CowboyTaco
Well-Known Member
Ok, so many of us either have or have experience with a 12v fridge. This is meant to be for anyone who has a fridge, or is looking to get into the game. Please stay on topic and respectful. I'm no expert, but I've been reviewing them heavily for the last few days and figured I needed a place to store all the info that I've gathered. So why not make it public and help anyone else out who might also be in the market.
Some manufacturers are quick to release specs or technical information about their fridge and others are less willing to do so. Some seem to be unique and built in house and others appear to just be rebranded generic stamps.
I think everyone will agree that Dometic and ARB seem to be the leader in the off-road fridge market, but there are a LOT of other players. Some have been around and others are relatively new to the game.
So first, what is a 12v Fridge/Freezer? In short, it's an insulated box with a compressor, refrigerant, and a fan. I'm not going to get into thermoelectric coolers, absorption coolers or anything like that. For our purposes here, let's stick to compressor driven units. So, back on topic, the compressor and coils are filled with refrigerant. As the refrigerant is compressed into the coils, it cools significantly. A fan blows cold air from the coils into the insulated box. I'm going off memory here and not copy/pasting from another site, so I'm sure someone will correct that statement if I'm wrong. The point is, there is a compressor. These compressors are said to work at up to 30* incline and are not required to be level to function properly.
I have read that you should leave a fridge in the upright position for 10 hours before turning it on to allow the refrigerant to settle into the compressor after shipping. I don't know if that's true, but figured it was worth mentioning.
So it seems that there are 3 major compressor manufacturers.
The most prolific in the industry appears to be the Danfoss BD-35F. I'm seeing this listed as the compressor in almost every one that I've compared. The Danfoss compressor appears to have be produced in two countries: China and Germany; and is capable of cooling a 12v refrigerator to -4 degrees Fahrenheit.
Dometic seems to have a proprietary compressor that is capable of cooling to -7 degrees Fahrenheit. If anyone knows the name, I'll add it here. I know I read about it, but can't find the article.
Engel has also been in the game for a long time and has a proprietary compressor: the Sawafuji Swing Compressor, which is capable of freezing to 0 degrees Fahrenheit.
No matter what size, it seems that every article I read says that Dometic is the clear winner and I can't find much information to refute those claims. The compressor seems to be more efficient both in terms of power draw and cooling ability. Many, but not all, also have features like a free wifi app that allows you to check and change temperature with your smart phone. Others might have a remote control option, but I haven't found any others with smartphone capability. They also have some other well thought out features like edge guards and stronger plastics. The downside to all the innovation of a Dometic is the price. They are one of the most expensive units available.
Rather than talk about specific models here, I'll just post the link to the Dometic site. https://shop.dometic.com/store/dometic/en_US/list/categoryID.4874363700
Engel also seems to be a solid, but expensive, option. I'm not going to spend much time on them either, so here's the link.
Fridge Freezers
Utilizing the Danfoss compressor, ARB is clearly the other big player in the market. Their prices also indicate that they are proud of the fridge/freezers they produce. Again, too many options to list a single unit, so here's the link. https://arbusa.com/portable-fridge-freezers/
Some manufacturers are quick to release specs or technical information about their fridge and others are less willing to do so. Some seem to be unique and built in house and others appear to just be rebranded generic stamps.
I think everyone will agree that Dometic and ARB seem to be the leader in the off-road fridge market, but there are a LOT of other players. Some have been around and others are relatively new to the game.
So first, what is a 12v Fridge/Freezer? In short, it's an insulated box with a compressor, refrigerant, and a fan. I'm not going to get into thermoelectric coolers, absorption coolers or anything like that. For our purposes here, let's stick to compressor driven units. So, back on topic, the compressor and coils are filled with refrigerant. As the refrigerant is compressed into the coils, it cools significantly. A fan blows cold air from the coils into the insulated box. I'm going off memory here and not copy/pasting from another site, so I'm sure someone will correct that statement if I'm wrong. The point is, there is a compressor. These compressors are said to work at up to 30* incline and are not required to be level to function properly.
I have read that you should leave a fridge in the upright position for 10 hours before turning it on to allow the refrigerant to settle into the compressor after shipping. I don't know if that's true, but figured it was worth mentioning.
So it seems that there are 3 major compressor manufacturers.
The most prolific in the industry appears to be the Danfoss BD-35F. I'm seeing this listed as the compressor in almost every one that I've compared. The Danfoss compressor appears to have be produced in two countries: China and Germany; and is capable of cooling a 12v refrigerator to -4 degrees Fahrenheit.
Dometic seems to have a proprietary compressor that is capable of cooling to -7 degrees Fahrenheit. If anyone knows the name, I'll add it here. I know I read about it, but can't find the article.
Engel has also been in the game for a long time and has a proprietary compressor: the Sawafuji Swing Compressor, which is capable of freezing to 0 degrees Fahrenheit.
No matter what size, it seems that every article I read says that Dometic is the clear winner and I can't find much information to refute those claims. The compressor seems to be more efficient both in terms of power draw and cooling ability. Many, but not all, also have features like a free wifi app that allows you to check and change temperature with your smart phone. Others might have a remote control option, but I haven't found any others with smartphone capability. They also have some other well thought out features like edge guards and stronger plastics. The downside to all the innovation of a Dometic is the price. They are one of the most expensive units available.
Rather than talk about specific models here, I'll just post the link to the Dometic site. https://shop.dometic.com/store/dometic/en_US/list/categoryID.4874363700
Engel also seems to be a solid, but expensive, option. I'm not going to spend much time on them either, so here's the link.
Fridge Freezers
Utilizing the Danfoss compressor, ARB is clearly the other big player in the market. Their prices also indicate that they are proud of the fridge/freezers they produce. Again, too many options to list a single unit, so here's the link. https://arbusa.com/portable-fridge-freezers/
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