Dometic CF-18 (18 L)

Fantastic fridge – Has been on the back of various work utes for over 9 years now in outback NSW, never once covered or parked under cover. Had a couple new insulated covers and a couple new lids as the plastic hinges and latch are pretty crap but really can’t complain. Show details

4 days in, compressor rattling, told this is normal – Bought this fridge to come in the truck with me at work. Cools well, although gets a fair bit if condensation inside. After 4 days in the truck I started noticing a rattle, which became a squeaky rattle over every bump. Took it back to place of purchase, thinking they would just swap it over as had really only bought it 9 days before. Was told I'd… Read more

have to go through warranty to get it inspected, leaving me fridgeless for a week. Atlanta refrigeration came back and said it's all good and normal as the compressor is on springs so it will move around. Tried it truck for another trip, rattle still there, so in my opinion it's now useless, and I've spent over $500 On something that's not fit for the purpose. Do not buy this fridge if planning on having it in a vehicle with you.

EDIT JAN 2023. Now not happy at all. The 18L died after 2 & a bit years so it's a throw away – EDIT APRIL 2024>>> I think I worked out their SCAM..... The repairer prices the LABOUR on the repairs so high you don't accept it, yes, they (Weaco, not the repairer) give you the Compressor for free (Valued at $380) but the labour is 80% of the price to buy it new. So, who's going to pay that? No one & the repairer has a free compressor he can… Read more

install & sell it to the next sucker whose warrantee has expired & has to pay full price to fix his 80L freezer that he will pay to fix as it's way more expensive to replace than the smaller ones.

The "Approved" Weaco dealer in Sydney (Definitely approved as he went on about his paid trip to Germany for training) Alternate Gas Refrigeration. Totally wasted my time driving from Newport to Arndell Park, basically a 4-5hr round trip on a Saturday. WILL NEVER TOUCH A WEACO AGAIN. JUST BUY TO CHEAPIES FROM BCF, KINGS ETC.

EDIT JAN 2023. Well all that is written below comes to nothing. The compressor died on the 18L, Weaco guaranteed a compressor replacement but their recommended repairer want about $400 to replace it. So I might as well throw it in the lake. Wasted several visits, multiple phone calls, lots of time for a piece of crap. NOT HAPPY AT ALL.

Wanted a smaller freezer for smaller car use. Have the old CF-50 for the big 4WD. I do a lot for road trips now in the car & keep the CF-18 on the folded down rear seats behind the drivers seat. It's set up so the front passenger can reach in easily when I'm driving & get a cold drink etc. My thinking was the CF-11 was just too small & the CFX-28L too big for this type of use. I am careful not to overload it & ram the lid down so as to not break the hinges/latch. The CF-18 is working wonderfully after 2x 10 day & 1x 4 days trips & is now about 6mths old. It's very easy to carry into a Motel if no fridge is available.

The CF-18L are not a common unit so I couldn't see one in a store before purchasing online. The storage area is sort of divided into two adjoining compartments, one higher, one lower. The small & quite deep section has no freezer tubes inside the walls. The tubes are in the higher section & cold air falls into the deep section which freezes very well. There is just enough room for 2x 1.25L & 2x 1L bottles if one inverts some of the bottles. The other higher section can fit 4-6 shorter stubble 600ml water bottles lying down. You can use the higher section as a fridge esp. if the sun is beating down on the lid & in my case I only have it on half the time (say 2hrs on, 2hrs off) while driving & using the cig plug to charge other devices. It is suitable for a couple &/or a small family. This suits my needs perfectly.

If it's rigged up properly to a dual battery system like in my 4WD this little unit will fully freeze if running 24/7 easily. Unless I'm doing a round OZ trip with the 4WD & a camper trailer or staying in remote areas for a long time I can't see the 50L Waeco getting much use now.

Cools well and good on power BUT – I have purchased this unit and have been testing it for several days under different conditions. Everything about it seems a good product, except for the closing mechanism on top. On the basis of this alone, I would caution anyone against purchasing this or any similar waeco products. To click it shut I have to apply a fair amount of force and… Read more

sometimes it pops open on its own. This is not a one off defect, it is a serious design flaw that can easily lead to food wastage and flat batteries. The only way to fix this would be to modify the tooling and or use a higher grade of plastics. I regret rushing into this purchase, reading through other stories online and the wording in the warranty, I am not expecting them to be easy to deal with when i inevitably have to make a warranty claim.

Lid hinge points are weak plastic that snap and need to replace the lid – We have had the unit for 4 years and are looking to purchase our third replacement lid for the unit. The little plastic lugs that hold the lid in place are easily snapped if some tries to close the lid when the unit is over full or if the lid is simply not pushed all the way into it's track. This is a very poor design and I'm surprised that… Read more

Waeco/Dometic are still selling the same units with the same problems several years on.

