Engel or Evacool 12volt Fridge?

Hi Darter

I do no know where you, or the people that you were talking to had the idea that Engel have a newer design/compressor. They are still using the same compressor that they always have.

As for issues not being covered under warranty, this tells me straight away that the end user/users have caused the fridge to have its problems, and not the fridge. Consumer Laws are getting tougher and from where I sit, Engel stand by their warranties 110%.

The strange thing with human nature is that some people treat their items like bleep and then are the first to blame the product for being faulty, and never put the blame back on themselves.

We sell lots of Engel's that sit 100% of their life on the back of station vehicles, open to all the elements of nature and get covered in dust, diesel, mud and the odd one that gets thrown from the vehicle. Station people can be some of the hardest people on vehicles and their fridges. Next time you are out in the bush, have a look at what fridge it on the back of the ute, it will be an Engel. To be honest, it makes me wonder how they cope with such tortures, but they do. The only time we see the owners back in is when they buy a new ute, or are setting up their kids with a new vehicle and need another fridge.

I will ask you only question:- what other portable fridge manufacturer has proved itself to the Australian market for 50 years?????


The answer of course is only Engel.


Regardless of what you buy, treat the item with respect, and do no abuse it and it will give you many years of trouble free service.




Cheers



Stephen

Engel for me NO hesitation

I always sing the praises of EVA Kool as mine has been going since 2000, never had an issue, will freeze down to -20 degrees if I want it to. It will do that in the Kimberlys in the middle of summer day in day out.

So yep, I recommend them.

Don't know anything about the engels, but they do sell an insulated cover for them which helps to keep em cool.

G'day Darter.
I'll put a vote in for the Evakool. We've had one of their cool boxes (esky) for years and I liked how strong it was - Kids use it as a seat, I use it a a seat , stand on it etc. The fridge is the same fibreglass box. Massive insulation to keep heat out.
We bought a 47L Evakool fridge and then 12months later bought a second one! I can't fault them. I broke a catch (with rough handling) and spoke with the factory - all pleasantness and new catch on the way.
For me I'm a Australian and I like that Evakool is made in Australia. (Factory in Caloundra QLD.)
Yes, they're not the prettiest as the motor sits outside the box, but question to be asked is why do you want a motor creating heat inside the same casing as the fridge which you want to cool?
All that being said, I have mates with Engels, and mates with Waecos and they're all good. They all do a good job. If they didn't they wouldn't sell any at that price!
(Normal disclaimer - no affiliation with any company.)
Happy decision making.
Corrugate

If its the Danfoss compressor that interests you,then so would most other fridges as they nearly all use the Danfoss compressor.Waeco is the most obvious one.

In regard to Engels not standing by their warranty,it sounds like B/S to me.

Another vote for Engel.
Son has one, the old yellow job and it's still going strong.
Mine was purchased new in 1995 and it is still going strong.
Both of these fridges have had a hard life in the back of utes however mine now lives in the back of the Patrol putting up with off road juants and anything else I throw at it.

Re warranty.... well I have never needed it.

Thanks all.
I'll purchase either the current 40 Litre Engel series II (anyone got this model?)
or the EvaKool 47 RF0/E 47 47 Litre white fiberglass model.

Both are exactly the same price,I will see which is the best deal on the day I go to purchase.Or wait till coming up to Easter when camp shops offer better deals,its also around the time of year there are many fishing/camping expo's on and exhibitors offer good deals.

Evacool may be chunky But there insulation is better & the compressor far more reliable. These poinst sold me.

Darter,

Evakool now do a 60L - FF060 . It is in the same configuration as the Waeco/ARB/Engel with the compressor within the footprint of the fridge. It appears to have the same dimensions of the 47 litre width and length wise and only 15mm higher. I think from a quick look at the web that the specs for the 47 are the length and width of the cabinet only and do not include the compressor.

The length of the unit looks to be over twice the width so the figures of 725 x 445 don't make sense. The photo appears to be the right angle for no distortion of the actual dimensions to take place, like an ISO drawing. So if you are worried about the size of the unit with an external compressor the 60 might be an option.

As for Engel I have never heard a bad word about them from people using them on the road. I think most people who have issues with fridges actually have issues with wiring and power more than anything else. I have two Waecos and have jsut bought the 60 litre Evakool after good experiences with a mates 70 litre fibreglass one.

