Mobicool/Waeco A40 3-way Fridge?
- Thread starter R_Lefebvre
- Start date
Interesting thread. Add my name to the list of wanting this cooler. I've been wanting this for a couple of years now and waiting for it to go on sale but it is clear now that is does not ever go on sale.... so I am going to bite the bullet and buy it before the HST comes into affect. I plan to use it with propane and hopefully it will stay cool enough. I am not worried about the 20 degree celsius drop because even in 30 degree weather I think if it is put in shade (under a picnic table or something) that it would easily maintain it's temperature especially if full of food. I've got 30lb propane tanks so I think it will work well... thanks for the good thread.
Mike S
Sponsor - AutoHomeUSA
I have a Dometic 3-way (110 AC - 12V DC - Propane) in my Airstream. I have an Engel 45L in my LC. The Engel is a FAR BETTER fridge. I am planning on dumping the 3- way Dometic and replacing with a 110 AC - 12V DC Norcold fridge/freezer. Here's why...
> The Dometic does not really cool hen running in 12V (for instance, while driving). It is designed to 'maintain the interior temperature' while driving. THis is not good enough. I travel over long distances and I want COLD in the fridge at all times.
> When I am running on propane it really guzzles fuel.
> Run ning on 110V AC it works fine - but I could buy a regular home fridge and get a better unit.
> The power consumption on the Dometic 12V is over 6 amps per hour. On the Engel it is about 2 amps/hour. Big difference, especially considering that I can freeze everything in the Engel to rock solid in a matter of a few hours. Not possible with the Dometic.
I have dual 6V Deka AGM golf cart batteries under one bunk in the AS, and will add a second pair under the other bunk. I carry a Honda 2000i so recharging is just about 6 hours every three or 4 days.
I expect that I will seldom need to run the Honda genset beacuse the truck will charge the trailer batts while driving.
I spend about 2 months every Fall in my AS. It is a great basecamp for me and the dogs.
> The Dometic does not really cool hen running in 12V (for instance, while driving). It is designed to 'maintain the interior temperature' while driving. THis is not good enough. I travel over long distances and I want COLD in the fridge at all times.
> When I am running on propane it really guzzles fuel.
> Run ning on 110V AC it works fine - but I could buy a regular home fridge and get a better unit.
> The power consumption on the Dometic 12V is over 6 amps per hour. On the Engel it is about 2 amps/hour. Big difference, especially considering that I can freeze everything in the Engel to rock solid in a matter of a few hours. Not possible with the Dometic.
I have dual 6V Deka AGM golf cart batteries under one bunk in the AS, and will add a second pair under the other bunk. I carry a Honda 2000i so recharging is just about 6 hours every three or 4 days.
I expect that I will seldom need to run the Honda genset beacuse the truck will charge the trailer batts while driving.
I spend about 2 months every Fall in my AS. It is a great basecamp for me and the dogs.
STEAL!!! I was going to go to Canadian Tire and buy this yesterday and I thought for the hell of it I'd look on craigslist and I found one on there asking $250 obo. It had been up for a couple of weeks so I offered $200 and the person accepted. I went and picked it up tonight. Just got it home now and plugged it in to 120v outlet. I can't tell if it's working because it's so quiet but I put some warm food in it and we'll see how cold it gets. Overall it looks very well built, quite heavy, feels like around 40lbs or so. I can't wait to hook it up to propane and test it out. We are going camping this next weekend for 8 days and this will make it so much better - no ice!
R_Lefebvre
Expedition Leader
gasman, it sounds like you're not happy with the performance? When you did the 17.3C temp drop, is that as low as it gets? I suspect it might go lower with more time? Sounds like you only let it run for a few hours. I think it needs to be 24 hours at least.
Technically, the amount of contents shouldn't really make a difference, though it's a common perception.
