<span class="highlight">engel</span>

John.
If your driving everyday you should be fine. The trouble will be if you camp for any more than 2 days using it as a fridge only you will néed solar and 200 watt would be about the right size for a one battery setup. Blanket or panels would be fine. There are so many variables, you will get a lot of different options from the forum and your head will be spinning with all the info.
Just keep it as simple as possible.


Cheers

John
Not enough basic information of intended use supplied to us. More is better.
The fridge, ifnew, will have an internal fan to cool the condenser. That helps.
What size Engel? depending on size, they draw varying amounts when running.
What sized battery do you have?
What is it's condition, new or used, that equates to different amounts of stored charge regarding size and condition of battery.
Is the fridge to be run as a fridge, ie around 4 degrees or colder OR as a freezer eve colder still and much more use of battery.
If only in 30 degree days in shade, then the Engel will use a certain mount of power.
If used in a vehicle on 30 degree days inside a vehicle is 40 ++ or more inside, and the poor Engel will be running full time and constantly using battery. Flat plenty quick.
If camped you can insulate the fridge from heat by covering it with a sleeping bag, only the box bit not the working bits and vent areas. That will slow down absorbed heat even with a proprietary fridge cover fitted.
My Old grey Engel will run as a fridge for around 1 1/2 to nearly 2 days without ruining a 105 ah AGM battery by discharging too far. If the battery gets down to 12v then nearly all it's so called rated capacity is depleted. You DO NOT want the battery to ever get flattened to dead, it will kill it, then it will have almost no capacity or is just dead.

The cape isn't a two day trip, so how do you propose to recharge the AGM deep cycle battery? That should seriously be considered,
A vehicle will bulk charge, ie major amount in a relatively short time and the solar panel and regulator will assist/maintain if of sufficient size and amp output. The panel ratings of amps sound impressive but you would need twice the solar amp energy to be realistic. ie, only believe it puts out half of what it claims.

We have a 75L Evacool and we get 4 to 5 days out of our 80AH battery using it as a fridge set to 0 degrees on both compartments

yes you will need a solar panel
ihave a 120w panel and its fine for the fridge
I have a 65w panel an it covers my 40lt engel an LED lights ,
sat for 5 days at finke an never had a problem
cheers mechpete

I ran a 40 litre Engel for years off a 85 AH deep cycle battery kept up with two nominal 36 Watt panels. Kept the beer cold for 3 days parked up in daily 42 C at Menindi Lakes. Swing motor draws 2.5 Amps when running. I have had no issues working on getting 2 full days out of a fully charged 85 Ah battery without recharge. I often get an extra day by running it off the start battery overnight. No problems and I do have a Li Ion jump pack for emergencies.

I see you intend to go in June so temps will be reasonable, but do recommend a panel. A semi flex 120 W only weighs 2 Kilos.

If buying new, I recommend you seriously consider the model with separate fridge and freezer sections. I am on the verge of giving the current 40 Litre to the grandson and getting the new model. Alcohol intake has lessened lots with age to one big Square Bear per day but so much better with lots of ice.

John : From my experience in the top end of Australia you're most likely only going to get a day without recharging because of the high temperature even in June , you may get few days down south in the cooler temperatures but Cape York is quite hot . What has worked well for us was removing the fridge from the vehicle when camped up for a few days and keeping it cool as possible out of the sun in a Shady location .
My recommendation would be to have a solar panel and over calculate what you need in power . Buy the biggest one you can afford and pack within reason) better to have too much than not enough .
We have gone to a small 22 litre fridge these days and a good Esky for drinks etc , you can buy ice nearly everywhere these days from our experience even in those remote parts .
Good luck and happy travels

Happy new year John,

Could I recommend you have a read of this great blog by member John and Val.

It does a long way to explaining the mysteries of DC power and electricity for camping.

Well worth the time to browse through.

Electricity for camping


Regards

Mick

Hi John

We have a 60-litre Engel powered by 2x120W solar panels on the canopy roof and a 150ah slim line battery.

The Engel has been running continuously for 13 years now in this configuration set at zero...

Now everyone may not have a canopy to attach the panels, but just take portable panels. If your budget is reasonably generous you can find some very compact panels that store easily and deploy just as easily.

There are plenty of things to occupy your time when touring, sort out power generation before you go and it becomes one less ‘chore’ to grab your attention each day.

Besides, for me there is way too much stress in telling Mrs Landy that her favourite bottle of Chardonnay isn’t chilled to her liking as she takes her seat around the camp fire as the sun slides below the western horizon...!


Cheers, Baz - The Landy

You don't say if the AGM is main or if a 2nd battery, assume 2nd battery setup, hopefully charging via VSR and decent cable ??

If so, yes a good solar will manage a few days camping, MAYBE more if you don't drive anywhere in that time . . . unlikely as you should be out on short day drives at some time.

I have 2 SCA folding solar blankets, Ridge Ryder, a 100w and a 150w.
The 100w is ultra compact, and covers the windscreen well to both block sun from cab, and gather good arvo camp sun (or morning if set up that way too).

Here is the link to the 100w . . .
SCA 100w solar folding

I would recommend going the 150w though, it's currently only a little more than the 100w, and puts out a perfect 50% more amps, as I've tested both side by side.
The 150w . . .
SCA 150w solar folding

The 100w panel puts out 6 amps in full sun, 2- 3 amps in almost total light grey cloud cover.
The 150w panel provides 9 amps full sun, 5 amps in same cloud cover above.

My Techniice fridge draws avg 1.48 amps per hr, so if I camp in good sunny conditions, either would keep me going quite well, though I generally tour, or at least drive a fair way daily and the car charging does the job well then, no extra solar required for 3pm - 10am fridge and leds overnight.

Have fun up there.