The CHEAPEST EFFICIENT 12V Fridge - Vanlife 

My 2 way dometic is dead, trying to figure out how to fit one of these in, and still give it air circulation.

Yes and I think it’s even nicer knowing that if something breaks it’s not going to be a huge expense to fix. We think that all of the things we use work just as well as a lot of the expensive rigs out there.

C. Pala this was so true and hilarious!

I’m glad we could help!! Good luck on the build! Thanks for watching 😊

Same here Kelly.

Haha hope it was helpful! Thanks for watching! 👍

I have 35ah solar battery,1000 watt inverter and 100 watt panel and I'm thinking of doing the same and buy the freezer

​@whiterock4769 you'll need a minimum 12volt 100 amphr lithium battery. Otherwise it won't last, and 200 solar panel , 2000 watt P.S.W.inverter. MPPT.CARGE CONTROL @ 30AMPS minimum

Pi

my lead acid batteries are six years-old holding strong

hope we were helpful! Goodluck!

Thanks!

Really? that guy had a good idea lol! thank you for watching! 😊

I didn’t know you have a bus

Hope we were helpful and safe travels.:) You're going to love it!

I just posted a reply to their posting. I'm not sure it will work, for long. But it is not based on anything other than what I know of refrigerators that do not travel or home units! They are fragile, delicate and are not built for falling in/over bumps and potholes! So I will be anxious to hear from 'someone out there on the road'! When something is too easy or so simple usually it doesn't work, for long. Perhaps this is an exception to that rule! Let us know, please! All the best to you!!!

@@paulortiz2035 hey Paul, from what I've researched the higher tier travel fridges (dometic) last 2-5 years max. For a lower tier unit (China brand) 1-2 years is all you can get, so if this set up can last anywhere over a year its worth it in my opinion. Let me know if you disagree

Thank you!! And thanks for watching👍😊

hope we were helpful! thanks for watching! :)

Haha I wish! Thank you 😊

Thanks, hope it was helpful. Thanks for watching 👍

Glad to hear it was helpful! Thanks for watching and good luck on the van build! 😊

we always love the cheap option, glad we could help. Good luck! :)

Yeah the amount of money we saved was one of the main reasons we went this route, also it’s bigger. Thanks for watching! 👍

Aww thank you!

Thanks! It took us a lot of searching to find this method but it works great and is so much more affordable than other 12v fridges.

ouRVan those types of tips are what I search for a lot. Keep it up. Hope you can travel easier and more parks open for you soon. Our country is looking like opening up again over the next 4 or 5 weeks.

Why it isn't more widely known???? Because that setup doesn't have great durability, for 1 thing! I just posted a lengthy reply to this guy's original posting. But basically it says home appliances are not built strong and sturdy or to go 80mph down the road, fall in potholes, etc. The compressor will twist off its lines in no time and you will have a dead unit! Rv appliances are (usually? Often? Hopefully?) built with jostling in mind while your fisher paykels aren't! Since they usually sit in but 1 spot on your kitchen floor and don't shoot up and down mountain roads and bump along gravel back roads. But I could be wrong! Kitchen units are not built as stout as are the rv ones! The kitchen refrigerator I got last year did not survive being unloaded off the truck incorrectly. There was a big sign on the box to ONLY tip the fridge/freezer to either side, NOT to tip it toward the front or back! And these guys do this all day long and they got it wrong! Which is another issue! But when we plugged it in, it did not work!!! So they brought another one the following week! The point being: these Electrolux units are so fragile they cannot be tipped except in 2 directions!!!! And that just seems rather pitiful to me! And someone wants to sail down the highway with it, chuck holes, and all??? Just don't see that as a feasible plan! In the least!

It worked extremely well for them for almost 2 years... and is probably still going strong for the new owner of their van. :) Apparently potholes were no match for this freezer!

Those look pretty good! I didn’t see that option when I was shopping. Although the fridge setup I have looks like it’s about 20 quarts larger and $100-140 cheaper than those two brands. Still good options though. Thanks for sharing!

@@ouRVan I was wondering if a three way fridge uses more electricity than a dedicated 120 volt fridge. I tried to run my three way fridge on 300 watts solar and ran the batteries down in one night.

Thanks!

happy to help! Thanks for watching! :)

Thanks for watching and Good luck on the conversion! 👍😊

We posted this video to help others find an affordable and reliable fridge, so it makes us happy to hear that this is going to work for you!! Wish you the best on your van build! Thanks for watching 😊

Oh I’m so glad to hear that! Thanks for watching😊

Wow 2k for a new fridge, that’s crazy! We were so happy when we realized how cheap the converted freezer was going to be. I hope this idea works for you! If we missed any questions you might have please ask away!😊 thank you so much for subscribing!

I just tried out a Colzer 53 qt freezer with a Jackery 500. I used my house to get the fridge down to zero before testing. Outside yesterday under hazy Ohio skies my Jackery stayed at 100% while keeping the freezer frozen. I brought the Jackery and freezer in my house at sundown. This morning my Jackery was down to 20% charge. The freezer only had 5 ice cube trays in it, so there was a lot of empty space. Right now I am cooling a Rockpal 12 volt fridge to test next. The Colzer is not very well insulated. The outside felt cold, so it needs a jacket.

You are the best mom ever

But they could probably replace this freezer a few times before this set up would end up costing them as much as an reliable DC fridge with similar capacity and functionality.

Was thinking about why this is so efficient. These units usually run at about 5 amps at 120V or 600watts(that's 50AH/hour not including the inverter), that's obviously not what's happening for you, either that or it's super short and/or very infrequent run times. I believe it's because these units are rated for freezing temps and the power consumption is inversely proportional to the temperature selection. And since your running it way back from it's normal freezing temps the efficiency goes through the roof. :)

So if used as a freezer, it wouldn’t be as efficient?

Thanks for watching! 😊

sorry for the late response but thank you! It's still going strong, not a single issue yet. we did not change the Harbor Freight inverter, that is still going strong as well. I'll be honest when the fridge is packed with a weeks worth of food it does become a little bit of a hassle but we never wish we had something different over it. We did not hang another basket mainly because it would block us from getting to the bottom of the fridge. we still love it and recommend it to everyone we know. especially for the price ;)

@@ouRVan great video. Is the fridge & setup still working 2 yrs later? Asking as so many fridges go out 1yr and a month just past the warranty.

lmfao

Almost! Haha

Thanks for the advice, I’ll have to look into that 👍

I keep mine set at around 35 F so it’s just above freezing. You might be able to fit a chest freezer! This one replaced a 3 way also and it’s pretty narrow. Not sure on exact dimensions but I’d guess it’s only about 16” wide.