Best way to power car fridge

[smiles]

Here is my issue.

We are heading away for 2 weeks with the family in tow. The car fridge (50lt Waeco) currently only runs when the car is running.
Looking at the options (which all seem to cost about the same) I can either buy a portable power pack (Waeco, thumper etc) or a dcdc charger and use the 110 ah AGM from the boat.

The problem with the less expensive portable power packs seems to be changing them. They either take forever or need a VSR or equivalent wired up.

I assume a DCDC charger could be installed terminating to an Anderson plug for connection to an additional battery.

I don’t want a permanent duel battery setup in the vehicle as it chews into valuable load capacity. We need something that can be plugged in as required for longer trips.

With the collective wisdom of the my swaggers I would like to know how others have dealt with a similar need. Especially those that use the Waeco cool packs

Appreciate any suggestions / input
Cheers
Simo


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[SimpleSi]

Install some heavier cabling from the starter battery to an anderson plug in the boot.  Then a simple anderson-to-alligator clamp lead onto your battery.  Alternator charges the 2nd battery.  Run your fridge off that.  That is the basic system.
Add a VSR in the cabling to the boot so that you won't flatten your start battery - 2nd simplest method.
Add a VSR/DCDC charger to an aux battery under the bonnet, and run cabling to the boot for the fridge.  That is the best method.

[BC66]

How long are you going to be parked up at any one time? Even with a second battery if your parked for a few days it will go flat.
Before I put the second battery in my Patrol I ran my 60 litre Waeco off just the main battery and I used a solar panel to keep it charged when stopped. This actually worked quite well.
My Waeco can run for 3 days easy without solar or it’s endless with. The fridge has a low voltage cut out , set it to high and it will protect your battery


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[Beachman]

15 years ago I did a 3 week trip to Cape York with a 40L Engel running off the starting battery without any problems. Most days the engine was running 8+ hours per day and the couple of time we did stay in one spot for more than one day we stayed at a powered sites. 

[DrewXT]

I used to run my Waeco on a RAPS 36 when I was using the car every day, and the RAPS was more than sufficient for running the fridge as a fridge.

Using it as a freezer was terrible, as the drain is heaps worse... Now I have a built in 110Ah battery that gives me 5-6 days as a fridge and 2-3 as a freezer

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[Bird]

I don’t want a permanent duel battery setup in the vehicle as it chews into valuable load capacity.

huh?

[paul.o]

Install some heavier cabling from the starter battery to an anderson plug in the boot.  Then a simple anderson-to-alligator clamp lead onto your battery.  Alternator charges the 2nd battery.  Run your fridge off that.  That is the basic system.
Add a VSR in the cabling to the boot so that you won't flatten your start battery - 2nd simplest method.
Add a VSR/DCDC charger to an aux battery under the bonnet, and run cabling to the boot for the fridge.  That is the best method.

Hi,
I have a similar set up but with a dc-dc charger screwed to the top of the battery box, which is in the back of the car. This is connected to the starter via heavier cable and anderson plugs in  the boot and then ando plug to the battery. The battery box has a couple of cig plugs for accessories and the fridge.

It is basically a mobile dual battery set up.

Don't forget fuses at the starter and then second battery.
I assume the battery out of the boat is some sort of sealed, non spillable type?

Paul

[tryagain]

huh?

Weight is my guess

[loanrangie]

What vehicle are we talking here ? this might help with suggestions.

[Jon Burrell - Tentworld]

Hi Smiles, 

Despite the brand, the Engel Smart Battery Box S2 could be worth considering for your Waeco. 

Nathan at our Melbourne store did a vid covering off its features if you wanted to watch it:  https://youtu.be/3MkngnRiNek

Price and specs on the Battery Box:  https://www.tentworld.com.au/buy-sale/engel-smart-battery-box-series-2

We sell Ritar batteries, we have found them to be good value & well priced.  https://www.tentworld.com.au/buy-sale/ritar-agm-battery-12v-120ah

The Engel Smart Battery Box was designed around people not wanting to go to auto elecs, or if they're changing vehicles often, or in some cases are fleet vehicles where modifications are not allowed. 

It has DC-DC built in with cig tip for charging. 

Mind you, like all cig tips they can wobble loose and are not the best rough road socket. 

To connect your fridge to the Engel Smart Battery Box,  you can go into one of the cig outlets.  But if you're doing off road, or just want to eliminate one connection that could be better I'd grab an Anderson to Female Merit plug adapter so you can connect using your Merit plug on your Waeco cable. 

Sadly,  I've not been able to source my own yet (I have asked Narva to make them!). 

