Ferry to Spain and leaving the Alpicool compressor coolbox connected to 300ah lithium leisure ? Good idea or not ?

[MarkHoughton]

Hi,

In a few weeks we set off to Spain on the Ferry, this will be our first ferry trip and given the length of the journey I was wondering if it is ok to leave the Alpicool compressor coolbox permanently connected to my leisure battery for the 36 hour sailing. I have a permanent 12v cigar adapter in the garage of the motorhome ( Carthago E-Line ) and the lithium is 300ah and the Alpicool is rated at 5amps, so the journey will theoretically draw 190amps during that journey.
I have an Orion XS-50 B2B to recharge it when we set off driving again, so no worries for that, but my query is on the safety factor for overheating etc of leaving the 12v cigar lighter plugged in all the time to the unit and not being able to check it when we set sail ?

Maybe I am worrying unnecessarily, but wanted to check if anyone else has done/does the same thing and that the 5amp draw will be nothing to worry about given the cigar lighter has a 20amp rating anyway and fused at 15amp ?

Thanks in advance
Mark

 

[Landy Andy]

What for. You need something special, or will the shops there not be open. There are also laws on what we are allowed to take.
Can’t see it being worth the risk personally

 

[fat haggis]

Are you shure it will draw 5 amps. Before you Leave home fill it and plug in 240 to get it down to temp full of stuff. I’m sure then if your using 12 volt to just maintain it at temperature set. it will use a lot less amps.

 

[Jabstatt]

If it’s really cold and not touched for thirty six hours the absolute max could be five times 36 amp hours.
Is it going to be untouched for exactly 36 hours?

It will probably only run for thirty to fifty percent of the time, particularly if it’s in a cool environment.
If it’s in a warm, sealed compartment it could struggle.

Just some factors to consider.

Might give it an easier ride if it’s in the body of the MH rather than closed up in the garage.

Tony

 

[Brize]

I don't think you will have a problem.

Last year we also did the long crossing to Spain, and the engine was off for 35-36 hours. We have a compressor fridge and 100ah lithium LB, and the fridge was fine throughout, a good temperature when we got back to the van, and both vehicle and leisure batteries were fine. No problems, and you shouldn't have a problem with a coolbox.

As advice above, make sure the fridge is cold to start with. We put frozen milk in, and a frozen meal which we had first night in Spain. It all helps.

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[Steve and Denise]

We have a compressor fridge fitted it’s on all the time and if we take our compressor cool box it’s on from leaving home they draw very little once down to temperature

 

[MarkHoughton]

What for. You need something special, or will the shops there not be open. There are also laws on what we are allowed to take.
Can’t see it being worth the risk personally

More a point for "having it plugged in for a lengthy period of time and not being able to check it is still working" etc. Not necessarily about what I may want to pack in it.

 

[StillGoing]

We leave our compressor fridge on for the Santander crossing. We have 210Ah lithium and the fridge uses 30-45Ah per 24 hours.

 

[gus-lopez]

The only draw back for me would be the security & safety of the 12v plug. That would be where any loose connection would make it start to over heat.

We have a compressor fridge fitted it’s on all the time

So is ours but is wired in permanently

 

[Steve and Denise]

The only draw back for me would be the security & safety of the 12v plug. That would be where any loose connection would make it start to over heat.

So is ours but is wired in permanently

Fit a Hella type plug they don’t drop out

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[oldiesontour]

Agree with both comments above ..lighter sockets are very prone to poor connections,movement/vibration causing problems.
We have a compressor coolbox that we used to use as a freezer(-18c) it is rated 5amp but draws 4amp & not even on a hot summer day does it run more than 70% of the time.You could also surround it with insulation( excluding air inlets/outlets but also sitting on insulation

 

[Bertilak]

Or you could put it on a trolley, take it to you cabin and plug in... and have your own cold beer, fresh milk for tea etc etc.
But I also think it will be absolutely fine in the van. It will be barely working, in van, in the hold. Ours has lasted on 110AHr of AGM.

 

[Brains]

Why bother?

Just put what ever is in your fridge at home into the fridge in the MoHo.

Pre-chill the MoHo fridge and then put in 4-6 x 1L fizzy pop bottles, nearly filled with water and pre-frozen solid in your home freezer.

When you get to Spain, even in mid summer, the fridge will still be cold.

Stock up in the Carrefour in Santander.