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Quote: Originally posted by campinggirl29 on 24/07/2005

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Sorry guys! Another question from a novice!

Do you just run your coolboxes when the car is moving or can you do it when you are parked? How long can you do it till the battery goes flat?

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Only have the coolbox plogged in when the engine is running other wise it will flatten your car battery in somewhere around 5 hours. 

A car battery run to flat will have a very short service life too.

I had a near disaster in May - bought a new  electric coolbox which charges off the lighter and left it plugged in all night ( not knowing any different). Car was absolutely flat next day. Good job there were other people I knew there (for a jump start). Would really have been in a panic if I had been on my own.

jackiex

Hi

Does anyone put icepacks in the electric coolbox ??

I wondered whether it was a good idea as this thread points out electric cool boxes only work whilst the car is running or flatten your battery and if you don't use the car alot whilst away not very effective.

How do you keep youe electric coolbox cool if not using the car alot ???

Jen

Quote: Originally posted by Jen Hill on 24/07/2005

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Hi

Does anyone put icepacks in the electric coolbox ??

I wondered whether it was a good idea as this thread points out electric cool boxes only work whilst the car is running or flatten your battery and if you don't use the car alot whilst away not very effective.

How do you keep youe electric coolbox cool if not using the car alot ???

Jen

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Sometimes, when there just isn't enough room in the fridge in the MH, we take along the cool box, which we run from the cab cigarette lighter.  When we stop, we unplug it and use an adaptor and plug it in to the mains, but transfer stuff to the fridge as space becomes available. 

With regards to ice packs, before we had the motorhome, we used to make up plastic bottles of squash the night before and put them in the freezer (leave room in the bottle for the liquid to expand).  In the morning, take them out of the freezer and wrap them in silver foil, shiny side in.  They would stay really cold and defrost gradually, so providing something really cool and refreshing throughout the day and for the journey home.  Take along some un-frozen drinks 'diluted' with crushed ice for drinking earlier in the day (again wrapped in silver foil).  Re-use old drinks bottles so you can throw them away when finished.  I often do this when my kids go on a day trip with the school - they are the envy of all their friends. 

If used in the cool box, the drinks themselves act as 'Ice Packs' which have a second use rather than just taking up space and being heavy to carry around all day.

If you have room in your caravan/MH ice box, use that to freeze drinks for the next day.

Hope this helps someone

Sara

The Coleman/Camping Gaz coolboxes have an automatic sensor in them which detects if the voltage on your battery goes below 12.5 volts, and if so switches the coolbox off, so that you can always start the car.

I don't know if any of the other makes do this (they probably do, but it would be worth reading the instructs b4 buying).

I've just bought a Campingaz PowerBox 24l Classic-A.  It was the cheapest one at £39!  I didn't read the instructions properly, left it on overnight and it flattened my battery.  The campsite owner thought he would help me by jump-starting the car, but only succeeded in blowing a fuse.  That fooled the RAC patrolman who turned up 3 hours later.  He had to call Technical Support twice before he figured out that it was the immobiliser fuse which had blown.

The only model which switches off is the top of the range Deluxe-B (mega bucks).  I wouldn't bother with these, they're more trouble than they're worth.