For those with fridge/freezers....

Hello all. I need some help making up mmy mind. Basically, I am trying to make a diving, fishing, hunting, and camping machine out of my 4Runner. I live in SoFL, so a "hard-core " overlanding vehicle is definitely not needed nor wanted. I also don't want any unnecessary mods.

Diving, no need.

The fridge could come into play for obviously camping, but to be honest, I primitive camp which includes hiking to the sites. Of course I may drive up and do the GA Traverse or other "truck camping " or whatever you call it in the future. I can truly see the benifits of a fridge/freezer there camping next to the vehicle.

Hunting. I primary whitetail hunt in KY and just started NW FL. This is only a couple times a year. I have a processor in KY, but FL I quarter it out. Obviously, I want to protect and preserve the meat. I want to push some turkey next year as my wife stopped eating red meat.

Fishing. I salt water fish. Jumping on charters...I may try and start fresh water fishing in FL, but I am always concerned for the damn mercury. I trout fish all over, but I am always flying in or out so I just pack in ice and bring back.

I know I am the one that needs to make the choice, but I would like to hear about others with their fridge and freezers. Is it worth it? Or should I just invest in a couple nice Rctic (spelling) or yeti and be done with it?

The thought of driving back from KY and not worrying about ice is a beautiful thing, but realistically, coolers these days can last a few days.
Any thoughts? Thanks in advance!!

 

I love my Iceco fridge its really nice not having to deal with ice and it melting all over my food.

One thing you need to consider is how you will be powering it, running off your starter battery is ok if you can driving constantly and keep battery topped off, but if you are staying places this will limit your ability to keep it running and be able to start your battery.

Overall I think its a good investment and you use it more than you think, randomly keeping drinks cold for tailgate or picnic.

 

Thanks for the response. I am considering a power bank as I would like a day or so without running. Or something that would make sense if we stop overnight on the way home from a long drive or something. Ir keeping it cool in-between hunts or fishing in preparation for a possible harvest.
I assume these are pretty reliable and last a long time.
Do you keep it installed all the time or move it in and out?

 

I kept two Arctic Ice bricks in a 25qt otterbox, swapped every 4-7 days depending on weather and fill for years. Obviously no issues with water, and no wiring either. Always had beer.

My fridge (plus Delta 2, DC charger, solar) was way more hassle and expense for pretty much the same utility. If I was to do it again I'd just get a second battery.

 

I won't say I am an expert on car stuff but I have built a battery system for my home freezer which is kinda the same thing. Look out for Amp-Hours rating and not Watt-hours. A power bank will be insufficient when looking at something like Jackery. I have 140 AH's of LiFePO battery (4 batteries in serial) and I can power a traditional 120V large freezer for about 18-24 hours. 12v to 12v will be more efficient but still need to consider how much amperage the freezer will pull. Hope this helps.

Here is my home setup I've got 2 100V panels connected to my MPPC and can charge the system with solar as needed....I think that is not shown here. I had to reverse the settings on the transfer switch because no one has grid power as the main power with these little ATS's. It's not perfect but it works.

 

The Anker Everfrost 40 power fridge has worked very well for me. I was going to do a 2nd battery set-up with an inverter. Adding in the cost of the fridge I didn't feel the price was worth it. Found this "power cooler", which was about 1/3rd of the price of a 2nd battery and a fridge set-up, checked out the reviews and bought it. Has been used 6 times and it does what it' 'sposed to do. It is truly a plug and play option. You can charge the batteries at home, on the fly, or with a solar panel. It cools from 78º to freezing in 30 mins. by my testing. The bats last 36 hours at 70º-ish ambient temp. I kept the cooler in the shade. Both batteries fully charged from zero to 100% in less than 3 hrs. no matter the source. I bought a 2nd battery for the cooler.....just 'cause. You can keep it plugged in while the engine is running and inserted into the cooler so you have fully charged bat when you reach your destination. Be sure to unplug when you arrive or it will suck your battery. The only negative I could find was to keep it out of dirt and sand or the compressor will hate you and die. I keep mine inside of ALF 100% of the time. Recommend 100%.

https://www.anker.com/ca/products/a17a0?selected=a17a1

 

I have a BougeRV 23qt, 12volt fridge and have used it for 3+ years, no issues. I use it for camping and as a freezer for trips to Costco. It is a single zone, so it is either fridge or freezer. It uses only 3 amps per hour and I have camped for 36 hours and the truck started fine. It has a low voltage setting that will shut the fridge off before it kills the truck battery. It is a nice little unit and priced right.

 

Just saw there is a BOGO battery deal going on for the Anker ones. That's a good deal. I like the idea of 12V and 120V charging.

