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View Full Version : ENGEL owners..........



weeds
12th October 2009, 09:47 PM
you might of seen this thread i posted http://www.aulro.com/afvb/technical-chatter/89442-engel-fridge-issue.html


i dropped into an ENGEL repairer today expecting to leave my fridge with them to look at. after i explained the issue that the fridge was not cycling on and off at setting 5 and that i had to back the thermostat back to between 3 and 4 before it would start to cycle which gave me around -10 degrees and thinking there is a problem

they indicated it was working fine.....:eek:

so i asked shouldn't it still cycle at setting 5.

there response was that you should never leave your engel on 5 as it will not cycle and you will reduce the life of the compressor and that around 3.5-4 setting is ideal and to only expect around -10 degrees with the compressor/motor cycling on and off.

does your engel cycle on 12V at setting 5?

funny thing was they wouldn't get into a debate on waeco v engel (probably because they are authorised repair agents). when i walked in they got me to put my 32L engel on top of a faulty 60L or 80L waeco while we chatted. i noticed the shelving at the entrance to the workshop had 11 waecos on it and one other fridge with no brand on it and all to job cards attached, further into the workshop there were at least another 10 waecos on shelving and 2 engels. there was a third engel right next to the door with a label indicating seized motor

my rough count 20+ waecos to 3 engels in being repaired, just an observation...................:D

anyway i thanked them for their good advice, brought a temp gauge battery for my 40L engel.....one happy camper

dmdigital
12th October 2009, 09:57 PM
In a vehicle roll over and ran for approx 2 hours upside down, left on roadside for 48 hours, thrown in back of wreck and driven 400km back to town on back of truck on dirt track...

That was 29-Nov-2002...

It's now 12-Oct-2009...

It hasn't missed a beat. It needed a new handle, latch and bag. The case is badly dented but it still keeps things nice and cold.

Why do I know Engels are good:D

miky
12th October 2009, 09:59 PM
Once got into a discussion with a fridge mechanic re: waeco v engel etc. and he said he makes good money fixing waecos, rarely sees an engel.

weeds
12th October 2009, 10:01 PM
no need to convince me......i just thought it was strange they do not cycle on max setting, my 32L was on 5 for the whole of my simpson trip:eek: and plenty of other times and its taken till now for me to discover that they do not cycle on 5 and reducing my battery run time

dmdigital
12th October 2009, 10:08 PM
I meant to add in my previous post that I've never run mine down on 5 as it freezes everything by somewhere between 3 and 4.

numpty
12th October 2009, 10:22 PM
Have never used ours as a freezer and it's always set on 1 1/2. Works for me.

rangieman
12th October 2009, 11:29 PM
Have never used ours as a freezer and it's always set on 1 1/2. Works for me.
X2;)

Crackerjack
13th October 2009, 04:25 AM
I have had an Engel for over 16 years now (same one) and have not come across your problem only because I have never noticed, BUT, my guess is that 12v has not got the guts to maintain -20deg and so the motor does not cycle, I don't run it that low anyway as it will freeze everything solid, I generall run it at 3 1/2 which is still very cold, despite living in England I do like my drinks cold :D.
What I do know is, I have run it for several days/weeks on 5 on 240v and it does get to -20deg and it does cycle, you have to remember to that it will have to work a lot harder to run an empty fridge than a full one and work its a**e off if it is set to freeze.

Disco_ute84
13th October 2009, 06:45 AM
My mate got given a heap gift vouchers for a camping store, who at the time sold Engels, for a birthday. By the time he went to buy one, for some reason, the store had stopped selling Engels and started selling Waco's. So much to his disappointment he had to get a Waco. After a six month trip half way around Australia, (deep water crossing + 4 Runner with no snorkle = buying a used 4wd in Darwin and heading home), the lid was that warped that it wouldn't shut. It got sold on flebay not long after he got home.

Cheers,

Tim

Captain_Rightfoot
13th October 2009, 06:57 AM
Have never used ours as a freezer and it's always set on 1 1/2. Works for me.

X3 :)

JamesH
13th October 2009, 09:44 AM
On long trips I run my 40l at 1 1/2 and it's fine as others have said and other vehicle uses their 40l as the freezer fridge - chokkers full of steaks, chops, roasts and snags. And I mean chokkers. They load the meat unthawed so it packs tighter and freeze it down on 240v before being hefted into the car.

We've been told it needs to be kept to -18C - it starts off on full and then wind it back so it stays around this mark. As we use the meat we get room to place some milk containers of water in there and use these as ice bricks in an esky for vegies and lunch meats etc.

Anyway we were told by an Engelologist that running as a freezer you need to set it to -18c to keep meat healthy - I don't know the veracity of this claim.

Red Baron
13th October 2009, 10:08 AM
My old green/white 39litre Engel is in for repair at the moment, thermostat isn't working properly; ie. not switching off. Anyhoo, I usually run mine no higher than 1 otherwise it starts to freeze things....
The bloke at the repair place says he's glad he doesn't repair Engels for a living as he'd go broke; Waeco's however....nuff said!
He also said that he's getting a lot of blown compressors at the moment with people running their fridges off cheap generators. They must be sine-wave generators or you'll fry your electrics and compressor. You have been warned!!!!

