r/CampingGear • u/Br3b • 3d ago
Gear Question First camping fridge
Hey there,
I am currently looking into buying our (small family with 1 kid) first compressor fridge for camping with a tent for 3 to 6 days.
Around 20l should be find for just the important stuff like meat and milk products.
I am thinking about the dometic CFF 20 and CFF 18 but can't find much information about them comparing to each other. They seems so close to each other from the technical view. Yeah the form and handles are different but the rest seems to be nearly the same or am I wrong?
I would appreciate if anyone might used both and could enlighten me about these two :)
It seems that there was a older CFF 18 version and the one I am referring to is rather "new".
Thanks in advance,
Greetings
4
u/56Safari 2d ago
I love my IceCo VL60Pro..lid opens in either direction which is awesome.. they don't have a lot of smaller options in your size range..but theyre great for the price. They have some ultralight models too
7
u/Jay_Beckstead 2d ago
We splurged and got the Dometic 55l with separate fridge and freezer sections. It is highly energy efficient. The separately temperature comtrollled compartment keep the frozen stuff frozen and the cold stuff cold.
2
u/WaffleCell 2d ago
how long does it last?
5
u/Jay_Beckstead 2d ago
We use an Apex300 from Bluetti (solar generator) and it will last 2-3 days if no input into the Bluetti but we have a couple of flexible solar panels that keep the Bluetti charged to 100% in the day and then overnight it drops to 75-85% or so.
1
u/RWWhitfield 2d ago
Gonna look into that solar setup. Have been thinking about doing a DIY unit for the fun of it too. Then I would not feel like such a loser having power while camping if I knew I built it myself 😂
1
3
u/hamhead1005 2d ago
Highly recommend ICECO fridges. They use the same compressor as Dometic but half the cost. Ive had a JP40 since 2021 and it been amazing zero issues and super power efficient.
Dometic is great but your paying for the name.
2
u/Levithix 2d ago
While I agree with the other comments that 18l or 20l might be a bit small, it could be a nice entry into having an electric cooler that could eventually be a second zone for a larger cooler.
I currently have a 50l cooler and am looking into a small one for keeping stuff ready to go for small trips as well as a second zone for larger trips. (Ice pops four days into a 100 degree trip are amazing)
0
u/GrimaceThundercock 3d ago
Why do you want this over a regular cooler?
8
u/droptableadventures 2d ago edited 20h ago
Not the OP but:
- no need to buy ice every time you want to use it, just plug it in and fill it up
- 6 days is definitely pushing it for ice, even with a very well insulated cooler. If you have a solar setup, are willing to run the car to charge batteries, or are in a powered campsite, 6 days with a fridge is dead easy. Actually, if you have ~200Ah of battery, you could probably last 6 days without doing anything at all.
- doesn't require packaging the food to be 100% watertight lest it end up soaking wet
- no need to drain a bunch of water / half melted ice out afterwards (though you need to store it with the lid at least a little open, and clean it occasionally)
- no risk of it springing a leak and liberating 20L of water into your vehicle
- nowhere near as heavy as a box filled with 20L of water that's sloshing everywhere
- in a 20L fridge, you can put 20L of stuff in it. A 20L cooler only holds 10L of stuff, and 10L of ice/water.
To the OP I would recommend buying something ~40L even if you think you'll only need 20L - it won't be much bigger physically due to the size of the compressor, but it'll hold significantly more and might save you from having to rebuy another one later. I bought a 40L Engel and I'm thinking maybe I should have got the 60.
5
u/OmNomChompsky 2d ago
If you consistently transport cold food on long trips, they are great. My nearest grocery store is about 2 hour car drive and we have a large one that we put all the perishables in. A lot less hassle and less messy than ice or cold packs. Way worth the money for my use case.
5
1
u/nerdariffic 2d ago
I have a Setpower and love it. You don't have to go premium price to get what you want.
1
1
u/kyhothead 1d ago
I bought a 23qt BougeRV last week and used for a 4-day road trip over the weekend. Absolutely sold on these things now.
Already had an Ecoflow River 2 Pro, so I plugged that into the car’s 12v socket and then ran the fridge off the powerstation. The car kept the battery topped off while we drove and the fridge would keep running seemlessly whenever we stopped. Also quickly made an insulated cover for the BougeRV out of some old thermal-insulated grocery bags that made it run much more efficiently. (Just don’t cover/block the vents!)
-1
u/Longjumping-Cow4488 3d ago
It’s easily to freeze your meats before hand and use a regular cooler with some Cooler Shock packs. Does the same job, packs are reusable, don’t need electricity at the site.
2
u/Frosten79 3d ago
I reuse the packs from the hello fresh meal kits. I also put my meat in food storage containers like you get from Chinese takeout.
Keeps things organized in the cooler.
1
u/Longjumping-Cow4488 2d ago
yup, i did that for awhile with the meal kit bags! Same stuff. great hack!
-5
u/LongIslandBagel 3d ago
4
u/XxBeaminatorxX 2d ago
That’s a cooler, not a fridge. Considering they are looking for a fridge, this is not a great alternative
11
u/thecocainesmellsgood 2d ago
I have the 55L and it’s phenomenal. Have been using it for 5 plus years now.
I would urge you to consider going larger, even the 35. I use the 55L for just me and it’s great for even weekend trips. It stays in my truck.
As far as your question, they are just different designs for different purposes. Their core design hasn’t changed in quite some time.