Thanks Ben! This video was super helpful. I bought one. I actually bought it as I only have 500mm next to my ARB kitchen slide. And most 75L fridges were over 500mm usually around 560mm. And I think the lithium battery is a great idea. I have a redarc dual battery system too but can never be too safe. Oh and I bought that 200W solar panel didn’t realise how bloody big it was! I think the 120W would easily be fine. Oh well. Again, can never be too safe. I draw a lot of power from my batteries with my custom stereo and million spot lights. The peace of mind is worth the money in my opinion. All day long.
I reckon a bit of extra space for the solar panel is worthwhile, Kido, especially when there is still charge going into your battery in low light. I'm glad you found a fridge to suit your setup, and one you can take out of and run independently to the vehicle. Super versatile. Happy camping! ~ Ben
Bought one of these a few weeks back and can confirm that this fridge will do at least the 16hours run time off a full charge. I'll go one better and tell you all that having this in the back of the ute canopy (with small solar vent) set to -1 on both sides filled up with water bottles and food that I got 24 hours and still had 3 bars of battery left. Superb but of kit would strongly recommend especially for the price they are now at
Ben, thanks for another great review mate. Really enjoy your straightforward approach covering all the questions the average intelligent person would have in relation to the product and how it would fit with their particular use case, without any of the marketing BS. Hope the Snowys bigwigs are recognising your contributions to the bottom line. The podcast idea looks good. keep up the good work!
I appreciate your feedback, tropic breeze, I'm glad you enjoy our videos. It's a 50/50 effort though, the man behind the camera manages to put all my waffle together to make it consumable. :) As for the bigwigs, there are no issues there, I enjoy working at Snowys. ~ Ben
I guess there are pro's and cons to either configuration, Peter. Having the compressor at the control panel end means most of your storage space would be at the back of the fridge given the space taken up by the compressor, this would hinder usability. It would also mean that all the weight is hanging a long way out on the fridge slide. Generally most fridges have the compressor and plug at the rear all the cables tuck away, you just need to make sure you have space around the compressor to vent the hot air. I'm sure the fridge companies have done much more research and have more rationale than the few things that come to my mind though. Thanks for your insights. ~ Ben
@@peterryan7340I have a feeling it is an option that could be built into this fridge at the factory as the control panel has an unused Bluetooth symbol, but Companion likely left it out in favour of keeping the price down. If they add Bluetooth, it would also mean they need to develop an app, all of this will add to costs. ~ Ben
I have this exact 100% dual-zone Fridge/Freezer but the label calls it Alpicool E75.... obviously from the same factory,,, just different distributors. Anyways,,,, this thing is built like a tank,,, and the insulation must be from NASA,,, because I leave it out in Thailand hot sun while working and its frosty cold on the inside with no problem,,,, and hardly drains the battery.... I also picked up a Bluetti EB240 and solar panel for an amazing combo for any outdoor adventurer and I also use it for remote off-grid living part of the year... its a BEAST
Thats great feedback @Andrew Holland....seems like theres a few brands that have a fridge just like this, just differnt colours and a brand sticker on it. Glad to hear yours smashes it in Thailand! ~ Lauren
The parts are not readily available, Craig, if you were to run into any issues we could follow up on a part for you but I'm not exactly sure how extensive the parts list for these fridges would be sorry. ~ Ben
I have a question please. I’d like to know more about the Companion Solar Panel that will work with this fridge please? What it costs obviously, but also is it a hard panel or a fold up solar blanket you could lay on the roof or bonnet while parked? It would have been nice if you took it out of the box and showed us would have been valuable extra info. Another thing please. It says somewhere in the specs that the fridge when running draws 60 watts? The Toyota Prados have a built in inverter that produces 220 / 240 volts AC in the rear, and puts out 100 watts. So in theory at least while you could use the 12v lead over the 2nd row seat and I to the ciggy lighter plug in the back of the console, you could actually plug the fridge into the 240 volt outlet, and run it from that? I’ve seen people saying “no no the wires to the inverter / 240 outlet are too thin to run a fridge and the vehicle will catch fire if you try”. But I’m left wondering, the figures don’t lie, the 240 outlet is marked 100 watts and the fridge specs say it draws 60 watts or just over half what the outlet provides. Does the fridge draw more amperage on 240 AC than what the vehicle inverter can supply and that is why everyone is saying “no no, don’t do it”? Also please the cost of the insulated fridge cover? Really you’d think it would be “sold as a package, fridge freezer, solar panel & fridge cover with a small discount for buying all 3? Thanks in advance. 👍👍👍 Ohh and if you’d like to sponsor me with all 3 - I’d be happy to do a RUclips video review as a package and share it on all the Facebook pages for Toyota Prado owners & 4WD’s pages etc seeing as how I’m such a media influencer and all! 😜😂😂😉
