Dometic Waeco TropiCool Series
36 reviews
Reviews
SOME FACTS about these things
Good reviews, bad reviews, depend wholly on the folliwing factors -'1. Ambient temp. If in an a/c vehicle of say 20°, they obviously work better than in a tent or ute tray of 30°.
2. Initially pre-cool EMPTY, and then put home- or shop-cooled food into them, rather than expecting them to cool 5kg of warm stuff down at 60watts of battery power.
3. When sitting in a turned off vehicle, cover with insulating blanket. Better still, sew up a thermal jacket.
4. Once cold, keep as close to full as possible (thermal mass is better than empty air). Show details
Great little unit TC 32 model
Bought this unit from brand new, buyers should understand what you are buying first, do your home work, this unit has been trouble free, it does what I want keeps things cool, it’s not a Engle fridge, very happy with the fridge as it is a few years old, more than happy to recommend to anyone, but again, do your home work on what you want, I run this fridge mainly on 240v but in summertime when wife goes shopping, we put it in back of car, keeping ice cream etc cold, just love it. Show detailsGood Product - mixed reviews probably reflect a misunderstanding of the product
Brought one of these second hand for $100 but in new condition. Most likely the previous owner made the same mistakes some of the reviewers here seem to.This product is a thermoelectric cooler which uses whats known as the 'Peltier effect' to heat exchange. The main advantage of thermoelectric coolers over compressor based coolers is they are cheaper, lighter and quieter and should last longer with less moving parts.
The main disadvantage is that they are more sensitive to external temperatures than compressor based coolers. The specificat... Read more
ion for this fridge says that it can cool to 27C below the ambient room temperature. So if its 27C you should be able to cool to 0C. The product did get pretty close to this after testing it on both 12V and 240V. So when it was empty at an ambient temperature of 16C and running on max it got down to -7C after an hour or so. While this was only a 23C temperature difference there is likely a lower limit as -7 is pretty cold! So the performance will vary according to how warm it is outside and also how warm the items inside are (take longer to cool). Also whether there is anything obstructing the air vents as a free airflow is essential for the Peltier heat exchange to occur. I suspect people who find it works well use it in an air-conditioned car or cool place so the ambient temperature is much lower. People who say it doesn't work at all probably have it running where the air vents are obstructed or in a warm or hot environment. For example on a 40 degree day it cannot cool below 13C and in direct sunlight the product might be heated to 50C so only 23C maximum cooling in that case. Other people say that it draws a lot of amps (power) but I tested this and it never drew more than 1.8 amps which is the same current you would use to charge a mobile phone and usually the max a 12V car socket will deliver. Other people say it flattens the car battery but it has a switch near the DC socket which you can use to prevent this as it automatically switches off when the battery voltage drops to low. Although even at 1.8 amps a fully charged 100 amp car battery (lead acid/AGM etc) will go flat in a day (50 amp hours / 1.8 amps = 27.77 hours). A 100 amp lithium battery will last about 2 days running this product at maximum cooling. Hope this helps but I would give this product 10 out of 10 - it is well made, good brand and does pretty much what it should do!Cooling food
Its ok if you put it inside the car with aircon on on your way to destenation.It work depend on temperature inside your car (thermal cooling system) the cooler your cabin the beter this cooler will be.
Remeber to unplug it unless you have auxiliry battery Show details
Uses heaps of power, barely cools anything
When I have used this for trips, I have put ice in it the night before leaving, then packed the fridge with a fresh ice brick and the food / drinks in the morning, this is the only way it will keep things cool. Better of with a good techni ice eski really. Don't leave running whilst car is off, 100% chance of getting a flat battery. Happened twice now, there won't be a third! But maby if you are doing long trips in the car and not to worried about things not been cold just cool, and happy for things to be warm after the car has been off for a little while then you'll probably love it. Show detailsWorks quite well 2%
Power usage is fair gets cold works well I would suggest that if you have one and its not working properly that you may have an issue with your plug - I changed mine for some thing more heavy duty Show detailsSeems reliable
Good value, I've been using non stop for 2 months now and works well. Doesn't cool as good as a fridge but you get what you pay for. Recommended product. Show detailsGreat "Dry Cooler"
