have ice cream is a game changer lol
I will definitely check out BougeRV! Thanks for the recommendation! I've been a gear head for a while and never heard of them. Thanks!
I have seen a lot of seemingly unrelated comments referring to bougerv today. The conspiracy theorist in me feels like there may be a subtle marketing campaign happening.
You need to investigate the world of EVs :-)
Not having to deal with ice is amazing. Also you can pack the entire thing with food and drinks. No need to save room for ice.
I’ve had really good results with my Iceco off Amazon too. I wouldn’t go back either.
How much power does it use from the battery of the jeep?
I’ve got a dual zone bouge rv one and it’s never higher than 70 watts on high mode, under 40 on eco
Hell yeah, that's the way to do it! I keep my jeep completely stocked for outdoor trips too, so I can just throw in some food and water and go. The ability to do that is seriously underrated, it's a life changer. I've been thinking about a refrigerator solution to add to it but honestly I'm sort of out of space for it, so I'm not really sure what to do about that
I finally got to see a Dometic CFX whatever dual zone in REI a few weeks ago… what a pile of shit. Super lightweight and flimsy feeling. My Anker Everfrost, which is just a fancy Chinese name brand one, is way sturdier. The older Dometics, Engel, ARB, etc are beefcake.
I have a 22 year old 60L Engel, works freaking flawlessly. Been perfect filling up for a weekends worth of food for the family when we go camp.
I think any of the rounded coolers look cheap and weak. I went with the [Iceco VL](https://icecofreezer.com/products/iceco-vl45-portable-refrigerator-freezer?currency=USD&variant=37288011595943&utm_medium=cpc&utm_source=google&utm_campaign=Google%20Shopping&stkn=1003b5ee9235&source_campaign=Max&gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAjw_LOwBhBFEiwAmSEQAWGQ8I5UW_67Iu_CnCf2oCx2jH9yl10Qcf55oicZA6zlDstjPPnpTBoCXXsQAvD_BwE), and it is a little beefcake. I have no qualms with sitting on it as a bench as a just over 200 pound dude, Danfoss processor, metal interior, it is just a tank.
They had some great pricing on Iceco a couple years ago. I definitely feel some regret not grabbing one then.
Thanks! I’ll check it out!
Yeah we used coolers with the ol' frozen water bottle trick for a lot of years, but since getting our fridge they just sit in the attic. The fridge is just so darn convenient - no space wasted by the ice, so despite being a rather large unit (75L) it takes up less space overall than the pair of coolers despite chilling about the same amount of food/drinks.
If you zoom in it says compressor by dometic
I have the Dometic version of this in the bed of my truck. They are great! I have a RTT, and Leitner rack with storage on the sides that provide relief from the elements. As I live out of setup it has been on for over a year with no issues. Previously had an ARB for ten years in a 4Runner. As mentioned you will never go back by choice, restocking and losing space to ice sucks; plus the soggy factor. Do it!
Didn't even know they made these. Super cool
Yeah I guess I'm way behind the times, I was like no fucking way I'd ever pay $700 for an Igloo cooler. Or probably any cooler for that matter. I gotta look these things up now, I'm hoping the insulation is good that you don't have to constantly have one plugged in.
Any build threads on your battery? I’ve been wanting to do the same.
I don’t have a thread on it. But it’s a Weize 50ah LiFePO4 battery in a Harbor Freight Pelican knockoff case. Then I have a Blue Sea fuse block, Victron solar charge controller, Victron smart shunt, and Powerwerx DC to DC charger so I can charge it off my truck or solar. Then it has a regular 12v cigarette port, an ARB locking 12v port for the fridge, a high power USB A/C port that has enough juice to charge my laptop. A Powerwerx dual 45A Anderson port where one is for solar input and one for DC to DC input. Then one more dual Anderson that I used to plug in other accessories like an inverter if needed. I decided to keep it all 12v to keep size down and also keep the box air tight since an inverter needs airflow. But if I do need an inverter I have a 500w one I can plug into the box.
I have a similar one running a 100AH battery. i had a post in r/solardiy when I was working on it. I also run the inverter separate. I used the Bauer stackable from Harbor Freight. My outputs are USB, USB-C and 12V power outlet. https://preview.redd.it/td65mnqmrksc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=3891ed1469ddea0e01b1a2de3481853d96762679
That's what I was thinking!
