Cheap Fridge <$400 shipped

[MarcFJ60]

Has anyone in the Forum tried the new fridge/freezers from Ironman4x4?

In one of the other fridge threads, it appears the Ironman is the same as the Truckfridge and IndelB. Apparently, truckfridge is a pretty reputable brand among the long haul truck drivers. See here: http://www.truckfridge.com/store/page6.html

Under $500 for a Danfoss unit with a good reputation sounds pretty good. I haven't had any major issues with my Edgestar, but I would probably get something like the Truckfridge TF41 if I was to do it over again. But my Edgestar is still running.

 

[ldivinag]

I have this pic where you can see the pigtail connector sticking out, though I don't have any showing it from inside without the cover on (sorry).

It's not too difficult of a mod though...
What I did was make a small blockoff plate to screw into place over the hole where the original 12V socket snapped into the metal bracket inside the fridge, I then drilled a hole in the center of the blockoff plate so I could then insert the wires of the pigtail (using a strain relief) through the hole. Finally I soldered the pigtail wires to the wires removed from the old DC jack (brown = pos, blue = neg) insulating them with shrink tubing.

thanks for the reply.

just curious as how as how the DC jack was connected? was it just pair of wires running from like the main circuit board that connects to the old jack?

or was the jack soldered onto the circuit board?

and have you thought about using anderson pole connectors?

 

[DaJudge]

Yet another 12 day trip with no problems! Still the best piece of kit I have bought!

 

[HARDTRAILZ]

I really need to pick up one of these basic models. I cant justify the more expensive for the few times a year I would really need it. Thanks for all the info in this thread.

 

[CYi5]

My edgestar 43 qt. has been running well for the last couple years. Picked it up off the noted appliance site for around $350 shipped back then. To deal with the possibility of a dead battery out in the middle of nowhere, I added a priority start auto battery disconnect switch. It does trigger the disconnect after about a day of the fridge running, so that is kind of annoying. This may be due to the fact that i'm just running a Costco battery up front; probably need a larger one with a greater reserve.

I also noticed that the low voltage light will rarely come on (probably due to the priority start triggering prior), and the compressor will stop running. The temp panel stays lit, just shows the temperature starting to rise from that point. I will look into running a dedicated 6 ga. wire to the rear of the 4Runner as others have mentioned, I feel like this clean, dedicated power will be helpful overall. Anyone have a writeup on doing this? Or is it just a wire all the way back with an inline 10 amp fuse? Ground to somewhere?

 

[4x4junkie]

thanks for the reply.

just curious as how as how the DC jack was connected? was it just pair of wires running from like the main circuit board that connects to the old jack?

or was the jack soldered onto the circuit board?

and have you thought about using anderson pole connectors?

I have this pic where you can see the pigtail connector sticking out, though I don't have any showing it from inside without the cover on (sorry).
http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/1/2812/4189/7029594007_large.jpg

It's not too difficult of a mod though...
What I did was make a small blockoff plate to screw into place over the hole where the original 12V socket snapped into the metal bracket inside the fridge, I then drilled a hole in the center of the blockoff plate so I could then insert the wires of the pigtail (using a strain relief) through the hole. Finally I soldered the pigtail wires to the wires removed from the old DC jack (brown = pos, blue = neg) insulating them with shrink tubing.

^^


Hadn't considered Andersons... Max current draw on my 43qt is about 5½ amps during compressor startup (3.8A while running), so nothing extravagant is really needed on it. (RC model car battery connectors are another option that could also work well).

 

[Silver dude]

I'm using the anderson power poles on the end of the cord to connect to the truck works perfect there. They sell a cabinet fitting so it gives the powerpole connector a near flush mount to a metal surface. I've considered it though I've figured it wouldn't be much better then the factory one. Really need a 90 degree fitting to ease the stress on the wires. Perhaps a powerpole connector screwed flat to the fridge body. I've used the glue called GOOP to glue them to surfaces with huge success.