Hi Ian, You can use most solar panels with this fridge, but the Companion controllers have the ability to limit the voltage output to suit this fridge specifically. We haven't reviewed them yet sorry, they are flexible panels and you can view them here: 120W - www.snowys.com.au/120w-solar-charger and 200W - www.snowys.com.au/200w-solar-charger. Regarding the inverter in the back of the Prado, this is probably more of a question for an auto electrician, but in theory if you are running devices that pull less than the rated wattage of the inverter then you should be fine. I would have thought the wiring in the vehicle is intended to cope with what the inverter is capable of, and it should be fused but you may want to double check this. Keep in mind that while they do state a power input of 65W for the fridge , this may peak on startup potentially going over the 100W. Another consideration is that running the fridge from the inverter means you will be powering the fridge and the inverter, which will result in higher power draw. Regarding the fridge cover, you can see current pricing and specs here - www.snowys.com.au/lithium-fridge-cover. As for a package deal, we do offer this on fridges where we can, but it is dependent on how we buy the products. I know that our purchasing team are always crunching numbers to work out how we can offer these products to ensure we always offer the best prices. Lastly, we don't do this sort of sponsorship sorry, we aim to deliver honest and unbiased feedback for our customers, if we start giving gear away, people will feel inclined to just say good things about it. Happy camping! ~ Ben
Hey Guys Question I have been testing my fridge over the weekend I use the companion 200w solar to another 12v lipo4 battery and having that battery connected to the fridge which ran and charged the internal fridge battery. That night I let the internal battery power the fridge from 12.5v down to 10.1v I got around 14 run time. Now this is where I had the problem. I set my solar panels with my epever 30A controller and used the LNCM profile connected it to the fridge via Anderson plug the next day to start charging the battery and nothing charging or fridge running. I keep getting the F1 code. The only way I could get the fridge running and charging was by using the AC/DC port. Is there a minimum voltage I need to have on the internal fridge battery before solar charging will work? Did I let the voltage of the fridge drop to low(10.1v) My battery cutoff is set to L (9.8). Its like I have at to jump start the fridge battery by using 240AC or 12VDC from an other battery. Any help would be great in solving this issue thanks.
The F1 is a low voltage error, so yes, you let the voltage run too low, I can't find an exact figure but I reckon you'd want to maintain the batter above about 11V. You can kick start it again either by 240V as you have done, or if you have enough solar to bring the voltage back up high enough. Companion have done a quick video on this here - ruclips.net/video/If2KzMdbVIw/видео.html. ~ Ben
Hi Ben, You didn’t mention whether the battery was able to be charged externally from the fridge? I did see from the comments that there was no ability to purchase a spare battery also. Would be a great addition to a campsite if I had more room in my setup or to ditch something else to fit it in. lol
I'm going to follow this one up with Companion @Steve Kinniburgh, we've always been advised that the battery cannot be charged independently, but someone recently has heard otherwise - will come back to this. In terms of an additional spare battery, its on the cards for the future. ~ Lauren
Can the battery be taken out of the fridge and be charged through the grey anderson plug on the bottom of the battery connected to a solar panel and regulator?
The guidelines specify charging the battery via the Anderson ports on the fridge while the battery is installed, Avalynne. There are three Anderson ports in the bottom of the battery which are probably there so it integrates with the fridges battery management system. I'd suggest that trying to charge it any other way may cause damage and will likely void your warranty. ~ Ben
Hey Snowys Outdoors, Please advise if i can purchase an extra lithium battery for my freezer? I also want to purchase a insulation case for the freezer. - Please advise if you can ship to kenya?