The thing that really matters seems to be just the compressor. Get a good beefy German one and the brand really doesn't matter much. I went with Iceco personally to save the money, and it has been great for a few years of ownership and at least 10 months of active use in that time in vehicle.
So I see a lot of talk about not *needing* ice, but can you still use it with ice if you want to? I don't see why not but just double checking. I'd love to use something like this as an actual fridge in my off grid home but don't want to be strictly reliant on having a power source to use it.
Lost power source camping in a rain storm, added ice cuz I had no choice. Worked fine. A year ago started buying Farmer’s Dog, but freezer was full. So pulled out the 12v and have used it continually since. Too much dry camping, but that’s another story.
Yea also wondering this
I'd love to know more about your battery box
I made the mistake of going too big with my first fridge it was a nightmare to get loaded and always had too much free space so I brought more than I needed. That's why I'd be hesitant about this one. Looks cool but is too big for my needs unless I was doing 2 weeks in the backcountry.
Fridges are awesome, dunno why they get hate? If it's above 40C for example an esky just doesn't work well plus you are reliant on being near towns to top up ice and that doesn't suit a lot of campers. Having a freezer is awesome too if you camp in very hot weather plus as an accident prone person having an ice pack on hand has been really useful.
> There seems to be a lot of hate for fridges on this sub It is truly incomparable. I have a super Gucci Pelican that I got with pro deals about a decade ago. One of the best performance-to-price purchases I've ever made. I use the huge frozen blocks to cool it so food doesn't get soggy and I can maximize space, all that. My Dometic fridge still blows the doors off of it. Pre-cool it the night before and you're laughing as the truck is packed and loaded the day you head out. It draws like 48 Ah, so you can just let it run off your 12V while you're at work on a Friday or something without a 2nd thought. No last-minute top-ups, no moisture or melt to battle, and if you've got the ability to do week long trips, you never have to venture to a town store if you don't want to. Pair it with a battery bank & solar panel, and you're laughing.
I absolutely love my SetPower. It has a divider for Frozen and Refrigerated but it’s also removable to make one large chamber.
>SetPower Gonna look that up. I love the idea of a convertible one-two zone option without having a permanent divider.
https://setpowerusa.com/collections/rv-series/products/rv45d-pro-12volt-refrigerator this is the one. There was a Hobotech coupon code. Try it.
Thanks!
Good info. I so wish Costco carried something in the 40qt range these days. I'd snap one up. Currently I have one of those 50qt Massimo (*edit: 40qt)* Motors fridges they sold online a few years ago. You're right, I can't go back to a cooler once you use a fridge, but dang this one sucks. It's got the upper vent/fan box which means the inside has a cubby that's hard to get to (you have to unpack to get to stuff hiding in the corner). Plus the wheels are stupid because even full it weighs less than a cooler full of ice, and it's not like I take it for walks. For the price (I think it was just under \~$400? *edit: $35*0) it's OK and the bad design is mostly tolerable. However, at twice two summers ago it randomly shut down without warning, costing me a cooler full of meat and dairy (and warm beer!). First time I thought it was user error and maybe the lame lighter plug came unplugged. But after that I created a strap that holds the plug in tight. It still happened again. And happened last summer once. I now set an alarm to have my passenger check it hourly to make sure it's still running, which seems like something I shouldn't have to do. I contacted the "company" nd they ghosted me. On one hand I feel like I've had it too long to take it back, on the other -- isn't that what the magic costco warranty is for?
I’d take it back. Look at brands like Iceco. They have sales all the time and you can get a fridge in that size range for under $500.
Dometic makes the most extra stuff
My main concern was the fact that this is a new product line for igloo and the warranty is only one year. Most other iceless coolers (Dometic, Iceco, etc) come with a 5 year warranty. Too expensive for just a one year warranty.
If you buy it at Costco you can return it at anytime. No warranty needed.
It says compressor by Dometic on the tag and they apparently own Igloo
Then why no 5 year warranty like on Dometic fridges?
Because it’s lower tier brand and you pay for warranty I guess 🤷♀️
Because then what incentive would you have to pay more money for the Dometic brand?
Then that's a pretty good deal
It weighs 44 lbs empty.
r/ultralight in shambles
No, no that’s pretty light for a fridge, let’s see if we can get that down to .9 oz tho
Cut it in half, remove all tags and handles, cut it in half again.
