512 reviews
Reviews with attachments
Mate! It gets to 2-3° at setting 3 on days at 42° ...AND. It drawers 1.5 Amps. What's not to like? Show details · 2
Easily the best and most efficient portable fridges you could possibly get. Ours is now over 20 years old and just today got her first upgrade/fix.(new panel). As a local I took it to their factory nearby and the boys from Dad down were terrific; knowledgeable,friendly and more than fair price wise. Australian through and through. Show details · 1
After travelling for 3 years in a van with a top opening fridge, the Bushmans 65L has been a game changer. The freezer is enough to pack some steaks and ice cubes for my ice coffee while the fridge section has ample room for all my veges and sauces. Love Love Love my little fridge. Show details · 1
The dimensions on the website were perfect, I fabricated the kitchen to suit, and the fridge fit perfectly. It came packaged well and works as expected. It is very efficient and quiet. Show details · 1
I’m very happy with this fridge running separate fridge freezer Show details · 1
In-depth reviews
Review of Bushman DC130X 12V fridge – Purchased a Bushman DC130X directly from Bushman’s in February 2024 principally to reduce reliance on gas and to seek a more efficient cold storage. The unit arrived promptly. Unpacked, the fridge was very pleasing to the eye. Inside storage of 130 litres was ample room for my needs. Installation required the removal of a 3-way fridge. As the… Read more · 2
DC130X was shorter and narrower, I needed to pack out the sides and install a platform about 30cm above the floor. The smaller profile allowed me to also insert some supplementary foam insulation on the top and sides of the unit. The final fit was snug. It looked good! I ran a good size wire directly to the battery, joined the Anderson plugs to power up. I didn’t think it was going, then I realised how quietly it operates. Next, I’m off to Broken Hill from Albury to test it all out. I purchased a wireless thermometer that provides current temperature as well as recording the maximum and minimum temperatures inside the fridge. Over 8 days the temperature varied between 2 and 3 degrees. Fantastic – the beer certainly stayed cold. I am really impressed about how the internal shelves handle the food items. There is provision for tall bottles. The door racks are fantastic. The freezer compartment although a little small, is a fair dinkum freezer capable of keeping ice cream rock solid, a task simply beyond a typical 3-way fridge. Supplementary works included installing an extra battery. I also took the opportunity to upgrade to lithium. Reading the voltage each morning (before sunrise) I noted the lowest voltage was 13.3V. The fridge seemed to be sipping 40-50 watts during operation. Summary. A good-looking unit. Easy to install. Operates quietly. Maintains small variance in temperature. Sips power. The beer is properly cold. Far superior to 3-way units. At $1645 fantastic value. Highly recommended.
Quality Fridge however a little under powered for Australia's hot climate – If you plan to use the fridge in an air conditioned environment no need to read the rest of my review, it would be perfect 5 stars. We are off grid with no AC and are finding it struggles above 35 degrees. Just adding a 1 litre UHT milk that is at ambient temp above 35 degrees and the fridge won't recover. I believe some electronic smarts to… Read more · 1
manage defrosting could greatly improve performance. We have to manually defrost the fridge every 2 days as it never seems to cycle off during warmer nights. If you don't, the fridge won't manage less than 8-9 degrees on a 39 degree day. Maybe variable rate compressor is not the best idea? and would be better to run hard then turn off to allow it to defrost although I'm just guessing it is variable rate.
Freezer is excellent! Maybe duel zone would help the fridge on a hot day as you don't often open the freezer??
We don't regret the purchase however would probably buy the smaller size fridge with similar compressor next time in the hope it could better handle warm weather. Fridge uses very little power considering the size - well insulated and limited by compressor. Shelving and crisper is well designed and high quality.
