Mad LWB disco idea (Now ultimate overlanding disco thread of rubbish

[LetsHopeItFits]

I just had a look at some fridges, and I think Ide be better off with a defibrillator! Why are they SO expensive? Its like £700-£800+ for a fridge the size of a microwave inside? And then you need a dual battery system, which Ive found to be a minimum of about the same cost again, (either big battery, or small battery + solar) and so its £1500 to have a fridge? I mean, what else do I really need a dual battery system for? Thats a very very expensive ice cream or cold drink. Is there a cheaper way? For a weekend, a coolbox and some ice packs will do fine, but I can go without a cold drink for a weekend. What about for a fortnight, somewhere hot? Or is it really a case of cough up the cash or dont have perishable food?

 

[Hicap phill]

I just had a look at some fridges, and I think Ide be better off with a defibrillator! Why are they SO expensive? Its like £700-£800+ for a fridge the size of a microwave inside? And then you need a dual battery system, which Ive found to be a minimum of about the same cost again, (either big battery, or small battery + solar) and so its £1500 to have a fridge? I mean, what else do I really need a dual battery system for? Thats a very very expensive ice cream or cold drink. Is there a cheaper way? For a weekend, a coolbox and some ice packs will do fine, but I can go without a cold drink for a weekend. What about for a fortnight, somewhere hot? Or is it really a case of cough up the cash or dont have perishable food?

Search for a 3 way caravan fridge

 

[marjon]

Running a fridge on 12v is power hungry.
We run a cool box but that only runs when car running but they do come dual/fuel car/mains or gas.

So you can fill it and cool it in the house before, then plug in the car once you get there put it on gas.

But that’s cool box, some make ice though.

J

 

[LetsHopeItFits]

Ive had a look, but really its only going to be an off-grid camper, and I dont think Ill be carrying much gas, especially not a big canister, so really it does have to be 12v, or using a bluetti/jackary type of thing I suppose it could be 240v, but thats still 4 figures, especially for a bigger battery. Ive got a big ice box thing, from an old caravan (turns out theyre about £250 new, and they stay cold for about a week) and its a big red box, no electronics, and you just put ice in it and it stays cold. So is there a really really small freezer that I could just freeze say a pint of water every couple of hours whilst driving? Or even just a pint a day on solar?

 

[marjon]

If you want a xxx+ coke/tonic with ice at the end of the day you have to pay for it.
But put frozen bacon and sausage in at the beginning of a long weekend and they will be good to eat on Monday.

the gas bottles are actually the small canisters not the big bottles, we use the same for our 1 ring stove to fry the bacon sausages and eggs.
J

 

[LetsHopeItFits]

Ill look into it, but yeah, really its just to have burgers, bacon, beer, etc etc, but Ill have food poisoning and warm beer, and save the money for fuel or tyres or something, at least then I can blame the food for all the vomit after a heavy night on the beers!
I mean, how easy is it to find a shop that sells ice in places like north africa? I know I can get some in morrisons, or in france or spain, but is it the same over there?

 

[marjon]

My experience of Africa and India you would be surprised.
Unless your in the dessert.

Take dollars.

J

 

[Stanleysteamer]

We do a lot of travelling with cool boxes. They keep stuff frozen for an incredible time, even with not being powered at night/engine not running.
Before Brexit we used to take sausages etc to our place in France, so overnight on the ferry, no power, drive down half way then overnight again, no power again then on again till we got to our place.
Stuff was fine and no food poisoning.
Two cool boxes in the Disco and one in Wifey's Pluriel.
So don't knock cool boxes they can be really good.
BUT it does help to fill them right up with frozen stuff before you start.

 

[Shippers]

You've got a yacht?
Din't think you was a posh nob!
I wouldn't repair it, i'd give it to @kevstar to do!

My experience of Africa and India you would be surprised.
Unless your in the dessert.

Take dollars.

J

He would be better being vegan if he's thinking of his trips in the future with his proposed build that hasn't even begun yet...the smell in the Market in Morroco of the meat my son and I encountered outside Paul said Dad lets not go further and that was in a city...cooked food outlets no problem for us superb...took my partner there who doesnt eat much meat "apart from Richmond crap sausages that have no meat in them..lol" ate salads...was ill for days after we came back we were only there for two nights it's only a 7 hour trip to get there for us...

 

[LetsHopeItFits]

Is there any coolbox that you recommend in particular? I might invest is a SMALL battery thingy, so that I can make use of solar, just to charge phones for cameras and so on, and if Im buying one panel, I may as well buy a 2nd, because they arent very expensive, so if it can run a coolbox for a few days, then great.

 

[LetsHopeItFits]

Yeah, I had guessed that the food hygiene might not be what it is in the UK, so everything will be cooked, thats why Im not too keen on a gas powered fridge, but if its £1500 for an electric fridge, well an extra £500 buys the big battery, and then I suppose an induction cooker becomes an option. But thats just silly money. Ill use a cheap coolbox, or the ice box thing that Ive already got, at least until Ive decided that yes, a long africa trip really is something I want/can do

 

[Shippers]

Is there any coolbox that you recommend in particular? I might invest is a SMALL battery thingy, so that I can make use of solar, just to charge phones for cameras and so on, and if Im buying one panel, I may as well buy a 2nd, because they arent very expensive, so if it can run a coolbox for a few days, then great.