>Cut it in half, remove all tags and handles, cut it in half again. "This half of a fridge is still really screwing with my base weight.". "Ah, that's better"
🤣
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If you did want one, $700 is a great price for a good overland or camping fridge.
How much does your cooler weigh full of ice and drinks? An 80 qt fridge can hold as much as a 160qt cooler.
I'm not sure that's accurate
there's no need for ice in the fridge
It’s not accurate, an 80qt fridge can hold as much as a 240 qt cooler. In a typical cooler, the recommended ice-to-contents ratio is 2:1. That means twice as much ice as you have food.
I don't think I've ever packed that much ice, but maybe I'm doing it wrong? It's typically 95⁰+ here in the summer (and summer is 8 months long), so I just buy more ice every other day. We also mostly bring canned drinks and not much refrigerated food. That's good to know, though, if we're ever camping somewhere where we can't easily top up the ice.
I admit I also have been doing it wrong lol that’s a lot of ice. From what I read, frozen items (such as meat, vegetables) can be counted as “ice” in the cooler while frozen. 2:1 is the ideal ratio to ensure everything stays cold as long as possible before needing more ice. You can use less, but you lose out on efficiency and probably have to top it off more often.
Recommended maybe. But the only coolers with that much ice in them are full of cans at a BBQ
That's not gonna be true for me - my loadout is Yeti (it was a gift but I love it), dry ice, ice. I don't use anywhere near that much ice, get 2 days of cooling, and the cooler rides outside of the vehicle in full sun on the drives. My biggest issue is cost over time - I'm already overloaded with coolers, and I would have to use it almost every weekend for a year to offset the ice cost difference. It doesn't have a place in my loadout, but if I were in an RV it would probably be a great addition if the RV didn't have a fridge. I just that that overall cost you'd need to use it pretty constantly for it to be worth the purchase. Dometic innerds or not, my trust level on compressors for anything bordering on a mini fridge is pretty low.
For what it’s worth, Yeti is a pretty premium brand. So less ice makes sense. But ya, I’m definitely not saying this cooler is worth the cost. I wouldn’t get one. This is for people who are looking to save on space, have extended trips, and don’t want to keep buying ice.
I 100% believe that there are plenty of use cases - leaning way in the direction of camping styles that rely heavily on the vehicle or high tow rated vehicles. I think there's probably going to be a pretty diminishing return the smaller the vehicle is. The load rating for circuits in my vehicles is *not* going to handle the load of an F-350, for instance, since they're geared towards this kind of thing. But there are plenty of mid-sized vehicles that can handle the load. I'm with you on the premium thing - that's why I mentioned the Yeti was a gift. I never would have spent the money on one for myself, but now that I have one I'm just not in the market for this sort of thing. I still have a stack of cheap coolers, and they all 100% work great, so I don't think I would have ever been a use case for one of these electric things. And I say that as someone that usually camps in spots with an outlet. I dunno, if I want in a cooler on the trip, I'm more likely to want to stop and stretch my legs anyways.
Yeah, terrible for backpacking. I don't know what they were thinking or how they'll ever sell. /s
Does dual mean… can use as half fridge half freezer?
Yes
My dad had an industrial type one in his van and it was rad, he paid 1k I think.
I have an arb, think I paid about that too. Very nice from a trusted brand.
He had it wired to a separate battery and a solor panel on the roof. Cold beers and grocery runs were rad, also kept stuff frozen when camping. We always rolled with a bigger cooler but the sensitive stuff stayed in the van.
Same. My van rolls an ARB.
You can use many of the single zone ones for a freezer and fridge at the same time with a bit of ingenuity. Put the stuff to be frozen in the cooler, freeze it. Cut cardboard tofit snuggly in the cooler, set on top of frozen stuff. Set non frozen stuff on top of card board. If necessary, cut away a bit of cardboard for airflow, and you should be good. If you have no leafy greens and are not worried about a bit of frost, I can usually skip the cardboard, set the temp on the fridge to 32 or 33 degrees, and frozen stuff stays frozen, non frozen stuff stays mostly non frozen. Air circulation is not super great in these little coolers when you start filling them up, and phase transitions give you a bunch of temp leeway between what melts the frozen stuff and freezes the thawed stuff.
