12V fridge use in Bear Country?

[nwoods]

Recently, there was a campfire discussion about the use of powered refrigerators in bear country. We don't own an Engle/ARB/National Luna refrigerator, but the ice didn't last long in AZ's 106 degree temps last weekend, so we got to really thinking about it.

The problem is, we often camp in the Sierra's, near Yosemite and Mammoth, and bears are ever present and fairly aggressive, and they can and will peel open your car like a tin can to get inside if they see anything that looks like a cooler, or the smell of food.

Would an ARB fridge be safe to use? Is it even legal? There are signs about dire warnings, penalties and fines if you do not use the bear lockers provided in campsites. And for good reason to. If a bear is tempted and acts upon it, they may end up needing to shoot the bear, and that is would be the fault of the person irresponsibly leaving food unprotected.

I can't justify spending $700 on a fridge and +$300 on a second battery set-up for a contraption I can't use anywhere but the desert.

What are your thoughts?

Links:
- http://www.nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/bears.htm
- http://www.nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/bearfacts.htm
- http://www.nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/lockers.htm

 

[ThomD]

It depends on where you are.

Here is a thread about bears and food. http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=22863&highlight=bears

Even in the Sierras, the degree of bear conflict varies a lot. Yosemite is probably the most restrictive place. If the sign says that you must use a bear locker, why would you not?

 

[jcbrandon]

Looks like the fridge will fit in the bear locker. If so, just run a long power cord from the truck to the locker and relax.

 

[socaljeeper]

That is a good question nwoods. I just added an Engel to my trailer and I was thinking on what I would do when I camp in bear country. My fridge is mounted on the tongue of the trailer, so it is not in an enclosure. The only option I would say is to put the fridge in the bear locker and run a cord as stated previously. Because how my fridge is fastened to my trailer, it would be a little irritating to remove/replace it everyday while camping. Also, the Engel 45 weighs about 50lbs dry, so carrying that thing with food/drinks in it will probably not be fun. I am interested to see what people have to say on this.

 

[Reata Rover]

The power/extension from the truck is a fine idea and will work well for anyone. As far as the power required to run it and the $300 setup for the battery system, I would question. I purchased an Odyssey ($175) from EE and it has worked great up to three days without starting the motor and it has never failed me. This fits in the battery stall perfectly without any modification to the engine bay in my 2004 Discovery.

 

[R_Lefebvre]

I've been wondering about this exact thing. My cooler/fridge space is inside my trailer, and I was planning on making a dry goods "pantry" in the space above the cooler. The bears won't see the food, but will smell it.

The trailer is fairly secure, the food door is framed with 1" tube and 14ga plate, and has a locking latch. We only have 100-200lb black bears around here, but I wouldn't want the bear to damage the trailer trying. Or worse, since my wife and I will be on top of the trailer, and my kids in a space IN the trailer (on the opposite side from the food), I just don't want bears sniffing around at night.

How are people handling this?

 

[spencyg]

Woah. :Wow1:

 

[nwoods]

The power/extension from the truck is a fine idea and will work well for anyone.

Actually, I don't think this idea will work. The bear lockers I have seen close tightly, without enough space to allow a cord through. The doors would not latch closed, defeating the purpose. Nor are there openings or vents in the back (keeps out the ants!).

The weight issue is not an insignificant one either. I need something portable enough that the wife can do it without struggling.

Are these units insulated enough to keep things cool if not plugged in and turned on?

Finally, does it make any sense to have a brick of ice in the base of the fridge? would it melt out, or do the fridge's stay cold enough to maintain it?

 

[nwoods]

I've been wondering about this exact thing. My cooler/fridge space is inside my trailer, and I was planning on making a dry goods "pantry" in the space above the cooler. The bears won't see the food, but will smell it.

The trailer is fairly secure, the food door is framed with 1" tube and 14ga plate, and has a locking latch. We only have 100-200lb black bears around here, but I wouldn't want the bear to damage the trailer trying. Or worse, since my wife and I will be on top of the trailer, and my kids in a space IN the trailer (on the opposite side from the food), I just don't want bears sniffing around at night.

How are people handling this?

LOL, I've seen your build. I think "fairly secure" is a bit of an understatement

As for having the Bears sniffing around the tent, we've experienced it. A bit unnerving to say the least. My head was about an inch from the side of the tent, and the bear was snorting and licking the tent right next to my ear. Interesting things go through your mind.

We also had a fun experience with coyotes in Utah once. Not more than 5 seconds after a large pack of them enveloped our camp site and started sniffing around and baying, my daughter announced she needed the restroom. Good times!

 

[R_Lefebvre]

My main issue is fear and/or guilt about having my kids sleeping in a space that is under our own. I haven't finished the kid's area yet, so I have some time to figure this out. Originally, they were going to have one exterior wall made of plywood. Now I'm rethinking that. Maybe I'll keep it steel. But I have another question about what to do with the windows. Plexiglass should be good and stout, but what about when the windows are open, which would be often. Screening won't do much. Bars on the windows?

I just have this fear of waking up to find a bear was attracted to the trailer, couldn't get the food, but found a consolation prize trapped inside the trailer.

Heck, I have the same fear about strangers in the night. Again, probably irrational fears born out of fear/guilt about not being in the same space as them.

 

[nwoods]

I found some old photos my wife took in Mammoth Lakes, CA a few years go, that sorta emphasize the need. In the foreground of the first image is the park service provided (and necessary!) bear locker. There was a family of black bears near the campsite. The mother bear and several cubs (2?). Upon our visit the following year, we learned that one of the cubs got too aggressive and had to be shot. Very sad.

 

[samsdad]

Or you could use something like this.http://www.electrobearguard.com

 

[samsdad]

Or this.http://www.waterstrider.com/bear-repellent-portable-electric-fence.htm

Scroll down to the middle of the page to check out the video.

P.S. I'm not affiliated with either one of these products,I've just been doing a little research myself.

 

[grahamfitter]

I've been here before with my VW Westy: Even though all the food was neatly stored away in cupboards and the onboard fridge, everything had to be put in bear boxes at night. After a couple of days we ended up with a cooler and one large food box sliding around on the floor of the vehicle.

Anyway, I've recently been thinking about the same problem in light of those experiences and offer this solution: Make the house battery easily removable and put it in the bear box with the fridge.

From a usability point of view, I like the idea of a portable battery box that sits next to the fridge and has 12V outlets and a connector for the +12V/0V wires that come from the engine bay. That way both fridge and battery can be put in the bear box.

The disadvantage of this approach is the battery takes up space in the back of the vehicle and if its not in there all the time its yet one more heavy thing to schlep around. Also if the battery isn't of the sealed variety it can vent noxious gasses into the vehicle during charging.

From an electrical point of view, I'd prefer the house battery to be in the engine bay with the primary battery to keep everything in one place and make for easy jump-starting if the starting battery dies. The disadvantage here is it probably wouldn't be easy to remove the house battery, especially if custom brackets are needed to store one battery underneath the other.

I hope you find a workable solution!

Cheers,
Graham

 

[ThomD]

Graham,

I like your idea of a portable house battery. How light of a battery could you get away with if the goal was no more than, say, 18 hours between charges?