Whats your Camp fridge

[campdog]

Lets hear about everyones means of keeping the food warm and the beer cold.
Ive got a 80 litre trailblazer 12v 0r 240, taken it to the cape a few times, flooded it in the water and still going great. Good Aussie manufacturers.

http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k259/campdog_photos/100_0948.jpg

[Bazza_rips]

57L explorer, pick it up this week. :D can't wait.

[youngfella]

wish list is 80lt Waeco

[Patrolman Pat]

Reefer 40L fridge/10L freezer. Hea bastage, solid as a rock, stailnless steel thing.

[campdog]

Lets hear about everyones means of keeping the food warm and the beer cold.
Ive got a 80 litre trailblazer 12v 0r 240, taken it to the cape a few times, flooded it in the water and still going great. Good Aussie manufacturers.

http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k259/campdog_photos/100_0948.jpg

Doesnt always look like this, stopped working after flooding it in Nolans Brook on the Cape,finally kicked in after a tin of innox, still going strong.

[Bruceh]

Have a 60lt Waeco Fridge freezer using 100amp deep cycle full river battery. Works a treat. Get 4 days easy out of it. I did have a chescold 3way for 3 years and it was great as well but carring the gas bottle for a weekend camp was a pain at times. 3ways are great if you are staying in the same place for 3 or more days, I really don't think you can beat them. But now I have the waeco I'm starting to wonder.

[Thirsty2454]

57L explorer, pick it up this week. :D can't wait.

Had a talk to Steve from explorer the other day.Real nice bloke and very helpfull. I'll be paying him a visit in hopefully a couple weeks to put my order in on a 70litre.

[jet-6]

Waeco CF40, won it!

[MOPAR or NO CAR]

25 year old 12/240v 40L engel. what a beast!

[gohard60]

Engel stainless steel 40lt top fridge but cant run it over number 2 setting or it freezes everything!

[brooksy]

I have 110L Waeco, it is sensational. The only down side is when camping with the kids they are constantly in & out of the fridge so it can draw a lot of power just because of it's size & kids leaving it open for too long. Under those circumstances I will be running it off a genie intermitantly when the family goes camping.


brooksy

[MOPAR or NO CAR]

Engel stainless steel 40lt top fridge but cant run it over number 2 setting or it freezes everything!

lol we have the same problem! Damn good fridge

[Mick.]

I had a waeco 110 but just swaped it for a 50 waeco because the 110 was to big for me and the 4wd.:D

Cheers Mick.

[nqgu]

Explorer Fridge Freezer DC56

[GOIN BUSH]

WE HAVE 2 40 LTR ENGELS 1 IS FOR KEEPING THE CANS NICE AND COLD THE OTHER IS FOR TUCKER.NO NEED TO BUY ICE ON THOSE LONG TRIPS AWAY,USE A HONDA GENIE FOR LONG STAYS IN THE ONE PLACE.:eek:

[BLU-125]

I've had a Waeco 90l for many years. It has given excellent service under all sorts of conditions. Its a bit big for the Jeep though, so I will probably think about something a bit smaller.

[Risto]

Waeco CF-40AC with RAPS-36 - bloody marvellous! Runs on so little power and retains VERY steady internal temperature regardless of ambient temperature. As witnessed by Australian 4WD Monthly test a little while back where it whipped the equivalent Engel on performance.

I never sit in one campsite for more than two days, so the RAPS-36 (36 Amp Hours) has been adequate and it can be carried around in case I can't camp next to my fourby. Having said that, a full-on dual-battery system (under the bonnet) is on the cards before next summer.

While it outperforms an equivalent 40 litre Engel it isn't quite as well built. But then again, unless you do something totally moronic, I can't see any 'weak spots'. The compressor comes with a five year warranty and is a German made Danfoss. I'm also not sure if I want a fridge to last 30 years as it would be mighty grimy by then (we do keep 'some' food in them too, right? Not just beer...) regardless of how well you clean it.

My only regret is not buying the 50 litre model, but hey, live and learn, eh?

[griz]

Engel 40 litre.

[bushbloke]

Looked at the engels and waecos at bcf just for interest last week, the engels do seem to be better built. One display waeco already had the seal half torn off.

[Troopy93]

Bushman 42ltr with the 10ltr adapter, been running constantly now for 3 1/2 years.

[4x4traveller]

I have had a 40 ltr arb for 2 years now with no complaints, went for the engel type cause the grandfathers had a 60 ltr engel for 33 years and way back then it only cost $380.

[woolgoolgaoffroad]

have a 40ltr engel anniversary edition- woohoo. and like every one else you cannot put it past number 2 setting as everything will freeze. And when i take my camper, have a great willow esky that i use for my social beverages,milk, water and soft drink, saves people opening the bloody fridge all the time.

[rumpig]

i used to use a 120ltr evacool esky aswell as a 45ltr evacool esky for my camping trips, these are fantastic eskies and worth every cent that you will pay for them. these days i take the 45ltr esky mainly to keep the bundies in, and my 80ltr combi engel 12 / 240 volt fridge. the fridge runs off 2 x 120AH 12V batteries when with the caravan and thats good for 3 or 4 days use without recharging the batteries.

[stingray]

I put Ice in a esky as Iam a weekend camper. but if I was going to go for a while I would invest in a 3 way.

[Paul100]

Engel 60ltr , had it for years with no problems

[91GQ]

Fridgemate, 70Lt, great box, took it up to the beach for the weekend, but it did keep flashing the warning light, but found there was like 5cm of water in the bottom of it, that or the battery we were running it off was a bit low... but it is a great solid fridge... love it even run it at home for the beer fridge in the garage...

[HJ 47 CHEV]

12 volt 35 litre Bushman. with option 42 litre lid. bought it some 6-7years ago. by far can not complain. had many kool refreshing beverages out of it. North coast, South coast, Oberon, Louee, Echuca..just to name some. still many more to come. still going strong

[Corindi]

120 Litre 3 way fridge running on gas. I doubt an electric unit would do us for 3 weeks stay with 5 kids.

[4wd WA]

Reefer 50 litre, solid as a rock. sits in me car all the time and doesnt miss a beat.

[THOMO.IN.A.GQ]

have a chescold 3 way fridge. Its pretty heavy, but great for a base camp, as you put it on the gas and forget about it for the week/ fortnight ect.

[BrodieH]

80litre finch dunno how old it is. it was my grandpa's then my dad's (he has a waeco now) and now its mine!!! its still going strong too:):):)

[Mick.]

Looked at the engels and waecos at bcf just for interest last week, the engels do seem to be better built. One display waeco already had the seal half torn off.I'd say a kid probably did that. I'm sure I could rip the seal out of an engal if I wanted too.:rolleyes:

[dirtygq]

EVA-KOOL 60 fridge (fibreglass) absolutely love it ,also a 150 litre EVA-KOOL fibreglass esky,and a 60 EVA-KOOL ice mate esky (plastic) .the fridge goes in the car and the esky (150lire)gets 2 blocks of dry ice and 60 kg party ice and i just keep topping up the drinks esky out of that (only problem is the whole 150 litres turns to 1 block of ice.

