Ice Maker

[Rainier70]

Has anyone used a portable ice maker to supplement ice in a cooler? Such as this one from Walmart: Igloo Ice 102 Portable Ice Maker http://www.walmart.com/ip/Igloo-Portabl ... e/15162429 It would take up some room also.

I know that they don't keep the ice frozen, and it would have to be "babysat" to add water and empty ice.

What I am thinking is the possibility of running one once in awhile.... not full time. I boondock, but I have a 100 watt solar panel that I am in the process of getting hooked up. The ice maker is 160 watts. If I run it off of an inverter, do you think it will run my battery down too quickly? I haven't got the panel hooked up yet to see how fast it would replace the battery power. Will it be able to handle the recharging or running the ice maker?

Would a very small refrigerator/freezer work better? I can't find the watt ratings on them. Such as this one from HD 2.7 cu ft Haier. http://www.homedepot.com/p/t/202766303? ... V8MVld49q0

Would it even run off of an inverter?

I don't really want to get into toting a generator. I am just playing with these ideas to be able to take a small amount of meat, milk, etc with me. Usually I just use canned stuff or dried meals.

Thoughts anyone?

[bobhenry]

Would a very small refrigerator/freezer work better? I can't find the watt ratings on them. Such as this one from HD 2.7 cu ft Haier. http://www.homedepot.com/p/t/202766303? ... V8MVld49q0

I purchased a small waist high freezer and it pulls 1.1 amps when running so amps x volts equals watts 1.1x120 =132 watts.

Curiously the companion sized refrigerator is 1.2 amps (144 watts)

I am installing a smaller dorm sized refrigerator in the "Barn" for the CRA and I am certain it would take even less.

I think I would opt for a fridge and place a appliance drain pan (available in several sizes at any good plumbing supply outlet) and put in a block of ice as a buffer while traveling. Perhaps better yet would be a milk jug of ice then the drain pan would be unneeded.

[Rainier70]

The more I think about a fridge the more doubtful I am. I NEVER camp in campgrounds anymore, so no AC available. Would battery and 100w solar be able to keep up with a fridge that is on 100% of the time? I was thinking that a small freezer or ice maker that is on only enough to make ice for a super insulated cooler.

What kind is your small chest freezer?

[Junkboy999]

Rainier70

Look into this thread. Solar panel & batteries?


bikeopelli and bdosborn posted some good information of their batteries and solar setup that powers there Powered Coolers.

[GuitarPhotog]

"Up to 26 pounds of ice in 24 hours"

At the last place I went camping, 26 pounds of ice, delivered by the camp host, cost $12 and took less than 10 minutes.

Too little, too slow, too expensive.

<Chas>

[lancew]

i have ventured into the ice maker. its nice for small amounts of ice. if your wanting to fill your cooler it will have to run constantly. not so sure you can do that off a solar source. the reason I returned my ice maker, by the time you dump a basket of ice, the first batch had melted. that's in the house. imagine being outdoors in the heat. the ice would melt very fast. not sure if it would really keep up. remember its an ice maker not a freezer. the plus side, it was solid ice not ice n water mix it doesn't melt quite as fast as bag ice. in the end, with the amount of ice my wife uses due to her M.S. , cooler of ice water on counter at all times. the energy it took to run, loss of ice <melting> . unfortunately bag ice it is.

[Rainier70]

Thanks all for the helpful links and tips. I didn't look carefully at the quantity of ice that it made. On second thought I doubt that it would work for even a small cooler.

There are some nice little fridges out there for 12v, but they seem to be really expensive. Oh well, fun looking at the possibilities!

[GuitarPhotog]

"Up to 26 pounds of ice in 24 hours"

At the last place I went camping, 26 pounds of ice, delivered by the camp host, cost $12 and took less than 10 minutes.

Too little, too slow, too expensive.

<Chas>

Man I mix drinks faster then that thing pumps out ice

<Chas>

[Verna]

I did purchase a similar ice maker, also in hopes of not having to buy ice. What little ice it did make melted very quickly. A total waste of money, even for the house, in my opinion. The frozen water in milk and juice jugs lasts so much longer and with little effort on my part.

[Kathy53]

I purchased a magic cheif ice maker. I use it about once a week or week and a half. You do have to baby sit it. I have to put the ice in a plastic bag and put in the freezer for awhile. After it is frozen solid I then have to hit the bag of ice against the counter a couple of times to break it apart then put in the ice bin. If I put the ice right in the bin it will stick as it is already melting and is wet. I don't mind doing this it is no big deal. But it would not be much good camping as the ice is already melting. It would be only good for putting ice in your drinks.

[Bogo]

The more I think about a fridge the more doubtful I am. I NEVER camp in campgrounds anymore, so no AC available. Would battery and 100w solar be able to keep up with a fridge that is on 100% of the time? I was thinking that a small freezer or ice maker that is on only enough to make ice for a super insulated cooler.

It would keep up with an Engel, ARB, Waeco, and similar chest style compressor based refrigerator freezers. I'd recommend the battery be at least 80 Amp hour capacity so a couple no solar days could be handled. Note: One of them turned down for freezing will easily freeze ice cubes. Some of the units have a turbo freeze mode which will freeze ice fast. My understanding is the Engel refrigerator/freezer coolers can be powered with a 70 Watt solar panel and a suitable battery. The panel will both power the unit, and recharge the battery.

I've thought of using one of the refrigerator freezers to freeze down a couple half gallon jugs of water a day for use as the ice in a 5 day Coleman Extreme cooler. The cooler would be for refrigerated items, and the compressor bases refrigerator cooler would be for frozen items. I'd have 4 jugs in the 5 day Extreme, and two freezing down in the freezer. I'd rotate them in the morning as then solar direct form the solar panel would be used for freezing.

[Rainier70]

Thanks, do you know what the amps or watts are on the small rv fridges such as the Engel, ARB, Waeco?

[Bogo]

Thanks, do you know what the amps or watts are on the small rv fridges such as the Engel, ARB, Waeco?

ARB and Engel both have the specs on their web sites.

Engel:
http://www.engel-usa.com/index.php?opti ... Itemid=167
0.55A and 3.5A with under 1A common. Note, this is for the cooler style. Look at the power draw for the unit you like. At startup the current draw is a bit higher, then it drops quickly to the running current. The startup and run current on an ARB or Waeco will be higher, but the run time will be shorter.

[bdosborn]

I ran some energy usage tests on our Waeco fridge, the results can be found here:

Waeco Tests

Energy usage is very dependent on ambient temperature and the temperature the fridge is set at. I've never measured the energy usage when it was in freezer mode. We've got a bunch of frozen meat in ours now, I'll throw a kill a watt meter on it and see what the draw is. Short answer is that the Waeco draws about 0.5 amp-hrs when it's 80f outside and 40f inside the fridge. I bet it goes up to three or four times that if you we're freezing water in it.

Bruce

[Rainier70]

Thank you. I like your blog. The Waeco tests were very interesting and through. I also liked what you did with LEDs.

Do you know of any comparisons of the amps or energy usage of say the regular ac mini fridges 2.7 cubic ft or some of the mini freezers at 1.3 cubic feet? Do the Waeco etc really work that much better to be worth the price they charge?