anybody got experience with little electric coolers?
- June 8th, 2015
- Posted in touring equipment
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Anybody got experience with those little 12V electrical in-vehicle 12V coolers? I can get this one with credit union rewards points. The maker has a smaller model (really tiny) which has a small number of reviews that are highly mixed, and a larger model (substantially larger)which has a large number of reviews and is thought well of overall.
This model, though, lacks reviews. It’s 14L (a little over 3.5 gallons?) and… um… well, it looks like this:
Cooler than … what, exactly?
I don’t expect miracles, but it’d be nice to keep things cool in the Raptor without hauling around ice and/or burning uselessly through cold-packs. Mostly because let’s face it, after day one, all of those things are dead, while this thing would in theory keep going.
7 comments on Livejournal, 2 comments on Dreamwidth, 3 comments on Google+.
They don’t freeze-just keep things coolish-depends on how hot it is outside. It’s a Peltier-junction cooler, I suppose (no compressor). The only moving part is a fan blowing air across a huge heat sink. It may double as a food warmer, as well (reverse polarity to the juction, and the cold side becomes the warm side)-if so, it keeps things warmish, not hot, really.
I saw one in use as a film fridge ( Koolatron…mid to late 1980s?), and for keeping cans of pop cool. For that, it worked fine. I haven’t had one myself, though. I *think* they have a fairly high current consumption, so don’t leave it running with the car engine off. I would image keeping the heatsink clean, and having good airflow is important. Hey, it’s free-I’d give it a try.
Scott: Yeah, they’re pretty clear in the larger description: this is not a freezer, this is not a pure refrigerator. Mostly my question/use model is, “can it keep things cool on 5-9 hour road trips between gigs?” And I think that answer is looking reasonably okay.
Plus, as you say, free.