Not what we expected – We purchased the fridge in October 2022 the first one in the country after waiting several months due to delays with the thermostats. The fridge was delivered and installed, our fridge cavity had to be modified to suit the bushmans dimensions. I found a few problems during the install mainly with brackets and trim not aligning correctly and the… Read more
finish on some parts not quite as expected. They said they would take these suggestions on board as I was the first customer to fit this fridge. A week or so later I had a problem with the fridge cutting out, after inspecting all wiring and scenarios a new electronic module was sent and installed, fridge worked again however I feel this was just because fridge had been off for a couple of days, this problem would reoccur a few times over the coming months. We also had an issue with the freezer door/seal, a new door was supplied and the seal still didn't seal well, the finish on this and a few other parts was not great and I was advised that due to a lot of manual work involved in the manufacture of these fridges imperfections will happen, I didn't think this excused the poor workmanship. The fridge had to be defrosted approx every 4 weeks due to a large ice block forming at the back of it and also alot of ice in the freezer section. Bushman were mostly helpful with these issues however after several emails in February this year about these faults they wanted to give us a full refund and we were told we think this might be the best result for you now. We custom made a cavity to suit this fridge and had waited months for it to come out and were now been told that the best result for us now is to take a refund, I thought we were working through these faults with bushman. There was no offer of a replacement until a couple of months later when the compressor played up again this however came with certain stipulations. In the end we lost faith with bushman took the refund and went with another brand. It was a regrettable experience as bushman said maybe our expectations were too high.
Positive reviews
Great fridge with piece of mind you know you’ve got a quality product. Used the fridge on a recent North West trip with temperatures 40c +and it never missed a beat. Friendly customer service and prompt delivery. Show details · 1
It took a while to do this review, I wanted to use the item before I reviewed it. Now I have used it my review is:- The phone service with bushman's was excellent and very helpful. The postage was very quick and the quality of the fridge was exceptional. Now after using the fridge I am extremally with it in every way. The seven year warranty on the compressor is a big bonus. Show details · 1
Works great. But it came with the mounting brackets all bent and dents in the side of the fridge from being thrown around whilst shipping. If your spending all this money it would be better to just get it from the store so you know it’s sweet. Show details · 1
Negative reviews
Purchased 130DX and on arrival package was damaged resulting in slight damage to door. Door was promptly replaced. However, on arrival it was found to be not RH opening , as promised which was a little disappointing. Subsequently, Bushman have been in touch and responded magnificently. Most grateful as at the time I was in hospital recovering from… Read more
an operation, with a lengthy recovery period. So some good news was very welcome. Thank you Bushman, much appreciated.
Hi Joe, My apologies for the transit damage.… Read more (+1 reply)
Find out how Bushman DC-X Series compares to other Caravan Fridges
Know better, choose better.
This fridge is not 130L is only 110L. Could never ever achieved Tropical Standard and is a fraudulent claim like the 130L. Is cheap crap dinosaur Chinese fridge of low quality. Freezer cannot keep things frozen in hot weather. The Kings 110L fridge is basically the identical fridge, different compressor, there is no bad compressor on the market.… Read more
Kings has full width freezer and much better internal layout. So don't get ripped off $1,685 when you can buy basically the identical fridge for around $500 from Kings 4WD. Fact is if you want to buy a cheaper substantially superior fridge the Dometic NRX has a seperate cold plate in the fridge and freezer, vacuum panel insulation, genuinely tropical rated, conservatively up to 25% lower power consumption with the new Dometic compressor and vacuum panel insulation.
