I just got a fridge from Costco that looks to be a rebrand of a Alpicool fridge for my wife for her to use with breast milk and camping/road trips. I currently just have a standard interstate(brand new) battery and was curious if I should get a new battery for it and if I did could I use the stockish interstate battery side by side with a new deep cycle battery? I saw it recommended to wire the fridge straight to the battery as well and was just going to buy the ARB kit. Is there anything else I should be looking at getting or doing to get the most out of it? Could I run it initially off the interstate battery until we can grab a new $300 deep cycle battery without killing the battery to quickly?
Fridge Install?
- Thread starter theCROM
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Mudhorn
New member
I ran mine off the stock battery with the fridge wired directly for a long time. No issues.
I didn’t keep it on all the time. Just grocery store runs, road trips, and breast milk as well.
Bumbo
New member
That fridge look pretty affordable... are these compressor based fridges or the peltier based units that can only do 40F below ambient?
If you dont want to run off the car, you can always consider using a portable.
I metered my ARB 50 for 24 hours, and it used about 350 watt hours.
A 100Ah deep cycle is about 1200 watt hours of energy, meaning you are good for about 2-3 days of continuous use without charging.
I have a dual battery, but I made my own portable battery pack for the times I use it outside of the truck.
If you dont want to run off the car, you can always consider using a portable.
I metered my ARB 50 for 24 hours, and it used about 350 watt hours.
A 100Ah deep cycle is about 1200 watt hours of energy, meaning you are good for about 2-3 days of continuous use without charging.
I have a dual battery, but I made my own portable battery pack for the times I use it outside of the truck.
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[MENTION=152191]theCROM[/MENTION] how often will you be needing to run it overnight?
The stock size battery should have enough capacity to run your fridge overnight on an occasional camping trip, the issue is that the stock type battery doesn't like being discharged that deep so everytime you do it you are shortening the life of your battery.
My stock battery lasted about 6 months running my fridge 24/7 with some maintenance charging before i started to see reduced performance. so if you are just doing an occasional camping trip your stock type battery is fine, just maybe carry a jump pack for security
the next best step is to replace your starting battery with an AGM type, and when doing this you can also increase the capacity with a larger battery. you will need a voltage booster to charge correctly, but the AGM battery isn't as negatively impacted when you discharge it.
your use case doesn't sound to me like you need dual batteries, unless you just have the money and want the security; what i would do in your case is just carry a reliable jump pack if this was just an occasional thing or upgrade to an AGM if more common
yes run a dedicated 12v outlet, the stock wiring is small and causes some fridges to shutoff from voltage drop
also, don't get a goal zero, there are better options for less money
The stock size battery should have enough capacity to run your fridge overnight on an occasional camping trip, the issue is that the stock type battery doesn't like being discharged that deep so everytime you do it you are shortening the life of your battery.
My stock battery lasted about 6 months running my fridge 24/7 with some maintenance charging before i started to see reduced performance. so if you are just doing an occasional camping trip your stock type battery is fine, just maybe carry a jump pack for security
the next best step is to replace your starting battery with an AGM type, and when doing this you can also increase the capacity with a larger battery. you will need a voltage booster to charge correctly, but the AGM battery isn't as negatively impacted when you discharge it.
your use case doesn't sound to me like you need dual batteries, unless you just have the money and want the security; what i would do in your case is just carry a reliable jump pack if this was just an occasional thing or upgrade to an AGM if more common
yes run a dedicated 12v outlet, the stock wiring is small and causes some fridges to shutoff from voltage drop
also, don't get a goal zero, there are better options for less money
Thanks, hopefully I'll be good for a while then!
Honestly I have no clue.
The specs say its rated for 3.75A/1.875A and total input power is 45W. I cant find a whole lot if information on them online either so im kinda running on hopes lol. The unit is called a Massimo CX50.
I might try this. I was watching some reviews for the Jackery recently and it looks to be a solid unit and I could use it for multiple things where as getting a new battery after just replacing our OEM battery would sound counter intuitive.
That fridge look pretty affordable... are these compressor based fridges or the peltier based units that can only do 40F below ambient?
If you dont want to run off the car, you can always consider using a portable.
I metered my ARB 50 for 24 hours, and it used about 350 watt hours.
A 100Ah deep cycle is about 1200 watt hours of energy, meaning you are good for about 2-3 days of continuous use without charging.
I have a dual battery, but I made my own portable battery pack for the times I use it outside of the truck.
Yea i got the 50L for 300$. the 40L was only 260$ and I think the 30L was around 220-240$ so not a bad deal. It says its compressor based and can be used as a freezer. We just hooked it up today to a wall outlet to see if it actually cools down pretty low or not. How did you go about making your own portable and what is the cost comparison to buying a premade one like a Goal Zero or Jackery?
Thanks, yea the goal zeros are crazy expensive, Id get one of the newer brands that are way cheaper as I've seen a few reviews on them. I'll probably just wire it directly as you state as I probably wouldnt need any long term usage. Probably just let it cool down and cut it off while sleeping at night and if/when it kills the battery I'll use it as a excuse to buy a $$$ deep cycle battery. We carry a battery jumper with us just incase we get stranded when camping already so this would also probably be my cheapest option.
I use a Jackery 500 to power my Dometic fridge and just charge the Jackery with the 12 volt outlet in the back. That way, no need to install a 2nd battery or run a new cable to the back from your existing battery. When I’m camping, I charge the Jackery with a 100 watt solar panel.
