Looking for a decent Esky

Bicyclecamper · Guru

Looking for a decent Esky

Possum3 · Guru

This big enough www.bcf.com.au/p/dometic-cool-ice-wci33-icebox-33l/386244.html%20-%20AU%20-%20Shopping%20-%20Generic%20-%20Everything%20Else%20-%20BCF03(New%20structure)&utm_term=4585032214552844&utm_content=Camping

Mike Harding · Guru

Take a look here:

Techniice

I don't own one but I bought a 12V fridge/freezer from him about seven years ago and I had a look at the ice boxes then and thought they looked pretty good. Take a look at the Techniice "ice cubes" too whilst you're there.

If you buy one please do a report, I'd be interested to hear an owner's thoughts.

Whenarewethere · Guru

I made one up out of foam vegetables boxes, with wall thickness of about 75mm. The ice lasted a week, but we did freeze a big block. It was about 55% of the volume of the esky.

When we had to later but ice it only lasted 2, or 3 days at a stretch. Bought ice is a waste of time.

Then we bought a fridge.

Wannabe nomad · Senior Member

I have a small technice esky and I use their gel ice (it's a little bit slimy) and I swear by it. I get a good 4days out of it especially if I add some frozen milk as well.

Wannabe nomad · Senior Member

Oh and the bonus of the gel ice is that when it finally melts the contents of the esky are still dry (unlike ice)

Bicyclecamper · Guru

Mike, thanks for that, the techni ice ones, will be the one to get, I think. I do have a 13lt Dometic, that lasts 4days, with a milk bottle filled with salty water and frozen. Up until I saw the TI's, I was sort of sold on the dometic 47lt, but I don't like the catches on it. They are both heavy duty, so, will see, what deals I can do for the best price I can do on both, before I make a decision.

86GTS · Senior Member

Friends of ours have had a TECHNIICE esky for years, they love it.

We bought one locally at the TECHNIICE factory in Tooyal St Frankston, we were just as happy as our friends were.

They sell ''factory seconds'' at a much reduced price, our son bought one years ago, couldn't fault it.

Have you ever thought about using your 3 way fridge as an esky?

We've used our FINCH 3 way fridge as an esky using block ice made in ice-cream tubs, it lasts for ages.

Bobdown · Guru

I have a 47 lt Waeco Cool Ice, which is the same as Possum's link. Dometic must have brought out the Waeco name.

Anyway, same esky...... which is very strong and robust, good hinges and seals.

Lots of frozen ice cream containers, pre frozen meals etc, ice lasted a week and more. Trick is to drain the defrosted ice water daily.

Cheers Bob

Bicyclecamper · Guru

86, that is the brand name of our fridge, a 2008 model, but it is just too heavy to use as an esky, and if I was going to do that I would just hook it up to gas. So I think I will look at the techni ice, and the dometic, unless someone offers up a possible other contender. I wont' be getting one till after xmas, as too much expenses at the moment, unless a sweet deal come's along.

86GTS · Senior Member

Bicyclecamper wrote:
86, that is the brand name of our fridge, a 2008 model, but it is just too heavy to use as an esky, and if I was going to do that I would just hook it up to gas. So I think I will look at the techni ice, and the dometic, unless someone offers up a possible other contender. I wont' be getting one till after xmas, as too much expenses at the moment, unless a sweet deal come's along.

Believe it or not our FINCH camping fridge was bought in 1982.

It's still working perfectly & it will be cooling down drinks on 240V as usual on Christmas day at our family gathering at our house.

Vintage but much loved, built by Electrolux. Grab me a coldie too Dad!

Plain Truth · Guru

Still use our old Finch in the games room

86GTS · Senior Member

Plain Truth wrote:
Still use our old Finch in the games room

That looks like ours, built to last! smile

We bought ours with the $200 that my wife's grandparents left us in their will.

They were country people who lived their entire lives in a small Wimmera town.

Gary and Barb · Senior Member

I feel your pain!

I have a Trayon camper with an Evakool 100L fridge. Works great - actually - TOO great. I find that without a thermostat, the dial can't properly regulate temperatures, so - like another poster's thread, my vegies and beer, etc., tend to freeze, explode or quickly become landfill.

I just needed something to keep things cool and fresh, so looked for an Esky-type cooler. The problem was keeping up with the ice or the melt spoiling food. Ice bricks are some solution, but they take up room and I have to keep cycling through my tiny freezer compartment to look after the esky.

I stumbled across the 30L Brass Monkey 12v thermo cooler from Jaycar and at $129 it was comparable to the price of a good esky. After taking a punt, I tested it on a warm Melbourne day and it actually outperformed its rating, dropping from 28 down to 2 degrees. Surprising effort, although a cool change did drop the ambient temp to 21 deg during the day. The cooler is light, well insulated, very quiet (has a heater function I probably won't use), pulled 3.5 amps and performed well past my expectations. No ice, melt water or freezer bricks to worry about.

It will be handy on a picnic or outing away from the camper to keep things cool. I can use my JS80 as a power source if need be. I can also carry it in the truck but it will perform better in the camper away from the sun, I guess.

Worth considering.

Whenarewethere · Guru

Down this page I have posted a little bit of data on Peltier fridges.

https://thegreynomads.activeboard.com/t68746099/are-thermo-coolers-good-or-what/

Are We Lost · Guru

I just looked at the link on Techniice posted by Mike more than a month ago. Looks like some good products, including the dry ice packs.

But I watched the video and there are some dreadful clangers...(the following may not be the exact words he used)

"Ice and gel packs in the freezer do not get much below -1 degree celsius, because that is the way it is" (rubbish)
"Our dry ice packs get down to whatever the freezer runs at (-18), much colder than ice" (he mentioned this a few times ... the first part is a valid statement, not the second)
"Because our packs get to -18 vs -1 for ice it is 18 times colder" ( errr, apart from the incorrect first part, let's convert to Fahrenheit and see how that works)

What he should have covered is the Heat of Fusion. That would tell if it was better than ice or not. For the convenience I agree they would be a useful product.

For those who are unaware, the reason ice works so well in an esky is that it takes 80 times as much energy to convert ice to water as it does to increase the temperature by 1 degree. So it does not make much difference what temperature of the ice is. In fact, if you were to measure it, the ice would fairly quickly get to zero degrees. We don't know if his packs have a higher Heat of Fusion than water or not.

While on the subject, the reason a pot of water comes quickly to the boil, but never gets hotter, and can then boil for ages, the same Heat of Fusion principle applies. It takes 540 times as much energy to convert water to steam as it does to increase the temperature by 1 degree.

Sorry for taking the thread off course but seeing that video I needed to mention it.