[jokshell]

I've gota Chescold, about 20 years old now, case is in need of fixing
but no dramas otherwise.
Jok

[crusher]

Had a Waeco CF 50 which worked well but have just swapped for a Waeco 110 litre with one of my mates plus a cash adjustment, its bloody big and has a freezer compartment as well

[oldcourier]

A 60 litre Engel, I think I'm the third owner, still runs like a new one! :D

[Jeeps]

I have a 60L Downunder fibreglass esky (same as evakool) with 2 baskets to keep 'delicate' foods from it's bottom. I usually freeze 3x 2L bottles of coke and put one in 3 days before we go away to cool it down. Sometimes if i have the time i leave the eksy with the lid open in the coldroom at work overnight - that really chills it down. Then take the bottle of coke out on the morning we leave and put the remaining 2x 2L bottles in the bottom with all the other cold stuff from the fridge. This trick has kept the ice lasting for about 5-6 days+ in the middle of summer before having to buy or replenish ice. Cheap and no power/gas required :)

I also take a blue Icekool for cans and drinks and stuff.

[ed.]

Have a 40L I bought from supercheap for $400.
Still working after a year :D

[KRUZIN]

new 50l waeco, thanks insurance..:)

[dirtygq]

what are the waeco 3 way fridge like as a leave at camp fridge?

[Marc 1]

what are the waeco 3 way fridge like as a leave at camp fridge?

Don't know about the Waeco 3 ways, but my old Chescold is a bit of a PITA. The pilot light gets blown out too often when the wind gets up, it has to be dead level to work effectively and is little better than a cooler when on 12v. BUT, I'll not be tossing it out when I replace it with an Evakool or a Waeco, cause on gas it just works so well. Be perfect for a little donga in the bush where it is level and sheltered from the wind, cause I'm pretty sure that you'd get 3 weeks running out of a 9kg bottle.

[Tomax]

Have been running 2 40 litre Engels for years - one is over 30 yrs old, the other a couple of years. The old one for drinks, the other for food. I dropped the old one off the mezzanine storage area in my garage which knocked it around a bit, but it's never missed a beat. Run them off 12 v while travelling, but hook them up to a Honda gen as soon as we stop at each campsite.

[sco_aus]

Lets hear about everyones means of keeping the food warm and the beer cold.
Ive got a 80 litre trailblazer 12v 0r 240, taken it to the cape a few times, flooded it in the water and still going great. Good Aussie manufacturers.

http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k259/campdog_photos/100_0948.jpg

The army uses that same fridge in their armoured vehicles, its an awsome fridge.
I have a Waeco 21L

[Bazza_rips]

woohoo!!!!! pick up the explorer today!!!! can't wait to give her a burn

[Jeeps]

Run them off 12 v while travelling, but hook them up to a Honda gen as soon as we stop at each campsite.

How long do you spend at campsites?
Do you use much fuel?
What if you're at a national park or where they're banned?

cheers

[Tri_Lon]

at the moment just doing overnighters we just have an esky with ice.
i want to get something better like an evakool something, and eventually will hope to get a 12/240 fridge

[Prickle]

Waeco 50 or 60 on the way soon, esky is a pain as beer tend to melt the ice too quick...

[matt h]

explorer dc56 & 40 ltr engel

[Bazza_rips]

i heart my new explorer :D

[campdog]

The army uses that same fridge in their armoured vehicles, its an awsome fridge.
I have a Waeco 21L

check them out
www.norcoast.com.au

[Tomax]

How long do you spend at campsites?
Do you use much fuel?
What if you're at a national park or where they're banned?

cheers

Depends where we are - anywhere between 1 and 10 days in a campsite.
My current Honda (1 kva) runs for about 6 hours on a tankful of fuel (3.0 litres?? - need to check capacity), generally with 4 Engels hooked up, along with a couple of camp lights at night. We turn the genie off when we go to bed and then crank it up again in the morning if staying in the same spot.
We've never really had a problem re. areas where genies are banned. Many camping areas have generator and non-generator campsites and, if not, we camp just outside the national park boundary. We try and camp "in the bush" as much as possible, but during those times when we need to stay in caravan parks we use 240v.

[jclures]

I have a 60-liter trailblazer, it has had countless trips up the cape. My father has one as well, both have given us good service. I have even kept ice cream in mine and that is a good test of a bush fridge.

[Humvee]

I have an icebox at the moment...

I dont know what to buy... Fridges seem alot of $$$ to justify if your not using it all the time...

[Jeeps]

Then you gotta find power for it ;)

[sparra]

i use a 60 litre and a 40 litre engel when i go on extended trips.
cheers, sparra

[Mikes F250]

I have a 70L Eutectic Autofridge, made in oz. Beauty part is you only have to run them for a few hours a day, not 24. Drove south back from Cairns last xmas on the inland h'way (emerald etc) outside temp was 39 C, fridge sitting in open on the back of the ute, the sun managed to warm it up to 2 C, good enough for me.

[Big Woody]

I have a 70 Litre Evakool Fridgemate permanently in the back of my Landcruiser.
As an average lately with an ammetre and dual temp thermometer hooked up and a daytime ambient temperature of 31 degrees during the day and about 25 degrees at night it has been using under 30 amps per day in economy mode #6 and holding a temp of -7 degrees in the freezer and +2.5 degrees in the fridge end.
I know there are a couple of better fridges on the market like Autofridge and Trailblazer but they cost at least 2.5 times the $1000 I paid for the Evakool. To me it is all about value for money and couldn't justify $2500 on the fridge alone and then more on solar panel/batteries etc.
With experimenting I have also found some simple ways of reducing the power consumption such as:
1/ Lining all of the back windows of the landcruiser with the silver windscreen sun shields when camping and keeping all the other windows and tailgate open to keep the car as cool as possible. Not easy in a Charcoal coloured Landcruiser.
2/ Having dozens of small plastic bottles of water available and using them to keep every spare bit of space in both the freezer and the fridge used up with these (bonus is nice cold water to drink) Testing at home has proven that it consumes less power when full than when near empty.
3/ Deep freezing everything in the big chest freezer at home for at least 2 weeks before loading the Evakool as the last thing before going away. Also make sure the Evakool has been running at home flat out for at least a week before leaving.
4/ If I do any driving at all when I am camping I run the Evakool flat out and when I stop I put it back on it's economy setting with thermostat set at #6.

Following this list above and only having a 37 watt solar panel that can only put in at the most about 15 amps per day back into the battery, I was able to camp for 6 days at Christmas/New Year without the low power warning light flashing once. This was using a 100 amp/hr Delkor marine battery (not deep cycle), 2 days of rain and 1 x half hour of driving. Pretty good I reckon.