I also found a crazy deal at Costco Next with the 50L Anker cooler, plus 2 solar panels, plus a $1500-2000 dollar backup power bank. I think I am going to buy that, part it out and resell it for a profit and buy a cheaper cooler

 

I am kind if looking at the Iceco. They don't seem to expensive and have a 5 year warranty. From what I gather they have the same compressor as an ARB. Not much more than a "top tier" cooler really.

 

I got an iceco fridge with their power pack. Seems pretty nice so far, used it a few trips, and currently in the back of the 4runner (off). It takes a fair bit of space, but no ice is so nice.

The one thing I would consider is that you can’t treat them like coolers for cleaning. Meaning, you need to wipe them down to clean the inside, not hose them out like a cooler.

 

What size do you have, how do you have it mounted? Would you mind posting a pic? I was a bit worried about the size, but I guess any cooler of any kind would be the same unless I mount it on the rack (which makes no sense).

 

Dometic CX and Ecoflow battery pack. Works like a charm

 

I put one in about a year ago, bought a cheap slide out rack on Amazon and I have taken it to Baja 3 times and all the way up to Northern Idaho, back to San Diego and a thanksgiving trip to Johnson Valley.

Now that I have one, I'll never go back. No ice is amazing. I already had a second battery on the vehicle (isolated from the house battery for jumping) plus I installed a solar panel. I have since added a LiPo battery just for the fridge/inverter to power Star Link, but I still need to finish wiring it up. It's all a little pricey up front, but having a running fridge in the back is so convenient. Costco/grocery trips I don't have to rush home anymore. I always keep some cold beers in the back for the random park stops. I'm also saving money on ice, that does add up after a while.

A couple of pics here: https://www.4runners.com/threads/5t...silient-daily-driver.36058/page-2#post-609867

I can take some better ones this weekend.

 

I run an Engel fridge and a battery station. It used to be the Jackery 500 but I just upgraded to the Ecoflow Delta 3 Plus (good black Friday deals, still waiting for it to arrive). I don't have it installed most of the time but when I do I have a platform I built along with a slide I also built to make accessing it easier. Having a fridge on a road trip is a game changer and not having to deal with ice is a huge plus.

 

I have an ICECO VL45 (47.5QT), with the insulated cover, that I have had for 4 years now. I originally purchased it for, for family car camping, road trips, and baseball tournaments, when I had my 04 Honda odyssey, and still use it for all of those purposes plus overlanding now. In both vehicles I ran a X2Power AGM battery and found the key to battery management to be a dedicated fused circuit running from the battery to the fridge. I also used an Anderson Powerpole connector instead of the supplied 12V outlet connector. With this setup I can run the fridge for several days without running the vehicle, and still not have any starting problems. I know I have gone at least 4 days with the fridge hooked up and running without killing the battery.

Originally I got the fridge while planning a two-week road trip across country, and didn't want to have to deal with ice and water while traveling. While it was nice not having to worry about my food getting soggy, draining the cooler and refilling it with ice, the best part really was the increased compactly. Adding ice to a cooler subtracts from the capacity and I didn't realize how much it did until I got my ICECO fridge. It really has been a game changer for my family and myself.

 

I had a leveling platform already, so the fridge (i think its the 42l single zone.. edit: it’s the VL45 pro)and their pb1000 battery are strapped down to the passenger side cargo area.

I can just get it to fit and still latch the rear seat-back if I need a rear seat. I can still use the other side of the vehicle to sleep in, and I’m a big guy.

The platform is tied down with turnbuckles to the floor of the 4runner, and I installed some d rings on the platform to tie down the fridge/battery.

I tried to keep in simple by avoiding slide-out. The fridge door swings completely open with an inch to spare from the top of the hatch opening. It was a fair pain to get things setup in a half-assed manner, but its all very nice to have on longer trips.

The battery can’t accept the 400amp rate from the 4runner inverter, so don’t depend on that to charge it quickly. The vehicles 12v puts out barely 60w to the fridge when driving, so it wont recharge it very quickly.

I can get about 3 days of fridge power in summer weather without recharging the pb1000 battery.

 

I too have an IceCo VL45 Single zone. https://icecofreezer.com/products/iceco-vl45-portable-refrigerator-freezer

When I bought mine a few years ago, it was a black Friday deal and was about $450. I did buy the cover as well. They have the best compressor in the game - it's a SECOP compressor with a 5 year warranty. I wouldn't buy a refrigerator from any other company.

Dual zone is nice and having a freezer and refrig is super awesome. Mine can be both just not at the same time

 

Thanks for the details. It appears it doesn't interfere with thr molle panels much. Is that an accurate observation? And what about the sub. Non directional I know, but has it hindered the audio? (If you have a sub). I was considering mounting it on the left for that reason.

 

Thanks for the info. Does the cover really make a difference that you know of? Or did you have the cover from day 1?

