G'day and welcome to another episode of the Adventure Kings Beginner's Guide to Camping
now in this episode i'm going over a question we get asked
really often how do i run a fridge in my vehicle so i can go camping this weekend
well the short answer is you'll need a second battery but come along and let's check it out
Now if you wanted to go camping every single day you'd need a much more involved 12 volt setup that
can actually run connect and charge your second battery and it's commonly referred to as a dual
battery system the second battery is permanently wired up under the bonnet or somewhere in the back
of the vehicle or in the tub or canopy if you have a ute that means you have one battery that starts
and runs your car while the other is dedicated to running your 12-volt accessories these batteries
are joined together with wiring and ideally a dc charger to ensure that both batteries stay
topped up while you drive while that's the ideal setup it can be a bit too involved for some people
particularly if you need to use your vehicle throughout the week for all your normal duties
like shopping picking up the kids or going to work so people may not want to invest all that
time and money in a permanent setup that's going to take up some of their valuable cargo space
the good news is there's a simple and affordable way to run your fridge camp lights and charge
your devices that you can put in or take out of your vehicle when you need it now the next time
you're planning a weekend away here's a guide with some simple steps you can follow step one is that
you're going to need a second battery the most commonly used type of second battery is an AGM
deep cycle AGM batteries are sealed so they're safe to use inside your vehicle and being deep
cycle they're able to be discharged down further than a normal car battery and they can be cycled
more times from fully charged to empty but don't make the mistake of getting one that's too small
AGM's should only be used down to around 50 percent of their capacity so aim for one rated
at around 100 amp hours minimum that should give you around 48 hours of running a fridge in normal
conditions step two it's a good idea to put your battery in a battery box and there are a couple
of reasons for this number one is it just makes things so easy you've got all the sockets and
connections you need right on hand to plug in your fridge or charge your phone or even plug
a solar panel with regulator directly in secondly it's going to protect the battery and your vehicle
with much less chance of an accidental short circuit where the battery can knock out and spark
plus with handles and the recessed lid you can pick it up and strap it down easily
step three is to prep your gear in the days leading up to your trip
if you have a portable solar panel plug it into your battery and let it charge up this might take
a day or two of full sun to charge completely depending on your panel and the conditions
and if you want the most effective charge aim for a solar setup with an MPPT regulator
it's a more modern technology that can output more power than other types a great alternative is to
use a 240 volt charger now you might already have one sitting in your garage or shed but ideally use
one that's suited to your battery type it's going to give you a more effective charge and prolong
your battery life at the same time plug your fridge into the power powerpoint and bring it down
to temperature once it's cold you can put your food and drinks inside so they're ready to go too
leave it on overnight to bring everything down to temp and remember fridges work
most effectively when they're full because the large amount of cold items inside help
to regulate the temperature and prevent it from warming up quickly so even if you're only using
half your fridge fill the rest with drinks or water bottles step four when you're ready to get
out on the road pack everything in your vehicle strap your gear down so it's safe and then plug
your fridge into your vehicle's 12-volt socket that way while you're driving you're not using
your second battery's power and saving it for when you need it when you actually get to camp
step five once you arrive at camp transfer your fridge cord to the battery box now your fridge
is being powered separately from your car so there's no chance of flattening the car battery
make sure you put your fridge somewhere out of direct sun where it has ample ventilation so
take it out of your car if need be otherwise you can do what i do park in the shade but
leave your doors or windows down to allow air to circulate once you've plugged your fridge in and
you know it's running you can set up camp with this adventure king's 60 litre fridge freezer
running as a fridge it will use around one air power per hour so if you have 100 amp hour battery
which you ideally wouldn't use below 50 capacity it'll run for around 50 hours without a worry of
course this all depends on the conditions you're in and how hard you're making the fridge work
step six is optional but if you have one now is the time to set up your portable solar panel and
plug it into your battery box that way so long as the sun is out you're keeping your battery
charged up batteries prefer to be kept topped up rather than left to go flat so not only will
you extend the run time and performance of your battery for your weekend you'll also help your
battery live a long life when you're ready to head home step seven is to again plug your fridge
back into your vehicle's 12-volt socket to prevent using any more power out of your battery
now that's going to stop it from dipping too low and extend the life of your battery
finally when you get home and you're unpacking step 8 is to put your battery back on charge
if you have your solar panel set it up in the backyard or use your wall charger batteries like
to be charged up before they're stored because they will slowly discharge over time even charging
it up to full means that if your next camping trip isn't for a few weeks you'll need to give
it a top up before your next trip but at least you'll keep your battery happy in the meantime
finally a bonus tip which is important to know and remember is how to estimate how charged up
your battery is based on the voltage after your battery is charged up disconnect it
let it rest for a couple of hours to settle then you can check that it's full
for example an AGM battery that's fully charged will be sitting at around 12.9 to 13 volts
around 12.6 volts is 75 full 12.3 volts is around 50 full and 12 volts is around 25 full
so if it hasn't hit the correct voltage put it back on charge well there you go
now you know just how affordable and easy it is to run your camping fridge your 12-volt camp lights
or your other 12-volt accessories while you're camping so long as you look after your battery
and keep it topped up if you are after a more in-depth look at 12-volt systems in vehicles
make sure you check out my four-part 12-volt master class on the channel in fact take a
minute to check out the rest of the channel because there's plenty of great information
if you do have any comments or questions throw them in the comments below and we'll get back to
you otherwise hit that subscribe button so you don't miss anything else in the series