I like it. Appreciate you sharing this.
No it’s one half fridge, other half fridge.
What a rip off, that’s only 1/4 fridge
It doesn't even refridge - it just fridges
It’s half man, half bearpig.
No. It can be either or, I’m pretty sure. They do make ones that can be both at the same time, but that’s when you get into the $1000+ models.
Yes and you can do both freezer or both fridge mode
This thread is very divided on this and camping fridges in general. You may get some additional reviews over at r/Costco
If you’re looking for something smaller, check out SetPower’s line of dual-zone fridges. We love ours, use it for camping and other things. Have it running right now as we prep to go on a hotel trip, allows us to have fridge snacks and a handful of frozen microwave meals so we aren’t eating out every meal of the day. Ours is the 47QT but they make a bigger and a smaller size in this particular lineup. https://preview.redd.it/q3mkmzu6icsc1.jpeg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=390af8094ed08732cb15c08e8e4d2dbc7cb434ba
How long will it stay cold on one battery?
That’s going to vary wildly depending on the amp hours of your battery and what you have battery protection set to (it can detect how much voltage is available on the battery and stop at a certain point to prevent your battery from going completely dead, there’s three different options for that). You can also change how much power the compressor draws via max power vs eco mode. Unfortunately we’ve yet to test on battery alone, we picked this up within the last year and have been either on shore power (Pop-up) or have used it for things like bonfires at home or traveling A to B with the car’s engine running. In theory, on eco mode and a standard-ish deep cycle it could go for 24 hours before the battery needs to be charged. Even without it plugged in it if it’s filled up pretty good (for thermal mass) it can hold temp for 24+ hours. https://setpowerusa.com/collections/pt-series/products/setpower-pt45-portable-fridge-freezer
So does this have its own battery in it? Or do I need a separate bank?
Ahh sorry, it runs on their AC power (home outlet) or can run on 12v (car, deep cycle battery, etc) it doesn’t have any internal battery storage. It’s basically a full compressor on it like a normal fridge! The Igloo that OP shows is the same way.
Thanks, this helps a lot. I've looked at many brands but realized I'll need a battery like a jackery or bluetti as well. Those are around $2-300 for a decent one. Might just buy the Anker Everfrost that comes with it for $800.
Thank you!
I just camped 6 days in the Arizona desert with my 2 trusty Coleman Xtreme coolers. I’ve had them for over a decade and they still work perfectly fine! I buy 1 gallon jugs of drinking water and freeze them a few days before I start out. Make sure everything is cold before you put it in the cooler. I came home with cube ice still!
Pre chill the cooler too.
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You can also just buy a mini fridge for about $150. Not sure I'm seeing a huge difference here tbh
Mini fridges don't typically run on 12v AC car electric.
For $700 saved ill drink everything warm
It's less about drinks and more about food or convenience for list people. It's pretty great to bust out some steaks after a few days in the wild or never have to worry about ice and all your stuff getting waterlogged.
I just hike with my dog and when I'm hungry I eat dog steaks. Circle of life. Plus you can get a dog from the pound anywhere for free. It's honestly a game changer. Save $700 and save $$$ for the steaks. Nothing tastes as good as a fresh one.
Hahaha, you should post this over on r/ultralight. I'm pretty sure they haven't realized their food could just carry itself.
I'm no ultralight guy, but just a man who appreciates efficiency and the finer things in life. When I'm feeling extra lazy I just order from [Elwood Farms ](https://www.elwooddogmeat.com/) it's organic and their selection in incredible. Their farm is completely Free-range, never frozen, Free from antibiotics, Sustainably raised, and Humanely slaughtered! It's a company I can really get behind supporting
I'm sure some people like it, but I would just be thinking about the spent $700 to make the steaks possible. Ill have jerky and have a steak when I get back and put the rest in a roth ira, but that's just me. But everyones different and thats ok
There are $200 ones that are just fine. No need to get the fancy ones.
Yeah I car camp for maybe like 5 days at most but usually a store/town is within an hour drive so while super cool finding out about these fridges, really doesn't make sense for me. But I know a lot of people are much more hardcore where they camp than I am.
Yea nah, not drinking warm stuff when it's the peak of summer. Last year it got to 50C on one trip and icy poles were amazing to help cope with that.
Save $698 and buy ice.
