comical guy

"Do you really need a fridge?" Feel free to ask that question to those who live in their vehicles. I find your lack of research into such devices.....wanting. Blaming the devices for your lack of understanding how they will perform in the field is on you. "For the average person..." That's what the big brands are for. They do work, in general have less issue, and make things easier. That's the premium you pay for. You said in the comments that you didn't expect them to last for days yet you bashed them int he videos for not being able to last an entire trip unless you run your car. Contradiction there. Let's try this with another exmple. If you went and bought the cheapest car you could....then blamed it for not lasting to your expectations, is that the fault of the manufacturer or the buyer? The 'average user' doesn't get to complain when things don't work because they didn't do their due diligence/try to do things on the cheap. Are brand names perfect? Nope, but they are generally way better than the cheapest devices that the 'average user' pays for.

I want to thank you for sharing your experiences. I think, its helping me think BETTER about what one should consider when contemplating 12v frigs/coolers, rather than simply listening to the pro-sale pitches. Jimmy Dee

My use case is camping/hunting with at least an hour drive (1 way) to restock on ice. If I don’t have an empty cooler to get the ice, much of it will melt on the return trip. I guess it would be cheaper to by an extra ice chest to refill the others, but the electric reefer eliminates the trip completely.

Don't buy cheap Chinese solar generators. Buy once cry once get a jackery or bluetti

As of Oct 27 2034. Just bought a 300 amp hours battery, $400 about 3500 ah I beleave should Run a fridge 3 or more days.did I mention $400! Shipped .On the Amazon

As ever your presentation is brilliant, informative and very entertaining. Thank you very much.

im a devops and backend engineer. zoneminder is crap. it works well enough and it is stable but it is a pain to install and configure. not user friendly. it is not a modern application by many standards. really enjoy your perspective on "easy to use" plug and play solutions. there is another angle regarding these apps and ip cameras. the security. they connect back to china and the app developers have access to any and all ip cameras connected via the cammera app.

Thanks for the insightful video.

I have been researching the same. The cost isn't just the fridge. A decent portable solar power station and 100w+ panels so you recharge in a decent time. Be able to scale up by adding more panels isn't bad. We do weekends trips and 1 two week road trip each year. The fridge can double as my man cave fridge when not on trips.

Great lil video,appreciate your time. I honestly think you chose the wrong portable batteries. I have a bluetti eb3a 268 wh and a setpower aj30 12v fridge.i can run 15 hours on eco mode to get downbto 25% battery. With a 100 watt flexible solar panel,3hr recharge time. Eb3a cost me $200,aj30 cost me $200,100 renergy 100 watt flexible cost me $120. So under $700......but i recenty bought the fridge,the solar panel and eb3a were bought for camping just to charge phones and run 2 12v fans for camping. Just phones and fans i can get 22hrs on 1 charge constant fan use.

You get what you pay for. Get you a quality 100ah life or 1500Wh power station. Problem solved. Not interested in “Ice savings”. Looking for “No ice availability”.

You undersized your power station and solar panel to begin with. Stick w Bluetti, EcoFlow or Anker brand equipment . Most solar experts recommend a minimum 700-1000wh power station and 200 to400w of solar panels. This allows you to work around the night hours and some cloudy scenarios.

Thanks for your information. I'm in Florida, and I'm thinking to invest in a temporary power outage kit (solar generator(s), portable cooler/freezer, etc etc.) Whats your take on the coolers for this application?

My experience with DC fridges have been the opposite - They have been game changers. No more soggy food from melted ice, and I can transport freezer food. Unfortunately my experience with solar chargers has been similar: Unless you have an Ecoflow, Bluetti or Jackery station, you risk power disappointment. I was sold on Allpowers stations because they were cheap, only to regret it. Thanks for the video

Compressor fridges generally work. Beware of 12v "Coolers" that use a Peltier heat exchanger: kzbin.info/www/bejne/eZ-wg5iGqa2AkLs Basically, the Peltier ones do NOT work and are hugely expensive vs a regular cooler. Stay gold.

No shit a 12v fridge need 12v power , he’s a genius, this guy is a dumb ass

Andy Rooney reboot, I enjoyed the format!