At the moment extra lithium batteries are not available, but I think Companion is planning on releasing a battery upgrade in the future. I don't have any more detail on this though. As for shipping, we only deliver within Australia sorry. ~ Ben
Not something we can really troubleshoot over RUclips @bundymax70 - if you picked it up from us, shoot us an email service@snowys.com.au with your order number and details of your set up....otherwise you can get intouch with Companion directly www.companionoutdoor.com/form/contact-us/ ~ Lauren
I'm not going to be able to help with US versions sorry BACKROADS USA. I believe there is an equivalent tent sold under a different brand outside of Australia though. ~ Ben
@@KMW63 Were you able to find a similar product in the United States? I am in Florida and I would really like to get this for when I'm off grid at the property.
I'm not sure exactly how they arrive at the measurement, Gerben, but it's pretty close if you use the dimensions I give in the video. Keeping in mind that the figures I give are rounded to the nearest cm (usually below so as not to overpromise), which are 31 x 34 x 33, this comes to about 35 litres per compartment or 70 litres overall. There is probably still a bit of space at the top right under the lid, so I'd say the 75 litre claim is pretty accurate. ~ Ben
I'm seeking further clarification on the battery in this unit, there is a lot of conjecture and I'd like top clear things up for everybody. I'll post updates as soon as I have them. ~ Ben
Ok, so I don't have the details on the exact makeup of the battery, but keep in mind that there are many different lithium battery types. Companion's have indicated to me that this battery is considered flat at 10.3V, but even at this voltage they have been able to operate the fridge. At the 11.3V shown in the video, the battery is at about 50% SOC. They made it this way to try and keep with the 'normal' voltages people are used to seeing with lead-acid/AGM etc. batteries. Long story short and number aside, the fridge will operate from the internal battery comfortably down to 10.3 V. ~ Ben
Love the product up until you can't use any other solar panel except for theirs thumbs down And you can't change the battery out side of the fridge -10 stars
Maaaaaaate!! The lithium tech is super interesting!! Think about what was happening less than 10yrs ago. Heavy 100ah AGM batteries, that cost an arm and a leg, weighing three times as much, giving 50ah of useable power. Buy this, a decent dcdc charger, solar panel, adjustable solar controller, low draw led lights and you have an awesome set up for a wknd warrior. I wouldn't have thought this would be a reality a few yrs ago, can't wait to see what's happening in another 5-10yrs 🍻
Sorry dx80cruiser, it's how we roll. If we do all the fridges at once, all the details are in the front of our mind so we don't miss any information. That being said, we'd ideally prefer to mix it up a bit when we have plenty of material in the vault. ~ Ben
You're spot on there, Task, the idea of a single heavy battery in your vehicle may be a thing of the past as we can charge multiple smaller batteries in each device from both solar and vehicle, it even means you can set up camp a little way away from your vehicle and have powered devices in your tent still. A pretty exciting evolution I reckon. ~ Ben
![Chino Pacas - Modo Capone (with Drake & Fuerza Regida) [Video Oficial]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/zjv8TQ0gBkg/mqdefault.jpg)
Fridge with a built in battery, blew my mind!
I think we'll see more an more of this in the near future. ~ Ben
Acopower Lioncooler already does it and you can charge via solar but I have been looking for someone else to do it as well.
Thanks Ben! This video was super helpful. I bought one. I actually bought it as I only have 500mm next to my ARB kitchen slide. And most 75L fridges were over 500mm usually around 560mm. And I think the lithium battery is a great idea. I have a redarc dual battery system too but can never be too safe. Oh and I bought that 200W solar panel didn’t realise how bloody big it was! I think the 120W would easily be fine. Oh well. Again, can never be too safe. I draw a lot of power from my batteries with my custom stereo and million spot lights. The peace of mind is worth the money in my opinion. All day long.
I reckon a bit of extra space for the solar panel is worthwhile, Kido, especially when there is still charge going into your battery in low light. I'm glad you found a fridge to suit your setup, and one you can take out of and run independently to the vehicle. Super versatile.