You wont need one if you camp in UK...but Spain/Portugal think again even now in March up on the roof of the house doing stuff down to t-shirt and it's bloody hot...

 

[Stanleysteamer]

Is there any coolbox that you recommend in particular? I might invest is a SMALL battery thingy, so that I can make use of solar, just to charge phones for cameras and so on, and if Im buying one panel, I may as well buy a 2nd, because they arent very expensive, so if it can run a coolbox for a few days, then great.

You'd have to do some research.
The three we have, well the big un is an old Halfords one, it used to be able to do hot or cold and had a battery saver thing.
It fecked up last year so I took it apart, threw the PCB away as we only ever use it to keep stuff cold and it runs like a dream.
the other two, are a medium one and a small one. One of which can be run on the mains if nec. But they can all be run off the mains with an adaptor, which Halfords flog for not much money.
If you just want a cold drink you might be able to rig something up with the air conditioning. We have some friends who had a jap number where you just stuck a drink bottle in a special place and the Air con cooled it! Give me a minute and I'll remember the make/model.
Nissan X trail.

 

[Stanleysteamer]

You wont need one if you camp in UK...but Spain/Portugal think again even now in March up on the roof of the house doing stuff down to t-shirt and it's bloody hot...

Oi! I bin sweeeting ere inside my trailer! Yer, even in the UK!
But then I hate the heat, rather!
Couldn't live where you do!!!
Anything much over 30 degs and I'm running for cover, or diving into the pool!!
Wot you doin on your roof?

 

[LetsHopeItFits]

Yeah, its common for the AC to be routed through to the glove box and or the center console, I know most VW/Audi group cars do it, and my parents old D3 (which I learnt to drive in in the field when I was 12 or 13, no wonder I like land rovers, particularly discos, so much!) But yes, D3 has AC to the glovebox I think, but that was a while ago.
I dont know if the ambulance even has AC, 1991 J-reg 200tdi

 

[Stanleysteamer]

Yeah, its common for the AC to be routed through to the glove box and or the center console, I know most VW/Audi group cars do it, and my parents old D3 (which I learnt to drive in in the field when I was 12 or 13, no wonder I like land rovers, particularly discos, so much!) But yes, D3 has AC to the glovebox I think, but that was a while ago.
I dont know if the ambulance even has AC, 1991 J-reg 200tdi

Prolly not!

 

[Shippers]

Oi! I bin sweeeting ere inside my trailer! Yer, even in the UK!
But then I hate the heat, rather!
Couldn't live where you do!!!
Anything much over 30 degs and I'm running for cover, or diving into the pool!!
Wot you doin on your roof?

Thunderstorm here high wind and bloody took out my stove chimmney pipe bloody thing had rusted through and snapped off on Sunday...1.98€ for a 100ml union but as I was going shopping in town anyway for chocolate but thats another story and all the tools in the shed sorted on Monday...

 

[Stanleysteamer]

Thunderstorm here high wind and bloody took out my stove chimmney pipe bloody thing had rusted through and snapped off on Sunday...1.98€ for a 100ml union but as I was going shopping in town anyway for chocolate but thats another story and all the tools in the shed sorted on Monday...

Get that!
In Frogland we also have some feckin strong winds. the "Vent d'Autan" being the most famous.
We quizzed peeps in the village before building and they gave us some good advice, especially the bloke who lost some of his roof one day!
If we hadn't intervened the builders would have given us a roof made of trusses, then plastic sheeting with tiles over it!!
Hope your repair holds and the rust is held at bay!

 

[LetsHopeItFits]

Ive found a "cheap" compressor fridge, 12v 24v 110v and 240v, 45-55w (depending on voltage, and it says 45w when using 12v) and it says it can go to -20C but you can set any temp under 10C, and its £245 for the big 55L, and £130is for the 20L, and plenty of sizes/prices in the middle. I dont know very much about solar panels, only that you buy them by the watt (i.e. you buy a 100w panel, etc) so can I wire them straight into a battery I buy from halfords, or do I need to buy some sort of controller? I know I can buy a jackery/bluetti/ect, but theyre quite expensive, I think? Really all I need to do is run a fridge for a couple of days maximum, and charge up the 2nd battery in a few hours of driving. Would fitting a 2nd alternator help?
I know that there isnt a cheap option for this, but Im hoping to do the whole thing for under £500 (fridge, solar, 2nd battery, and all the wiring) and under £300 would be absolutly amazing. Even if I had a really small freezer and a coolbox would be fine. Im happy to give the wiring a go myself, Ive done soldering and crimping before, and I will be carrying at least two, but probably three fire extinguishers, and a big bag full or "really really need this stuff to not die in the middle of nowhere" bag, in a really easy to grab place

 

[Hicap phill]

As this was an ambulance it might have had a few extras fitted for electrics.

check the alternator size,may have been changed for a larger output..

fit 1 fire extinguisher within reach of sitting in the seat also a seat belt cutter/window smasher within reach.extinguisher need not be big just big enough to get you out