Had the 14 tfl for about 10 years now. Running on 12v only, daily use in a delivery van.Perfect fit in passenger's side footwell of a forward control vehicle. Fits perfect on floor of Camry & Corolla too! Position behind driver's seat for quick access to beers on a long trip. Just be wary of using lighter plug to power the unit when switching between vehicles if not using ice bricks to assist cooling. Increasing popularity of rear mounted lighter sockets in SUV's could be an issue. Refer to comments on this issue further down regarding alterna… Read more · 1tive and safer power connection options. Controls are easy to use and self explanatory. Lifting handle is a great idea. Load the marge and dairy products in this during your lunchtime shop and margarine will not melt by the time you get home. You then disconnect from power and lift by the handle to take your shopping inside. If not taking the cooler inside nightly, remove the easily detatchable lid and allow cooler to dry. Won't smell if you follow this tip. Lid seals like a drum - suction and magnetic seal holds it down! Strong enough to make a handy seat for a trucky. Will not bend or distort. Does draw a lot of current. Not a problem for couriers and truck drivers. If stopped for extended periods, switch to 3 - 4 LED's. Fans (and power) will now cycle between standby and low. Will melt lighter plug. Mine did it and so did the driver's adjacent. He went and bought a Waeco fridge but that meant it will no longer fit in the front of the vehicle where it's easily accessible and takes up a larger amount of space in the cargo section of his Haiyundai. I just hardwired mine to some solid core household cabling running off the battery. No more issues! Great dry cooler if you don't like sandwiches that have fallen into iced water for lunch. Does build up a small amount of water in the bottom that must be dried daily. ( I have two ice bricks of frozen water bottles in there to assist cooling so I get condensation). Clean about once a year over the kitchen sink with nylon scourer and Jif. My tip is to freeze two 'pump' bottles of water overnight in the freezer then transfer to the cooler at the start of the day. Place them in front of the circulation fan. Cooler will initially run on high then cut back to low after about 40 mins. For truck drivers, buy the next size up. Do not purchase for camping. Power draw will kill batteries. If you travel with one wet esky (drinks) and one dry esky (food) these are ideal. Set power to low or off if leaving vehicle for extended periods or wire through a relay triggered by accessories circuit. Tip: install a digital voltmeter at the same time you fit the cooler, or at least have a plug-in voltmeter on the Waeco power lead if moving the cooler from car to car. Doesn't measure current draw but gives some idea of power consumption at various LED power settings. A 5-10 watt solar panel that you can prop up on the dash plugged into a lighter socket that is permanently connected can also save you batteries if you need leave the car for extended periods.
Fair Performer
Some facts:1. Unit has 2 Fans, a centrifugal fan facing the chest and a vane-axial fan vented to ambient. Both fans start up together. The centrifugal fan circulates the air in the chest over the heat exchanger fins to which the Peltier Device is attached. There is a thermal cutout on the Peltier device side which breaks the current to the device if there is an over temperature. A NTC thermistor is mounted between the heatsink and the vents of the frame to measure the chest air temperature. The vane-axial fan is mounted to removed heat from th... Read moree heat exchanger on the other side of the Peltier device. So that is the air you feel coming from the vents at the front of the unit below the control panel. This fan basically stops once the set temperature is reached. You can hear it cycle during chest temperature maintenance. 2. AC/DC switching is done on a separately mounted power supply module and voltages are reworked to supply the integrated circuit card where 5V and 10V regulated supplies are maintained. 3. The internal electronics are of clean design with robust construction. A. Minor Issues: 1. Physical pressure or leakage from chest contents could interfere with the chest temperature sensor as in is mounted on a plastic carrier which, with enough pressure can cause it to back out of the carrier and this could result in temperature control problems. 2. The lid of the unit needs to be firmly pressed down to click closed, otherwise the unit will not continue to heat or cool. 3. Switching between hot and cold modes with a low or high temperature already in the chest, may lead to a delayed operation. 4. The rate of temperature rise or fall is typically Peltier. So, the idea is to throw things that are already at the temperature you want and maintain that temperature rather than trying to heat things up or cool things down. If you are happy to wait a long time, the heating and cooling rate might be around 4 deg/hour. 5. Controls The LED control has no units, but to give you an idea, 5 LED Dots on Cooling selector using the TEMP button gives about 6 degrees C on an empty chest on a 24 deg ambient day. 6. Heating The chest can get quite hot on full heat and you have to watch your personal safety when you pick up containers of/or food. I think 65 degrees C is too hot, but if you want to keep it hot for a long trip or camp, be aware of the danger. Again, this unit will not heat up food quickly so hot food is maintained hot should be the trip philosophy. 7. Cooling The chest can get quite cold but it is not a freezer. Put your cold things in to keep them cold. Frozen things will stay frozen longer but you cannot easily bring ambient temperature water to 2 or 3 degrees on high ambient temperatures quickly. B. Overall Well constructed and designed, requires a commonsense approach to expectations of performance.
