Watch this before you WASTE money! | Esky or Icebox VS Fridge 

Great clip fellas 👍, very enjoyable. One thing worth mentioning too, don’t use the ice cubes, they melt to quick, use frozen blocks. What we used to do ( pre owning a fridge ) is freeze some 2 or 4 litre ice cream containers and don’t forget to mix in some salt with the water as this slows down the melting process and the blocks take a hell of a lot longer to melt due to having a larger surface area to volume ratio then the smaller ice cubes. Plus when you freeze them at home, you’re saving $10 - $15 on ice each trip 😉👍 And if you want to keep the paper wrapped meats etc from getting all wet and soggy,, grab one of those pantry organiser shelf’s from Kmart for $3 or $4 and shot that in the bottom. That way you can store drinks underneath it to keep them cool and your meat can sit on the shelf so it doesn’t end up floating around everywhere - worked a treat for us for many many trips 👍 keep up the great work gents 👍👍🇦🇺🇦🇺🇦🇺

Good rundown and tips! When I worked on a field surveying crew they ran a semi-permanent drain hose from the esky drain out of the back cab of the ute so they could always drain it and drop in new ice without having to yank it out of the back. If you have a big esky it's pretty handy, clear flex pipe for fishtanks or whatnot usually has something that fits.

If you are into camping and go away regularly, fridges are probably the best bet. If you only go away a couple of times a year, then the Esky is fine. We still have an Esky but it hasn't been used in years! The thing many people may forget is that a 12v fridge is great for every day use as well. We have 3 Engels and a Waeco and one of the Engels lives permenantly in our little day car and it never goes camping. It is so useful to have a fridge in the back of the car just for ordinary groceries when the weather gets warm. You can chuck the ice cream etc. in and go and do other chores without worrying about it melting to a puddle of slush.

There are a few options to save money on buying ice. Back in the days when I did a lot of camping and fishing in the Top End, we’d make big ice blocks using deep roasting trays at home in the freezer. And if we did buy a few bags of ice, we’d throw always them in the freezer for a day or two before we headed out to get the ice much colder than you can get at the servo... With a well-insulated esky (like Evakool) we’d get a week out of the ice easy.

Dry ice... run two eskies and have the smaller one to keep frozen stuff, swing past BOC and get a block of dry ice, maybe even some pellets and you will be good for a week (throw a few pellets in the big esky with the three bags of ice each day and you're golden)

Ice cream containers full of water in the freezer a couple of days before the trip works - and can be supplemented with bought ice. As you said, great for a weekender. Smaller ones for a trip to ya mates barbie. They're essential really. Good vid and collab, cheers guys

Good summary for your options. I guess it highlights your evolution as you build up your camping equipment over time.

Nice one lads! You both crack me up every time!

Buy a Tupperware container that fits a 3rd of your esky for all the meat and stuff you want to keep dry and the rest is for drinks etc. That’s EXACTLY how you do it Pete 😂😂😂

Great to see guys who actually use and know the gear discussing the pros and cons. The more expensive ice boxes are better and there are tricks you can use to extend the life of the ice. Block ice, saline slurry ice, keep it full, pre chill etc are all common sense ways of making them last longer. Plastic containers frozen are also a handy back up water supply if things go to crap. Have heard of people using tiny fridge/freezers to make ice to then put in the cooler as well. I won't be going down the fridge route for the reasons stated, including weight and complexity, but my camping buddy has one so we can sort of use both to suit us both. I just pack mine with frozen meat that we can use as we go and he can keep all the other stuff cold. Great video guys thank you.

2 litre milk bottles, rinse em out fill 2/3 with water and freeze, no paying for ice and then you can drink the water, also when they melt the water is contained in the bottle..

you guys work well together,, cheers

Fridge, keeps your groceries cold when you're not camping. Also doubles as a second or third fridge for beer on Christmas Day.

