Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

Antique Icebox...

Isn't designing fun?

This morning I cut a hole in the counter top...


Then I dropped in a thermoelectric cooler unit


Then I figure I'll make the doors on the front look like an antique icebox


I don't know how many amps this draws yet, but I'll hook it up later today, and let you guys know what I find out.

Mike...

Mmmmmmm... current!

My Koolatron draws 3.1A... which is why is has since been dumped in the 'garage sale' bin. Mike you'll have to add some more holes for a few extra batteries!!

campadk wrote:Mmmmmmm... current!

My Koolatron draws 3.1A... which is why is has since been dumped in the 'garage sale' bin. Mike you'll have to add some more holes for a few extra batteries!!

Oh I know, that's my biggest concern... It would be nice to have 12v cooler that would last for a weekend, camping rustic. But the icebox could always use ice... I recall Sumner using both ice and 12v thermoelectric at the same time... Hmmmmmmmm...

Mike...

P.S. I'm headed out to Bass Pro Shops now to do some more designing and playing!!!

Okay I just checked... it draws about 2.6 or 2.7 amps, or 64.8 amps every 24 hours.

To replace 65 amps a day with a solar panel I would need at least the 120 watt panel shown here... and 9 hours a day of charging time.

Not a real pretty situation. So going rustic really means ice. The only other option I can see is charging the battery with the tow vehicle every day.

I've attached here a chart of solar panels showing both watts and amps. Never can seem to find that when I need it... this is from the
http://www.oksolar.com/panels/solarex.html webpage...

MSX-120
MSX-120, 120Watts, 7.0 Amps

SX-85U
SX-85U, 85 Watts, 4.97 Amps

SX-80U
SX-80U, 80 Watts, 4.75 Amps

SX-75U
SX-75U, 75 Watts, 4.54 Amps

SX-65U
SX-65U, 65 Watts, 3.77 Amps

SX-65D
SX-65D, 55 Watts, 3.77 Amps

SX-60U
SX-60U, 60 Watts, 3.56 Amps

SX60-D
SX-60D, 60 Watts, 3.56 Amps

SX55-U
SX-55U, 55 Watts, 3.33 Amps

SX-55D
SX-55D, 55 Watts, 3.33 Amps

SX-50U
SX-50U, 50 Watts, 2.97 Amps

SX-50D
SX-50D, 50 Watts, 2.97 Amps

SX-50M
SX-50M, 50 Watts, 2.97 Amps



SX-40U
SX-40U, 40 Watts, 2.37 Amps

SX-40M
SX-40M, 40 Watts, 2.37 Amps

SX-40D
SX-40D, 40 Watts, 2.37 Amps

SX-30U
SX-30U, 30 Watts, 1.78 Amps

SX-30D
SX-30D, 30 Watts, 1.78 Amps

SX-30M
SX-30M, 30 Watts, 1.78 Amps

SX-20U
SX-20U, 20 Watts, 1.19 Amps

SX-20D
SX-20D, 20 Watts, 1.19 Amps

SX-20M
SX-20M, 20 Watts, 1.19 Amps

SX-10M
SX-10M, 10 Watts, .59 Amps

SX-5M
SX-5M, 5 Watts, .27 Amps


MSX-30L
MSX-30L, 30 Watts, 1.75 Amps

MSX-20L
MSX-20L, 20 Watts, 1.17 Amps

MSX-10L
MSX-10L, 10 Watts, .58 Amps

MSX-5L
MSX-5L, 5 Watts, .27 Amps

Mike...

My theory.... teardrop = KISS.

After debating this one for a good 6 months, we went with a cooler in the tow vehicle. Why not just buy a retro cooler? Or the Coleman stainless steel coolers which should blend into the theme.

Even a custom built in cooler, well insulated using just ice sounds like the plan. Since those 12V units only cool so many degrees below ambient temp, you many find the 12V unit actually melts any ice you have in the box

ice ice baby!

Yep, I'm convinced. Ice is the way to go.

But I am tired of soggy stuff in my cooler. So would an icebox take care of the soggy factor, and still keep stuff cool enough?

Mike...

I have a spare frig that I use the freezer to keep frozen jugs of water in. The block ice last's 2 to 3 days in the N Georgia mountains. The good thing is minimum sog. My brothers use the ice for thier deer in the hunt season. Also if you make sure you have washed the previous liquid out well the water is drinkable when it melts.

mikeschn wrote:Yep, I'm convinced. Ice is the way to go.

But I am tired of soggy stuff in my cooler. So would an icebox take care of the soggy factor, and still keep stuff cool enough?

Mike...

What I plan to use (and what I had in my camper) is an actual RV ice box. The shelf was shaped to hold a block of ice and it had a drain hole in the bottom. A piece of tubing would run from the drain through the bottom of the ice box to the outside.

It was simple and worked very well. There was no case of the soggies and it always kept things cold enough.

Spook wrote:I have a spare frig that I use the freezer to keep frozen jugs of water in. The block ice last's 2 to 3 days in the N Georgia mountains. The good thing is minimum sog. My brothers use the ice for thier deer in the hunt season. Also if you make sure you have washed the previous liquid out well the water is drinkable when it melts.

We use this method for our cooler when we travel on the weekends. We take 4 litre (1 gallon) milk jugs and rinse them out really well, fill them with water and then freeze them. We also use the 2 litre (1/2) gallon size plastic pop bottles for something a little stronger.