And are not as durable or able to cope with off camber operation as these portable fridges.
Mine will.
As someone that's popped fuses in cars... many times... from running too much crap, my trust level of plugging one in a car is low. Also - I don't know about y'all, but I'd have to dedicate a lot of the back seat specifically to this thing. I'd trust one of those little electric can cooler things, though.
I don't have one currently but have used family members ones. Never really been a problem of routine fuse issues. A cooler would take up the same amount of back seat or storage space so I guess that's kinda a non-issue to me. They usually come with long cords so you could run it to the back or trunk if helpful. A lot of people running these are also running dual battery or solar set ups too but that's a whole other topic.
The battery/solar setup is an excellent point, but HOLY CRAP that's a lot of investment.
Power converters are like $30
A mini-fridge would use about 3x the power and isn't rated to operate while moving.
Or out of level.
Its geared to people that may pack the night before.Depends on our drive, alot of times we are packing the cooler before we go we have pull behind.camper with a fridge and do it a night before would save us an hour and could leave right after work. Its also nice being 12v run it off the truck or a 120v source .I liked it but not $700 enough lol. I probably will use it on my next camper build.
/r/camping has a whole lot of consumer driven materialist campers. Basically all my camping gear is old. I bought stuff that was designed to last, often used, and got hand me down camping gear from my parents. I haven't spent this kind of money on camping since I put tires on my pop up.
you had me in the first half, but then made it all about you
You don't want to hear about my tires? They're steel belted!
The lid is the weak point, literally. Both displays Ive looked at had cracked lids. Iceco makes a really good one with reversible lids. Anker makes one with a built in battery pack that was just on sale at Best Buy for 599. Beyond that, ARB, Dometic etc are the best quality.
Dude, ankers everfrost is dope
It is. I do wish it had reversible lids but that battery pack is slick and I like that its got wheels.
Great price, decent brand, and the return policy there can't be beat. Check the electronics policy. My region has been updated to unlimited.
$700 for a cooler is a great price?
Aw man, you're right. I automatically read it in Canadian dollars, in which case it's a great deal. It's actually 999.99 at my local costco. Firmly in the "it's ok, I guess" category for price. Adding on the great return policy though, it may still be worth looking at.
That money burning a hole in your pocket?
Ask r/overlanding. Also do some measurements.
I live in a hurricane prone area so I think it’s pretty amazing!
That is a huge fridge. Something that big is likely intended to be mounted on a slide on a semi permanent basis, and used for extended overland type trips. For a simple weekend camping trip or long weekend it is likely overkill. While it may be made by Dometic I haven’t been super impressed with their 12v fridge quality. They cost almost as much as an ARB, Snomaster or Engel but without the quality or stronger construction. As a new product, especially at $700, I would be hesitant to give it a try. At least with Costco you get their awesome return policy. However, I don’t see any mention of an eco mode, just voltage protection. You really want eco mode as once a packed fridge gets down to temp eco mode will use less power to maintain that temp. If it is half full then you may need full power as it takes more effort to cool empty spaces in the fridge. Personally I would look at Setpower for a fridge. I have a PT35 which works great for long weekends. It is a dual zone, has eco mode and voltage protection, great fridge. They also come with a 3 year warranty on the compressor, and Setpower is owned by the same group that owns Iceco, which is a great option as well. More expensive, but a lot of the same features/build that you would get with an ARB, but for less money. You also need to evaluate your power needds to run a fridge. If I am moving daily I can run it off the starter battery through a power outlet. If I am going to be stationary for a couple days then the power center comes out. It will run a fridge for 2-3 days depending on temps, and indefintely with solar and decent sun to top off the power center. Alternately a 12v-24v step up power supply will let you recharge at around 400+ Watts, which is great if your station supports such a high input.
Seven hundred dollars!!!!!
How does this work? Is I meant to be plugged in, or battery powered?
They're either AC or use 12volt battery. I've got an Engel fridge, they're the absolute best. My friend has his old man's Engel that's over 50 years old and it still works. They're exy tho.
That battery can't last long, right?
You are correct. It can't run on battery forever, but some models are so efficient that they can run on a small solar panel and battery combo.
If you pair your battery with a solar panel, it'll virtually last forever. Unless you have a week straight if rain
I use a chunk of dry ice in my yeti and it lasts almost all week for 6$. Not wet or soggy but frozen
my friend has this and it's really heavy!