At $65 a pop for a replacement lid this fridge is becoming an expensive unit. We are looking at almost $200 worth of replacement lids on a $600 item!!??

Definitely not something you'd want to take camping with kids as they would break the lid very quickly.

Once the lug is broken the lid cannot be closed and the fridge becomes a dust collector in the shed.

Very good unit – Had ours for 3 years lots of use in camper trailer and home made van. It flashes the red light when disvonnecting if the battery supply isnt strong. Side control and plug unit is annoying if cramped, would be better at the front. Cig plug ...better to use anderson plugs. Cover is worth the money. Optional fold up stand takes up little room and saves your back Works great  Show details

Two units failed within a month – Ordered a Dometic CF-18 unit from online marketer, for use a cockpit freezer on sailboat, under helm seat and large cockpit canopy. First unit failed upon arrival. Requested a replacement and one was sent [happily]. New unit worked for 1.5 weeks, then failed. Failure description: Unit seems to start normally [soft compressor noises], then… Read more

within 10 seconds, error light flashing and unit stops cooling. Measured voltage of supply battery and is above 12.6v. Failure description is the same for first and second units. Will report problem again, but no longer trust Dometic CF-18 unit.

No more bags of ice – Only recently purchased ,cannot find any negative issues .its effecient &cools rapidly .i have been using it thru cigarette lighter socket in front of my hilux but will soon run a dedicated line from battery and change to anderson plug to keep voltage losse to a minimum. I will also fit a solar panel &regulator to see me thru the work day.  Show details

Great little fridge – I have owned the little 18 litre Waeco for about 5 years and use it mainly as a beer fridge on the back deck or when camping, it has never missed a beat, it has a high/low cut off switch and operates fine when the voltage drops below 12. The only criticism I can make is that the power cord sticks out from the unit and is easily knocked/damaged,… Read more

unlike other Waecos where the power cord is flush, I purchased flush style cord to solve the problem.

This is a good little fridge provided it is powered correctly – I was given one of these units because the owner complained that it only operated properly when the vehicle's alternator was charging the battery, or the battery was fully charged. This is because the Waeco CF-18 was designed as a car fridge and will only operate when the battery voltage is above 12VDC. When the battery drops to 12V under load… Read more

(battery static voltage may still be above 12.5V), the fridge will shut off to prevent further discharge of the battery ensuring it still has the capacity to start the vehicles engine, This problem can be overcome to some extent by the inclusion of a dc power supply that will maintain a constant 13VDC despite various loads causing input voltage fluctuations. Will also work okay when connected to a good deep cycle battery and solar panels.

Do not waste money on Waeco CF-18 – Purchased unit from on line supplier, their service was very good. Unit would not stay cold, service centre found no problem with the unit, twice. Still would not stay cold, hot beer is never good! Eventually refunded money after much communication with service centre/Waeco head office/ supplier. Waeco blamed the car dual battery, have a 45 litre… Read more

engel firdge that runs on the same battery and never had a problem.

Did not stay cold. Very bad customer service from Waeco and their service agent.

Waste of money and Waeco has the worst customer service – I purchased this CF-18 Waeco fridge with the Waeco RAPS36 portable battery. The unit failed on our first camping trip. Fridge would run well when connected to lighter outlet when driving, but compressor would fail within 30 mins of being plugged in the portable battery overnight and during stops. Upon return from this first trip, contacted Waeco… Read more

and Anaconda (where we purchased both units) and were declined a refund or exchange for faulty unit. Instead, we were devised to bring the units to a Waeco authorised repair centre. We did so, and within a few weeks got the units back, where we were advised that the compressor in the fridge was faulty, and it was replaced. We then went on another longer camping trip in the Outback.

The fridge and battery worked well for the total of 24 hours, then same problem again. Working fine when car running, not on the battery. Pretty useless!! When we came back, called Waeco again, advised that they won't refund, to go back to the repair centre again, and they told us that only a few service calls within a couple of months wasn't enough for them to grant a replacement (that says a lot about the quality of their products, looks like they fail a lot). Sent it back to the repair centre, they kept the unit for a couple of months! and then returned it, saying that it was the battery that was faulty! So both the battery and the compressor of the fridge were faulty! Got the unit back, ran it once, and now again, the same problem. Fridge does not run more than 30 mins when connected to a fully charged battery!!

Both Waeco items were faulty, and they can't even repair them! Waeco has the worse customer service, they are rude and unhelpful. avoid them! Purchase another brand that doe not have their manufacturing done in China. This was an expensive purchase, and very disappointing. Back to square 1, with 2 faulty units...

Unit Failed on first use, repaired twice, did not fix the problems. Waeco has very bad customer service, very bad product.