After watching the market and developments for 4 years I can tell you that anything made, late 2023 and 2024 are not going to get anymore efficient. They’re all reaching a point where their energy usage has been maximized so much that the only way to benefit is the actual fridge construction. If we could find a way to get a compressor from any portable fridge into a “TEMPO” made by oyster cooler. Then that will be so efficient that all companies will have a hard time raising their prices due to reaching an equilibrium. All of them will be exactly the same only looking slight different.

Thank You for sharing your thoughts/experiences ❤️👍👍👍

I am a truck driver and want a portable fridge/freezer to supplement my pre installed fridge. It will always be plugged into power. My truck has 4 batteries and the longest it would be without me starting the truck is 10 hours. I am out for 2 weeks at a time and I need more space because I don’t like to eat at restaurants while on the road. My only concern is how loud are they when the compressor is running

I completely agree with this video. But I’m a hobbyist and like gadgets. At least I’m not wasting money on drugs or onlyfans

I bought an BougeRV 48L w/a back up 750 wh battery and I power it with shore power/generator, 12 volt, and my Anker 767 and or Anker Solix 1000. I use the 12 volt plug in my horse trailer while traveling and it works great. I use my Ankers for many things not just the fridge, so I can't say I bought them just for that one application. The cost of the dual compartment, split lid, back up battery, 48L, and the insulated cover was under $700.00 and so far it has worked great! I hardly use the fridge in my horse trailer now, and always I have ice for the entire trip.

Good points and great video. I think there are other ways to go about running the 12v fridge that are easier on the $$. True, not a necessary appliance but nice if you do *very extended camping or live in an RV/Van. Thank u for the time, opinion and i subscribed to your channel.

I pack some gel ice packs in my iceless cooler. I lose some capacity but it does extend the cool duration. Then there is the Tupperware with some ice in it or frozen water bottles for then the gel ice pack warm up.

Good job Watson

Outstanding insight and content

We have had 2 twelve volt units for years, each permanently in a vehicle. Main use is to get purchased frozen food home intact, especially fish or ice cream. In Summer heat also have small Bluetti power station to keep freezer cool when car is not running. Have used them for picnics and overnight camping. So far no extended camping adventures, but the freezers have certainly earned there keep for us so far.

2:09 “A 12V fridge needs 12V power.” Wow! Thanks for pointing that out!! Kinda’ like cars need gasoline? iPhones need to be charged? A microwave needs to be plugged in? Do you think that the 12V 230Ahr LiFePO4 battery attached to the (3) 175Aw solar panels on top of my can will do the trick? Change the name of your channel to Penchant for the Obvious.

Sounds like the issue isn't the fridge, but the small capacity power stations. I have the Grecell T1000 which powered an Iceco VL90ProD for a week in Death Valley. However, the Grecell (being a bottom of the barrell quality) had it's faults. It has power pass thru problems when using solar input and AC output. I'm on my 4th one and they company (and I) had enough of it. So, they gave me a partial refund and I now have a power station I need to get rid of. Plus side, I happened on a Bluetti AC180 (1152 WattHours) during Prime Deal Days for the same price as the cheap Grecell. This works flawlessly. *IF* you had a higher capacity power station, I doubt you'd have the same problems. Better quality power station and you wouldn't have the same problems. Also, since I'm in California, I NEED a power station to get me thru those PG&E power shutoffs and blackouts. So my power station is dual purpose.

Appreciate you sharing your experience and perspective. There are lessons to be learned from your video and everyone's responses. Thank you.

I can go on 100 trips with and Ice Chest and still never spend the money ot cost to have a 12v cooler. It really dumb to even buy one. 😂😂

Wait.. is the title of this video, “Should You Buy a Portable Power Station”?