Even just these clamps might be nice.
http://www.powerwerx.com/powerpole-accessories/1462G1-mounting-clamp-set.html

 

[teotwaki]

My edgestar 43 qt. has been running well for the last couple years. Picked it up off the noted appliance site for around $350 shipped back then. To deal with the possibility of a dead battery out in the middle of nowhere, I added a priority start auto battery disconnect switch. It does trigger the disconnect after about a day of the fridge running, so that is kind of annoying. This may be due to the fact that i'm just running a Costco battery up front; probably need a larger one with a greater reserve.

I also noticed that the low voltage light will rarely come on (probably due to the priority start triggering prior), and the compressor will stop running. The temp panel stays lit, just shows the temperature starting to rise from that point. I will look into running a dedicated 6 ga. wire to the rear of the 4Runner as others have mentioned, I feel like this clean, dedicated power will be helpful overall. Anyone have a writeup on doing this? Or is it just a wire all the way back with an inline 10 amp fuse? Ground to somewhere?

dual battery install in my fourth gen 4Runner: http://www.toyota120.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1106

wiring for fridge: http://www.toyota120.com/forum/showpost.php?p=17643&postcount=20

 

[ab1985]

I went to plug in my FP430 tonight (haven't use it in a month or two), and I'm getting no power. I messed with it for a few minutes and remembered I bought the extended warranty from compact appliance. I called up Warrantech and they told me to cut off an 8" section of the power cord including the plug, mail it in, and they would send me a new refrigerator. Seriously?

 

[Xterabl]

Whoa. You have seriously scored some spare parts. I guess the mfr's cost to build it is similar or lower than that to ship it.

 

[TheAlmightySam]

Whoa. You have seriously scored some spare parts. I guess the mfr's cost to build it is similar or lower than that to ship it.

Shipping there, plus labor to figure out what's wrong, plus the part(s), plus labor to install the broken part, plus shipping back? Yeah, I can see why they might just huck you a new fridge.

 

[CYi5]

I went ahead and took care of the unreliable wiring situation to the rear of my 4Runner. I chose to avoid driving all over town and piecing together a solution and picked up the ARB fridge wiring loom from Sierra Expeditions.

One can really see the difference between the OEM 12V wires running to the rear of my 3rd gen and the new 10 awg provided in the kit.

I attached the new Hella type receptacle to the side of my storage box, avoiding a new hole in my cargo area. Upon plugging in the universal DC adapter provided with the Edgestar, it was obvious the cheap plug would loose contact with ANY sort of jiggling. A new Hella plug was immediately ordered (one with much better contact area), and I am pleased to say it actually locks in there as advertised. It actually takes a bit of effort to get the thing unplugged.

The internals of the Hella plug also allow you to screw in the preexisting ring connectors that came inside the universal plug. This will come in handy if I ever need to quickly switch back over to cigarette lighter mode when using the unit in another vehicle. I'm interested to see if this changes the performance characteristics of the "budget minded" fridge.

 

[XJBANKER]

Took my fridge out of the jeep the other day to discover one of the plastic hinges was completely cracked. We had a family get together where people were getting in and out and I blame kids. I'm in the process of making some new metal hinges instead

Sent from my PC36100 using Tapatalk 2

 

[DaJudge]

Took my fridge out of the jeep the other day to discover one of the plastic hinges was completely cracked. We had a family get together where people were getting in and out and I blame kids. I'm in the process of making some new metal hinges instead

Sent from my PC36100 using Tapatalk 2

Call Livingdirect, they have steel ones for $9.00 a piece.

 

[General Automag]

Does anyone know of a good source to get the 12v DC adapter plugs? The part that plugs in to your cigarette lighter (12v DC socket) is easy to find obviously, but I'm looking for the "plugs" that plug into the fridge/freezer unit. I simply need to make some longer leads for our fridge/freezer.

I would hope that most brands use the same plug, but I'm not certain. Thanks!!! )