12V Fridge/Freezer purchase

[rypajo]

For the sake of my boredom today....

I was shopping for widgets for work on Alibaba earlier and got very sidetracked. There is a crazy number of 12v compressor fridge/freezer units on Alibaba and a number of them look to be built very similar to the better known brands that we all know and lust over. Now I know I can't be the first person considering the risk/reward of something like this. Clearly, you can't expect to receive an Arb level of performance or build quality for $100-$150 bucks but it could be decent enough for the average user. Thoughts?

https://m.alibaba.com/product/60521609991/2016-New-Design-30-40-50.html

This one is even already shown in a 4Runner. Totally not photoshopped hoto:

 

[Spenny]

I would suggest, having searched high and low for my own 12V fridge, to buy the best you can. And really that means making sure that your fridge has a Dan Foss compressor. If it doesn't, don't bother.

Look on Craigslist and Expedition Portal for a used one. People are always upgrading and upsizing/ downsizing.

Also remember that the fridge isn't your only purchase, you'll need to run a wiring harness and depending on how you want to do that can get pricey. I'm almost $200 into the wiring alone to ensure I don't loose too much voltage from the battery to the cargo area.

 

[Volcom]

I would suggest, having searched high and low for my own 12V fridge, to buy the best you can. And really that means making sure that your fridge has a Dan Foss compressor. If it doesn't, don't bother.

It doesn't need to be a Dan Foss compressor. My EdgeStar doesn't have that compressor and it works just fine.

Also remember that the fridge isn't your only purchase, you'll need to run a wiring harness and depending on how you want to do that can get pricey. I'm almost $200 into the wiring alone to ensure I don't loose too much voltage from the battery to the cargo area.

You've got way too much in wiring. I ran a dedicated 10 gauge power wire from my battery all the way back to the fridge. Added in a 7.5 amp fuse and fuse block and it works perfect. I "maybe" have $15 into the wiring. No where near $200.

 

[Crikeymike]

It's a lot like comparing a $30 coleman cooler to a $500+ yeti. They all could serve a purpose and some are better than others. Or a $30 cell phone to a $700 smart phone. You can make calls on both. But with electronics, you get what you pay for a lot of the time, and the most expensive may not be the best, but you will want to find the middle ground I think.

 

[mountain mike]

I also run an Edgestar and have for the past 5 years. It works great. The only thing is that it does draw a lot of power. If I remember correctly it is almost double of an ARB. I too hardwired mine in, to a separate fuse box. All in all with the $80 fuse box I maybe have $90 in wiring.

 

[rypajo]

It doesn't need to be a Dan Foss compressor. My EdgeStar doesn't have that compressor and it works just fine.



You've got way too much in wiring. I ran a dedicated 10 gauge power wire from my battery all the way back to the fridge. Added in a 7.5 amp fuse and fuse block and it works perfect. I "maybe" have $15 into the wiring. No where near $200.

I'm curious on the wiring statement. What all did you purchase? I can get 20ft of 4awg amplifier wire for next to nothing. Obviously, you can spend just as much as the fridge on a dual battery set up so just curious what everybody is doing. I should definitely set an alert on Expedition Portal.

 

[Volcom]

I'm curious on the wiring statement. What all did you purchase? I can get 20ft of 4awg amplifier wire for next to nothing. Obviously, you can spend just as much as the fridge on a dual battery set up so just curious what everybody is doing. I should definitely set an alert on Expedition Portal.

Run that 4awg to the back of the truck and feed it into a distribution block. That would work perfect and you'd have extra 12v feeds for other items (lights, USB chargers, etc...) These fridges don't require a lot of amps to run but they are very picky on voltage drop. Most of them will shutdown due to low voltage to protect the battery from being drawn down too low.

 

[Volcom]

I also run an Edgestar and have for the past 5 years. It works great. The only thing is that it does draw a lot of power. If I remember correctly it is almost double of an ARB. I too hardwired mine in, to a separate fuse box. All in all with the $80 fuse box I maybe have $90 in wiring.

They draw 4.5 amps on the compressor startup and 2.5 amps to run while cooling. I've ran mine off of a single 12v AGM battery in my rock crawler with no issues for 24 hrs. It does get driven everyday during the trips I use the fridge so I can't tell you how long that battery would last longer than 24 hrs.

