Iceless Coolers And 12V Coffee Makers

I personally wouldn't recommend an electronic cooler. I've had 4 of them and only 1 of them lasted over a year. I think you should consider getting a mini fridge. I got one from Walmart for 80$ and it has a freezer area, has three times the room of a cooler, isn't dependant on ambient temperature, and even has a temperature setting. If it doesn't have a compressor, then I anent interested!

But if you must get a cooler, I recommend a Koolatron.

Now see that's odd because I've had my Coleman for a few years now and have had it in the truck with me on and off for the last 7 months and never so much as a hiccup. Maybe I just got lucky.

I personally wouldn't recommend an electronic cooler. I've had 4 of them and only 1 of them lasted over a year. I think you should consider getting a mini fridge. I got one from Walmart for 80$ and it has a freezer area, has three times the room of a cooler, isn't dependant on ambient temperature, and even has a temperature setting. If it doesn't have a compressor, then I anent interested!

But if you must get a cooler, I recommend a Koolatron.

Daniel, my Coleman can put in the passenger side lower cabinet of a regular Cascadia just fit tho(48 qts?). How come that's not large enough for you?

I personally wouldn't recommend an electronic cooler. I've had 4 of them and only 1 of them lasted over a year. I think you should consider getting a mini fridge. I got one from Walmart for 80$ and it has a freezer area, has three times the room of a cooler, isn't dependant on ambient temperature, and even has a temperature setting. If it doesn't have a compressor, then I anent interested!

But if you must get a cooler, I recommend a Koolatron.

Daniel, my Coleman can put in the passenger side lower cabinet of a regular Cascadia just fit tho(48 qts?). How come that's not large enough for you?

Because I like to have an entire salad bar in my frig. Haha! I make lots of smoothies and all the ingredients takes up a bunch of space.

Another advantage to a frig is the constant temperature. With a cooler you cannot predict the internal temperature. It could be 40 degrees inside your truck at night so everything inside the cooler will freeze. Likewise, it could be 80 degrees inside your truck and your interior temperature won't be low enough to keep yogurt/eggs fresh. It depends on the ambient temperature and that's a huge disadvantage in my book. It's nice to set my temperature to 36 degrees and just forget about it.

I personally wouldn't recommend an electronic cooler. I've had 4 of them and only 1 of them lasted over a year. I think you should consider getting a mini fridge. I got one from Walmart for 80$ and it has a freezer area, has three times the room of a cooler, isn't dependant on ambient temperature, and even has a temperature setting. If it doesn't have a compressor, then I anent interested!

But if you must get a cooler, I recommend a Koolatron.

Daniel, my Coleman can put in the passenger side lower cabinet of a regular Cascadia just fit tho(48 qts?). How come that's not large enough for you?

Because I like to have an entire salad bar in my frig. Haha! I make lots of smoothies and all the ingredients takes up a bunch of space.

Another advantage to a frig is the constant temperature. With a cooler you cannot predict the internal temperature. It could be 40 degrees inside your truck at night so everything inside the cooler will freeze. Likewise, it could be 80 degrees inside your truck and your interior temperature won't be low enough to keep yogurt/eggs fresh. It depends on the ambient temperature and that's a huge disadvantage in my book. It's nice to set my temperature to 36 degrees and just forget about it.

But a frig is a HUGE power hog.... I presume you either idle the truck or have your APU running a lot to keep that frig happy. How long can you run the frig off the batteries before you start getting nervous about draining too much juice? Or does your APU kick on automagically to ensure that does not happen? I like the idea of a frig but have questions about how you keep it powered on enough to maintain a consistent temp inside? I'm sure you avoid opening the frig if it's without power?

APU:

Auxiliary Power Unit

On tractor trailers, and APU is a small diesel engine that powers a heat and air conditioning unit while charging the truck's main batteries at the same time. This allows the driver to remain comfortable in the cab and have access to electric power without running the main truck engine.

Having an APU helps save money in fuel costs and saves wear and tear on the main engine, though they tend to be expensive to install and maintain. Therefore only a very small percentage of the trucks on the road today come equipped with an APU.

I do have an APU and an inverter. But it really doesn't take too much energy. It turns on about once or twice per day. It stays off until the internal temperature drops too much. So if I set it at 36 it'll turn on at 38 to recool itself. It takes about 10 seconds for it to get back to set temperature. I've never had my APU kick on because the frig sucked the batteries, well, not that I've noticed anyways.

TWIC:

Transportation Worker Identification Credential

Truck drivers who regularly pick up from or deliver to the shipping ports will often be required to carry a TWIC card.

Your TWIC is a tamper-resistant biometric card which acts as both your identification in secure areas, as well as an indicator of you having passed the necessary security clearance. TWIC cards are valid for five years. The issuance of TWIC cards is overseen by the Transportation Security Administration and the Department of Homeland Security.

APU:

Auxiliary Power Unit

On tractor trailers, and APU is a small diesel engine that powers a heat and air conditioning unit while charging the truck's main batteries at the same time. This allows the driver to remain comfortable in the cab and have access to electric power without running the main truck engine.

Having an APU helps save money in fuel costs and saves wear and tear on the main engine, though they tend to be expensive to install and maintain. Therefore only a very small percentage of the trucks on the road today come equipped with an APU.

I'm in the market for an iceless cooler and a small wattage coffee maker to save some $$$ clams on the road.

ps ... I have a very small inverter, so I need to keep things at the 12V level for now...

Heating water is a wattage eater. I haven't found anything efficient that isn't 500 watts or more. My suggestion is to consider the Road Pro Hot Pot and a french press. Expect the roadpro to take a least 10 minutes to boil, then however long to make your coffee in a french press. You could consider a small propane stove for boiling water outside your truck. That would be more efficient.

What I was considering cooler wise in a situation like yours was:

- A marine cooler. It can keep a block of ice cold for 3-5 days. Cost $25+ depending on the size

- Koolatron P75 - seems like the best built 12v cooler. I think in general they have longevity issues. Cost around $130

-12v freezer/fridge - Dometic brand starts at $320 and the price goes up from there. They seem to last the longest, have a compressor, and are very efficient.

Other efficient appliances are small crock pots (100w) and Immersion blenders (150-200w).

Hope that helps.

Can not suggest a cooler as I have not had the need to get one at this time, but as an coffee drinker myself I found it cost effective to come up with a quick easy solution rather than to pay the inflated coffee prices at the truck stops, or going without when at shippers and recivers. My solution was a Coleman butane stove. The butane canisters are small, and the stove it's self is compact, and the great part is set up and heating of water takes about the same amount of time as it takes to walk into the truck stop and purchase a cup. (Yes I do use instant so I don't have to deal with the clean up or disposal of coffee grounds.) In the morning I can get my first cup before ever stepping out of the truck or turning the key, and don't have to worry if it will pull to much power.

Thanks for all the ideas, guys...

My 2 cents, I bought the Igloo 26qt that T/A sells for around $100. I had 4800 loyalty points so it only cost me about $60 with tax, holds a lot, actually freezes my water bottles, and turns my ice tea into slush!

I had a small Koolatron in my pick up truck I worked great also.

I went with a small one because my Kenworth T660 is too narrow between the seats, and my cooler sits there within easy reach, I make sandwiches, etc that I can grab as I go, to avoid stopping if I don't want to

I personally went through 2 colemans in three months..went with Koolatron..no issues. As far as coffee, if you buy fuel regularly from same chain you get free coffee, buy enough fuel every month you get coffee and showers free, I haven't paid for coffee yet. I have a thermos and fill when its empty.