Cheers Chris.

wander
13th October 2009, 11:10 AM
I ran my 32ltr as a freezer 4 8 weeks on cape york trip with no worries.The 40ltr gets run between 1 & 2.

isuzurover
13th October 2009, 12:29 PM
I have a 32L I bought SH. We ran it as a freezer on a 15k km trip to Tassie and back. Packed it 24hrs before we left in the house and set it on 5. By the time we got to norseman we noticed it still wasn't cycling, but everything was frozen. I turned it down to 4 or 4.5 and it started cycling. By the end of the trip I think we had turned it down to 3 and everything was still staying frozen.

pawl
13th October 2009, 01:13 PM
Once got into a discussion with a fridge mechanic re: waeco v engel etc. and he said he makes good money fixing waecos, rarely sees an engel.

Are these the old Version A's or the newer Version B's though? New ones have are supposed to be all Danfoss electronics in them.

Tombie
13th October 2009, 02:02 PM
Dont forget guys....

Parity.... Qty Sold Vs Qty with issues...

I'd guesstimate that for every 1 engel there are 5 waeco fridges around.
Simply based on budget and price point...

Let then say that 1 in every ten fridges has a fault...

Ratio Engel : Waeco = 1 : 5


My MT42F has had electrical issues
My 80L Waeco had a thermostat issue (but they come with a 2nd inbuilt)


90% of Waeco problems are wiring related (vehicle side, not fridge side) due to insufficient wiring used or poor earthing.

Engel is more tolerant of voltage drop, it reduces efficiency but they will still run. The Danfoss needs enough capacity to initialise the compressor.

rovercare
13th October 2009, 03:01 PM
Dont forget guys....

Parity.... Qty Sold Vs Qty with issues...

I'd guesstimate that for every 1 engel there are 5 waeco fridges around.
Simply based on budget and price point...

Let then say that 1 in every ten fridges has a fault...

Ratio Engel : Waeco = 1 : 5


My MT42F has had electrical issues
My 80L Waeco had a thermostat issue (but they come with a 2nd inbuilt)


90% of Waeco problems are wiring related (vehicle side, not fridge side) due to insufficient wiring used or poor earthing.

Engel is more tolerant of voltage drop, it reduces efficiency but they will still run. The Danfoss needs enough capacity to initialise the compressor.


BS:p

Engels have been around how long?....don't see many 20-25year old Waecos about, they weren;t being built then, I'd be willing to hazard a guess and say plenty more engels still about

4 between myself and old man alone

rovercare
13th October 2009, 03:06 PM
Since 1962 well over three million Engel Portable Fridge-Freezers have been manufactured and sold all over the world

Source: Engel Australia - Portable Fridge-Freezers (http://www.engelaustralia.com.au/cgi-bin/history.cgi)

Anyone have an idea on Waeco numbers?

Yorkie
14th October 2009, 09:53 AM
Since 1962 well over three million Engel Portable Fridge-Freezers have been manufactured and sold all over the world

Source: Engel Australia - Portable Fridge-Freezers (http://www.engelaustralia.com.au/cgi-bin/history.cgi)

Anyone have an idea on Waeco numbers?

at least over three million and one, i bought one a few weeks back. :p

who cares anyway, engel/waceo, toymota/missin, ford/holden..... they all breakdown sometimes. so long as the beer and steaks are cold i'm happy. :)

isuzurover
14th October 2009, 01:35 PM
Since 1962 well over three million Engel Portable Fridge-Freezers have been manufactured and sold all over the world

Source: Engel Australia - Portable Fridge-Freezers (http://www.engelaustralia.com.au/cgi-bin/history.cgi)

Anyone have an idea on Waeco numbers?

Waeco started in 1974. However they originally focussed on the yacht/boating market. I can't remember seeing them in OZ until 10 or so years ago.

I would also call BS on Tombie's statement unless he can show some facts. I would bet there are a lot more engels in OZ than waecos, and that the average age of an engel is older.

HBWC
14th October 2009, 06:33 PM
my two have served me well and have taken a hideing (i bourght them second hand) and im useing them as a frige and a freezer now in the house (carn't aford to buy a house frige)

Captain_Rightfoot
15th October 2009, 06:43 PM
When you go out west, it's almost always an ancient Engle strapped onto the back of the tray sitting out in the weather...

scarry
15th October 2009, 09:15 PM
My Engel has done 25yrs of bouncing all around the country,apart from a bit of rust here & there,still going strong.
And it will freeze icecream,so is operating at at least -18c.,on freeze,but seldom cycles if ambient temperatures are over 30c.
I recon the insulation in the walls isnt real good,or mine may have deteriorated over the yrs.
It will cycle no probs on warmer settings,even with ambients of 35c.

Bushwanderer
16th October 2009, 02:37 PM
Yes, I agree that the Engels struggle with ambient temperatures above about 35C (but I suspect that other makes would as well).

When I was in Charters Towers about 12 months ago, during the day I needed to keep one rear passenger side door open and the upper tailgate. This allowed the ambient temperature in the vehicle to drop below 50C :eek: and gave the Engel a fighting chance.

DeeJay
16th October 2009, 10:56 PM
Ahhh, you youngsters with 25 year old Engels. I bought mine in 1976..:D
I did lend it to a mate who did an around Oz trip about 15 years ago & he says he had to take it to the service agent in the Alice for a reason I forget..
Still gets used 5- 8 times a year for up to a week..

Bushwanderer
17th October 2009, 03:08 PM
How do you guys remember when you bought your Engels. :eek:

I have one, so I must have bought it, :angel: but when. :o

jx2mad
17th October 2009, 04:26 PM
ALAS POOR ENGEL...I KNEW IT WELL. Mine caught fire and was destroyed after hitting a particularly nasty bump near Alice Springs in 99. Now have a Waco cos it was cheaper. Jim