Technically, the amount of contents shouldn't really make a difference, though it's a common perception.
gasman
Adventurer
well Rob ... to tell the truth i dont know how happy i am yet .. my initial reaction was good.. on a/c current it cooled down ok .. when i moved it outside on propane the temp went up but my tank was on fumes.. i installed a new tank and left it a few more hours and it did not seem to recover as fast as i thought it should ... im not gonna give it up yet .. i will be going for a weekend campout in a few weeks and give it a real world test.. i know i wont be able to pull ice cream out of it .. but as long as it keeps the food cold enough thats good for me...
i will post my results for ya..
R_Lefebvre
Expedition Leader
My main thing, is if it will keep dairy. I can live without cold beer. But I want milk, cheese and other things like that.
gasman
Adventurer
absolutley,, the beer can go in an ice box.. i worry bout the eggs and meat too.....
rob the first real world test of my cooler wont really hapen till the end of june, bass season,,,,,,,,
TacoRocco
Observer
Two questions with this unit:
1. I have a 115V/400-watt deck-mounted power outlet in the bed of my Tacoma with the Off Road package- Would you guys advise plugging in the unit and using that outlet while driving?
2. How quickly does that unit go through one of those small green propane bottles used on the Coleman stoves?
1. I have a 115V/400-watt deck-mounted power outlet in the bed of my Tacoma with the Off Road package- Would you guys advise plugging in the unit and using that outlet while driving?
2. How quickly does that unit go through one of those small green propane bottles used on the Coleman stoves?
R_Lefebvre
Expedition Leader
Any new updates on this? I'm pretty close to pulling the trigger on it. I've been humming and hawing over it, but at the end of the day, this is the only fridge/cooler that fits very well on my trailer configuration. All the real fridges are long and thin, leaving no room on my slide for the stove. This cooler is an efficient cube shape.
Jason seems happy with the performance, but gasman is less so.
Any idea how fast it would run through a 5 or 20 lb tank? The specs say 15g/h, which should be 0.033lb/hr. So 0.792 lbs per day on max. Resulting in 6 days on a 5lb tank. I'd think 20lbs would easily last 7 days between the cooler and cooking, and probably the propane lantern too. Anybody seeing performance like that?
Jason seems happy with the performance, but gasman is less so.
Any idea how fast it would run through a 5 or 20 lb tank? The specs say 15g/h, which should be 0.033lb/hr. So 0.792 lbs per day on max. Resulting in 6 days on a 5lb tank. I'd think 20lbs would easily last 7 days between the cooler and cooking, and probably the propane lantern too. Anybody seeing performance like that?
gasman
Adventurer
sorry j havnt checked this thread in a while..
yes most definatley plugged in while driving.. DO NOT, use it on propane in your vehicle. or tent or in yer house
i dont know for sure yet but a 1lb cylinder is supposed to last about 24 hrs ,
i will be leaving for a one week fishing trip on wednsday. when i return you will get a full report.....
jasondavidmann
Observer
I'm still happy with the cooler. I had it out for 3 days of camping two weeks ago and it worked well for all my food but the ambient temperature was not too high.
Also we put some lettuce near the top, it ended up touching the cooling element and freezing. So I guess you need to be careful where things are placed.
I run mine off a 20lb tank with an adapter, after measuring with a scale it uses just over 1lb/day on the maximum flow setting. I also run my BBQ on propane so I disconnect the cooler to cook and then reconnect the cooler, it does not seem to have any trouble recovering from the momentary interruption.
One recommendation, drill some drainage holes in the bottom near the flame. It rained some during our trip and the bottom tray filled up with water. The slightest bump would cause the flame to be extinguished.
An annoyance is checking to see that the flame is still going. I'm always paranoid that the flame will go out for some reason. You have to bend down all the way to the ground to see if the flame is still lit.
1. I have a 115V/400-watt deck-mounted power outlet in the bed of my Tacoma with the Off Road package- Would you guys advise plugging in the unit and using that outlet while driving?
Yes plug it in, the thermostat only works when operating on AC power.
gasman you seem to be knowledgeable about CO emissions. The campground I was at had seen some bears recently so I didn't want the cooler right next to our trailer at night. I wanted to leave the propane going so I walked the cooler and propane tank into the bush quite a way from our site. With a normal cooler I would have just put in in the vehicle and left it. Do you think that I could have left the propane going and put the cooler in my minivan overnight with NOBODY INSIDE? I would also put it on a non-flammable surface since the flame is so low. It was just such a pain to lug the heavy cooler into the bush.