Hi David, Thanks for writing a review. I'm pretty… Read more (+1 reply)
Bushman not meeting my expectations – Fridge out of Van ambient temperature setting 6 @31degrees C fridge temperature 2degree C empty with no door openings. setting 5.5 @36.8 degree C, fridge temperature3.5-degree C. Recommended setting. 3 which is not cold enough.. Show details
Hi [Name Removed], Thanks for your review. Your… Read more (+3 replies)
Recent reviews
We are very pleased with the Bushman fridge, replaced a 3way in the caravan. This Bushman fridge just works, it`s consistently cold, no worries about temps increasing or items freezing, the cook is no longer stressed. Show reply
Super fast delivery, easy install and plugs straight in via the Anderson plug, draws very little power some days you wouldn’t even know it’s on except it keeps everything cold Lastly great correspondence and follow up Thanks for a great product Show details · 1
The new improved heavy duty series have some great add on such as in fridge fan and heavy duty shelves which prove the team at bushman's research and know their stuff and the customer service is also excellent cheers guys great product. Show details · 1
Unfortunately the fridge compressor wasn’t working properly so I contacted bushman explained that I didn’t have a receipt as the fridge came with the vehicle I purchased so they checked the serial number and said it was still under warranty and sent me a new fridge and asked to return the old one back all expenses payed. The new fridge is working… Read more · 1
perfectly I couldn’t recommend this Australian company product and service highly enough Hassle and stress free service
About a million times better than the dometic fridge it replaced. Way less power consumption and much quieter. Good solid construction too. Very happy with this fridge. Show details · 1
This fridge is great been using in temps upto 40 c with no problems very efficient..I also have the bushman 35 52 . Had it 7 years only turned off to defrost it . Show details · 1
What can I say... I haven't had the fridge all that long BUT it's a Bloody d>mn good fridge, my cans of beer sit in the bottom crisper tub and are icy cold ALWAYS, I have the temperature control on 4 and certainly don't need a fan inside like they say in online youtube posts, my aux battery now goes into float mode unlike when I had the 60l Engles running, all up I'm glad I went with the Bushman upright, good job Bushman. Show details · 1
Find out how Bushman DC-X Series compares to other Caravan Fridges
Know better, choose better.
The 130 ltr upright bushman fridge is bloody awesome, it's small in outside dimensions and inside is huge, heaps of shelving and storage. Once it's down to temp uses bugger all power, hold 4° like a champ, even when my internal canopy temp is 38°+ Show details · 1
So happy that I chose this fridge. Excellent quality - everything looks solid and built to last. The largest fridge capacity I could find for my cabinet space. It has a highly efficient vsd compressor (haven’t needed to turn it beyond its second lowest setting - and I am very fussy about cold beer). Whisper quiet. The sales and technical staff are great to deal with and the fridge arrived promptly, in good condition, with no fuss. Show details · 1
Very happy with customer service, easy to purchase online, Delivered promptly within 3 day’s leading upto Easter Installation/ replacement of caravan fridge was easy using mounting kit supplied cutout width dimensions not quite accurate but an easy fix The most quiet fridge I’ve owned seriously can’t hear this running Seems efficient on batteries & holds temperature well Thanks Bushman Show details · 1
I've found dealing with Bushman, very satisfying. I had an issue with a dodgy courier causing some damage, and Bushman were responsive, prompt and professional. I think that the way a supplier deals with a problem says more than a seamless supply. Bushman, excelled when challenges were encountered. The fridge looks to be exactly what I'm looking for and I have complete confidence in Bushman, if anything wrong. Show details · 1
Extremely happy not just with the fridge but the whole experience. Had a small issue on the freight side shipping from one end of Australia to the other and can’t speak more highly about how well Bushman staff assisted to rectify the situation. Extremely professional to deal with and the fridgs is working great. Show details · 1
Of all the components we installed in our camper van fit out the Bushman DC-130X was by far the easiest to fit and has been working beautifully from the initial plug in to now. Fantastic product and the 130 is proving to be the perfect size fridge for two people on the road. Show details · 1
Great 12 volt fridge – Very happy with this fridge keeps everything cold on number two setting and is low power draw. Would like to see out side material made out of something less exposed to rusting. Cheers greg Show details · 1
DC85 Fridge – Great customer service and very quick delivery. So happy with it already so much easier to use and no sliding in and out and not being able to see whats in the fridge. 10/10 Show reply
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Hi Blair, Yes it would have been nice if we could… Read more