Thread: Engel fridge performance

Originally Posted by drover81

OK, I've got a 20yr old engel 39L model that has had the old, bad for the ozone compressor replaced with a new R134a one (about 3 yrs ago I think).

I've only played around with it a bit for keeping things cool, but I haven't been able to get it to freeze anything...

I've kept a pre-cooled carton of beer cool for about 7hrs, but they never got icey cold.... The seals seem OK, but rather thin!

Is it the seals, (are they very ordinary as standard) or is it something more expensive?

Mine even with the lid unlatched (not wide open) will freeze. Something must be amiss. I would say maybe it has not been gassed properly.

is the condenser clean ?
Do these buggers use a condenser fan, and if so, is it working ?
Who actually did the compressor change, what refrigerant has been used and has the system been correctly charged ? An over charge is every bit as bad as an undercharge and leads to loss of performance.

Really hard to asses sight unseen

yep, I've got a nice 25yr old 39l engel and she'll freeze the car if I leave the lid off.

Question: I've heard that if you leave an engel on flatout it wont drain as much battery as if you have it on a lower setting. Apparently each time the unit turns back on (after reaching the desired temp and shutting off) it draws a big chunk of amps then drops down to a lower amp draw.

can anyone confirm this??

Originally Posted by Jimmy

yep, I've got a nice 25yr old 39l engel and she'll freeze the car if I leave the lid off.

Question: I've heard that if you leave an engel on flatout it wont drain as much battery as if you have it on a lower setting. Apparently each time the unit turns back on (after reaching the desired temp and shutting off) it draws a big chunk of amps then drops down to a lower amp draw.

can anyone confirm this??

On the contrary the unique 'swing motor' in the Engel has virtually no extra startup draw at all.
Unlike the Danfoss compressor used in most other portable fridges.

I have used both and the Engel is far superior especially in rough and uneven terrain.

But you pay for it!

Originally Posted by Jimmy

yep, I've got a nice 25yr old 39l engel and she'll freeze the car if I leave the lid off.

Question: I've heard that if you leave an engel on flatout it wont drain as much battery as if you have it on a lower setting. Apparently each time the unit turns back on (after reaching the desired temp and shutting off) it draws a big chunk of amps then drops down to a lower amp draw.

can anyone confirm this??

its a yes no thing....
theres several variables

first is content, If the fridge is chokkas full it will cycle less as the contents have a high thermal mass so the fridge stays cooler longer.

second is location and heat exposure. The hotter the ambient temp near the temp sensor the more it will cycle but the longer each run cycle will be. This is particularly true of the old bi metallic type temp sensors.

Third is battery voltage and condition. As the battery voltage drops it will draw more and more amps while trying to start. Once started the draw will reduce to closer to normal

theres a couple of things you can do to help thnings along..

along with insulate the fridge, keep it out of the sun keep it clean, keep the heat exchanger well ventilated yada yada yada.... a mate of mine had this setup in his land (expletive deleted) and swears by it

get a cheap solar panel (just smaller than the lid so its easy to store), a regulator to suit, a 13 or 14v zener diode that will handle at least 150% of your fridges draw and the biggest capacitor you can lay your hands on.

hook it up in this sequence.(hope the block diag comes out ok) the solar panel would branch off of the regulator.

battery+ ---zener------v------v--------------v
: : :
capacitor solar regulator fridge
: : :
battery- -------------^------^--------------^

In theory, the solar panel charges the capacitor, then supports the fridge with any additional power needed coming from the battery. The zener will allow any voltage to flow from the battery into the capacitor and fridge (solar panel in the dark/fridge running) but will not allow the voltage to flow from the capacitor into the batteries untill the threshold is reached (13v or so) (solar panel in sun but with fridge in off cycle). Idealy even a small solar panel will quickly bring the capacitor up to a high charge so that the fridge can have a "full voltage" to start from, even though the capacitor wont be able to actually run the fridge by itself....


Anyone out there an elecy nut that can give this a thumbs up or bunk it for me?

Originally Posted by Jimmy

yep, I've got a nice 25yr old 39l engel and she'll freeze the car if I leave the lid off.

Question: I've heard that if you leave an engel on flatout it wont drain as much battery as if you have it on a lower setting. Apparently each time the unit turns back on (after reaching the desired temp and shutting off) it draws a big chunk of amps then drops down to a lower amp draw.

can anyone confirm this??

http://www.engelaustralia.com.au/

Open 'swing motor' for tech details.

is the condenser clean ?
Yup - everything is almost spotless (a bit of dust here and there)

Do these buggers use a condenser fan, and if so, is it working ?
No fan

Who actually did the compressor change, what refrigerant has been used and has the system been correctly charged?
Refrigerant specialist - don't know who (not a home job!) - not sure if they were Engel service rep though... Can only assume they did the job right.

Guess I'll have to take it to be seen by Engel approved people and see what they say.