Engel Fridge Freezer

I'm on the lookout for an Engel. If you know of any "Good Value" Second hand ones, please let me know.

Many thanks

PB.

Ha, aren't we all? Good luck. Problem is folk hold on to them until the day either it or the owner dies!

One day I'll get a good quality fridge, fed up with having to make do with inferior cheap versions which of course in the end are false economy. Trouble is buying a new one is a big lump, especially as some other bill always seems to crop up which has to take priority. Such is life.

Simon at MPS is the man to speak to
click on the word ENGEL on the following link

http://www.alpinerovers.com/

It's funny being from this side of the world, listening to you over there saying how expensive an Engel (or any decent fridge) is They are, but they are almost a necessity over here, so I suppose we tend to just suck it in and buy one It's no fun doing 40deg days and then NOT having a cold beer at the end of it

I battled on with one of those 3 way chest fridges for years. They are fine unless it gets hot and then they are basically useless

you get what you pay for

You do get what you pay for... which is why I want an Engel! They really do have a good reputation!

horacebat wrote:

You do get what you pay for... which is why I want an Engel! They really do have a good reputation!

They have an excellent reputation, but so do Waeco, and in Australia they are the 2 top selling chest fridges for offroad travel. Some people even carry 2 and use 1 as a freezer and 1 as a fridge :shock:
The Waeco/Engel debate is on a par with the Ford/Holden debate over here

Myself, I have a 40litre Engel. It's 5yrs old and never missed a beat. I expect it to be still going in 20yrs time

We use both the Engel and the ARB fridge. Both are good fridges however we think the ARB fridge is better then the Engel. Reason being inbuilt battery monitor, set temp in degrees, lid stays on better, slightly larger and easier to clean. Downside of ARB over Engel is the price.

Just be careful about electric cool boxes especially if running off the starter battery. They are power hungry if you run them off the starter battery. Result could be a flat starter battery! Could land up being extremely awkward if not deadly. Preserve the starter battery for its main job, starting the vehicle!

Brendan

Just for interest sake re batteries and power usage

Here is Aus (mentioned because we have generally higher temps than England say) we can run our 40litre Engel off a starter battery for 3 days without any recharging.

Have always run 2 starter batteries.....had a deep cycle once only. Didn't get enough use to make it economical. With 2 starters you just have them switched so you can alternate between the two for daily use. That way neither runs down.

i run only one battery and have done for the past 11 years.
we are on the move every day and turn the engel right down at night ..never had a problem starting the vehicle in the morning.

4x4overlander wrote:

Just be careful about electric cool boxes especially if running off the starter battery. They are power hungry if you run them off the starter battery. Result could be a flat starter battery! Could land up being extremely awkward if not deadly. Preserve the starter battery for its main job, starting the vehicle!
Brendan

Agree 100% with that. Because I've got around to purchasing a decent fridge, important bills always seem to take priority at just the wrong time, I've had to put up with an assortment of rubbish, and the cooler type are the worst of all. Sure they will keep stuff cool, but that's it. COLD beers are out!

As for the drain, I found myself only running the darn thing when on the move, because if you turn off the motor ...

We were umming and ahhing about a fridge and were very lucky to happen across a second hand Waeco CF40 with insulating jacket - it's tranformed our trips totally. We can load up with essentials before leaving and not have to worry about trying to keep them cold or used within a day or so.

Before using one I was dubious - having used one for a while, even buying a new one would be money well spent and last a lifetime if looked after.

Hillbilly Raider wrote:

i run only one battery and have done for the past 11 years.
we are on the move every day and turn the engel right down at night ..never had a problem starting the vehicle in the morning.

Believe it or not, it actually gets cold enough here that leaving stuff in the fridge overnight stops it from freezing!! Made the mistake one night while camping, left the milk out overnight coz it was starting to ice up in the fridge. Well, it was minus something overnight and the milk froze :shock:

Coldest overnight while I have been camping in Aus was -7degC......can't say I'd want to be doing it too often

i can believe that yes
in the Alps we have the same problem sometimes

Hillbilly Raider wrote:

Simon at MPS is the man to speak to
click on the word ENGEL on the following link
http://www.alpinerovers.com/

Did you know Simon hires out Engel fridges? Great way of finding out if that's the fridge for you.

beat me to it Tom, we often refer customers to him... makes sense to hire one from Simon rather than buying one if you are traveling on a budget or only doing 1 or 2 weeks a year

I'm now the proud owner of a vast 60L Engel ... thanks to Dave (colrep from the HUBB).

Guarenteed cold wine, beer and soft drinks for our travel ahead ! .. happy days!! :-)

60L - that's a good size. Welcome to a whole new level of camping - you'll wonder why you didn't get one sooner!

one of the best purchases you will ever make, remember an engel is not just for travelling... its great for parties/over spill in the main/home freezer/fridge too. ours lives in the utility and is frquently called to duty

Hillbilly Raider wrote:

one of the best purchases you will ever make, remember an engel is not just for travelling... its great for parties/over spill in the main/home freezer/fridge too. ours lives in the utility and is frquently called to duty

Co-incidently, we've finally got round to buying a new "proper" fridge for the kitchen - we got back off our Scandinavia trip in August to find the kitchen fridge had broke so we plugged the Waeco in and have been using it since

Horace, if you haven't already got one for it, try and get a 240 volt cable - we plug ours in in the house the day before we leave and have it full ready so tha twe can just losd the whole thing in and plug the 12v in and it's still all good - puts less strain on the batteries on the outward bound trip and also, as we tend to leave on an evening the second battery doesn't get charged much as the having the lights on means the split charge is charging the vehicle battery - every little helps

Hillbilly Raider wrote:

one of the best purchases you will ever make, remember an engel is not just for travelling... its great for parties/over spill in the main/home freezer/fridge too. ours lives in the utility and is frquently called to duty

Dunno what you blokes all think but I was told it's not good to leave your camping fridge packed away and bring it out for occasional trips etc. Supposedly best to keep it running all the time like a household fridge.

What do you reckon (coz I am no fridge mechanic )

Anyway, mine runs all the time and is used as a drinks fridge when not required for camping

Has any body tried or used one of the protextive covers .. Seem a lot to keep it protected! But look well made ...

We use insulated jackets on both our Engel and ARB fridges.

Covers are rather dirty and have taken some punishment from putting items in and out of vehicles. What the actual thermal insulation is I do not know.

Helps keep fridge in decent condition.

HTH


Brendan

yes Vixen i heard/was told that too so thats partly why i use it.
As for the covers they do make a difference.

Am in the process of moving, and my domestic Freezer has moved! so will be using this to freeze our bits and bobs until we move out to the sticks for good!!

Will do a bit more research on covers .. over a 100 quid sounds quit a lot, but if it's protecting your potentially 1000 quid fridge (not that i paid anywhere near that !), it may be worth the while to protect it, as well as the thermal properties that it contains ...

Good advice all !! ... many thanks