12V Fridge & freezer

[Dalton07]

We couldn't be happier with the 12 volt refrigerator from Dometic. This unit has kept our food fresh and dry all the way to Gettysburg and back to the southwestern United States.

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[JAF1]

I know many of you have done this but moving your 12v plug/socket saves a few precious inches of cargo space.

I need to do something like this! Did you run a new wire or just tap off the 12v socket already there.

 

[wibornz]

I need to do something like this! Did you run a new wire or just tap off the 12v socket already there.

run a wire, don’t tap in . You can run a wire for the fridge in the back in about 20 minutes that includes putting in the power outlet.

Your fridge will be more efficient on its own line. We have been out almost 5 months with a 47qt ARB fridge in the back of the jeep with zero issues. We run an 800 amp single battery. We have been running the fridge this way for a couple years now.

2 minute video I did that shows an easy way to wire your fridge.
Easy fridge wiring

 

[JAF1]

run a wire, don’t tap in . You can run a wire for the fridge in the back in about 20 minutes that includes putting in the power outlet.

Your fridge will be more efficient on its own line. We have been out almost 5 months with a 47qt ARB fridge in the back of the jeep with zero issues. We run an 800 amp single battery. We have been running the fridge this way for a couple years now.

2 minute video I did that shows an easy way to wire your fridge.
Easy fridge wiring

Thanks but I'm only plugging in a 500w Jackey. That plug just sticks out and I'm afraid to break it off moving stuff in and out. Like to move that socket out of the way.

 

[MILT]

I tapped into the rear outlet; I don’t use it anymore. Like you I use the rear outlet to power a jackery, and the jackery to run a fridge.

I also tapped that same line to run a 12v line into the cup holder for passengers in the rear seats. Have not had any issues running both at the same time

I used a wiring kit from quadratec that plugs into the harness and offers a simple means of splicing in another line

i ordered the arb plug; gutted it and Replaced the innards with a chinamart one (arb is a dedicated fridge plug-in) the arb housing is smaller and has an o-ring seal to prevent water intrusion between the housing and trim panel

 

[jlrubeinswaz]

Hi guys,

Looking for recommendations of a good 12V fridge/freezer for my Rubicon. Will be used for bulk food purchases (moving down to BCS, Mexico, in 3 months) and would be in the car 4-5 hours with frozen and cold foods. Also, going camping totally off the electrical grid for 3-4 days. Great also if it can be locked, and locked down, in the vehicle! Thanks in advance!

I will give you my personal experience with a number of 12v fridge/freezers. I currently own the Iceco JP 40, Iceco gogo 20, and Engel MRO40F-U1 40 QT. I currently use the Iceco JP 40 in the back of the JL. I have used it for over a year now with no problems. Plenty of room and light weight. Nice dimensions for my configuration. Has not shut down under steep angles and Iceco states it can be operated up to 40 degrees angles. One of my main concerns is power draw. On normal mode when compressor is on it uses 2.2 to 2.4 amps. Max mode it uses 4.2 amps. The Iceco gogo 20 is dual zone and it seems to draw a little more in dual zone. One zone being refrigerated and the other being freezer mode. If I remember it was about 4 amps when compressor running. I have had it shut off once because of steep angles. Since that time I have gone over the same angle and never have shut off again. The Engel is one of my favorites using 3.2 amps. I have not used it in the Jeep because of size and the way I have the cargo area set up. But I have had the Engel for over 5 years and not one problem with it. I have friends with both ARB and Dometic. What I have experienced is both of those brands use at least twice the power draw of the Iceco and the Engel. Could there be a difference in insulation? Might be but I have not seen in my experience any difference that would make me want to go with ARB and Dometic for that reason. Are they quality units? You bet! I would love to have a 40 qt. dual zone but have not found a quality unit in that size. Iceco has a new model VL45ProS that I have my eye on.
Hope this helps with decision making.

 

[Odyssey USA]

Has it already been answered what the max fridge is that will operate off the stock plug in the back? All the other factors after that of course.

 

[MILT]

I will give you my personal experience with a number of 12v fridge/freezers. I currently own the Iceco JP 40, Iceco gogo 20, and Engel MRO40F-U1 40 QT. I currently use the Iceco JP 40 in the back of the JL. I have used it for over a year now with no problems. Plenty of room and light weight. Nice dimensions for my configuration. Has not shut down under steep angles and Iceco states it can be operated up to 40 degrees angles. One of my main concerns is power draw. On normal mode when compressor is on it uses 2.2 to 2.4 amps. Max mode it uses 4.2 amps. The Iceco gogo 20 is dual zone and it seems to draw a little more in dual zone. One zone being refrigerated and the other being freezer mode. If I remember it was about 4 amps when compressor running. I have had it shut off once because of steep angles. Since that time I have gone over the same angle and never have shut off again. The Engel is one of my favorites using 3.2 amps. I have not used it in the Jeep because of size and the way I have the cargo area set up. But I have had the Engel for over 5 years and not one problem with it. I have friends with both ARB and Dometic. What I have experienced is both of those brands use at least twice the power draw of the Iceco and the Engel. Could there be a difference in insulation? Might be but I have not seen in my experience any difference that would make me want to go with ARB and Dometic for that reason. Are they quality units? You bet! I would love to have a 40 qt. dual zone but have not found a quality unit in that size. Iceco has a new model VL45ProS that I have my eye on.
Hope this helps with decision making.

Thanks for this post. Very helpful.

 

[JAF1]

I wired up an additional 12v socket in the cargo area yesterday and went about it a little different then I've seen here and wanted to share.

I used one of the 40amp aux switches (aux. #2) that uses 12 gauge wire under the dash as my power source. To make wiring easier I ran 12 gauge wire along the passenger side and mounted the socket next to the roll bar as shown above. I found a socket mount very similar to the ARB but with the cigarette lighter socket already included. (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07JL3DLNL?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details)

This give me the option, via the settings menu, to either have that socket switched, off, or constant 12v power. For long trips I'll used it switched with ignition and hooked up to the Jackery since the Jackery will just keep pulling power until the battery runs dead. And for a day trip just running the fridge, I'll keep the 12v on all the time since the fridge has voltage protection built in and don't need to take the Jackery. This give me piece of mind knowing I shouldn't be able to run down the main battery. Also shouldn't have any worries with volt drop running 12 gauge wire on a 40 amp circuit.

 

[haidenlu]

I use a Bougerv 12v refrigerator, excellent product. It riches set temperatures very fast in very hot temperatures and runs super quiet. You will hardly notice its on. Housing is well built and durable. Love the compact size and portability. Consumes very little voltage when powered in vehicle.

 

[wanderer]

Does anyone know whether the wolf box refrig has a danforth compressor

 

[wanderer]

Will those new jump start boxes like wolfbox and others make power a fridge for any lenght of time

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