Cheers,
Brett

[dirtygq]

we had our eva kool on fraser for 10 days in 35-40 temps went for a drive every couple of days to recharge the batteries in the GQ .Did not miss abeat ,we keep our drinks in a separate ice box so the kids aren't in and out all day.

[zauronus]

iv got a 40l engel, lookin at a small one for the zook on day trips

[jedsute]

in the latest Rays Outdoors catalogue they have a 40litre esky fridge freezer for $150 but its 240 volt only so ya gotta run it off your inverter but still not bad value. i'm guessing a $50 inverter will run it?

[Sand Runner]

Hoping to pic up a waeco CF50 next weekend at the Brisi 4x4, camping and fishing expo.

[darryn]

80litre waeco its been on a few trips and its still goin

[dirtygq]

Hoping to pic up a waeco CF50 next weekend at the Brisi 4x4, camping and fishing expo.Seriously consider EVA-KOOL mate they have awesome insulation(fibreglaas anyway) and are aussie owned and made at caloundra.....service is unreal.

[toy yoda]

Waeco 80 way to go uses comparable amp/hr to an engel with out the engle price tag. people can the plastic body of waeco but put in insulated bag and it'll do

[Ghost]

Waeco 110ltr lives in the GQ all the time, run it all weekend everyweek end never misses a beat. Keep ice blocks in it on hot days and always try to keep as much in it as possiable as it seems to consume less power. Have a deep cycle 100amp battery running it no idea on how long but best effort was 3 days with no driving.

[Marc 1]

in the latest Rays Outdoors catalogue they have a 40litre esky fridge freezer for $150 but its 240 volt only so ya gotta run it off your inverter but still not bad value. i'm guessing a $50 inverter will run it?

It might - inefficiently.

[fixa4377]

i have been looking around and i recon i will be going for the bushman fridge with the 10lt adapter, you can get them for about $950 and aparently draws very little power and works a treat! very important to keep the tinnys cold!!:)

[jedsute]

It might - inefficiently.

yeah i had a look today. the fridge stayed there i'll wait til i can afford a CF80 waeco

[trains]

I use a friends borrowed chescold 3 way mk 1 that I covered in 1" foam to add to the insulation, and added 2 socket 7 cooling fans under the condensor fins, and it works great.
When it was 37 the other day, it didnt cool on 12v in the back of the hilux, however once the cool change came in, it did freeze up on the cooling fins again.
Works a treat on gas.

However I really want to go to a 50l evakool fiberglass fridge when I get a proper job, and get a solar panal.

Trains

[Risto]

Some folk seem to be hung up on the Waeco's 'plastic' exterior... They have steel bodies/construction and the outside is plastic, which is actually more scrach and dent resistant than aluminium. It's also a better insulator than any metal, which are all excellent heat conductors = lack of outer material insulation. This also makes them lighter to haul around... and plastic doesn't dent if you give it the odd knock. If I was to kick my Waeco, I reckon I'd walk (or hobble) away with a broken toe... :-) Do that to an Engel and we'd have dent-city... The broken toe would still of course apply...

Bring the flames...! Got me extinguisher handy... :-)

[Nemesis]

No flames here, I can vouch for the Waeco possibly better than anyone. As per the pics in my build thread I rolled my 4Runner the other week. I had a big Waeco in the back unsecured and it joined me in the shrapnel filled washing machine.

It still works fine, barely a mark on it. Wish I could say the same for my destroyed truck...

[Googy]

60Ltr Engel as well as a 110ltr evacool eskt for the boat (holds ice for 4 -5 days no sweat
also have a little weaco cooler that fits 9 cans of umm...... soft drink and pluge into the ciggy lighter plug

[dirtygq]

Some folk seem to be hung up on the Waeco's 'plastic' exterior... They have steel bodies/construction and the outside is plastic, which is actually more scrach and dent resistant than aluminium. It's also a better insulator than any metal, which are all excellent heat conductors = lack of outer material insulation. This also makes them lighter to haul around... and plastic doesn't dent if you give it the odd knock. If I was to kick my Waeco, I reckon I'd walk (or hobble) away with a broken toe... :-) Do that to an Engel and we'd have dent-city... The broken toe would still of course apply...

Bring the flames...! Got me extinguisher handy... :-)
yep i rather fibreglass than plastic or metal as it insulation properties are far superior.I can leave my eva cool off half the day and when i come back it is still cold unlike my plastic ice-mate.

[bloke76]

i would say that moulded plastic or aluminium is the go, fibreglass eskies/fridges are prone to splitting. a mate has an eva kool esky which split.
their fridges look like the fridge component is an afterthought.

i have a 70L trailblazer, indestructable..

[318 cruiser]

I have a 40ltr engel is bolted to the tray of the ute is great as for the dent city comment a few times it has been the stopper putting pallets on the ute with a fork lift no dents, would be scrated but that's stopped by the bag. for longer trips I have a two zone extention enough room for me the missus and dog food. Have to get a 32ltr soon to go is the handbrakes boot.

[olly]

Waeco CF110, Bought it brand new for our Kimberly trip last year only to have it crap itself at about the half way point. Not happy. Good thing the dodgy repair agent in Broome did a dodgy repair and by passed all the Waeco electronics and just hard wired the danfos compressor, otherwise it would've been a long dry trip back to the east coast. It's all fixed now which is the main thing.

[Risto]

Waeco CF110, Bought it brand new for our Kimberly trip last year only to have it crap itself at about the half way point. Not happy. Good thing the dodgy repair agent in Broome did a dodgy repair and by passed all the Waeco electronics and just hard wired the danfos compressor, otherwise it would've been a long dry trip back to the east coast. It's all fixed now which is the main thing.

Waecos have had an 'emergency bypass' for a few years now, so what exactly did the guy do...?

[Risto]

How come we don't get this passionate about our fridges in our kitchens...? :-)

Mine's an LG...

[Chriso]

have a 56 litre explorer that I have had for 6 years without fault. Used in conditions where I've seen Engels fail. You can't go past these Aussie built legends. A word of advise for anyone with one of these at that vintage...Get Steve to install the economy switch to make this great piece of kit really awesome.

[dirtygq]

i would say that moulded plastic or aluminium is the go, fibreglass eskies/fridges are prone to splitting. a mate has an eva kool esky which split.
their fridges look like the fridge component is an afterthought.

i have a 70L trailblazer, indestructable..
the eva kools just work so bloody well ,we have 12 (friends etc)vehicles i know of with eva kool and not one split yet, that said the trailblazer and explorer would be my next choice but i just can't fault this fridge, what is the insert in the trailblazer and explorer made out of ?

[campdog]

i would say that moulded plastic or aluminium is the go, fibreglass eskies/fridges are prone to splitting. a mate has an eva kool esky which split.
their fridges look like the fridge component is an afterthought.

i have a 70L trailblazer, indestructable..

Trailblazers the way to go, marine grade aluminium. mines 80 litre

[olly]

Risto, We tried switching the emergency bypass over but the fridge still wouldn't run. The repair agent in Broome fitted a thermostat with it's bulb in the freezer compartment and directly wired it straight to the compessor. This kept the fridge running which ment we could continue our trip.