What a lemon
Bought some time ago and it was kept in the box unopened until we needed it. Worked OK on 240V on trial and packed away. Used once on a road trip Brisbane-cairns where it lived on the back seat and used 12v DC. I would say it "cooled" things and never chilled. It never achieved the claims spruiked by Waeco/Dometic on the box. Went to use it on second trip and now does now cool or heat on either voltage. And of course out of warranty and try getting assistant from Waeco. I have been on hold for the service centre twice for a half hour. A very expensive single use esky! I will check Engell i thinkShow details
Useful and durable car cooler/warmer
These units live up to their specifications: they cool down to 20C-25C below ambient and heat to about 65C. It is best to set the unit running on AC to precool or preheat and fill with cooled or heated food or drinks, however, this is not really necessary.Replacement of an AC socket was the only repair in over 10 years of regular use. The unit can be used as a supplementary fridge but the fan is somewhat noisy in quiet situations such as a motel room.
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Great little cooler
Dont buy it if you want a fridge, this is effectively an iceless esky. If you try to cool something down it will suck, it just doesnt produce a low enough temperature to get a differential and it will be going flat out for very little return...hence i suspect, the negative reviews.... the cooler is just there to evacuate the heat that makes its way past the insulation or comes in with warm air when you reach in for a drink.if you use it to keep cold stuff cool, it's awesome. we load it full of cold items, and have it plugged in to only run ... Read more
when the car is on, cold drinks when we want them, refrigerated meat for weekend camping, no fear of flat batteries. for longer trips back it up with a larger fridge or esky and keep that one shut to keep the heat out.Power hungry, poor performance
I already have a car fridge and thought this might be a useful midpoint unit for when I dont have an esky at hand.However as a short term, short transit device it is useless. It takes many hours to get any useful temperature reduction and in that time draws a huge amount of power. If your vehicle is running no problem, but leave this on an haux battery and it will eat all the amps for breakfast and still nothing will be cold.
If you want useful cold that doesn't chew your battery, get a proper fridge unit.
This thing is just a wildly overpriced esky with a noisy fan that doesn't stop.
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its only a cooler! definitely not a fridge
I bought one of these hoping it would provide the functionality of a Waeco fridge. I WAS WRONG. the unit couldnt keep things cool enough - the unit was power hungry and the fan noisy - and it just didnt cool very well.these units use a device called a Peltier device - which is an amazing bit of technology, but it just doesnt provide sufficienct cooling compared to a real fridge that uses a compressor. Take it from me - if you need a Waeco fridge - buy a proper Waeco fridge - this unit will not do the job of a fridge.
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Chapter 4
The 12 volt fault was traced to a poor fuse connection through the plug. A new 240 volt circuit board was supplied under warranty by Waeco. It is now working on both voltages like it should, running on 4 out of 7 lights with cabinet temperatures ranging from 1.8c to 4.0c in room temperatures in the range of 16c to 24c.Show details
Questions & Answers
Whats the price of the14lt
When I have my CoolPro on maximum cool, it doesn’t get very cold. It makes all the right noises but I have left it on overnight and the beers are only just cool in the morning. What is the likely cause?
Is there any way I can get a USB cable for this unit to enable me to use my power packs to charge this unit when I am off grid.
Details
The Dometic Waeco TropiCool Series is a line of small, affordable portable fridges. Each comes with heating and cooling capabilities, able to cool below 25 degrees below or heat 65 degrees above external temperatures. They can run on 12V or 240V power, with a "7-stage" digital temperature control.
Reviewers liked the smallness of the fridge, often saying it fit well in the passenger footwell of a van or truck. Though not as high-performing or energy efficient as other portable fridges, reviewers generally agree that it's worth what it costs. People also noted the fridge is unable to change the temperature of food or drinks quickly, and should instead be seen as a tool to maintain the temperature of an item you put into it. It will struggle in extreme temperatures, and is best used to keep cold stuff cool, or hot stuff warm.
Category | Portable Fridges / Freezers | Portable Fridges / Freezers | Portable Fridges / Freezers |
---|---|---|---|
Price (RRP) | $399 | $299 | $249 |
Type | Fridge Only | Fridge Only | Fridge Only |
Capacity | 33L | 20L | 14L |
Power Source | Wall Outlet | Car (Cigarette Lighter) and Wall Outlet | Car (Cigarette Lighter) and Wall Outlet |
Features | Interior Light | Digital Display Panel and Interior Light | |
Cooling Capacity | 1 °C to 25 °C | ||
Weight | 10.3 kg | 7 kg | 5.5 kg |
Dimensions | 460 x 376 x 550 mm | 420 x 303 x 450 mm | 328 x 303 x 450 mm |
Manufacturer Warranty | 3 year(s) | 3 year(s) | 3 year(s) |
Construction Material | Plastic | Plastic |
Extra Information
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