Coverting an icebox to powered refrigeration

[jviss]

Would an icebox be worth adding if it was not on all week? Does everyone leave them on? I feel bad wasting energy just to keep drinks cold. I could see bringing cold drinks and food and having the fridge to keep them cold, but then we are carrying a cooler to the fridge. I like the idea of not using ice and having melting ice to contend with in terms of soggy food.
How long does the icebox require to chill down?
We only spend 1 night per week on the boat. We might spend 2-3 nights once per season. I wonder whether it is really worth it.

My view is it wouldn't be worth it. One day, or even the weekend, we don't use the 'fridge, we throw in a block and a bag of cubes.

 

[seadaddler]

Here in Florida it sure is nice to go to the boat and have a cold drink and I do keep ref 24/7
But have solar keeping batteries welled charged.
We do a lot of cruising for a few weeks at a time and anchor out most of the time and ref and solar is the best way to enjoy our boat more.
Nick

 

[agprice22]

If you have solar panels, it's not a waste of energy. Can't answer you on whether it's worth it, tho. For us, yes, but we do some cruising for a couple of weeks at a time in other places besides home waters.

Ah... that makes sense. Do you have power at your dock? I do. I never added solar because we are at the dock at night so far.

Thanks, guys. Good advice as usual!

 

[Tally Ho]

Would an icebox be worth adding if it was not on all week? Does everyone leave them on? I feel bad wasting energy just to keep drinks cold. I could see bringing cold drinks and food and having the fridge to keep them cold, but then we are carrying a cooler to the fridge. I like the idea of not using ice and having melting ice to contend with in terms of soggy food.
How long does the icebox require to chill down?
We only spend 1 night per week on the boat. We might spend 2-3 nights once per season. I wonder whether it is really worth it.

I leave my fridge on all of the time. I keep drinks, ice in the freezer compartment, other food stuff as needed cold. I sail a few times a week, but don't stay overnight on the boat often. I have power at the dock, so don't usually worry about battery capacity when leaving the fridge running.

Greg

 

[Skipper]

There's 40+ replies here so if I'm duplicating...

What about a compressor powered portable?
A small one uses about 6 ah a day, with modern small compressor and a small .7 or so cf box.
No tearing things up. No gasp-worthy mistakes. No installation at all. Just plug it in to 12v CLA or wire a 12v line. Or, use a 110v to 12v CLA converter on shorepower.
For cruising, fill up the ice box with ice and food, and when the ice has fully melted 4 days later, transfer remaining food to the fridge.
A .7cf fridge is small enough to stow, but holds a respectable amount of food. Especially with no ice in there.
Plastic containers come in handy, and can be bought in sizes that match the fridge dimensions.

And we're only talking about $400.

Also you can use it in your car etc.

http://www.defender.com/product.jsp?path=-1|2276204|2276226|2276228&id=2423633