Lots of great points to consider

When he said there’s a difference between fridge beer and esky beer I hit like, so very very true beers out of the fridge are just don’t hit the same and for that reason I have both, food in the Engel beers and drinks always in the esky

With the esky and ice, you can save a fortune with reusable ice packs or something like techni ice. I do also believe that insulation covers are available for esky's. Another tip is to use a couple of esky's where you use one for the first few days and another for the next few days, needless to say you keep the second one closed and well insulated while you use the first. Just a few ideas and tips. Great video guys and like both your channels 👍

Pete's laugh is infectious lol. But great video overall.

Good clip Alex & Pete. Cheers Steve

We only use an esky...but mostly only do outback winter trips where block ice will last a week, top up with party ice and supplies along the way if needed.

The fridge is by far my best mod, I love it. I could never go back to an Esky. I know they’re a lot of money... fridge, battery & slide, but jeez, they’re awesome! 👍

Great info. Thanks

Good vid mate!

Legends, always easy watching

We have used a Rotomolded plastic esky and found it worked better when the water could drain out the bung. Fridge wise, we had a old Waeco which didn’t have thick enough insulation, an $650 Evakool fridge that was great but died after 3 years and had a 2 year warranty...now the Dometic CFX65 which is incredibly efficient and seems to do the job really well!

solid video. i've been counting my pennies and rocking the esky for quite a while now. My biggest gripe is food wastage! Especially for veggies or meat which is semi-cold and not worth the risk.

I run a big Tupperware container in the esky to store the food which works awesome. Plus I think you can’t beat a can on ice. In saying that I have been looking a fridges for a while and about to pull the trigger I think.

Put me right in the rock and a hard place!! Thanks for that Alex. Ha ha ha !! I don’t have a fridge at the moment so most of the cooking done with an esky but down the line planing to get one since channel needs one. Thinking of mycoolman fridge or cfx3 45 but these are pretty expensive and definitely don’t have a budget for it ! Thanks for the video but , now I don’t feel lone with an esky 🙌🏽🙌🏽

One of our first trips we did with a 150ltr esky. It worked. But it wasn’t easy. Going out of my way when I didn’t otherwise need to, just to get ice, was a real pain. After that trip I sorted a second battery and scored a secondhand fridge immediately. I got it done for under a grand. It changed everything. Good break down boiiis!

Great combination as always boys 👍👍👍 lov both channels 👍👍👍 ps update your merchandise Alex so I can buy something 😂😂😂

One point you missed is capacity taken up by the ice that could be more food or beers.

Exactly! 😅😅

Love me fridge's capability..... not a fan of the fridge itself, because I bought a cheaper model..... will definitely be taking your advice and getting an Engel next time :) Cheers, Don (Dons Shed and Xplor Overland)

Fridges are great for remote travel and coolers (good ones)are good for shorter trips if you add up a deep cycle battery $400 a fridge $1200 a DC to Dc charge controller a solar system , wiring and battery mount easy to cost $3K then considering battery life span between 300 to 1000 cycles depending on depth of discharge & extra weight added to car a good $400 cooler starts looking good . I have and use both depending on type and length of trip a week or less its the cooler and no compressor noise at night regards Mike

Fridge best for extended travel but setup with battery etc is expensive Option 3: Small, cheap fridge hooked up to the car outlet (that turns off before battery dead) and tip in some ice every few days. Works for me

You guys covered pretty much all the main points here. Maybe a little thin on the initial cost of having proper power source for a fridge - solar panel, deep cycle batteries, a good intelligent battery charger and why not might as well throw in an inverter, proper wiring and cables (very important). But then these extras are not just for running the fridge. I've done mine so that the starting battery only has the spotties that are non-factory connected to it (I use PTO winch). All others are powered by the deep cycle batts eg the radio that's running 24/7 during big expeditions, GPS, camping lights, multiport USB chargers, 240v sockets via the inverter, etc. As you mentioned though, having both is definitely the way to go.

Exactly

Love my fridge but an esky does at times come in handy. Fridge is the best thing I've put in my 4x4.