[Kingo]

50 lt Chescold 3 way, brilliant, runs for a couple of week on a 4.5 kg bottle.

[dirtygq]

i checked out the explorer and trailblaza fridge today at the show very good stuff. The show as crapolla though.

[Slowy]

I have a 21lt Engle but would love a 40lt to go with it, 21 for the food and 40 for the beer but I can only dream.

[Bazza_rips]

trailblazer!?!?!? pffft explorer is the way to go

[dirtygq]

i am looking at one of those lunar fridges for the van.

[Off road heaven]

Got a 60ltr ARB fridge freezer with insulated bag.

[Risto]

Risto, We tried switching the emergency bypass over but the fridge still wouldn't run. The repair agent in Broome fitted a thermostat with it's bulb in the freezer compartment and directly wired it straight to the compessor. This kept the fridge running which ment we could continue our trip.

I hear you. I always assumed the bypass literally bypassed everything - except itself, of course! ;-)

Thanks for the tip, should mine go kaput. So far so good, so perhaps yours was a dog in any case if it quit on the first trip. Poor quality control, admittedly.

Hope it all got sorted out. I haven't needed any service from them (or the RAPS-36 deep cycle battery or their 14 amp mains charger), but I'v seen some positive feedback here.

[campdog]

[QUOTE=Bazza_rips;423660]trailblazer!?!?!? pffft explorer is the way to go[/QUOT
Are the explorers all aluminium or part plastic,, where are they made.

[Chriso]

[QUOTE=Bazza_rips;423660]trailblazer!?!?!? pffft explorer is the way to go[/QUOT
Are the explorers all aluminium or part plastic,, where are they made.
Explorers are made in Capalaba, Brisvegas from old bottle tops and toilet rolls..hang on thats my drawer system...They have aluminium casing and fiberglass inside.

[campdog]

[QUOTE=campdog;423725]
Explorers are made in Capalaba, Brisvegas from old bottle tops and toilet rolls..hang on thats my drawer system...They have aluminium casing and fiberglass inside.

Trailblazers made in toad country as well so must both be good fridges.
I agree with the toilet rolls and beer caps, especially if the fridge was full of xxxx

[Bazza_rips]

trailblazers and explorers are pretty similar in construction, except the expolrer has a freezer. mmmmmmmmmmmm icecream :D

[Chriso]

That's what I like about the Explorer over the Trailblazer is the freezer element. I have read heaps of forums on fridges and a question that is asked alot is related to keeping food frozen. Don't people realise that to do this efficiently you need a freezer. Yes Yes, I can hear those comments now from engel and waeco owners..but but if you put the meat at the bottom or the ice cream at one end it stays frozen for a while... And another thing, why dont more people support the Aussie built products like Explorer and Trailblazer. These are built in Australia to suit the conditions, unlike those that are built O/S with a large corporate 4WD accessory brand on them to fool us into believing that they are a good old Aussie product (Ha Ha Sirry Ossie Irriate).

[olly]

I hear you. I always assumed the bypass literally bypassed everything - except itself, of course! ;-)

Thanks for the tip, should mine go kaput. So far so good, so perhaps yours was a dog in any case if it quit on the first trip. Poor quality control, admittedly.

Hope it all got sorted out. I haven't needed any service from them (or the RAPS-36 deep cycle battery or their 14 amp mains charger), but I'v seen some positive feedback here.

Yeah I think your correct with the 'DOG' bit because when I got back home our local repair agent wouldn't touch it and insisted on returning it to Waeco's head office. They ended up changing just about everything as a process of elimination.

[dirtygq]

That's what I like about the Explorer over the Trailblazer is the freezer element. I have read heaps of forums on fridges and a question that is asked alot is related to keeping food frozen. Don't people realise that to do this efficiently you need a freezer. Yes Yes, I can hear those comments now from engel and waeco owners..but but if you put the meat at the bottom or the ice cream at one end it stays frozen for a while... And another thing, why dont more people support the Aussie built products like Explorer and Trailblazer. These are built in Australia to suit the conditions, unlike those that are built O/S with a large corporate 4WD accessory brand on them to fool us into believing that they are a good old Aussie product (Ha Ha Sirry Ossie Irriate).yeh i agree with the freezer bit and the aussie made ....i would have any aussie fridge except waeco,main reason is i like fast service and backup and aussie made all the way.

[campdog]

trailblazers and explorers are pretty similar in construction, except the expolrer has a freezer. mmmmmmmmmmmm icecream :D

Mytrailblazer is freezer as well, just depends on how you set it up.I hate fridge/freezeres where everything is open to the top, like the big waeco,s.

[campdog]

That's what I like about the Explorer over the Trailblazer is the freezer element. I have read heaps of forums on fridges and a question that is asked alot is related to keeping food frozen. Don't people realise that to do this efficiently you need a freezer. Yes Yes, I can hear those comments now from engel and waeco owners..but but if you put the meat at the bottom or the ice cream at one end it stays frozen for a while... And another thing, why dont more people support the Aussie built products like Explorer and Trailblazer. These are built in Australia to suit the conditions, unlike those that are built O/S with a large corporate 4WD accessory brand on them to fool us into believing that they are a good old Aussie product (Ha Ha Sirry Ossie Irriate).

The trailblazer can be both other wise I wouldnt have one for when we go to the cape for 6 weeks at a time. You can set it up to be half freezer /half fridge or all feezer or all fridge if required.Cant fault it
The armed forces us all trailblazers and they are also used as medical fridges.
Any Australian fridge is worth considering.

[Chriso]

Been in the Army 10 years and only ever seen one or two.

[campdog]

Which army. How many exploreres have you seen there.
Maybe you better go to trailblazer site and check them out.

[troops]

The trailblazer we bought has two compartments both controlled by separate compressors. ie: it has two compressors and two thermostats to control it. It gives you so many different options. You can have one fridge and one freezer, both fridges, both freezers or only turn one compartment on. It is 90L all up. 1 section is 40L and the other is 50L. The other brands don't even come close to comparing.

[campdog]

The trailblazer we bought has two compartments both controlled by separate compressors. ie: it has two compressors and two thermostats to control it. It gives you so many different options. You can have one fridge and one freezer, both fridges, both freezers or only turn one compartment on. It is 90L all up. 1 section is 40L and the other is 50L. The other brands don't even come close to comparing.

I have been thinking of upgrading at some time. How is the power consumption with 2 compressors.Looks like a ood idea.

[Chriso]

Mate, I am not knocking the trailblazer..the only thing that sold me on the explorer at the time was the fact it had a seperate freezer.
10 years (and still going) in this countries Army tells me that they are not the only fridge in use. Don't believe all you read. Yes the Army have got Trailblazers; however, I have only seen a few in service in ASLAV's and a few with Health support. The Army use all kinds of different brands, including Engels, in fact my old unit in Darwin had a couple of Engels that Sh#t themselves. In most cases individual units purchase these types of thing off their own back.