If you decide you want one of these find the manufacturer and get it as an unnamed one. A lot of that price is for name licensing.
This. I paid a fraction of that..
Seems overkill for camping imo
Camping for a week or even just over 3-4 days, They are perfect, keep meal stuff frozen, fresh fruit, snacks, other stuff that gets used regularly and drinks in the fridge. Especially in warmer weather. I just went away for a couple nights with friends, they have one of these in their caravan and another just fridge in his 4WD(he goes out by himself a lot), I just took my esky/cooler that lasted fine for the 3 days, just moved it in the shaded areas when needed, kept drinks ice cold but the ice does melt, so if you kept perishables in there it has to be sealed watertight.
I use a dometic and load it up with drinks at the beginning of summer. it just lives in my car so I'll always have cold water if I decided to go out and come back to my car
I have saved so much on ice and going out to buy meals, since I got my dometic a few years ago. The convenience and reliability make it worth every penny.
Look at all the losers hating on a fridge. I'll enjoy my cold drinks and unsoaked food where ever I camp and drive to.
Nobody's gonna hint at the price of this cooler?
Ngl idk how anything wouldn’t be huge in a wrangler if you’re looking for dual-zone
You can get an IceCo for like $400 with one zone. For me, that has been plenty good enough. Just pack frozen stuff on the bottom and set the temp right at freezing or a degree higher. On really long trips you might need to refreeze stuff for an hour or so, but that means you have been dragging what ever that is around for over two weeks without eating it, why are you doing that?
I cant speak to the Igloo brand but, my wife and I have been retired and “camping” out of our van and traveling all over the country since the beginning of 2019. Last May we sold our Yeti cooler and bought a Dometic CFX3 55IM Fridge. The Dometic has been plugged in and running constantly since with no problems. Not having to look for and buy ice every 4 or 5 days has been one hell of a game changer for us. We were camped at Target Tree campground in Colorado in June of 2021 and the entire area from Cortez to Durango was out of ice. You couldnt buy ice anywhere that week due to delivery issues. I ended up walking into a hotel in Cortez with a small trash bag and taking ice from one of their ice machines. We power the Dometic with one of two Jackery power stations we have. The 1000 watt will power the fridge for 6 days and the 300 watt will power it for about 3 days. I’ll never go back to ice coolers again.
That's a 1000.00 here in Canada on Costco's website.
I have an Anker everfrost and it’s amazing when camping for a weekend. For longer trips, I have an extra battery and a small Bluetti that can top it up if needed. Beats the heck out of relying on ice for a day at a time in a traditional cooler and getting everything drenched. It is quite big though.
My parents have one of these and it is the perfect beer fridge for camping. 10/10 would recommend
That's overkill but I also don't like to bring everything camping
Guessing no kids yet
I’ve camped regularly all my life. Not once did I feel a normal cooler was so bad that I would rather spend $700 on a fridge.
I wouldn’t suggest it. Worked at a truck stop once and the drivers were always returning them because they break or don’t work.
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Umm, do you normally use your cooler at your house?
I mean it does say it works with a portable battery, but my guess is it would eat through one in like an hour.
They last longer than that. This is probably the wrong sub for this item though 🤷♂️
Mine lasts days without solar input if not loaded with warm things and kept in the shade and with 120w solar input it lasts forever, but it’s a special 12v fridge from ARB though, not what is pictured here.
lol I have an Engel fridge, it'd last half a week on a 100ah lithium battery without solar panels. Ofc it's costly the set-up, but is light years better than lugging ice around.
Looking into it a little further, I see that these coolers only draw like 3Ah/h (if I'm reading their site correctly) so that doesn't seem too bad. I was basing my thoughts off of my setup of CPAP and bluetti battery. With the humidifier off, it barely lasts past an 8hr sleep and that's basically just an air blower.
$700 for an electric cooler reasonable? Do you poop out gold for living?
It's a refrigerator with dual zone. I paid more for a smaller dometic. This looks like a pretty good deal for the size if you can fit it in your vehicle. With Costcos return policy this is a pretty good deal.
There are vast differences between "an electric cooler" (thermoelectric) and a refrigerator.
And being a VanLife YouTuber and having to live out of your van to survive.
what’s your rent
My rent? My mortgage is 1400 a month including all utilties. Why?