Happy camping! ~ Ben
This gonna be good for a 1 night camping..❤
Should be more than enough for one night I reckon. ~ Ben
Bought one of these a few weeks back and can confirm that this fridge will do at least the 16hours run time off a full charge. I'll go one better and tell you all that having this in the back of the ute canopy (with small solar vent) set to -1 on both sides filled up with water bottles and food that I got 24 hours and still had 3 bars of battery left. Superb but of kit would strongly recommend especially for the price they are now at
Thanks for your feedback, James, there is nothing like hearing from customers with in-field product experience. ~ Ben
@@SnowysOutdoorsYour welcome! suits my fairly basic setup perfectly.
Ben, thanks for another great review mate. Really enjoy your straightforward approach covering all the questions the average intelligent person would have in relation to the product and how it would fit with their particular use case, without any of the marketing BS. Hope the Snowys bigwigs are recognising your contributions to the bottom line. The podcast idea looks good. keep up the good work!
I appreciate your feedback, tropic breeze, I'm glad you enjoy our videos. It's a 50/50 effort though, the man behind the camera manages to put all my waffle together to make it consumable. :)
As for the bigwigs, there are no issues there, I enjoy working at Snowys.
~ Ben
Control panel should be at the same end as the compressor so when it is on a slide you can use the controls and the heat vents out that open end
I guess there are pro's and cons to either configuration, Peter. Having the compressor at the control panel end means most of your storage space would be at the back of the fridge given the space taken up by the compressor, this would hinder usability. It would also mean that all the weight is hanging a long way out on the fridge slide.
Generally most fridges have the compressor and plug at the rear all the cables tuck away, you just need to make sure you have space around the compressor to vent the hot air.
I'm sure the fridge companies have done much more research and have more rationale than the few things that come to my mind though.
Thanks for your insights.
~ Ben
@@SnowysOutdoors it really should have Bluetooth connectivity.
@@peterryan7340I have a feeling it is an option that could be built into this fridge at the factory as the control panel has an unused Bluetooth symbol, but Companion likely left it out in favour of keeping the price down.
If they add Bluetooth, it would also mean they need to develop an app, all of this will add to costs.
~ Ben
I have this exact 100% dual-zone Fridge/Freezer but the label calls it Alpicool E75.... obviously from the same factory,,, just different distributors. Anyways,,,, this thing is built like a tank,,, and the insulation must be from NASA,,, because I leave it out in Thailand hot sun while working and its frosty cold on the inside with no problem,,,, and hardly drains the battery.... I also picked up a Bluetti EB240 and solar panel for an amazing combo for any outdoor adventurer and I also use it for remote off-grid living part of the year... its a BEAST
Thats great feedback @Andrew Holland....seems like theres a few brands that have a fridge just like this, just differnt colours and a brand sticker on it. Glad to hear yours smashes it in Thailand!
~ Lauren
Great review!
Are you able to buy replacement parts for these for example bottle opener, handle, kids/doors?
The parts are not readily available, Craig, if you were to run into any issues we could follow up on a part for you but I'm not exactly sure how extensive the parts list for these fridges would be sorry. ~ Ben
I have a question please.
I’d like to know more about the Companion Solar Panel that will work with this fridge please?
What it costs obviously, but also is it a hard panel or a fold up solar blanket you could lay on the roof or bonnet while parked?
It would have been nice if you took it out of the box and showed us would have been valuable extra info.
Another thing please.
It says somewhere in the specs that the fridge when running draws 60 watts?
The Toyota Prados have a built in inverter that produces 220 / 240 volts AC in the rear, and puts out 100 watts.
So in theory at least while you could use the 12v lead over the 2nd row seat and I to the ciggy lighter plug in the back of the console, you could actually plug the fridge into the 240 volt outlet, and run it from that?
I’ve seen people saying “no no the wires to the inverter / 240 outlet are too thin to run a fridge and the vehicle will catch fire if you try”.
But I’m left wondering, the figures don’t lie, the 240 outlet is marked 100 watts and the fridge specs say it draws 60 watts or just over half what the outlet provides.
Does the fridge draw more amperage on 240 AC than what the vehicle inverter can supply and that is why everyone is saying “no no, don’t do it”?
Also please the cost of the insulated fridge cover?
Really you’d think it would be “sold as a package, fridge freezer, solar panel & fridge cover with a small discount for buying all 3?