In the meantime,  these guys on eBay do make them:
https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Anderson-Plug-to-1-x-Merit-Socket-2-x-Female-Cig-Socket-Car-Fridge-Engel/111114854072?hash=item19def61eb8:g:dH0AAMXQLoZR2i-g

It is worth considering bringing better cabling into your car, and ditching the cig plug on your Engel Smart Battery Box.  A cool cable for that is the Dometic 12RU-U2 kit.  It just needs to be brought through the firewall to battery, and has smart ignition sensing so will cut off supply when cars off (no need to find ignition!!!). 

https://www.tentworld.com.au/buy-sale/dometic-waeco-fridge-wiring-kit

I hope this helps.

[Bird]

Weight is my guess

Wouldnt it weigh as much as a portable setup but be sixty two trillion times more convenient?

[Jon Burrell - Tentworld]

If you are doing reasonable driving every day, then you could go with RAPS 44 battery
https://www.tentworld.com.au/buy-sale/dometic-waeco-coolpower-raps-44ah-battery-pack

and

RAPS 12RU-U2 to bring power to the rear of your vehicle with good voltage levels.   
https://www.tentworld.com.au/buy-sale/dometic-waeco-fridge-wiring-kit

This will do a fairly good job of charging your battery, as this RAPS cabling eliminates voltage drop to the battery, meaning you're getting the best charge you can from your alternator and be a much cheaper total solution. 

On occasion if you had access to 240v mains power it'd be worth taking your 240v battery charger along to top it up. 

If you dont have one, they're a nice thing to own for just general usage.  We think the Projecta Units are the go.  IMO I'd grab the 8A, or 16amp as they're more flexible with what you can use them for.  However,  there is a nice 4A one which is perfectly suited to the RAPS 44.

https://www.tentworld.com.au/buy-sale/projecta-pro-charge-automatic-12v-6-stage-battery-charger-4a

https://www.tentworld.com.au/buy-sale/projecta-pro-charge-automatic-12v-6-stage-battery-charger-8a

https://www.tentworld.com.au/buy-sale/projecta-pro-charge-automatic-12v-6-stage-battery-charger-16a

Going this route will give you a good solution provided you do drive for a couple of hours each day, or have access to 240v sometimes.

[Jon Burrell - Tentworld]

Wouldnt it weigh as much as a portable setup but be sixty two trillion times more convenient?

Typically what we see is that it's company vehicle that cant be modified, or that the plan is to sell it soon so dont want to invest anymore in it.  Hopefully Smiles will let us know soon

[Pottsy]

I run a Raps36 connected to a Waeco 35l, no issues, when at site hook up 120 watt solar to battery and she tops up nicely.
Rely on battery 100amp/hr in trailer for 60l waeco in CT, top up with solar when required or 240 in caravan parks. Connected via Anderson plug when on the move.
I have a second Raps 36 as back up if required bought a pair when they were on a runout sale.

[smiles]

What vehicle are we talking here ? this might help with suggestions.

2016 Toyota Fortuner

Really only has ~625 kgs between tare and GMV.

With additional fuel filter under the bonnet the space for a second battery is limited.

When we have 2 kids plus 2 adults and camping gear, firewood etc we would be at GMV.

The advantages of being able to remove the additional battery mean I can pack accordingly. For any long trips we take a trailer which changes the whole load dynamic. The 20-25kgs of battery would reduce the potential for firewood, water, beer on non trailer trips


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[smiles]

Thanks for all the info so far.

Plenty of food for thought


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[BC66]

For those lacking space for batteries , google front terminal UPS battery. Handy when space is at a premium in your car or camper


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[Jon Burrell - Tentworld]

For those lacking space for batteries , google front terminal UPS battery. Handy when space is at a premium in your car or camper


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Thanks very much!  I found some really interesting info on this page,  scroll down to the bottom to see the technical diagrams.  Most interesting was the chart on battery life & storage temperature! 

http://www.fusionagmbatteries.com.au/tabid/323/cid/5/Products/FrontTerminal.aspx

[BC66]

To clarify a few things on those charts.
When a battery is cold it loses capacity which is why weak batteries fail in winter months but when they warm up they work again BUT they actually hold there charge longer when they are cold. Many factories put stock into cool rooms because  they can sit around longer with less self discharge.
Putting batteries on Concrete is bad ? No it’s not it’s an urban myth!
When batteries are stored in our warehouse the batteries closest to the ceiling self discharge the fastest because they are hot but if you did a cca test on them they would be slightly better than a cold battery. Once they get too hot they lose cca though. There is a limit.
Same goes when charging a  battery. If it gets too hot then the charger will see the extra resistance caused by the heat and continue to pump amps in because the charger sees resistance as a flat battery and if allowed to get too hot will become over charged.
UPS batteries are usually installed in air conditioned rooms set at 25c. This is the optimum temp for getting long life from an AGM battery which is why sometimes you will see on an AGM battery spec sheet. Design life 10-12 years. Only in a controlled environment.
Ok enough battery dribble for today
Ciao


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[Nomad]

2016 Toyota Fortuner

Really only has ~625 kgs between tare and GMV.