 

[rypajo]

It's a lot like comparing a $30 coleman cooler to a $500+ yeti. They all could serve a purpose and some are better than others. Or a $30 cell phone to a $700 smart phone. You can make calls on both. But with electronics, you get what you pay for a lot of the time, and the most expensive may not be the best, but you will want to find the middle ground I think.

I think the larger part of my curiosity is if someone recognized similarities in any of the brands, casing, specs. Don't get me wrong I don't mind spending the money on an Arb or any of the other mainstream brands. In the scheme of things the price isn't all that crazy for the functionality. When I was heavy into the pinkbike.com forums people were curious enough to buy the carbon frames from Alibaba to see how they were built or if they were factory rejects from big brands. One guy received his and if I remember correctly it had already been engraved with a serial # and logo on the downtube from Look. A prominent carbon frame company. It was just a reject for whatever reason.

I am probably just going to wait until Amazon does their warehouse sale again and pick up used/return fridge. I think last time it was 15% or 20%

 

[rypajo]

Run that 4awg to the back of the truck and feed it into a distribution block. That would work perfect and you'd have extra 12v feeds for other items (lights, USB chargers, etc...) These fridges don't require a lot of amps to run but they are very picky on voltage drop. Most of them will shutdown due to low voltage to protect the battery from being drawn down too low.

That's a great idea. Do it once and do it right.

 

[Spenny]

It doesn't need to be a Dan Foss compressor. My EdgeStar doesn't have that compressor and it works just fine.



You've got way too much in wiring. I ran a dedicated 10 gauge power wire from my battery all the way back to the fridge. Added in a 7.5 amp fuse and fuse block and it works perfect. I "maybe" have $15 into the wiring. No where near $200.

I do have too much wiring, I rocked out with 6gauge duplex marine grade wire to a blue sea fuse panel with an ANL fuse off the power side $70 ish from West Marine for the 15' I got of that, plus another $10 something in the appropriate terminals. Then 12 gauge from the blue sea to a 12volt outlet.

Eventual plan is to add some more goodies, wanted to do it once and not have to run more wires front and back. Overkill, yes. Won't loose voltage all the way back though.

As far as compressor, I admittedly have zero experience with a fridge, just a lot of reading and talking with people about theirs. I wanted something that wasn't going to make a lot of noise and it seemed the Dan Foss is the best. But again zero experience otherwise.

 

[Spenny]

With similarities between fridges, it's like roof top tents. A lot are coming out of the same factory and re branded for sure. My Waeco is the same as a Dometic. Dobinson and ARB look pretty similar. And down the line for all others.

 

[Bumbo]

After owning a fridge for almost a year, I think it was money well spent, but I would be really curious to try some of these cheaper options.

That said, I also feel you get what you pay for. I went with the ARB unit and its probably one of my favorite mods I have done to the truck. I leave it running in the truck 24/7. I pack my lunch it in, I use it for shopping, and camping. Its actually improved daily life as I can go shopping and actually run errands in whatever order I want now without having to B-line home to drop stuff off. Sometimes I get lazy and unpack groceries a day or two after I get them haha.

I love how efficient it is in regards to power consumption and performance... even cooking in a sealed up car in Vegas sun I had an internal car temp of about 110F and I was still maintaining freezer temps in the ARB... that's a 90-95 degree temperature differential!!! I was so impressed with the purchase I kicked myself for not doing it sooner. The quality is there, the performance is there, and even though it really seems very expensive it was absolutely worth it. I could have spent $500 on a Yeti and gave up all my cargo space too. No ice and good storage density was also a consideration.

As far as wiring goes $200 isn't bad if you did a good job... I probably have about $1000 in electrical infrastructure into the truck NOT including the fridge.

The system is stupid robust and worry free, but its also for charging, accessories, lighting, radio communications / repeater. You can't mess it up even if you tried. Not having to worry about the starter battery going dead is a pretty big piece-of-mind item for me... almost mission critical considering the type of camping I do sometimes... The system is 100% isolated when the engine is not running plus I have protections in place to maintain the health of the accessory battery.