Yea they had a youtuber I was watching that ran some stuff off a jackery over night then would just plug the battery pack in while driving so thats probably my next best option.
KWSRStorm
New member
Yea if you just got a new battery i wouldnt bother with a new battery. If youre only running a fridge, a dual battery syatem is alot. Do a goal zero (or whatever brand) i think a better brand plus a always hot cig plug wouldnt hurt the battery, but again alpicools readings are bad.
Heres a good vidoe for the jackery even though this one is much larger than what youd need. He had a 200$ coupon though
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nJSJph64f9Y&feature=youtu.be
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Bumbo
New member
That's really inexpensive... I think I am going to go buy the 30L just to have a smaller option. Right now my ARB is on overflow duty holding frozen meat in the house because of current events.
My portable setup is equivalent capacity to a Goal Zero Yeti 1000 and probably cost me about $200 to make.
I cobbled it together using recycled lithium batteries and an assortment of parts I found to use useful for the setup.
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Cymon
New member
When I had the original starter battery I went the Goal Zero Yeti 400 lithium route, I could get about 18 hours of run time once the car turned off and would charge the goal zero when driving with the inverter in the back. I then upgraded to a GZ Yeti 1400 for longer camping trips, could get about 4-5 days. When my starter battery finally bit the dust I switched to a deep cycle stock size agm battery (X2 from batteries plus bulbs). Once switching I ran the ARB wiring from the battery to the back. I can get about 2 nights off of it that way.
For the OP, from my experience I would use the OEM battery with ARB harness until your battery needs replacing (but invest in a good jumper pack). I love my GZ products. I prefer them to a dual battery just because of the interchangeability (I can run the fridge and have reserve power in any vehicle) and flexibility of them. I still bring them for redundancy on longer camping trips and as backup power for our trailer (as well as hurricane preparedness here in Florida). Wiring straight from the battery makes putting the fridge in as easy as loading a cooler. If you don’t spend extended time off-grid it will be the most cost effective and user friendly way of setting it up.
If you want more details on all of my setups and wiring tutorial they are all in my thread linked in the signature below.
For the OP, from my experience I would use the OEM battery with ARB harness until your battery needs replacing (but invest in a good jumper pack). I love my GZ products. I prefer them to a dual battery just because of the interchangeability (I can run the fridge and have reserve power in any vehicle) and flexibility of them. I still bring them for redundancy on longer camping trips and as backup power for our trailer (as well as hurricane preparedness here in Florida). Wiring straight from the battery makes putting the fridge in as easy as loading a cooler. If you don’t spend extended time off-grid it will be the most cost effective and user friendly way of setting it up.
If you want more details on all of my setups and wiring tutorial they are all in my thread linked in the signature below.
WD_T4R
New member
Which fridge do you have and what is his power consumption?
Will you be able to have enough power if you are 6-7 days stopped when the jackery 500 and solar panel recharging it all day, every day?
I want to be able to run a 65L fridge (Rated 14.9AH/24 hours / 2.7A Avg. running current) for 7 days without the truck running.
Instead of a jackery (or GZ/rockpals/whatever), if you have a 100W solar panel just replace the starting battery with a larger AGM and you should be able to run the fridge for days, almost indefinitely if weather cooperates.
My 40L fridge runs over 2 days with just the single AGM battery, with the 100W panel it can run almost indefinitely if sunny, and multiple days if overcast.
This is with the fridge on the highest shutoff voltage, if I change it to the medium setting it would last even longer (I prefer not to cycle the battery though if I dont have a specific need to)
The price of a goal zero could get you a good quality AGM and solar panel setup
My 40L fridge runs over 2 days with just the single AGM battery, with the 100W panel it can run almost indefinitely if sunny, and multiple days if overcast.
This is with the fridge on the highest shutoff voltage, if I change it to the medium setting it would last even longer (I prefer not to cycle the battery though if I dont have a specific need to)
The price of a goal zero could get you a good quality AGM and solar panel setup
I have the newest model Dometic CFX3 35. I haven’t had it out on an extended trip yet, but have tested it in my driveway (when sunny...not always going to be though, obviously) and it looks like it will keep up.
Planning on a trip in July, so I’ll be able to test it in real world conditions then.
adrummingdude
New member
I’m a real estate photographer and videographer working mostly out if my vehicle. I use the goal zero products and love them. My most recent GZ purchase was the yeti 200x. It’s the perfect size to sit right behind the wheel well of the 4Runner (against the subwoofer enclosure) and can charge 2 drone batteries, drone remote, camera battery, and strobe battery all at the same time. Heck, it even charges big V mount batteries for my hot lights and cine cam. Best part is that when I want to dump a mini mag to the laptop or do some editing away from the truck, its easy to grab as it only weighs a few pounds. I mounted a 100watt GZ panel on the roof that keeps the 200 topped off.
There are those who bash goal zero for being expensive, and I get it, but I’ve also had competing products that aren’t nearly as solidly built or feature rich. You get what you pay for, and since I’m using these products professionally I’d rather buy something that fits my needs and that I can trust.
Could I build a solution out of some old mobility scooter batteries with nothing more than a beer and a soldering iron?...maybe, but really? Don’t start a fire.
There are those who bash goal zero for being expensive, and I get it, but I’ve also had competing products that aren’t nearly as solidly built or feature rich. You get what you pay for, and since I’m using these products professionally I’d rather buy something that fits my needs and that I can trust.
Could I build a solution out of some old mobility scooter batteries with nothing more than a beer and a soldering iron?...maybe, but really? Don’t start a fire.