I have watched your video twice now and gave it a thumbs up. I live full time in a converted V nose 12 x 6 enclosed cargo trailer. I have a sort of base in North Mississippi but I am often out in Wyoming, Montana and Arizona for extended periods of time. I have been going back and forth about buying a 12v ice chest for about 7 years. I am still debating it. Here is what I use. I have 2 x 400 watt solar panels I bought cheap from Santan Solar in Phoenix, AZ. They are without a doubt the cheapest and friendliest solar panel store in North America. Everyone in the nomad community knows them. I have (at the moment) 400 ah in batteries (a Mighty Max, a Battleborn and 2 Elfhubs). I have 2 controllers both MPPV. IT IS NOT ENOUGH. I am about to install a 3rd 400w panel on the side of my rig on hinges along with another controller. I also have plans to buy 2 more Elfhubs. Do NOT believe the hype about Battleborn they are no better than cheap Chinese stuff. I use a 110vac dorm fridge. I also have a 5000btu ac unit. I have been using that dorm fridge since 2012. The plastic has cracked but it is still working after 12 years of constant use. I also use 2 Champion generators with a Y cable. The sun does not shine reliably enough. Plus it is not just sunshine needed but quality of sunlight. Believe me I have experimented and I know. My record for going on solar only is 10 days. I can even run the ac for short runs on solar. However most of the time the ac is on gen. Here is the takeaway. Solar and all the gubbins that go with it are expensive and a lot of trouble to collect and install. I live this way permanently and need to be totally mobile. So solar is, for me, necessary. However unless you have a special need this is not a good idea. The portable power units are incredibly expensive and inefficient. Folding panels are totally unreliable having a tendency to crack and break. Same with thin bendable panels. Anyway enough said. BTW in another life I was an electronics tech for 35 years. So I know about the electrical juggling act.

Not surprising at all with JUNK solar generators from Amazon! I not saying you needed to buy expensive batteries, just mid range batteries from Bluetti or EcoFlow. I've had both for about 3 years and used for OVER 150 nights without failure and I used them inside for power backup around the the house. I'm quite happy. When you buy junk you get junk and waste your $$$.

The price you pay for a cold beer on a hot day.

My car easily powers my refridge for 20+ hours and. Still no issue with starting the car.

Nice, well thought out presentation. I am an old, recently retired guy that is currently looking for a solution for keeping food frozen during power outages, but to also be used for weekend long camping trips. I've already got the power stations and solar panels. I'm just looking for the right solution for a 12 volt freezer that will fit my needs.

It's up to the individual as to the size of battery you need BUT the main thing to remember is that 12V electric fridges are next to useless. A 12V compressor fridge uses much less power

yep solar is not near as great as they want you to believe.

I have a bluetti eb3a 268 watts power station, a newti power 12.8v lifepo battery 120 ah and a Alpicool c20 12v frig. I connected the 12.8 battery to the Bluetti power station and then conneted the 12v frig to the power station. This setup powered the frig in eco mode and kept my food and drinks cold (35°F) for the entire camping trip which lasted 96 hours. I am very pleased with my setup.

camping is dragging lots of stuff outside to be less comfortable than you would be if you had just stayed home. I do not get it. I can look at stars in my yard.

Quit buying cheap portable batteries!

I'm another 80 year old guy that likes the outdoors and thinks like you. I am enjoying your channel.

Power stations are ridiculous in that you are basically buying packaging as you can buy a 100 ah battery a solar charge controller a 200 watts worth of solar and an inveter and the fridge for less the then the box I have been basically living of grid all summer and my one 100ah battery will run my fridge continuously for about 4 days and a 100watt panel will pretty much keep it charged

Running an Iceco G20 ..Bluetti ac180 (1152 WH)..200watt bluetti solar panel..suitcase style..run the fridge off the RV power while driving..camping ..battery power and solar hooked up..Bluetti has pass thru and regulated 12 volt power.. this setup is unlimited run time.. very happy..pays to watch overlander vids..these guys know what works..I did :0)

My Bluetti recharges as I drive and can run my ICECO for three days without a recharge. I did a quite a bit of research and bought efficiently so the total for all is about $600. Both have also been used for other purchases such as outdoor parties and on-site cordless tool recharging. Not having ice chest capacities minimized by ice, dealing with sloshing water and soaked and dripping foods, nor worrying about extending a trip because the ice has completely melted are also bonuses of having a quality 12v refrigerator/freezer and properly sized, quality power brick.

Thanks. Personally, I REALLY appreciate all the data you presented. You're right, it's very hard to get solid data about these frig's. harder still to test them, or find any results of tests that have been done. Because, as we all know, vendors lie.

I’m in a similar spot in my home. Due to the age of some of my machines it’s getting harder to find a proper use for them.

I got a 12 volt 100 AH lithium trolling motor battery from LiTime. I ran it through a 1500 watt inverter for my camper. I ran a small 115 volt dorm fridge for 19 hours and it still had a descent charge left in it.