Dirty Parts Dual Battery Tray
Battery
MEGA fusing for mains cable, no crappy car audio stuff here. Crimped and bolted cable.
New Wiring / Refresh crimped Connectors for everything.
Blue Sea ACR (Automatic Charging Relay)
Blue Sea m-LVD(programmable low voltage disconnect feeding both aux fuse panels)
Blue Sea Fuse Panel x 2 (One under hood, one in cab)
Wire
Solar Panel
MPPT Solar Charge Controller
Anderson Powerpole quick disconnects for EVERYTHING

fusing, switches, led indicator, and control wiring...

Outdoor = Inside freezer / Inside = Car cabin temp

 

[rypajo]

After owning a fridge for almost a year, I think it was money well spent, but I would be really curious to try some of these cheaper options.

That said, I also feel you get what you pay for. I went with the ARB unit and its probably one of my favorite mods I have done to the truck. I leave it running in the truck 24/7. I pack my lunch it in, I use it for shopping, and camping. Its actually improved daily life as I can go shopping and actually run errands in whatever order I want now without having to B-line home to drop stuff off. Sometimes I get lazy and unpack groceries a day or two after I get them haha.

I love how efficient it is in regards to power consumption and performance... even cooking in a sealed up car in Vegas sun I had an internal car temp of about 110F and I was still maintaining freezer temps in the ARB... that's a 90-95 degree temperature differential!!! I was so impressed with the purchase I kicked myself for not doing it sooner. The quality is there, the performance is there, and even though it really seems very expensive it was absolutely worth it. I could have spent $500 on a Yeti and gave up all my cargo space too. No ice and good storage density was also a consideration.

As far as wiring goes $200 isn't bad if you did a good job... I probably have about $1000 in electrical infrastructure into the truck NOT including the fridge.

The system is stupid robust and worry free, but its also for charging, accessories, lighting, radio communications / repeater. You can't mess it up even if you tried. Not having to worry about the starter battery going dead is a pretty big piece-of-mind item for me... almost mission critical considering the type of camping I do sometimes... The system is 100% isolated when the engine is not running plus I have protections in place to maintain the health of the accessory battery.

Dirty Parts Dual Battery Tray
Battery
MEGA fusing for mains cable, no crappy car audio stuff here. Crimped and bolted cable.
New Wiring / Refresh crimped Connectors for everything.
Blue Sea ACR (Automatic Charging Relay)
Blue Sea m-LVD(programmable low voltage disconnect feeding both aux fuse panels)
Blue Sea Fuse Panel x 2 (One under hood, one in cab)
Wire
Solar Panel
MPPT Solar Charge Controller
Anderson Powerpole quick disconnects for EVERYTHING

Very thought out setup! I always enjoying seeing everyday rigs with cool function items like the fridge. But where is the photo of it in the truck ?!

 

[Bumbo]

Very thought out setup! I always enjoying seeing everyday rigs with cool function items like the fridge. But where is the photo of it in the truck ?!

Thanks, appreciate it.

I need to take some updated glamour shots... work in progress...

My street look is very stock ish... all the lighting you see is removed when in town. The hood pods are mag-mounts, and two 5mm bolts for the bumper light bar. All the electrical connections are Anderson Powerpole quick disconnects. Takes no more than 5 min to get it on or off.

Only thing not in the picture are some changes in lighting, a new roof rack that just went on, and MT tires on FJ rims.

 

[Crowcifier6]

I think he meant, "Where are the photos of the fridge in the truck....?"

lol

 

[rypajo]

I think he meant, "Where are the photos of the fridge in the truck....?"

lol

Yep! Haha. Good pics though.



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[Dawg4Runner]

Seven years now with my ARB fridge and it still works like a charm. Whether trekking through Death Valley or trips home from the grocery store, this fridge has been rock solid. It's mounted on a slide out tray and runs off a secondary battery.

LED light inside helps you find the correct beverage in the dark. :cheers:

 

[Skuzz_84]

Ahhh. The fridge..
I'm a long way off ownership of a fridge, but I keep my eyes open for a good second hand deal all the time..
One day

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[J.F. Sebastian]

Seven years now with my ARB fridge and it still works like a charm. Whether trekking through Death Valley or trips home from the grocery store, this fridge has been rock solid. It's mounted on a slide out tray and runs off a secondary battery.

Testimonials don't get much more solid than that for such a product. I can't wait to get an ARB or Dometic fridge setup.