Car fridge brass monkey

After 2 years update:
Am very happy with it. I recommend at least 120watts of panel and a 12v120ah deep cycle battery. 80 watts isnt quite enough on a hot day while also recharging from the night before when the panels are only mounted horizontally on the roof.
When I say it struggles on a hot day - i am opening it every 10 minutes and it only rises a few degrees so i find the ice blocks do help as I am not using the entire space with my drink bottles so they help keep the temperature low. Its also more efficient to store the energy as frozen water so overnight it draws less from the battery. You can also turn the low voltage battery protection up higher so it can stop drawing from the battery if you arent storing things that need to stay frozen. Then when the sun comes out the next day it will re-freeze again, allowing the battery to last for more cloudy days.

[@kevinjones8496]

I bought this fridge for a two week Northern Territory road trip. I also bought the insulated cover at the same time. I was using it as a freezer and had no problems freezing meat, water and other bits and pieces. Ran like a dream and hardly drew down the second battery overnight. Temperatures during the day were in the mid 30s

[@farazkachwalla]

What size battery

[@kevinjones8496]

@@farazkachwalla 102ah lead acid deep cycle

[@SquirtNZ]

Thanks for the review. I'm thinking of getting one of these so this was really helpful. Are you still happy with this now that you've had it a while, and can you fit a 2l milk bottle upright in this size please?

[@raytaylornz]

Yes after a couple of years I am indeed still happy with it. I recommend every tradie gets one for their ute. In hindsight i probably should have got the insulation case to keep the sun off it - on a hot day it just runs constantly and doesnt switch off so it will use 48 watts constantly. If your panels are horizontal on the roof of the vehicle this means you need 80 watt panels to make up for the sun angle inefficiency. But I suggest a 120 watt panel because you also want to recharge the battery from the night before in addition to running the fridge during the day. During the video I speak about how it has a hard time keeping the temperature down - It is indeed still cold but it might be 4 degrees above the set temperature. I mainly use it for drinks so dont want them below frozen, but i also want them near frozen. Not sure about the milk bottle sorry as I dont drink milk. I am quite sure a 1L milk bottle would be no problem though.

[@deepsouthNZ]

I just bought the BM 50 litre amazing value

[@crochetingaroundnewzealand]

I've been thinking of getting something like this for my camping van. I dont have a battery so would just be plugging in when I drive. Wondering how long it would stay cold. Mainly for salad stuff over summer.

[@dataglasses]

Add some ice packs for extended cool temps, you could get a portable solar panel and run it during the day when setting up camp. I also have some rubber matts to keep the lower section separate and cold for stuff I will not use that day

[@crochetingaroundnewzealand]

@@dataglasses no room lol I had it packed. I bought a small one. Next purchase, solar panels and a battery inverter box thingee.

[@dataglasses]

@@crochetingaroundnewzealand Some folk just use the solar during the day, this is called "Load" and you don't need a battery for that. Have fun!

[@crochetingaroundnewzealand]

@@dataglasses the 12v fridge won't plug straight into the solar panel so I need a thingee lol omgosh why is everything so complicated 😂😂

[@dataglasses]

@@crochetingaroundnewzealand Most electronics stores would have the solution, just need a cigarette socket and usb cable to plug into the solar panel (underneath) There are lots of fold out solar blankets/panels available

[@wax333]

was the temp set to 0 Degrees? would it be any better if you set it to 3 degrees like most fridges are. also have you tried it outve eco mode to see if the results were any better. sometimes eco modes dont help.

[@dataglasses]

I turn my fridge down about an hour before "beer time"

[@zze92]

How did you go about securing the 22L in place so it doesn't move around. Lack of tie down points is my only bug with these models

[@dataglasses]

Agree that is a problem

[@raytaylornz]

Its got my work tools surrounding it so it doesnt move. I throw stuff in the tray and it all settles after i go round a few corners. You could use a rubber grip mat.

[@derivious2012]

just a point, cold air wont rise out of a fridge as you open it.

[@raytaylornz]

Thats true unless its windy - I work up hills on radio towers. Water is also much more dense than air and energy can be stored as "cold" much more efficiently rather than via a battery. So during the day it can freeze the water using energy direct off the panels and then at night or cloudy days it draws less from the batteries as I set the battery cut off voltage quite high.

[@mitsubishipajerosportaustr1193]

Ive used my 22Ltr in Australia for 6 months, right through 48 degree days and I see 1-2 deg C max rise in temp. 28 deg ambient temps and the fridge doesn't move off 3 degrees.

[@mikefoster7085]

Ive got the same fridge, temp is very stable for a small fridge, internal temp on 28deg doesn't budge at all off 1deg. Power consumption for me is no big deal as it's only on when I'm running the work van. If you want a more efficient fridge spend more money I suppose.

[@bethells86]

I heard that Dometic units are primarily mains driven, but can run off 12v because they incorporate inverter onboard. This explains high power draw. It sounds like Brass Monkey units are the same.

[@raytaylornz]

Yes however if you are looking at buying one, make sure its a compressor type and not a peltier chip as they use much much much more power. You can normally tell its a peltier chip type if it has a warming function.

[@newport5504]

Hey mate how many litres is that fridge thanks mate

[@DiHandley]

Newport 15L

[@michealwardle6526]

It's a 22ltr

[@beeragonewhere2819]

Naaaa naaaaa its a 3k litre

[@michealwardle6526]

You can get these from jaycar

[@nichade879]

you still got the solar setup like that mate?

[@raytaylornz]

I have just got a new hilux so will be putting on a 120w panel or a pair of 60w panels this summer. Also thinking my second hand battery needs replacing.

[@popcornshiner3937]

you want at least a 200-watt solar panel and a good AGM battery of at least 130 amps, just sayin

[@raytaylornz]

Yeah this summer I am going to be putting on 2x 60 watt panels on the new hilux. Probably also going to wire it up to a pair of 80amp deep cycle batteries for a 24v system as I have bought a 24v cab heater for winter so on a cold day next winter i can pre-heat the cab for 30 minutes without running the engine.

[@mickcarson8504]

I just bought a 22L Fridge/Freezer and I've had it connected to a 12V portable battery for 3 hours. The fridge seem to be showing an error that I do not understand. It shows F1 and remains that way. Although the settings are Max and L and temp is set to minus 4 but since I started it the inside hasn't got any cooler. Can you hear the compressor or the fan when it runs? I hear nothing here. There is also this small flashing column on the left of the screen, what is it? Instructions aren't good either. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.

[@craigvk2paw17]

F1 is the low battery protection mode

[@mickcarson8504]

@@craigvk2paw17 Thanks. I didn't know that it required a mains transformer of which I didn't have. It works beautifully but at -4C° it ices the water bottles. At 0C° it keeps the bottles cold but not iced. At -10C° It keeps meats and fish frozen and hard/stiff like a stone.

[@mitsubishipajerosportaustr1193]

@@mickcarson8504 it doesnt need a mains power transformer at all, you will find the low voltage cut out is set too high, set it to medium and you will be sweet, ive been running the 22Ltr for 6 months every day and it is rock solid! love it