Who's Running a Fridge in their Runner?

Jeffrey_VB · May 1, 2014

Thinking about adding a 12v refrigerator to my Runner. A portable one, one that I can pull out when not needed, or use at home on the patio or by the pool.

Who has one in their runner? What make/model? Pics? Like it? Hate it?

Colonal Angus · May 1, 2014

I'm running an ARB 50qt in the back of my 5th gen. Probably the single best mod I've done. Once you go fridge, you never go back (nothing rhymed with fridge). My wife thought it was a little pricey at first...now she likes having it more than I do. She said she can't imagine life without one. I wish she saw all mods in the same light...

I ran 10 gauge wire directly from the battery to the back. Replaced the factory 12v plug with an after market (it's always hot). It's been running off my stock Panasonic battery since August. I can get about 16 hours before the fridge stops running to avoid drawing the battery too low. I will upgrade to the Diehard Platinum 31m as soon as they go back on sale for $217-$234.

Martinjmpr · May 1, 2014

I've been running a small Dometic fridge since 2012 and wouldn't be without it.

The only problem with my fridge is that it's too small. I didn't want to pay for a full sized 50qt ARB ($800!) and went with a Dometic (Waeco) CF-18 (19 qt) size for about $315.

I should have done more research because there are a lot of fridges in between the CF-18 and the ARB in terms of price. In particular Truck Fridge and Indel-B both make fridges in the 41 and 51qt range that are priced right around $500. Much more bang for the buck.

My advice: Buy the biggest fridge you can afford and that will fit in your vehicle. And Colonel Angus is right, once you start using a fridge you'll never want to go back to a cooler.

My CF-18 will be up for sale soon, and I'll be replacing it with a bigger one. Other than that, fridges rock!

You do need to make an arrangement for full-time power, though. Some fridges draw enough current that the wimpy wiring going to the 12v power plugs won't quite be adequate when the fridge is on full draw but mine has worked so far. I just did the simple 12v full time "jumper mod" that I think you can find a link to on this site.

Dous · May 2, 2014

I too have the ARB 50qt in the back of my 3rd gen. I LOVE it, so awesome.

Keeps my drinks and food disturbingly cold even when it is 100+ degrees out

Tom P. · May 2, 2014

Power in park?

A couple of simpleton questions...
It's just a plug in to the a/c socket in the back and it powers the fridge while you're driving, right? So what about power in the woods when you're not driving?
Thanks,
Tom

Jeremy556 · May 2, 2014

Tom P. said:
A couple of simpleton questions...
It's just a plug in to the a/c socket in the back and it powers the fridge while you're driving, right? So what about power in the woods when you're not driving?
Thanks,
Tom

They are 12v. If you wire direct from the battery, they can run until battery gets low. On my marine battery, my ARB will run for 48-72 hours in 100+ day time temps. They are well insulated, so they don't run non-stop.

ebg18t · May 2, 2014

Engel MT-45 here.

Ran separate 10gauge wiring from 2nd battery to a marine outlet in the back. Mounted the fridge on a a Front Runner slide to make it easy to use. Adding the transit bag (cover) gives it a little more insulation. There is nothing better than breaking out ice cream on a hot day after lunch when Freinds were just dealing with wet bread from melted ice in their coolers. Coolers and sloppy/melted ice are a thing of the past.

Dirtco · May 2, 2014

Like everyone else has said, once you get a fridge you will never go back to using a cooler with ice. It took me a while to finally make the decision to get one, and I'm glad I did! I love it so much that I bought a second one for the trailer shortly after I bought the first one.

I bought mine after my last Moab trip; I was going through three bags of ice a day, had a bunch of food get ruined with water contamination, and got really sick of listening to all the ice sloshing on the trail.

I went with the Indel B fridge (more info here): http://www.toyota-4runner.org/3rd-gen-t4rs/95322-dirtcos-1999-4runner-build-55.html#post1421621

In the 4Runner

And the trailer

Martinjmpr · May 2, 2014

Tom P. said:
A couple of simpleton questions...
It's just a plug in to the a/c socket in the back and it powers the fridge while you're driving, right? So what about power in the woods when you're not driving?
Thanks,
Tom

Jeremy556 said:
They are 12v. If you wire direct from the battery, they can run until battery gets low. On my marine battery, my ARB will run for 48-72 hours in 100+ day time temps. They are well insulated, so they don't run non-stop.

Correct. They are 12v (DC) not 120v (AC.)

You can either run a separate circuit from the battery or from an accessory fuse block like some folks here do, or you can do what I did and modify your 12v power outlets so they always have power.

