Reply With QuoteI use a waeco 36 on my engel 32L fridge to run it overnight then use the generator during the day. The 32L engel will run on refrigerate (1-3deg) for 24hrs continuous on that battery pack.
Portable Battery packs (Engel , Waeco etc)
Hi All
I'm just wondering if these portable battery packs are worth buying - I need a portable system to run my Engel fridge for maybe 24 - 36 hours only. I've seen the Engel 28amp , Waeco 36amp ..... and one other 40amp (B.C.F) - The Waeco & the other 40amp run Gel batteries ..... & so in theory will meet my requirements - or will they
Looking forward to your opinions & comments
Chris
Give a man a fish & he will eat for a day !
Teach him how to fish
& he will sit in a boat - & drink beer all day!
TEAM MOJIKO
I use a waeco 36 on my engel 32L fridge to run it overnight then use the generator during the day. The 32L engel will run on refrigerate (1-3deg) for 24hrs continuous on that battery pack.
Hey Chris i have a 90 amp hr GNB deep cycle which i run my 55ltr Trailblazer set at -10 and use as a freezer.......I have just been away for a week camping and using it as a freezer i was getting around 20hrs running ......as a fridge i've set it up in the shed for beer and get around 35hrs set as 2deg.
The battery model is.........GNB..marathon....M12V90F....12v..90amp hr....8hr rate to 1.75vpc.
It's one heavy mother but it does last along time.
Cheers Dan
What size waeco will you be running?
For the same sort of money can you just buy a battery and wire up a simple connection with fuse etc? I run mine off a 120ah AGM, it will go for 3 days or so.
60 amp absolute minimum to probably not even get 24h at freeze with opening/some freezing possibly (in strict terms) unless possibly if it's the smallest engined Engel 15/27?.
IMO Be careful of the possible grose false economy here, buying a too small highly value added battery pack for not that much less than an appropriately sized bare battery and battery box means in theory a person could rip the guts out of 5 of the battery packs before the bare battery should be replaced and even then the possibility of another 2 battery packs before the bare battery behaved no higher than a new battery pack.
I assume above that the bigger bare battery would be treated properly and recharged each time at close to 12v across the terminals.
cheers fnq
80lt CombiOriginally Posted by TheRealAndy
Give a man a fish & he will eat for a day !
Teach him how to fish
& he will sit in a boat - & drink beer all day!
TEAM MOJIKO
That's an option for sure - I'd rather have a 100amp AGM sitting around - than 36 or 40amp
Chris
Give a man a fish & he will eat for a day !
Teach him how to fish
& he will sit in a boat - & drink beer all day!
TEAM MOJIKO
Check the "Flyer" boxes on the sidewinder site. I have one which I use to put a 120AH AGM into. That would last quite a few days with the Waeco CF50. Box plus AGM would be in the $700-800 range so not cheap but the Engel/Waeco versions aren't cheap either.
I'd be a bit skeptical of anything in the 30-40AH range. Even with an AGM you shouldn't regularly run it below 50% of charge so that's a max of 20AH which is less than 24hrs worth.
Buy a decent esky ya tite wad!
In all seriousness, my Evakool with home made ice lasts a few days easilly.
Perfect one, called a Prado, mobile, runs on diesel, and can be used to dry out wet mattresses too..................Hi All
I'm just wondering if these portable battery packs are worth buying - I need a portable system to run my Engel fridge for maybe 24 - 36 hours only. I've seen the Engel 28amp , Waeco 36amp ..... and one other 40amp (B.C.F) - The Waeco & the other 40amp run Gel batteries ..... & so in theory will meet my requirements - or will they
Looking forward to your opinions & comments
Chris
Theres your first mistake right there!
petes on the right track, why not a duel battery set up in the car?
Noel gets 2 to 3 days out of his second battery running his Engel, and its a big biatch!
Listen bucko ..... You see that big esky in my boat - EVAKOOL
Nah , seriously - I have the engel , but if I'm on an unpowered site , Its useless......... yeh , I could go a duel battery set up at $700ish - but that means the Engel stays in the car.
That's why I'm after portable power
Chris
Give a man a fish & he will eat for a day !
Teach him how to fish
& he will sit in a boat - & drink beer all day!
TEAM MOJIKO
I've seem quite a few of those " battery packs" arround.......I just don't get it........all right I do...they are for selling to those who want to buy a "product".
Personaly I would rather make my own choice of battery and stick it in a standard marine battery box, with a few simple connections and a fuse or two.
I can charge it off the car or with the mains charger I already own.
Hell some of these fancy products with the glossy brocures are nothing more than the above... but you don't get your choice of battery.
cheers
Its the details, those little details, that make the difference.
Chris, I have an 85 litre evakool fridge/freezer, sucks some juice I can tell you.
Some time ago I also set up a portable power supply for the fridge, good idea at the time I thought.
I bought a 90 amp hour AGM battery (runs the fridge for about 36 hours) , a battery box, a circuit breaker, some cable I had in the shed and a polarised 12 volt outlet (I standardised on these outlets in the car, boat and camper trailer about 4 years ago).
I basically droppped the AGM in the battery box and screwed the outlet to the outside of the battery box via the circuit breaker. The battery is the expensive part obviously, the box, breaker and outlet cost about $40. The whole unit was far cheaper than a store bought model and also has a much greater capacity.
Also if you want to really get fair dinkum get yourself a solar panel to hook to the battery terminals that pumps out about 5 amps (80 watt unit) and you will go forever.
Best of luck.
Craig
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