Aldi cooler/fridge

[fzrr]

So I picked up one of these from Aldi today figured i'll try it for camping.

ALDI - special buys from thurs 05 may - hurry, limited stocks in store*

I've seen them at Aldi in the past and have been waiting for them to come back on sale. Is anyone else out there using one? Did i just waste my money?

 

[heata]

The good thing with Aldi, is if you arent happy you can always return it! The only thing I know about 3 way fridges, is they draw about 3x more amps when running on 12v than a two way fridge. So the general view seems to be put them on the gas bottle over night, and let them run on 12v when driving.
let us know what you think of it!

 

[Al]

I just picked up one for my father tonight, his local was out of them. From what i have heard, they are pretty good value. Great on gas and 240v but only just hold temp on 12v. also they do suck down the amps so only use 12v while driving. A comparable waeco is about $550. Much cheaper then a 2way fridge and those 3way fridges have no compressors and shit to wear out so should last well! that said i love my waeco 80lt

 

[Leprechaun]

3 ways need to be set up on a dead flat surface. Any angle and they can die, unfortunately not the best for 4WD.

 

[Al]

that seems to be only if left on a angle for a while.. they work fine on boats that rock around on the swell. Also if they do lose the cooling from being on agle too long, you just do the upside down treatment and it will bring her back too 100%

 

[Leprechaun]

that seems to be only if left on a angle for a while.. they work fine on boats that rock around on the swell. Also if they do lose the cooling from being on agle too long, you just do the upside down treatment and it will bring her back too 100%

Not always, as I found out. Mine was killed by a mate using it on his back seat.

 

[Al]

ok, your first hand experience beats my 3rd hand chatter. Dad doesn't do hardcore 4wd anyway. more like hanging round the camp attending to the beers lol

 

[navarian]

I gave mine away today.

 

[Old.Tony]

We had a three-way fridge in our caravan. In the heat of summer - and I'm talking here:

the fridge couldn't keep up. With 45C outside, the fridge struggled to maintain about 10C inside. That night, it got down to 31C just before the sun rose!

The gas fridge is good if you have a decent gas supply. They are dangerous to use in gas mode while driving and downright stupid to use in gas mode inside a tent or vehicle other than where it is specifically vented properly.

They work by heating the liquid solution inside (usually an ammonia/water mix). Gas does this very well, with fairly low gas consumption. On 240V or 12V, they are very inefficient, as they have to basically become a heater, which really chews electrical power. They'll draw 10-15A on 12V, which is crazy - and since most of them only run the thermostat while on gas, the 12V setup will draw up to 15A all the time

What's worse: on 12V, because there's no thermostat, the fridge will eventually bring the internal temperature down as far as it is able to. If that means 30 degrees below ambient, it will freeze everything unless you're in the desert.

Some of them don't operate a thermostat on 240V either, so be careful - read the manual and make sure.

 

[ONLOCK]

iv got one from kmart, i run it overnight on 240v to get it cool then run it on 12v whilst tyraveling and when i stop for the night, day whatever it may be i put it on gas. works great on gas but pretty average on 12v

 

[fzrr]

Sounds like I may be returning it then and investing in a decent icebox.

 

[digbyj]

For my purpose im liking the sound of this. I just went camping for a week so to run a waeco/engel jobbie, I would need a solar panel to keep it running for that time (I presume?).
That would be awesome but cost wise this makes more sense to me... for now at least.
Could get frustrating if you say went somewhere for the day and it sucked the life outta ya battery coz you don't have your gas bottle!

 

[raywise]

My brother has one of these, and running it while driving is fine off the battery, keeps the drinks nice and cool/cold. But yeah, they are really only good on gas when stopped, forget about battery power.

 

[fzrr]

I like the concept of it but reading reviews around the web they say it only ever reaches 20C below ambient at most. So if you're camping on a 30C day food can start to spoil at only 10C.

Also its pretty small on the inside so you can't even really add frozen bottles of water to try keep it cooler cause then you'd have bugger all room for food.

Realistically for the length of time i go camping I can always get more ice for the ice box. I thought this just might be handy for spending extensive times out a Fraser or somewhere.

 

[KraftyPg]

15 odd years ago we used to run ours with no problems, beer was always cold and food never went off. We'd plug it in to 240V the day before we left for the beach, fill it with beer and let it cool the beer. On the road it ran on battery for as long as we were traveling, then it was on gas for the rest of the trip. As long as you know it's limitations and use them within those limitations 3 way fridges are fine, they may not be as good as some of the expensive ones but for the price they aren't bad. We even used to sleep in our Hiace van while the fridge was running on gas, you take the precautions and things are fine.

 

[Leprechaun]

You can't beat a compressor fridge, but if your funds only allow for a 3way, then they are still better than ice. Wth a bit of practice/trial an error you'll find out what it capabilities are.

A mate of mine did the Cape and Simmo using a 35l Chescold with no dramas 15 years ago. No reason why they still can't be practicable today.