Here's the link for that (for the 4th gen at least. For the other gens you'll have to search on your own.)

http://www.toyota-4runner.org/engin...ssories/11038-constant-12v-power-outlets.html

I'm not particularly mechanically inclined and it took me less than 1/2 hr to do this mod on mine. Works great, front and rear 12v outlets are constantly powered, even when the ignition is off.

ebg18t · May 2, 2014

One thing to note is if you try to run one of the larger fridges off the oem wiring you might have trouble. ARB & Engel both suggest 10g wire due to voltage drop over the long run from the battery. Both the ARB & Engel are sensitive to low voltage especially when the larger compressors kick in. I believe Waeco talks about this issue in their Manual too.

Martinjmpr · May 3, 2014

I did experience some problems with the voltage drop on my Dometic (Waeco). One thing I discovered was that the drop was much more likely at the rear 12v outlet than at the front. I would guess this is because of the longer wire to the rear compartment.

Titanpat57 · May 4, 2014

Another MT45 Engel user here....goes everywhere and is plugged in 95% of the year...

Got it used on CL...best money I ever spent

Dawg4Runner · May 5, 2014

Jeffrey_VB said:
Thinking about adding a 12v refrigerator to my Runner. A portable one, one that I can pull out when not needed, or use at home on the patio or by the pool.

Who has one in their runner? What make/model? Pics? Like it? Hate it?

I've been running an ARB 50 Qt. for 4 years now and it works flawlessly. 6 gauge cable running from the auxillary battery to the rear compartment.

Offroader5 · May 7, 2014

I guess I'm an old schooler

I run a Norcold Tek2 MRFT-640C. It's dual voltage DC & AC.

Found it several years ago on Craigslist for $100 in a small town about 2 hours away. Talked the guy down to $75

Works perfectly and is in awesome condition.

I definitely won't go back to using ice.

I ran 0 gauge from the engine bay to the passenger rear quarter that runs both to my audio distro block and to a Blue Sea aux fuse panel. The fridge has it's own feed to the fuse panel.

canadiansr5 · May 7, 2014

Colonal Angus said:
I'm running an ARB 50qt in the back of my 5th gen. Probably the single best mod I've done. Once you go fridge, you never go back (nothing rhymed with fridge). My wife thought it was a little pricey at first...now she likes having it more than I do. She said she can't imagine life without one. I wish she saw all mods in the same light...

I ran 10 gauge wire directly from the battery to the back. Replaced the factory 12v plug with an after market (it's always hot). It's been running off my stock Panasonic battery since August. I can get about 16 hours before the fridge stops running to avoid drawing the battery too low. I will upgrade to the Diehard Platinum 31m as soon as they go back on sale for $217-$234.

ya i did the same as above with an arb50 qt. the only addition for my 5th gen was the switch (from air on board switches) and a relay. simple install and works like a hot damn. i am now able to cut the 'hot' power from the drivers seat if i want to turn the fridge off.

piccrazy30 · May 7, 2014

For those of you that have the ARB 50qt, does it take up half of your cargo area? How hard was it to install the slide since that seems to be a pretty important piece. Does anyone have a pic or can you explain how the freezer is separate, or does it only do the fridge at a single time and the freezer at a single time?

Edit…any good write ups on setting up a dual battery? Ive been searching all morning on here, yotatech, expo and 120. Im finding stuff I guess Im not understanding some of it. If the truck is turned off will the second battery still keep the fridge running?

Porqupine82 · Nov 16, 2017

ebg18t said:
Engel MT-45 here.

Ran separate 10gauge wiring from 2nd battery to a marine outlet in the back. Mounted the fridge on a a Front Runner slide to make it easy to use. Adding the transit bag (cover) gives it a little more insulation. There is nothing better than breaking out ice cream on a hot day after lunch when Freinds were just dealing with wet bread from melted ice in their coolers. Coolers and sloppy/melted ice are a thing of the past.

Sent you a PM

SirWilliamGoes · Nov 28, 2017

I have a indel b in mine. Wired from upgraded battery to fuse block hard wired in via Anderson pole style plug. It is an absolute game changer I've even started carrying my lunch in it!!! I have Pics & more details on one of my threads!!!

Sent from my SM-G892A using Tapatalk

tampaflygirl · Nov 28, 2017

I have a Snomaster, I love it. I actually ordered the wrong one initially...I'm trying to sell it - $900 brand new still in the box. https://www.snomasterusa.com/produc...dc-fridgefreezer/#tab-description target=_top

97FR_brad · Nov 28, 2017

Nice resurrection thread. That being said, I have the arb 50quart from a group buy. Not buying ice is pretty nice. Here is a picture from camping at horseshoe Canyon Ranch. The arb is back there and helps turn great food into gourmet camping meals. Sorry I do not have any current picts of the arb in action on my phone.

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