With additional fuel filter under the bonnet the space for a second battery is limited.

When we have 2 kids plus 2 adults and camping gear, firewood etc we would be at GMV.

The advantages of being able to remove the additional battery mean I can pack accordingly. For any long trips we take a trailer which changes the whole load dynamic. The 20-25kgs of battery would reduce the potential for firewood, water, beer on non trailer trips

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I have a removable 3rd battery in the back of my cruiser that you could easily do for the fortuner.

You'll need about 5metres of 6b&s red, 2 metres of 6b&s black, 2 x 50 amp fuses, $50 isolator (or cheaper if you want) battery box and a few anderson plugs, cheap battery box and a 2nd battery

Run the cable to the back of the car, fuse at each end and anderson plug at the tub end. Battery box with two anderson plugs, one for the car to plug into and another for the fridge. Cut the crappy cigarette lighter plug of your fridge cord and attache an anderson plug. Hey presto a cheap and removable dual battery set up.

Probably cost the same as one of those battery boxes and you'll get a much larger battery for your money.

 

[Pete79]

I have a removable 3rd battery in the back of my cruiser that you could easily do for the fortuner.

You'll need about 5metres of 6b&s red, 2 metres of 6b&s black, 2 x 50 amp fuses, $50 isolator (or cheaper if you want) battery box and a few anderson plugs, cheap battery box and a 2nd battery

Run the cable to the back of the car, fuse at each end and anderson plug at the tub end. Battery box with two anderson plugs, one for the car to plug into and another for the fridge. Cut the crappy cigarette lighter plug of your fridge cord and attache an anderson plug. Hey presto a cheap and removable dual battery set up.

Probably cost the same as one of those battery boxes and you'll get a much larger battery for your money.

 

Exactly what I have in both my vehicles (minus the isolator, I just unplug it to isolate it ) works perfectly.

I actually made up an extension lead to go from the tub in the Triton to the portable battery box in the trailer on the last trip.
No DC/DC whatever or super expensive change over switch.
Just a fused lead from the car to a normal battery in a normal plastic battery box with an Anderson plug.
Believe it or not, my battery got fully charged.

Apparently I was supposed to spend anywhere between $300 and $1000 to achieve this amazing feat of charging a battery while driving around......

[Nomad]

And....if you dont want to put the second battery in you can still plug your fridge in to it and run it while your car is running

[Brodie Tas]

Were are you planning on going because if your heading to the colder areas the fridges really dont work as much i can run my fridge of my main battery here in tas (yes probley warmer in the fridge at times) problems but that driving to and back from work everyday, i now have dual batterys so the fridge will run for so many days with out the car chargeing them, but what if you just run it of the car battery with a good portable solar panel? I cant tell you what size you would need but some one here  could help you, i also have a 6m cable to extend the fridge for the car to around the camp site but its a real thick heavey duty cable to carry the power or you would lose the power if the cable isnt thick enough,

Dont know might not be the right option for you but just food for thought 

[#jonesy]

2016 Toyota Fortuner


With additional fuel filter under the bonnet the space for a second battery is limited.

If it is like my 2013 Hilux there is a space at the passenger side under the windscreen perfect for a battery. You could maybe apt it to make it easily removeable

[smiles]

Were are you planning on going because if your heading to the colder areas the fridges really dont work as much i can run my fridge of my main battery here in tas (yes probley warmer in the fridge at times) problems but that driving to and back from work everyday, i now have dual batterys so the fridge will run for so many days with out the car chargeing them, but what if you just run it of the car battery with a good portable solar panel? I cant tell you what size you would need but some one here  could help you, i also have a 6m cable to extend the fridge for the car to around the camp site but its a real thick heavey duty cable to carry the power or you would lose the power if the cable isnt thick enough,

Dont know might not be the right option for you but just food for thought 

We are heading from Adelaide to Alice Springs.

Solar panel a top suggestion. Will investigate further. Probably lighter and more portable than a power pack. Would compliment running the fridge from the starter battery when driving


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