[haveago]

just got a 50 litre waeco to replace my old finch fridge.Anaconda has a deal on them at the moment.you get the fridge,travel bag,36 amp/h battery,wiring kit and mounting kit for $1299.I am currently designing my next camping tralier,so the wiring kit and mounting kit will come in very handy.

[campdog]

Mate, I am not knocking the trailblazer..the only thing that sold me on the explorer at the time was the fact it had a seperate freezer.
10 years (and still going) in this countries Army tells me that they are not the only fridge in use. Don't believe all you read. Yes the Army have got Trailblazers; however, I have only seen a few in service in ASLAV's and a few with Health support. The Army use all kinds of different brands, including Engels, in fact my old unit in Darwin had a couple of Engels that Sh#t themselves. In most cases individual units purchase these types of thing off their own back.

I had a 3 way chescold before my trailblazer. I got the trailblazer because my mates all used them and said they were great and couldnt fault them. I bought one and it does the trick. If they all had had explorers I would probably got a explorer. It just goes to show that we are influenced by people around us.

[bloke76]

That's what I like about the Explorer over the Trailblazer is the freezer element. I have read heaps of forums on fridges and a question that is asked alot is related to keeping food frozen. Don't people realise that to do this efficiently you need a freezer. Yes Yes, I can hear those comments now from engel and waeco owners..but but if you put the meat at the bottom or the ice cream at one end it stays frozen for a while... And another thing, why dont more people support the Aussie built products like Explorer and Trailblazer. These are built in Australia to suit the conditions, unlike those that are built O/S with a large corporate 4WD accessory brand on them to fool us into believing that they are a good old Aussie product (Ha Ha Sirry Ossie Irriate).

if the only reason you bought an explorer over a trailblazer was cause it had a freezer, maybe you should have done more research. trailblazers operate to be colder at the bottom than the top. so you can wind up the dial and freeze the bottom section and the top half is a fridge, if you want more freezer then wind up the dial a bit more. if you want complete freezer you wind it to max, if you want complete fridge you wind it right down.
very versatile for all situations.

nothing wrong with the explorer though, i think explorers and blazers ar on par with each other.

i agree - buy the genuine tough aussie made brands.

[camshan]

engel 40 lt so far so good

[Lynchie]

Engel 60lt for me.

Lynchie

[BEU77Y]

We have a Waeco CF40 - thanks to A4WDM and Waeco! We won ours in the recent win a fridge comp also. Now all we need is to get out somewhere so we can give it a whirl! We're off on a club trip on the June long weekend, so it'll get it's first run then.

[Redback]

Seeing as you can only vote once, i put Electrolux 3 way caravan fridge 60L as this is the fridge we've had the longest, we also have a CF40AC Waeco in the 4B and a 70L Icekool icebox by Evakool.

All 3 are great.

Baz.

[Chriso]

Just wanted the convenience of not having to go to the bottom of the fridge every time I wanted ice for me rummmmm rummmmm, thus having the fridge open longer and cold air escaping, but as every knows, different horses for different courses.

[Bazza_rips]

Mytrailblazer is freezer as well, just depends on how you set it up.I hate fridge/freezeres where everything is open to the top, like the big waeco,s.

the explorers have 2 seperate compartments for the fridge and freezer and 2 thermostats. very different from the big waecos. the freezer has it's own little door too.

Like i said before, there is very little difference between the expolrer and the trailblazer. both are excellent fridges. if you don't want a freezer then go for the trailblazer, if you are sick of pulling everything out to get to the frozen stuff at the bottom then get an explorer. Steve and Helen are tops people too.

Steve is all about after sales service. If your fridge dies (for some unknown reason) just before you go away, he will give you his to take with you. He made up my panel to go in my engine bay to hold my fuses and isolator for my dual battery setup and charged me nothing for it. He will bendo over backwards if he thought it would help. He doesn't mind a beer either......

I can't stress enough how glad i am that i bought my fridge there, if i was going to do it again i would go straight back.

[04Nav]

Engel 40 ltr new fridge and my trusty 21 ltr that i have had since '98 and travelled approx 800,000 kms can't complain as the little bugger has been trouble free

[LUXNUT]

40L Engel with a two zone. Works great down south but has to run 24/7 to keep the top half cold up here.

[fixa4377]

i bought a 40 lt engel for the easter weekend, love it! kept all my food cold and non water logged and is very quiet, got the thermometer for it, gives a different readout to the digital one on the unit, but only slightly,

has anyone got any tips on how to use/look after them,

ie. do you run them constant from home between trips as a 2nd fridge,

best setting for low power consumption

ect ect ect

just a begginer to all this, anything helps

cheers

[Googy]

My 110ltr evacool is about 3 years old and been used as the boat esky when fishing so it's in the sun all day. I usually chill the beers down in the engels over night and put em in the evacool in the morning and I've had to throw ice out when I get home after a 5 day trip so I'd say the Evacool works pretty bloody good. I don't catch much fish but gee I have a good time.

[territorian1]

Explorer DC56

[nqgu]

the explorers have 2 seperate compartments for the fridge and freezer and 2 thermostats. very different from the big waecos. the freezer has it's own little door too.

Like i said before, there is very little difference between the expolrer and the trailblazer. both are excellent fridges. if you don't want a freezer then go for the trailblazer, if you are sick of pulling everything out to get to the frozen stuff at the bottom then get an explorer. Steve and Helen are tops people too.

Steve is all about after sales service. If your fridge dies (for some unknown reason) just before you go away, he will give you his to take with you. He made up my panel to go in my engine bay to hold my fuses and isolator for my dual battery setup and charged me nothing for it. He will bendo over backwards if he thought it would help. He doesn't mind a beer either......

I can't stress enough how glad i am that i bought my fridge there, if i was going to do it again i would go straight back.


I agree 100%

[campdog]

the explorers have 2 seperate compartments for the fridge and freezer and 2 thermostats. very different from the big waecos. the freezer has it's own little door too.

Like i said before, there is very little difference between the expolrer and the trailblazer. both are excellent fridges. if you don't want a freezer then go for the trailblazer, if you are sick of pulling everything out to get to the frozen stuff at the bottom then get an explorer. Steve and Helen are tops people too.

Steve is all about after sales service. If your fridge dies (for some unknown reason) just before you go away, he will give you his to take with you. He made up my panel to go in my engine bay to hold my fuses and isolator for my dual battery setup and charged me nothing for it. He will bendo over backwards if he thought it would help. He doesn't mind a beer either......

I can't stress enough how glad i am that i bought my fridge there, if i was going to do it again i would go straight back.