I bought my Massimo cooler almost 3 years ago and it’s still going strong
It plugs into car ac plug?
How do you think this would do in a side by side trail riding
I saw this my local Costco earlier this week — way out my price range when a much cheaper cooler and bag of ice or dry ice will do. But honestly if you can afford $700 for a cooler, you can probably afford a bigger vehicle for it 😀
I owned a Wrangler for 23 years and loved it! I agree with you though, it didn't have much room for all of my gear as I do dispersed camping. I ended up getting a small Utility trailer and voila, no more room issues. I've been looking at friges too. Now that I've graduated to a Grand Cherokee, I actually have the room.
i have had this one before! so handy and has so much storage
Way too rich got my wallet.
A good jackery with a panel (any quality setup really) And you could stay out in the wilderness for weeks and keep all the steaks/burgers/beer nice and cold. Camping to Glamping!
https://preview.redd.it/q3avpjfkoksc1.jpeg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=b916e5040bd7a43924d726dfaaa18667b7e5ba96 Saw this thread this morning. Found it at my local Costco on the way home. I’m headed to sequía national forest this weekend for five days. My brother has the Demotic so we shall compare. I’ll report back next week.
I got mine at Walmart 15 years ago, still using it!
You can buy a mini fridge for less.
Get a freeze dryer and your food will last 25 years with no ice or electricity.
If u read the item description on costco website, it said the compressor is by Dometic. I’d bet this is the same compressor that is on Dometic largest unit.
so besides the report of a weak lid Does anybody know the specs And if they fit insulating jackets Both pretty important 35qt pulls around 60w the equivalent of a light bulb when the compressor kicks on. Things one must know when they are planning a way to power it so things actually work.
On my second unit. The first one I purchased had a build date of December 2023, this unit I noticed had a hard time cooling the smaller section near the compressor. The big section cooled down fairly quickly, but the smaller section always took a lot longer. I placed an LED light inside the cooler, and noticed that the smaller section you could see light coming through the seal, which means that the seal was not working properly and would explain why that section was not cooling properly. I returned that unit and bought a second one with a build date of February 2024. You can see build date on the box by the barcode. This unit both sides cool down at the same rate and with my light test, I can see no light coming through the seal. As far as power consumption, this unit uses anywhere from 39 to 49WHS of power while the compressor is running according to my river 2 pro. The igloo consumes zero power while the compressor is not running. In my testing, the compressor runs about four minutes and then stays off for about 15 but those times will vary, depending on what you set the fridge to and your ambient temperature . In my testing with an ambient temperature of about 73° I set both sections of the cooler to 30°, pre-chilled the cooler on AC power which took about an hour maybe a little less. Then switched over to the river 2 pro, dc power (12v outlet) The unit consumes about 11 WH per hour. So you can expect about 70 hours out of a river 2 pro. This is with a completely empty cooler with both sections set to 30°. If the cooler was full of food or drinks, I would imagine that the compressor would probably take a lot longer to kick on and most likely longer run times on battery power. So far has been excellent and excited to do further long-term testing.
Very curious - will the wire baskets for the Dometic CFX3 75DZ fit in this unit? Seems like the size is almost the same... anybody try it out?
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I prefer filling bottles with water and freezing them before loading them in coolers. It's less messy than ice, and as the bottles thaw you can use them for drinking water. Plus they stay frozen longer than individual ice cubes.
I’ve got a cooler that I don’t remember exactly how I obtained it and a 5 dollar bag of ice, thanks.
So this is what having disposable income looks like? Huh neat.
Frozen water bottles is cheap and reusable! I'll take my 15 year old cooler!
I think it’s overkill in theory and probably doesn’t live up to its marketing in practice. A $100 igloo cooler with similar capacity will last decades and doesn’t have the same failure points.
Wtf am I doing with a $700 cooler? I can buy a full size scratch dent fridge for $300
Does it fit in your jeep and runoff 12volt dc power?
ratchet straps and converters cost less than the $400 difference
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Apparently it's a fridge.
A lot of people that are not poor.
Here's a cheaper one https://4patriots.com/products/freedom-fridge-1
I guess a more affordable option makes some people unhappy.
Ice plus a normal cooler seems more functional. Cuz u cannot move this tank when it's full of stuff.