Thanks in advance. 👍👍👍
Ohh and if you’d like to sponsor me with all 3 - I’d be happy to do a RUclips video review as a package and share it on all the Facebook pages for Toyota Prado owners & 4WD’s pages etc seeing as how I’m such a media influencer and all! 😜😂😂😉
Hi Ian,
You can use most solar panels with this fridge, but the Companion controllers have the ability to limit the voltage output to suit this fridge specifically. We haven't reviewed them yet sorry, they are flexible panels and you can view them here: 120W - www.snowys.com.au/120w-solar-charger and 200W - www.snowys.com.au/200w-solar-charger.
Regarding the inverter in the back of the Prado, this is probably more of a question for an auto electrician, but in theory if you are running devices that pull less than the rated wattage of the inverter then you should be fine. I would have thought the wiring in the vehicle is intended to cope with what the inverter is capable of, and it should be fused but you may want to double check this.
Keep in mind that while they do state a power input of 65W for the fridge , this may peak on startup potentially going over the 100W. Another consideration is that running the fridge from the inverter means you will be powering the fridge and the inverter, which will result in higher power draw.
Regarding the fridge cover, you can see current pricing and specs here - www.snowys.com.au/lithium-fridge-cover.
As for a package deal, we do offer this on fridges where we can, but it is dependent on how we buy the products. I know that our purchasing team are always crunching numbers to work out how we can offer these products to ensure we always offer the best prices.
Lastly, we don't do this sort of sponsorship sorry, we aim to deliver honest and unbiased feedback for our customers, if we start giving gear away, people will feel inclined to just say good things about it.
Happy camping! ~ Ben
@@SnowysOutdoors Great Response thanks Ben, very much appreciated. 👍👍👍
Hey Guys Question I have been testing my fridge over the weekend I use the companion 200w solar to another 12v lipo4 battery and having that battery connected to the fridge which ran and charged the internal fridge battery. That night I let the internal battery power the fridge from 12.5v down to 10.1v I got around 14 run time. Now this is where I had the problem. I set my solar panels with my epever 30A controller and used the LNCM profile connected it to the fridge via Anderson plug the next day to start charging the battery and nothing charging or fridge running. I keep getting the F1 code. The only way I could get the fridge running and charging was by using the AC/DC port. Is there a minimum voltage I need to have on the internal fridge battery before solar charging will work? Did I let the voltage of the fridge drop to low(10.1v) My battery cutoff is set to L (9.8). Its like I have at to jump start the fridge battery by using 240AC or 12VDC from an other battery. Any help would be great in solving this issue thanks.
The F1 is a low voltage error, so yes, you let the voltage run too low, I can't find an exact figure but I reckon you'd want to maintain the batter above about 11V. You can kick start it again either by 240V as you have done, or if you have enough solar to bring the voltage back up high enough. Companion have done a quick video on this here - ruclips.net/video/If2KzMdbVIw/видео.html. ~ Ben
Pretty cool set up
How much are they
Check them out here, Bob - www.snowys.com.au/lithium-75l-dual-zone-fridge-freezer. ~ Ben
Hi Ben, You didn’t mention whether the battery was able to be charged externally from the fridge? I did see from the comments that there was no ability to purchase a spare battery also. Would be a great addition to a campsite if I had more room in my setup or to ditch something else to fit it in. lol
I'm going to follow this one up with Companion @Steve Kinniburgh, we've always been advised that the battery cannot be charged independently, but someone recently has heard otherwise - will come back to this.
In terms of an additional spare battery, its on the cards for the future.
~ Lauren
Can the battery be taken out of the fridge and be charged through the grey anderson plug on the bottom of the battery connected to a solar panel and regulator?
The guidelines specify charging the battery via the Anderson ports on the fridge while the battery is installed, Avalynne. There are three Anderson ports in the bottom of the battery which are probably there so it integrates with the fridges battery management system. I'd suggest that trying to charge it any other way may cause damage and will likely void your warranty. ~ Ben
Are there spare batteries you can buy ?
Hey Snowys Outdoors,
Please advise if i can purchase an extra lithium battery for my freezer? I also want to purchase a insulation case for the freezer. - Please advise if you can ship to kenya?
At the moment extra lithium batteries are not available, but I think Companion is planning on releasing a battery upgrade in the future. I don't have any more detail on this though.
As for shipping, we only deliver within Australia sorry.
