Plugin refrigerator recommendation

[gmoney90]

Hi all,
I know there had been a thread that discussed plugin fridge for the Gravity (I have a 7 seater) that would fit in the trunk or frunk previously. But my keyword search was not successful.
Anyone has good recommendations by any chance?
Thanks in advance.
Gary

 

[YarikR]

The smaller (of the two sizes) Dometic dual-zone fridges (the CFX5 75DZ) plugs into 12V or AC, and fits across the trunk area for easy access from the back. Dometic fridges have a strong reputation, and are often worthwhile, but have a corresponding price. It is very useful that either side of the dual zone can be set to fridge or freezer and holds the temperature well. If you have a portable air fryer for the frunk, like the Ninja Crispi, and a coffee machine, you can heat food and make coffee while resting in the frunk seat and taking in the view, like the ocean. Great combo with the Gravity.

 

[borski]

There's also these: https://www.ankersolix.com/products/everfrost-2-23l-electric-cooler?variant=51190413984074

 

[gmoney90]

Does Ankersolix or other battery operated units offer dual zone capability? Now I’m greedy wanting to have both ice cold beers and ice-creams

 

[WeighingGravity]

How do you guys use these? Do they cool down fast? Sometimes I think it would be useful to have a refrig in the car that I could use to keep groceries cold or frozen and not feel like I had to rush back home, but that happens kind of rarely and it's a bigass thing to haul around just in case. And if I had it plugged in all the time.....

....I see the car camping rationale but wonder about real world practicality otherwise.

 

[borski]

Does Ankersolix or other battery operated units offer dual zone capability? Now I’m greedy wanting to have both ice cold beers and ice-creams

The 58L does: https://www.ankersolix.com/products...8570&selected=everfrost-2-58l-electric-cooler

How do you guys use these? Do they cool down fast? Sometimes I think it would be useful to have a refrig in the car that I could use to keep groceries cold or frozen and not feel like I had to rush back home, but that happens kind of rarely and it's a bigass thing to haul around just in case. And if I had it plugged in all the time.....

The Anker recharges whenever it's plugged in but has batteries that will last 55-103 hours depending on which model you get (some come with two batteries). It can recharge from the 110v socket, the 12v car lighter, USB-C, or they also offer a 100W solar panel if you're feeling lucky.

As for speed to drop from 77°F to 32°F:
23L: 26 minutes
40L & 58L: 15 minutes

....I see the car camping rationale but wonder about real world practicality otherwise.

With the fact that it's battery powered, as long as you drive your car every day or two, it really shouldn't be an issue.

This is all about Anker Solix, but Dometic performs similarly.

 

[YarikR]

Borski has useful info above. Road trips can be fun having a fridge / freezer for bringing food along or buying from farmer's markets or rare food places. Useful along the way or for bringing things home at the end. Bringing things for a meet up with friends. The ice cream example is a fun one, or another cold treat on a hot day and drive. Or for bringing some cold snacks from home, or even some meals for the microwave at the hotel in case we get in late and want to save some time.

The Dometic also plugs into AC, so can be plugged into a hotel's wall power if we want to free up the trunk, at our destination. No built-in battery on this Dometic model, but the outlets on the Gravity are nice with it. After reading some reviews, and how we would use it, we opted for this one.

It seems to be very stable with temperature and a big jump up from the ice coolers we used before that tend to make a few kinds of food spongy with the temperature variation, which this one has not had for us. I think both options above have their benefits.

 

[nelslens]

The Dometic & Anker units look awesome, but suitably pricey. I've been using much cheaper Koolatron thermoelectric units for many years and they work great -- plug in via 12v, and also have a 110v transformer / adapter for hotel rooms etc. They will keep things very cold, but work best if the stuff you put in them is already chilled. Thermoelectrics are much lighter & use less energy than a compressor-based unit -- you can even get foldable soft-sided setups. And you can also set them to keep food warm, for when you're fetching the stack of pizzas...

12V Coolers

Kooltaron's iceless 12 Volt Coolers, compatible with 12 volt car outlets, made with industry-leading thermoelectric technology are perfect for road trips, camping, picnics and all your outdoor adventures.

www.koolatron.com

 

[gmoney90]

Awesome. My use case is for car camping purposes. These are great suggestions. Thank you all.

 

[WeighingGravity]

thanks for all the helpful feedback. it seems some of you do just "permanently" keep some of these in your gravities.

are these coolers frunkable? or is that maybe not recommended given limited potential airflow....

 

[DeaneG]

There are also much cheaper, lighter thermoelectric (Peltier) coolers available. They are far less efficient than compressor-style coolers, so will heat up your car more and will not cool as far below ambient temp.

