HongerVenture
Adventurer
I've had my Engel for several years now, but have never used it under these type of circumstances. I live in the desert now and every day is over 100-deg. F. I would imagine the internal temp in the truck is easily reaching 130-degrees. The exterior of the fridge gets hot to the touch inside the car during the day. It's an all black interior and I have no tinting on the windows. I don't have the transit bag (though I am strongly considering it).
I installed it awhile back and had good luck with it. I'd leave it in the car and since one of us uses it most every day, there didn't seem to be a problem. Never noticed a bogged-down battery or any other problems. The standard, lead-acid battery died last week so I bought an Optima. Standard batteries not really meant for deep-cycle use, I figured I'd just worn it down. Well the Optima is in but won't last a day. Not to mention it seems like the fridge runs a lot more often (the heat probably).
Given that it was working fine, I'm puzzled as to why it isn't now. I've come up with 3 ideas:
I'm looking for first-hand accounts of the use of your Engel 45 (or other Fridge/Freeze) in extreme heat with one battery. Any thoughts? Suggestions? How much does the transit-bag help?
I installed it awhile back and had good luck with it. I'd leave it in the car and since one of us uses it most every day, there didn't seem to be a problem. Never noticed a bogged-down battery or any other problems. The standard, lead-acid battery died last week so I bought an Optima. Standard batteries not really meant for deep-cycle use, I figured I'd just worn it down. Well the Optima is in but won't last a day. Not to mention it seems like the fridge runs a lot more often (the heat probably).
Given that it was working fine, I'm puzzled as to why it isn't now. I've come up with 3 ideas:
- Something got damaged in the fridge and is making it cycle more. It has gotten shaken around quite a bit in the back of the vehicle.
- The new battery hasn't been fully charged and the use of the fridge/freeze is preventing that from happening.
- The heat has just gotten so bad that there is no hope for continuous use.
I'm looking for first-hand accounts of the use of your Engel 45 (or other Fridge/Freeze) in extreme heat with one battery. Any thoughts? Suggestions? How much does the transit-bag help?