~ Ben
How do I get a replacement battery?
The battery doesn't work anymore. It lives in the back of my ute. And I expected more...
I'd suggest contacting the place you purchased the fridge from, James. If it was us you can get in touch here - www.snowys.com.au/contact-us. ~ Ben
The voltage display is where the battery voltage is at, it is never what voltage is coming in.
Thanks Mike
~ Lauren
I tried hooking up 24 volt and it didn’t work???
Not something we can really troubleshoot over RUclips @bundymax70 - if you picked it up from us, shoot us an email service@snowys.com.au with your order number and details of your set up....otherwise you can get intouch with Companion directly
www.companionoutdoor.com/form/contact-us/
~ Lauren
Can someone please help me find a usa version of this and where to purchase?
Thank you in advance!
I'm not going to be able to help with US versions sorry BACKROADS USA. I believe there is an equivalent tent sold under a different brand outside of Australia though. ~ Ben
Is it possible to get this item shipped to the US?
No sorry, Kevin, we only ship within Australia. ~ Ben
@@SnowysOutdoors Ok thanks for the reply =-(
@@KMW63 Were you able to find a similar product in the United States? I am in Florida and I would really like to get this for when I'm off grid at the property.
How much price
You can find a link to current prices in the description @Raja Guru
~ Lauren
I'll put $10 that the internal volume is way smaller than 75L, even with the baskets removed.
I'm not sure exactly how they arrive at the measurement, Gerben, but it's pretty close if you use the dimensions I give in the video.
Keeping in mind that the figures I give are rounded to the nearest cm (usually below so as not to overpromise), which are 31 x 34 x 33, this comes to about 35 litres per compartment or 70 litres overall. There is probably still a bit of space at the top right under the lid, so I'd say the 75 litre claim is pretty accurate.
~ Ben
Lithium battery at 11.3 V equals dead flat
= 3.77v per cell, ie approx 60% charge
I'm seeking further clarification on the battery in this unit, there is a lot of conjecture and I'd like top clear things up for everybody. I'll post updates as soon as I have them. ~ Ben
Ok, so I don't have the details on the exact makeup of the battery, but keep in mind that there are many different lithium battery types.
Companion's have indicated to me that this battery is considered flat at 10.3V, but even at this voltage they have been able to operate the fridge. At the 11.3V shown in the video, the battery is at about 50% SOC. They made it this way to try and keep with the 'normal' voltages people are used to seeing with lead-acid/AGM etc. batteries.
Long story short and number aside, the fridge will operate from the internal battery comfortably down to 10.3 V.
~ Ben
You show us the lid like 3 times
We wanna make sure it doesn't get missed, Larry. ~ Ben
Love the product up until you can't use any other solar panel except for theirs thumbs down
And you can't change the battery out side of the fridge -10 stars
Yeah, that is a bit limiting, not sure why the companies that make solar try and restrict people to only using their own ecosystem of products. ~ Ben
Refrigerator has bluetooth
Not this one, Omar. MyCoolman, Dometic and Evakool have Bluetooth capability. ~ Ben
Errr so bored with Companion fridges. PS the lithium ones are sorta interesting
Maaaaaaate!! The lithium tech is super interesting!! Think about what was happening less than 10yrs ago. Heavy 100ah AGM batteries, that cost an arm and a leg, weighing three times as much, giving 50ah of useable power. Buy this, a decent dcdc charger, solar panel, adjustable solar controller, low draw led lights and you have an awesome set up for a wknd warrior. I wouldn't have thought this would be a reality a few yrs ago, can't wait to see what's happening in another 5-10yrs 🍻
Sorry dx80cruiser, it's how we roll. If we do all the fridges at once, all the details are in the front of our mind so we don't miss any information.
That being said, we'd ideally prefer to mix it up a bit when we have plenty of material in the vault.
~ Ben
You're spot on there, Task, the idea of a single heavy battery in your vehicle may be a thing of the past as we can charge multiple smaller batteries in each device from both solar and vehicle, it even means you can set up camp a little way away from your vehicle and have powered devices in your tent still.
A pretty exciting evolution I reckon.
~ Ben
@@SnowysOutdoors no dramas, just having a go as I love your vids but already have a fridge and 12v set up so am less interested in fridges