Camp fridge - is it worthwhile?

[Hardcalibres]

Yeah, we mostly just figure that puppy for 'low-level refrigeration-needs' (small, 'transient' loads, like reconned almond-milk (from powder, etc) other small-batch refrig-needs, ie: Open-can of Bega or something that would benefit from being fridged until gone, etc .. Maybe the occasional 'Morale-booster DIY Ice Cream nite' or other-such.. Don't plan on it being a "Have it or Die" item, but for Now, it's helpful / works-well, when desired / needed..

One of those 'better to Have, not need / want', than visa-versa items..

jd

Agreed.

In a bug out or INCH, the freezer capability can also support simple and quick preservation of game kills and fish. There are other ways to preserve meat and other procured foods, but a freezer is about the least time consuming, most portable and lowest signature.

A freezer can also help smooth out the peaks and troughs of "feast or famine" that characterize wild food procurement.

Getting meat down to low temps quickly is important for food quality and safety.

The hotter the climate you are working with, the more sense a portable freezer makes.

In one of the very hot (like >115F) work environments I saw, they setup some trailers with solar panels, a battery and a big Engel freezer......filled with frozen electrolyte "poles"........same as these:

https://thorzt.com/icy-poles/
After they set those up, electrolyte consumption among the manual work crews increased and cases of heat exhaustion went down.

 

[Hardcalibres]

I looked up the line of camping fridge/freezers that was being discussed at.
https://outdoorexplorer.com.au/kings-fridge-freezer-review/
The current draw is between 35 watts and 85 watts, with all but the smallest units using 85 watts. A watt is a Volt*Amp, so for a 12 volt car battery it will draw about 7 amps, lets assume 8 amps as a safety factor.... most batteries have an Amp-hour (Ah) rating so look at your car battery and get that number and divide it by 8, that gives you a maximum, but lead acid batteries hate being completely drawn down so assume only 75% of that number.

For example, you are powering your fridge using a deep cycle 12V 100 Ah battery, you can expect the fridge to run about 100/8 * .75 = 9.375 hours.

Important Note: If you are using your CAR Battery to power your fridge/freezer for even a few hours, there is a STRONG possibility that there will not be enough energy left in the battery to start your car when it is time to go home. So I would advise using a separate battery to power the fridge....

Yep,

The biggest advantage of Engels is their low current draw, outstanding reliability and excellent capability even in very high ambient temperatures.

Most of the cheaper compressor style camping freezers (like the Kings the OP is looking at) use a Danfoss style compressor. They are OK but the Sawafuji swing motor used in the Engel is much more efficient/effective.....they just are not cheap to make.....which is why the others don't go that way with their technology.

I have five Engels that I use for different jobs.

I have camped with people who have ARBs, Dometics and other Danfoss style freezers and watched them break and fail to perform in tough environments. In more than four decades of being around Engel freezers, I have never seen one fail.

 

[montanabill]

Maybe off topic, we have a 120volt/12 volt portable cooler for insulin. Since we have a years supply it makes sense to have the cooler, solar panels, deep cycle batteries to maintain a cool storage area.