 

[YarikR]

thanks for all the helpful feedback. it seems some of you do just "permanently" keep some of these in your gravities.

are these coolers frunkable? or is that maybe not recommended given limited potential airflow..

I don't usually keep mine in the Gravity, but when we do it is helpful. Depends on your usage. The one I mentioned above does not fit in the frunk. We use the frunk also as power with a small fold-out camping table for cooking and keeping food while we enjoy the views outside from there and the bench. I definitely agree with checking on airflow, storage factors and other thermodynamics regarding the frunk. All of the options above have their pro's and con's to compare.

 

[BrianBigNFun]

Notch EV found one that fits in the frunk even with the seat cushion

it does not fit in the sub trunk however

ordered one myself as it will come in handy for groceries while I'm on errands

 

[lumbatbat]

Hi, I'm a new Gravity owner. I'm thinking about getting a fridge as well.

If I connect it to the 12V outlet permanently, will the fridge turn off when the car is turned off?

 

[gmoney90]

Hi, I'm a new Gravity owner. I'm thinking about getting a fridge as well.

If I connect it to the 12V outlet permanently, will the fridge turn off when the car is turned off?

I ended up getting the one borski suggested, which comes with its own battery pack and can keep cold without power for 10-12 hrs?

You can also go into the Gravity control panel to keep the 12V power on after the car turns off. But after you get back in and start the car, it defaults back to turning it off (so you’d need to change the command again each time).

Which is why I decided to get a fridge that comes with battery in case I forget.

 

[WeighingGravity]

FYI there is a dual zone 50L dometic fridge available at costco now for a decent price, at least by dometic standards, I think. It looks like a model they don't normally advertise (CFF 50DZ - I found it on the New Zealand version of their site, perhaps it's also available elsewhere too, but I know sometimes that's how mfrs keep their normal distributors happy when they go direct to the big box store - using unique models or model numbers so they can't be cross-shopped). $880 in my neck of the woods. No battery though, so you have to keep that in mind depending on how you want to use it.

 

[micaeljames]

Borski has useful info above. Road trips can be fun having a fridge / freezer for bringing food along or buying from farmer's markets or rare food places. Useful along the way or for bringing things home at the end. Bringing things for a meet up with friends. The ice cream example is a fun one, or another cold treat on a hot day and drive. Or for bringing some cold snacks from home, or even some meals for the microwave at the hotel in case we get in late and want to save some time.

The Dometic also plugs into AC, so can be plugged into a hotel's wall power if we want to free up the trunk, at our destination. No built-in battery on this Dometic model, but the outlets on the Gravity are nice with it. After reading some reviews, and how we would use it, we opted for this one.

It seems to be very stable with temperature and a big jump up from the ice coolers we used before that tend to make a few kinds of food spongy with the temperature variation, which this one has not had for us. Much like products from a quality beverage cooler manufacturer, it maintains consistent cooling performance. I think both options above have their benefits.

I use a 12V compressor fridge, and it's been great for road trips. A 20–30L model should fit nicely in the trunk of a 7-seater while still leaving some cargo space. Definitely go with a compressor-style unit if you want reliable cooling.

 

[Coyote]

I agree with your statements. I have a compressor style myself and it works great!
I would caution, however, about using it in the frunk in hot weather. The frunk is a sealed space, and the heat buildup in there would occur rapidly in hot weather and overheat it.
I put mine back by the liftgate and it works great there.

 

[RandomDesign]

I ended up getting the BougeRV one like Notch but I got the larger 30Q version. I checked and it doesn't fit in the frunk with the cushion but it will fit without it. I plan on only keeping it in the back if it's running but nice to at least have the option to store it in the frunk if needed (although I'd have to store the frunk cushion somewhere to do that).

 

[IStormCloud]

I got the Setpower RF30 (although it seems to have since been replaced with a "pro" version that is actually quite different in dimensions and features). It has dual zone ("pro" seems to have moved away from that?) to allow a frozen section and a non-frozen section and the non-frozen section is tall/large enough to hold a gallon of milk. The unit is short enough to fit in the frunk (I don't have the frunk cushion), which is where I mainly keep it (as a compromise, it has no wheels, so would be harder to move far when loaded). I did look at the Dometic options but ultimately didn't want to spend that much for a fridge. The Setpower (and I assume similar ones like it) seems sufficient for my needs.

I got the power outlets option on the Gravity, so I only use it plugged in that way. When using the fridge, every time before you lock the car you have to remember to hit the toggle to leave the outlets on.

Although I got the fridge mainly for road trips and camping purposes, it's come in handy a couple other times (I just leave it in the frunk). Examples: have leftovers from lunch, but need to run errands before driving home; can't always easily arrange grocery shopping to be the last errand before driving home; unexpected power outage at home.