G'day Darter,
Haven't had any experience with Engel but have used a 30 litre EVA Kool for 3 months non stop around the Centre and up through the Kimberly without missing a beat. Its had a fairly tough time out in the tray of a dual cab and we had some concerns about the effect of dust on the compressor as we were not able to keep it dust proofed, but so far no issues. The body is really solid and has stood up well to the rough ride and the cooling has been very effective through some stinking hot conditions. We are very satisfied with it.

Poitr

All the major fridge manufactures make good and bad fridges whether it an Engle, Waeco or Evacool.

You will find people who have had problems, bad experiences, good experiences and love or hate any of the brands.

There is not a good or bad fridge out their even Waeco.

Thanks again all who provided information.

It appears from all this,either the evakool or engel,are both highly thought off.

I am favouring the engel 40L series II,as it fits my size well,and its shape looks like it would suit me best,however-I like the practical nature of the evakool with compressor/motor out side fridge.I do not like the 240/12v cable box that goes with evakool-its an extra to purchase.I prefer the engel set up it comes with cable
and appears more fool proof.

As mentioned-it will depend on the day when I go to purchase,as to which I get-It does appear regardless of brand or type-there is little room for dealing with shops on these items,unlike a white goods/electronics shop.the best price I can find for either is $1199.Might be prudent to wait till closer to Easter to pull the trigger.

I joined 'Rays Camp world',Repco,etc etc,and see what specials they have in next month,I did here Repco had the engels for $1039.

Thanks all-cheers

We were crew for AAT Kings for years both on coaches and uni mogs. Engals at that time our only refridge and they kept on going 24/7! With 45 people to feed a dodgy freezer would have been a disaster, never had one that let me down.
Cheers

I did some research when I bough a fridge and it suggested that the Danfoss Compressor is the best on the market.

Amongst the options was the Waeco, and as it turned out the Danfoss Compressor does work really well, however it's the digital electronics which have let me down twice.

The warranty repairs were quick but that doesn't help when your on holidays.

Next buy will be the EVAKOOL as they use a manual controller rather than the digital system.

I'm still wary of the Engel after reading too many bad reviews.

Regards

G'day Darter

Fridges are like tyres - it's a personal choice - some people have a good run and others aren't so lucky. Why do some people post a thread saying they got 80,000 k's out of brand X tyre without a puncture and others who get 9 punctures with the same brand X tyre over 50,000 k's say they wouldn't buy them again if they were $15 ? As I own and run a small part time 4wd tour company specialising in central Australia I run 3 fridges - an Engel, a Waeco and a Trailblazer - all have served their purpose well for different reasons with none of them giving me any sort of trouble. So I would suggest just buy what you think is good value at the time and look after your purchase. For what it is worth - on one trip across the Simpson Desert a few years ago with a dozen different fridges in a dozen different vehicles there were only 2 fridges that kept the "Lemonade" cold when the temperature exceeded 50 degrees and they were the 2 Trailblazers that were both in the sun all day on the back of traytops not in the wagons ! ( No affiliation whatsoever )


Happy Travelling


Gazz

I did like the Trailblaza, and I see it runs the same Danfoss compressor and has either 3 inch or 5 inch insulation. The price was the hurdle though.

After your information I might just pay the extra for the Trailblaza.

Regards

Thanks magery,Geoff and Gazz-Good points there Gazz,Yes the Trailbassers are the very very best by any account.I think they might be a bit more that $1200-but certainly worth it,for super hard core trips.Very good yard stick -the tyre results from different users.Supose its like any product-look hard enough and one will find a negative viewpoint somewhere.

The engel certainly fits most of my selection critera,the new 60L evakool mentioned in the thread by a member here,or the 47 L evakool,all look great.

will see what sort of deal I can get when I visit stores,I live kinda near Caboolture/Morayfield-there is a heap of camp store there,Rays camp world,repco,BCF,etc,etc.

I've had my Engel for over 20 years and it hasn't missed a beat. In that time I've seen all the flash new fridges come and go. Engle 4 me.

Gday,
It doesnt matter what you buy, there is always a chance of a fault. Engels have been around for years and have proven to be a very reliable fridge and certainly arent known for not backing there products with after sales service.
But.....would I buy one......not as long as you can get a 60lt Waeco with cover and all cheaper than you can a 40lt Endel.
Waecos have also proven to be a reliable fridge and are a different shape which I find more convenient.......Its a personal choice.