With a trailblaza you have a choice of all fridge / all freezer / 50/50 or whatever combination you want.On a long stay I would start off 70%freezer 30% fridge and as we used the frozen stuff I reduced the size of the freezer space. As for letting the cold air out if you organise things properly your not pulling stuff out from the botton all the time.
The reason I went for the trailblazer was I could control how much fridge or freezer I want at anytime.
I think it comes down to personal choice, from what Ive read about trailblaza and explorer is that the manufacturers have the same standards of production and after sales service, I think that is the most important thing.So its woth the extra $ to buy Australian.

[GOIN BUSH]

heres my pride and joy,wouldnt leave home without them.

[troops]

Bazza[/LEFT]_rips;428096]the explorers have 2 separate compartments for the fridge and freezer and 2 thermostats. very different from the big waecos. the freezer has it's own little door too.


The trailblazer I have has two compartments as well. It also has two compressors and thermostats so you can control both sections to whatever you want.

[318 cruiser]

i bought a 40 lt engel for the easter weekend, love it! kept all my food cold and non water logged and is very quiet, got the thermometer for it, gives a different readout to the digital one on the unit, but only slightly,

has anyone got any tips on how to use/look after them,

ie. do you run them constant from home between trips as a 2nd fridge,

best setting for low power consumption

ect ect ect

just a begginer to all this, anything helps

cheers
The thermometer will give a different read out if you have the prob at the bottom because cold air is denser and falls it sholdn't make a difference if it runs constant or not my run constantly on the back of the ute holidays or works. I found a problem with mine on the weekend driving along a beach have a bit of fun got back on the bitumun road after a couple of kays of sand and the two zone was gone had to drive back up the beach (tragic?) to find it. I must remmember to latch that down in the futur. In all fairness the extension isn't an engel product nearly cried when I found the two zone on the beach the fall had spiled a couple of coopers.

[campdog]

No matter how many thermostats, compartments, compressors,lids or handles a fridge/ freezer has, they have one thing in common - they all have a bottom and you have to take everything out to get to it.:D

[Chriso]

No matter how many thermostats, compartments, compressors,lids or handles a fridge/ freezer has, they have one thing in common - they all have a bottom and you have to take everything out to get to it.:D
Very well put

[tully]

45ltr engel worth its weight in cold beer

[HJ75]

I have had a trailblazer for 17yrs it failed once 6yrs out of warranty.I rang Norcoast they said that shouldn't happen said they would send new parts and instructions (We worked out which bit broke)that day and supplied pre-post package to send old part back so they could see why and fix future prob if any.Try and get that kind of warranty from an import.I have 2 thermostates so I can have fridge,fridge/freeze or deep freeze (-15c).They use 22amps in 24hrs at 25c outside temp thats less than an amp per hr (in 24)

[Jeeps]

45ltr engel worth its weight in cold beer

I'm allergic to beer :(

[campdog]

I have had a trailblazer for 17yrs it failed once 6yrs out of warranty.I rang Norcoast they said that shouldn't happen said they would send new parts and instructions (We worked out which bit broke)that day and supplied pre-post package to send old part back so they could see why and fix future prob if any.Try and get that kind of warranty from an import.I have 2 thermostates so I can have fridge,fridge/freeze or deep freeze (-15c).They use 22amps in 24hrs at 25c outside temp thats less than an amp per hr (in 24)
Thats the good thing about the trailblazer, you can replace faulty parts yourself if ever required. My fridge has same set up as yours.

[Chriso]

I have had a trailblazer for 17yrs it failed once 6yrs out of warranty.I rang Norcoast they said that shouldn't happen said they would send new parts and instructions (We worked out which bit broke)that day and supplied pre-post package to send old part back so they could see why and fix future prob if any.Try and get that kind of warranty from an import.I have 2 thermostates so I can have fridge,fridge/freeze or deep freeze (-15c).They use 22amps in 24hrs at 25c outside temp thats less than an amp per hr (in 24)
Another good reason to buy Aussie made as opposed to foreign CR*P.

[blu gu]

i have 55 litre 3 way great with kids they get ice cream when we camp and 4 kilo gas bottle lasts 8 days cant beat it

[kenny]

ive just recently purchased a 70L Fridgemate used it over easter weekend couldnt be happier

[MDS69]

I'm allergic to beer :(


Same here but usually after drinking about 2 dozen stubbies. I throw up:D

[MDS69]

72lt 5 star ice box.
Purchased it at the show yesterday. Prefered it to the other iceboxes because of the finish and definately the internal basket. A lot of the other versions of the iceboxes (plastic not fiberglass) we saw didn't/couldn't have a tray/basket fitted.

[Jeeps]

Same here but usually after drinking about 2 dozen stubbies. I throw up:D

i hate it when that happens :)

[MDS69]

Yeah and it's always the last beer that does it. Not the 47 before it.:D

[toli]

I am looking for a fridge at the moment, there has been some great feedback on this thread.

The trailblazers look like a great fridge, but I can not justify the money for them.

I will checkout the explorers, they sound like the same class as the trailblazers so might be a bit too much $$

There are many others around which I will have a look at because I never knew they exsisted.

I was looking at the Waeco 50 litre, things that I just don't like are the plastic hinges, the seal on the lid is very thin compared to an engel and it seems the lid does not get as tight a seal.

I hope to buy in the next couple of weeks so will be looking at everything.

Cheers,

[fixa4377]

TOLI, im no expert but my 40 litre Engel is absolutely fantastic!! got it for $1199 with a transit bag, thermometer and a basket, best thing i'v ever bought, very efficent, low drawing of power, and most important keeps the stubbys very cold!! strong unit too,,

[Jeeps]

TOLI, im no expert but my 40 litre Engel is absolutely fantastic!! got it for $1199 with a transit bag, thermometer and a basket, best thing i'v ever bought, very efficent, low drawing of power, and most important keeps the stubbys very cold!! strong unit too,,

It's a great unit for sure, my mate who used to work at Camp Mart sold me one (which i bought on behalf of another mate) for $999 with the transit bag just before BCF took over as he needed to get rid of the stock. I'll never get one that cheap again :)

My only gripe is that they ding and scratch easy if you don't use a transit bag or don't pack things around it accordingly.

[Googy]

It's a great unit for sure, my mate who used to work at Camp Mart sold me one (which i bought on behalf of another mate) for $999 with the transit bag just before BCF took over as he needed to get rid of the stock. I'll never get one that cheap again :)

My only gripe is that they ding and scratch easy if you don't use a transit bag or don't pack things around it accordingly.

G'day Jeeps

What I do with my 60 ltr Engel is secure it with 4 small turnbuckles to a spot set up in the tray of my truck and pack around it stuff that don't slide but it doesn't matter the brand, they would have to be the greatest thing for the camper to keep food fresh and beer cold.