Rob if I were you I'd pull the trigger on this cooler, there is nothing near this price with similar features. If you don't like it I'm sure you could sell it used or just keep it in you garage as a beer fridge.
Jason
Also we put some lettuce near the top, it ended up touching the cooling element and freezing. So I guess you need to be careful where things are placed.
I run mine off a 20lb tank with an adapter, after measuring with a scale it uses just over 1lb/day on the maximum flow setting. I also run my BBQ on propane so I disconnect the cooler to cook and then reconnect the cooler, it does not seem to have any trouble recovering from the momentary interruption.
One recommendation, drill some drainage holes in the bottom near the flame. It rained some during our trip and the bottom tray filled up with water. The slightest bump would cause the flame to be extinguished.
An annoyance is checking to see that the flame is still going. I'm always paranoid that the flame will go out for some reason. You have to bend down all the way to the ground to see if the flame is still lit.
1. I have a 115V/400-watt deck-mounted power outlet in the bed of my Tacoma with the Off Road package- Would you guys advise plugging in the unit and using that outlet while driving?
Yes plug it in, the thermostat only works when operating on AC power.
gasman you seem to be knowledgeable about CO emissions. The campground I was at had seen some bears recently so I didn't want the cooler right next to our trailer at night. I wanted to leave the propane going so I walked the cooler and propane tank into the bush quite a way from our site. With a normal cooler I would have just put in in the vehicle and left it. Do you think that I could have left the propane going and put the cooler in my minivan overnight with NOBODY INSIDE? I would also put it on a non-flammable surface since the flame is so low. It was just such a pain to lug the heavy cooler into the bush.
Rob if I were you I'd pull the trigger on this cooler, there is nothing near this price with similar features. If you don't like it I'm sure you could sell it used or just keep it in you garage as a beer fridge.
Jason
R_Lefebvre
Expedition Leader
Yeah, I talked to the wife about it last night, the pros and cons of the different fridges, and the compromises needed to fit the rectangular shaped fridges and we decided we'll give this one a shot.
I want the cooler to sit to the right of the stove, both permanently installed, and the A40 is the only thing that would fit. The other fridges are too long and require me to do something else with the stove. Either rotate it 90°, requiring me to do something to it whenever we want to cook (move it, rotate it, another slide, I dunno).
I want the cooler to sit to the right of the stove, both permanently installed, and the A40 is the only thing that would fit. The other fridges are too long and require me to do something else with the stove. Either rotate it 90°, requiring me to do something to it whenever we want to cook (move it, rotate it, another slide, I dunno).
gasman
Adventurer
well ? the thing with a fuel burning appliance is that it needs fresh air to operate. as this unit burns it will quickly use up the air in an enclosed space. locked up overnight , say 8 hrs i dont think is a wise move, i wouldnt have any real issues about it in the vehicle safety wise like clearance to combustibles . but i would worry that as it uses up the air it would probably snuff itself out .. if your gonna do it you would need to leave some windows open.. but that would mean your vehicle will not be secure overnight either.. my limited testing on this unit shows that it produces alot of CO. i might try this for testing purposes next week . but its not something that i would do
my suggestion would be to find another solution at this time, what i will be doing is to leave the cooler outside away from the trailer. i will secure the lid with a couple of ratchet staps overnight..
Rob .. when do need to make your puchase? i worry a bit about your set up. with the kids in the trailer . i know the compartments are seperate. but i would hate to see anything go wrong,, if you can wait a couple more weeks i will give you my report in full detail.. i will be taking my CO, detector with me and will test it under several different scenarios.. i want to know that my family / loved ones are safe,
all that said i dont want to scare anybody from buying this unit either,
i like this unit for the fact i dont need to rely on battery/vehicle pwer.. i dont camp in campgrounds.. i am far from civilization, and am often camped in well shaded / forest areas.. so solar isnt the best solution either,