Cheers

We have 2 of the Evakool 47Litre units. Yesterday I had one in the back of the vehicle plugged in to 240V (staying at the folks house), sitting on 4 degrees with the beer in there. Went out to get some yabbies with the old man and when we returned the wife had already taken off with mum for some shopping. When they returned I asked the wife if she plugged the fridge back in and she had forgotten to even plug it into 12V while shopping. Anyway, it was in the back, unplugged for 4.5hours, 30 degrees outside so no doubt bloody hot in the car with no shade, and when I went back out to plug it in the temp had only risen to 6 degrees! There's some good insulation for you.

Mark.

I've had both engel and evakool. (engel combi 60, evakool rf60, superkool rf60 and 2 waeco 35's)

As you can see i'm a bit of a brand trollop. That's because at the end of the day you can have an idea of the fridge you want, but more often than not it's about what fills your hole the best. They are all different shapes and using space most efficiently is paramount.
For strength and ruggedness you simply won't beat the evakool. My engel had the sheet metal exterior and quite frankly it was completely useless in the back of my ute. It needed the cover to insulate it better, then you needed a protective cover (plywood) to protect the zips on the cover from rubbing on anything. After a day up the cape with a brand new engle and cover, I had to use a filleting knife to open the fridge cover - unpreferred. The covers will also rub the paint off your sheetmetal, and any impacts will be with you for life. Cleaning your fridge is also something to be looked at. After a desert run with the evakool, a stubby had burst and 250g of apricot jam had broken - you can imagine the mess. I pulled the basket out and had a hot shower with the fridge, keeping the outside motor end fairly dry. Plugged back in and away we went.
The 2 waecos we ran as a fridge freezer combo which works well, but is space hungry for us.
At the end of the day they all keep the beer cold. I like the fridge/freezer combos, and the evakool is the best for that in my circumstance.

I'm off to Fraser camping for the week - it must be raining - haha.

Thanks Mark and gbc

Looking to get a RFo47 47 Litre evakool,just wondering-re evakool door latches can these be easily replaced if they bust,or the elastic goes in them.

The insulation in these fridges appears to be of a very high standard-thanks for your post Mark

Hi Darter.Join Rays club, then wait if able too for a 20% store wide discount. I think
you will get 26% discount.?. Don't know if they sell Evacool.
Not pushing Engel. I have a 40/80lt The 80lt is used as a freezer when we go away and
not had any trouble with them.If you want pay a bit more have a look at National Luna.
Brian

I cant see anyone mention anything on weight differences,Engel 40 litre is 24kgs,The Evakool RF 60 litre comes in at 21kgs,There 40 litre at 17kgs and in my opinion the Evakool has better insulation...

I use one of these and its been brilliant,Stays in the ont cab so i can moniter the temp most of the time,or i sit it close by at camp...



Evakool Wireless Temp gauge

Goodluck in your choice

Thanks everyone for your kindly replies and helpful suggestions.

After reviewing your thoughts and experiences,and those from other hunting/fishing/camping forums.It appears this evakool would best suit me

http://www.australiandirect.com.au/buy/evakool-47-litre-fibreglass-fridge-or-freezer/RFE47

This seller,sells them for $1138 which includes freight and the 240v cable,and temp gauge.I wanted to go down to Caloundra and view and buy from the factory-but this would cost more!

Did want to buy the Engel,but the evakools appear to be very highly regarded,with fewer issues compared with the engels.

Thanks for the info Darter, I'm on holiday in Caloundra at the moment looking for something to do so I might just pop down to the factory and have a look.

Regards

I just went to both factories and found out that Evakool sell the factory seconds at Caloundra only, and there are some good buys if they happen to have the model you are looking for at the time.

I went and looked at the Trailblaza and liked the 75L Ute model. They have a genuine 75mm of Polyurethane insulation which obviously makes for great efficiency or you can go for 125mm. The pipework is made shockproof and you can hotwire the control switch in the bush if something does go wrong. ( One of the reasons I'm over the Waeco.) After looking at the Trailblaza insulation the 50mm Evakool insulation looks questionable.

The evakool looks like great value but the Trailblaza looks so well made I'm leaning towards spending the extra cash.