[Jeeps]

Yeah fair enough. I don't have one because we don't go away for more than a week at a time and my fibreglass esky is great for that. I don't have room in my 4wd for a fridge anymore and i can't justify $1200 for a fridge and another $500+ to power it when it costs me nothing to use the icebox hence why i didn't buy an engel for myself at that great price. If i did some touring, long trips and such i'd think about one but i wouldn't say they're the greatest camping item :) I've seen my mate's get scratched and dinged from other camping gear while tied down in the cargo area of his cruiser. It was in it's bag and surrounded by cardboard for extra protection but it still got some scratches somehow

[Googy]

Yeah fair enough. I don't have one because we don't go away for more than a week at a time and my fibreglass esky is great for that. I don't have room in my 4wd for a fridge anymore and i can't justify $1200 for a fridge and another $500+ to power it when it costs me nothing to use the icebox hence why i didn't buy an engel for myself at that great price. If i did some touring, long trips and such i'd think about one but i wouldn't say they're the greatest camping item :) I've seen my mate's get scratched and dinged from other camping gear while tied down in the cargo area of his cruiser. It was in it's bag and surrounded by cardboard for extra protection but it still got some scratches somehow

I don't get away much anymore but when I do I make a pig of myself and go for a week or two and I use a 110ltr evacool esky as well as the Engel. The esky has big blocks of ice made at home and that usually stays in the boat for beer and fish if i'm lucky ( I use a piece of ply to seperate them so the beer don't smell of fish. yuck !!) the beer gets chilled down in one side of the engel the night before so it doesn't knock the guts out of the ice. That way I've kept ice for over a week

[GOIN BUSH]

ice is a pain in the bum,thats why we bought another 40ltr engel just for beer.it will pay itself of in time.no need to buy ice all the time now.

[Googy]

ice is a pain in the bum,thats why we bought another 40ltr engel just for beer.it will pay itself of in time.no need to buy ice all the time now.

I'd hate to see an engel rust away in the boat but I can see your point

[jedsute]

bought a new Waeco CF80 today with MPS 50 (standard), travel bag and RAPS 12R power kit for $1295

i'm happy with that price

[Jeeps]

ice is a pain in the bum,thats why we bought another 40ltr engel just for beer.it will pay itself of in time.no need to buy ice all the time now.

Only if you buy ice :)

The last few trips i've done i havn't bought any ice at all as i freeze 2x 2L coke bottles and pack them in the bottom. I 'pre-chill' all the food and drinks in the fridge at home and i 'pre-chill' the esky the day before we go away with some ice from the freezer at home. I did this when i went to fraser last year and we were there for 6 days and i didn't need to buy ice at all. The 2L coke bottles weren't fully defrosted until after the 7th day after i'd emptied all the food back into the fridge at home. So that basically means almost 1 week with a little bit of ice i froze at home. It's 62L and is plenty big enough for our short trips and is cheap as chips to run, don't have to worry about power and my esky has baskets to keep everything dry:

http://homepage.powerup.com.au/~loganses/esky2.jpg

I might eventually get a fridge but it's something i don't need at this point as this setup works extremely well. The fridge would be good if didn't have time to get ice organised.

[beej]

bought a new Waeco CF80 today with MPS 50 (standard), travel bag and RAPS 12R power kit for $1295

i'm happy with that price

I did the same, having gone to the Caravan, Camping & 4wd Show on Saturday. Did a bit of arm twisting and got decent price plus some extra extras!

[jimbo jones]

I'm looking for a 60L Engel so if some one's got one for sale let me know

[Marc 1]

I am looking for a fridge at the moment, there has been some great feedback on this thread.

The trailblazers look like a great fridge, but I can not justify the money for them.

I will checkout the explorers, they sound like the same class as the trailblazers so might be a bit too much $$

There are many others around which I will have a look at because I never knew they exsisted.

I was looking at the Waeco 50 litre, things that I just don't like are the plastic hinges, the seal on the lid is very thin compared to an engel and it seems the lid does not get as tight a seal.

I hope to buy in the next couple of weeks so will be looking at everything.

Cheers,

Try: evakool.com.au Aussie company, same Danfoss compressor as the other quality units(except Engel - they use their own 'swing motor'). The cases are made overseas, but all the refrigeration gear is installed here. If you want a 100% aussie made case then go the white Fibreglass ones (bit more expensive though). Don't discount Waeco, they recently won a test involving 6 or 7 of the big brands, buckets of people have them and their earlier lid warping problems seem to be solved. Good luck with your search.

[Googy]

I'm looking for a 60L Engel so if some one's got one for sale let me know

I was lucky. I picked up my secondhand from a guy who repairs them.
$900 all recond & painted about 2 years ago and hasn't missed a beat

[cunno]

a 50lt waeco works a treat used it constantly while driving interstate and keeps the beer real cold

[Kiri]

70l Waeco, +_ 5 years

[walshy787]

Waeco 50 litre have had for 6 years only had to change lid (free of charge)

[Marc 1]

Waeco 50 litre have had for 6 years only had to change lid (free of charge)

Walshy, that's a pretty tight little dog box your fridge sits in - any ventilation problems? Is there an air channel to get air to the condenser when it's all closed up?

[walshy787]

I`ve had no problems with the unit in the box when the draw is closed it actually sits out from the box by a couple of inches with the working end outside It runs constantly in the rig and has lasted 6 weeks on a big trip The box is also insulated to help ambient temp and just to let you know i made it myself.

[Marc 1]

I`ve had no problems with the unit in the box when the draw is closed it actually sits out from the box by a couple of inches with the working end outside It runs constantly in the rig and has lasted 6 weeks on a big trip The box is also insulated to help ambient temp and just to let you know i made it myself.

Looks like a really neat job, what materials did you use?

[walshy787]

An Idea and everything i wanted to fit in the unit
10 mm ply
65 mm course thread screws
Plenty PVA glue
Carpet and foam from clarks
Plastic box from super cheap
Wire and ciggy plugs from Marine shop (Stainless)
Carton of mid and a weekend
the coleman table sits in its own place and is part of the unit
I use the turnbuckles to hold it in place so i can undo the wires and pull the whole unit out to throw the seats in for when we need a taxi it really comes out easy and can have the seats in 15 mins Everything in place for any trips or just a sunday picnic Hope you enjoyed the pics

[Tree cutter]

Ive got a 15year old 40 litre Engel and she's still going strong.

[Richo1951]

I have a Waeco CF50 as a beer fridge at home but for food when away. I use a 72 litre, 6-day type esky for beer and travelling food. I freeze water in 2 litre, long life milk cartons which keeps everything cold for about 5-6 days which is pretty good considering it gets opened a lot. After that I mainly use bags of party ice which last about a day. You can't get block ice in far too many places.

[Marc 1]

An Idea and everything i wanted to fit in the unit
10 mm ply
65 mm course thread screws
Plenty PVA glue
Carpet and foam from clarks
Plastic box from super cheap
Wire and ciggy plugs from Marine shop (Stainless)
Carton of mid and a weekend
the coleman table sits in its own place and is part of the unit
I use the turnbuckles to hold it in place so i can undo the wires and pull the whole unit out to throw the seats in for when we need a taxi it really comes out easy and can have the seats in 15 mins Everything in place for any trips or just a sunday picnic Hope you enjoyed the pics

Thanks for the ideas Walshy, good job - Like the turnbuckles idea!:thumb:

[TonyH]

http://www.4wdmonthly.com.au/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=6178&d=1178517466
Make sure you don't cut off the air circulation to the condensor of the fridge!!! Otherwise it'll chew power, run far too hot and innefficiently, and wear out prematurely!!!