Great work bloke's👍👍👍 When is the next push bike adventure with Jake?

Frustrated listening to how many times i said “exactly” what an idiot haha Exactly

Great video , I use an esky filled with frozen water bottles, cheap , plus I'm a tight ass and prefer to spend my money else where.

I understand this video is 2 years ago, but now the Fridge system is different. Use your power tool battery to power the fridge, or using the car power, and lastly plug into AC with DC adaptor.

Great video. I agree with all the points, but I think Ronny Dahl day not to let the enemy of a cooler? Sir is the enemy of ice? Etc.?

Fridge is awesome to have for shopping to put the frozen/ fridge items in till you get home lol

You 2 know how to entertain 🤣😎👍😏🇳🇿

as much as u can use bigger ice blocks instead of small ice cubes or crushed ice. although this ice blocks take up more space it will melt slower due to lesser surface area where condensation occurs

Who keeps bread in a cooler?! It can’t be just me asking 😂😂

You missed the obvious. Small Waeco on freeze mode feeding an Esky with ice best of both worlds.

Give me a esky/ice box any day over a fridge. After you work out what it would cost you to buy everything you need to purchase and install a fridge that can buy a hell a lot of ice.

What about a two way fridge ? works off LPG gas or electricity . It will last a long toe on a 4KG gas bottle or a generator.

Good one boys, I have an esky in the shed shaped like the back of a ute with wheels on it, how Aussie is that lol

The fridge definitely wins I've had a fridge for 20 years and haven't bought a bag of ice for 20 years think of the cost saving that I have saved

So now that Harry from Fire to fork is back in Perth im counting down untill the triple collaboration. The 3 of you navigating through a cooking segment would be gold!

Ive got engle fridge and a engle esky both around 12 years old and still going strong...

Enjoyed the video lads, but it makes you wonder how long term overlanders got on in years gone by 🤔

I want hot tub wresting next

No one wants soggy sao or a big ol' wet box... on bigger trips we have fridge & esky. Use plastic milk bottles as ice blocks for the esky as a cool box for non perishables (keeps dingoes out) & fridge as a freezer.

Esky Pro.. You can wash stuff with draining water, eg hands

Coleman are the best.

Esky for the beers. Soon as you bring food into the equation, it's a nope. Don't think anyone has ever said, wow that steak which was floating around in esky water was brilliant for dinner 😂

Picnic.

That blue coleman is a $30 in the US!

Also have you tried Dry ice. No water last forever. Super cold.

Got both solar painin arse

Really good clip on whether or not to drain your ice from the esky. Esky will stay cooler for longer if you don't drain it. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-1cycxfcndgA.html I was of the same opinion as you before I watched this clip. He's got a bit of science in there to back it up. Of course, then you need to deal with the inconvenience of having a slurry at the bottom of the esky. Exactly.

I like being able to cool down campfire cooking leftovers in the fridge.

But eskys have baskets and deviders for the prevention of soggy foods

Another Esky con is you lose 1/2 the capacity filling with ice.

Bottom line, we didnt get anywhere. Both are great

Before this video I got an advert for durex. Just saying.

Actually you are meant to leave the melting ice/ water. You get an extra 12 hours of coolness. Lock your hubs did a awesome video on this.

You can buy some great collapsible containers for your meats and cheeses in an esky or a fridge. No more soggy stuff 🤮

Icebox cheaper, unless you buy a yeti one 😂

i got confused and plugged my esky into my car

Eggzacly

Fridge, buy a dam fridge!!!

Jake could break it.

Draining cold water from an esky is dumb and stupid. If is below ambient temp keep it in there/

just wasted my money, the Esky is cheap and it works better. The fridge is only as good as the battery last just the same as the ice.

Bloody clickbait. Where was the footage of you smashing Pete in an arm wrestle?

Ice budget?...Freeze your own ice blocks ffs

I hated it so much I pressed thumbs down 3 times😁