 

I have a Bougerv dual zone, they don’t sell the one I have now. Had it for 4 plus years or so, it does it’s job well. It has wheels, which I was excited for as we camp at festivals and other places for days at a time. However, I’d be happy with out the wheels now. We run it off an eco flow river and solar panels when parked. Recently added the internal battery, which now allows me to keep it plugged in my cig lighter in the back of the runner and when we stop, the battery keeps it going and charges once back on the road. I can not say no ice, because we try to keep a bag of ice in the freezer for evening beverages. When needed I will replace, because no soggy wet food from melting ice. Great investment.

I lied, they do still sell it,
https://www.bougerv.com/products/crd55-59qt-12-volt-dual-zone-car-refrigerator

 

I have two icecos, bigger VL75 dual zone which was a monster in the back of 4R but for longer / multiple people trips it works great, I only had it when I went out but now with the smaller APL35 I run keep it in the back full time - most of the time its off but I will power it on to put drinks or whatever else in as necessary.

You do have to take it out and clean it every once in while just like a regular fridge (stuff will start to grow).

Also to answer your cover question it does make a slight difference if direct sunlight is hitting it but overall you should treat it as protection from scratches rather increasing runtime or keeping your items colder.

 

The molle panels don’t interfere with opening the lid, in either direction you open it.

I don’t have a sub, but the fridge does make it harder to reach into that area to use the outlets or items I store in that area. My hand barely fits into that gap.

I would think the effect on sound from a sub would be minimal due to the low frequencies.

 

I'm looking at the Iceco ALP 35. Looks like a great fridge for my needs. Trying to figure out best power solution using the trucks power while driving and using a power station, Jackery, Ecoflow etc when parked. How are you powering it? Thanks!

 

I have this freezer. It works great and keeps things frozen solid. I run it off my regular car battery, so, it’s only running when the car is being used. At night, it keeps the stuff frozen all night long without running the freezer. It has a small space separate from the freezer to keep things cold, but, not frozen.

 

Alot of folks use the iceco battery pack or any of those mentioned power stations. I have a full lifepo4 setup in my drawers, it has about 150ah with Redarc DCDC/solar charger but I'm looking to get rid of that and move on to full victron setup.

 

I did not buy the cover right away, but it does keep the unit from getting scratched up. If you use it as a freezer more often than a refrigerator, then I would say it helps keep it colder during the summer months

 

I'd say it does help a little with temps and draw, but it makes scratches worse if you're in the desert. All that dust gets under it and then it rubs going down the trail.

I have the APL55 and use the little Iceco battery. Works great for overnight and road trips but not enough to stop somewhere for even a day without supplementary power. I leave it in the little side pocket in the 5th gen in the very back... the 12v charges it on the road and it all stows out of the way when not in use.

 

Here's a list of my setup minus the frig:

Main Battery
https://www.pecron.com/products/pec...Z5jEfdZ1gi_eSSE0qtvBpaX_7Do7hpKbbyWTJwKafS2ML

Backup battery
Cant find it on Amazon but i'll dig it up...

Solar 120w
https://www.amazon.com/BALDR-Portable-Station-Generator-Foldable/dp/B08LKXQTC9?crid=3M8T80L7WEIEQ&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.C0bM9cwq4ic09fT-PZ6LbboGC1LmZXo4MJ7xbAdeFafKTOzhs0Z9BG8Ugx53NiypbjvqK3LuoN7oPo51UjXG0dlm03QmYt7e3XjLS7ipvWCGJ5-pguM4kQKjBoM5gDChfeZ9QCaa_TDbJX0jG9dlXOuEMN9__mKZSoxm01qywPttkrH5bhQR7trGj290L8ts1cccmVMtYs8J3QhxoV96jvgkDiTnXDG5kmkcmGWK02Q.OVz8epaH2fpu2oKbjj04Srl6wDOtwIZOoutquqbo0Gw&dib_tag=se&keywords=baldr+120w+portable+solar+panel&qid=1733954843&sprefix=balder+solar%2Caps%2C212&sr=8-1&th=1

Solar 60w
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B079DNGBQN?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_fed_asin_title

Extras
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08K8YWYDH?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_fed_asin_title&th=1


Make sure your battery can charge at the same time as being used. The balder panels are parallel so more than 1 can be hook together. This will last me longer than a week because I switch my batteries out and keep them charged up. My pecron battery has a higher watt input & does charge faster, but my backup battery can only handle up to 80watts, so doesnt charge fast enough.

I learned mostly everything from this guy
https://www.youtube.com/@Jasonoid

 

Pics?

 

Well, I bought the Anker Evercool or everfrost 50L and like it a lot. I am going to sell the solar panels and battery in the Costco package to make up the deal. Super excited to run it as I have to drive an hour back and forth to get food for my cabin. This will be a great help, let alone being useful on camping and overlanding trips.