The best thing you can do for your frige is keep condensor temps down by ensuring good airflow, and make sure the airflow doesn't get drawn in to the condensor and be heated by it, and expelled by the fan, only to have nowhere to go but straight back into the condensor at an already elevated temp. (I'm a refrig tech BTW).

I have an EVAKOOL ED70. Seems good so far, and the beers stays cold long after the batteries have run out (when ever they do) due to the excellent insulation of the box. This also helps the unit operate more efficiently.

As said earlier though, anything with decent insulation and the Danfoss compressor is going to be a winner. You can never discount the Engel either. My uncle has had one since I was 8 (22 yrs ago) In that time it has only been switched off when he moves house (no longer has a fourby to run it from - the Luxy only stayed a few years but the Engel lives on lol) and one time when he stripped it and had it re powder coated. We have probly drank 50 hundred beers from it, and I don't get to drink with him often, so you can imagine it's workload!!! It had a fault about 10 years ago that turned ut to be a wired which had come off when the fridge was dropped.

[walshy787]

Like i said i havent had any probs for a while but i did have a wire cage around the unit b4 the box and found when i stuffed the cruxr with gear i smothered the fridge and didnt get no where near the power conserv i get now with the foam box I have run the unit for 4 days without starting the truck 130 amp gel battery as secondary?If it aint COLD it aint drinkable!

[Stef37]

65ltr Engel. Been a beautie so far.

[BOGGED GU]

g'day all, i'm about to buy a 60l engel only problem is i can't decide wether to go the combi fridge/freezer or just go the 60l fridge? any one come across any problems with either or advantages? Cheers :drink:

[grunter]

Have had experience with most brands via mates etc on various trips.
Here in the tropics I am still to find a unit as efficent as my 18 year old Chescold on gas.
3 weeks on a 9 kg gas bottle freezing hot stubbies in 3 hrs, not efficent on 12 v, OK on 240 v
Yes the gas bottle is a pain to transport but so are generators, fuel and extra batteries
18 years without a problem and still going strong, gets used as a seat and has copped heaps of abuse.
Not sure about the new plastic case ones though
Kev

[lapsed]

just picked up a waeco tc-32 and a downunder 35l fridge/freezer for $65 each. so we'll see how they go. Just deed to set-up a dual battery system

chris

[ARBWillis]

Howdy

I have been travelling around Aus for the past three years and my 80lt Waeco has never missed a beat. No complaints from me.

[Elmer]

Truck - Engel 40 litre

Camper - 73 litre Eutetic Autofridge

[Walt]

Waceo CF-50 and a CF-110.

[baglimit2002]

50 litre weaco had it 3years still in 4b used every day its great --andy

[Vanda]

12lt Weaco for between the seats, CF-40 for drinks and 50-cf for food, Hhmm may have to swap the last 2 around I think.

[TRV10Z]

Waeco CF110, Bought it brand new for our Kimberly trip last year only to have it crap itself at about the half way point. Not happy. Good thing the dodgy repair agent in Broome did a dodgy repair and by passed all the Waeco electronics and just hard wired the danfos compressor, otherwise it would've been a long dry trip back to the east coast. It's all fixed now which is the main thing.

If I am not mistaken Waeco's policy is if your fridge dies with in its warranty take it to the nearest repairer and they will loan you a fridge and have your fridge repaired and sent to an agent that is along the route of your trip and you can swap em back...

Well thats what they were gonna do when we thought ours was playing up on our 12months trip around oz July 05 to May 06..

Turned out I had the voltage sensor set to high and to thin wiring in our trailer causing voltage drop and making the fridge's little red light flash :)

Shaun

[60 series boy]

90 litre dual zone evakool for food 5o litre for drinks both fridges work great no problems.

[campdog]

Have had experience with most brands via mates etc on various trips.
Here in the tropics I am still to find a unit as efficent as my 18 year old Chescold on gas.
3 weeks on a 9 kg gas bottle freezing hot stubbies in 3 hrs, not efficent on 12 v, OK on 240 v
Yes the gas bottle is a pain to transport but so are generators, fuel and extra batteries
18 years without a problem and still going strong, gets used as a seat and has copped heaps of abuse.
Not sure about the new plastic case ones though
Kev
Sold my 3 way when on long trips and doing tourist stuff,pretty hard on the battery if you want to get out and leave it running for a while.Great fridge on long camp in one place,

[Faavil]

20 year old 12/240v 40L Engel. absolutely brilliant...still going strong and doesn't look like stopping!

[geko104]

Bushman great fridge at a graet price

[Kiri]

70L Waeco for +_6 years. Had two 3-ways before that.

[patrol2.8]

Weaco CF80 in the back of my patrol best thing we ever bought

[patro1]

Waeco 50 litre and 60 litre

[trouthunttriton]

40 lt chescold 3 way we tend to camp and fish in the one spot for a while so the gas option is great get around ten days on 3kg gas bottle does use a lot of juice on 12 v though so probably not ideal for touring

[GeeYouFaw]

Engel 40 litre.
Going to get another 1 very shortly to use as a freezer.

[TOYRV6]

45L ebay special :)

[Run A Muck]

I have a waeco 80ltr. Runs off a deep cycle from my dual battery set up. Outlet is in the rear of my 75 Troopy.
It runs a real treat... Couldn't ask for more....

[dattopimp]

39L engel. Love the thing to death except when i forget to turn it down from freeze haha.

[Charlie W]

Waeco CF-50 love it!!! best purchase I have ever made

[rogie from WA]

got a 40 ltr engel yesterday and still have the 39 ltr as well,very happy with them

[lost screw]

I have a 50ltr waeco currently previously had a 40lt engel the weight almost doubled the waeco's

[hewy hacket]

I have a 40L down under fridge freezer, run it off a 120ah deep cycle battery with a 80w solar panel, never run flat and the beers bloody cold, i love it.

[TRV10Z]

We have a Waeco 110ltr, awesome fridge, can just be a little thirsty on the power that would be my only complaint...

Shaun

[Cape Runner]

i have a 40 ltr engels and a 60ltr

[Kramer_cobb]

100L Reefer, hasn't missed a beat, altogether this fridge has easily done 10000 k's off road.


http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d69/Kramer_cobb/DSCF0998.jpg

http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d69/Kramer_cobb/DSCF0996.jpg

[Hj45er]

Good ol 50 lt Gas/240/12v chescold fridge freezer always take it on long camping trips lasts forever on gas :thumb:

[krusty1]

got a 40l engel in transit bag.i run it off a 100ah agm remco batt and get 3-4 days from it depending on ambient temp.does freeze stuff easily though gotta watch temp guage.