Hi, all -

I haven't been around much lately, mostly because I've been getting ready to go hunting (my newest hobby) this summer.

One thing that every warm-climate hunter seems to struggle with is keeping the harvested game cool while transporting it from the field to the meat processor, a trip that can commonly last several hours. Given my penchant for outrageous projects, I started thinking about a way to add cooling to the truck bed for keeping meet cool during this trip.

Any opinions on the viability/effectiveness/efficiency of adding some form of refrigeration to the truck bed? I'm thinking of some cooling coils (and a pump, of course) mounted below a platform, and a fan to blow across the coils. As I think of it, I suppose I could even put a small commercial refrigerator in the bed, providing that it can be laid down with the door opening up. I'm obviously just spitballing on ideas here, but I'm curious about what the garage and workshop cognoscenti might think of such an idea.

I already have a healthy power inverter in the bed of the truck, so there's plenty of electricity available. Any fancy ideas?

 

small chest freezer mounted in the front of the bed. Voltage inverter mounted somewhere out of the way. I think Cabellas already sells 12 volt coolers, though. Fortunately for me, I live in cold country, and hunting season doesn't start til Sept. Which, may I add, can't wait.

 

Find an old veterinary box, they are refrigeratedwith all kind of storage room and access, and removeable.

 

If a cooler is designed to sit upright, the refrigeration systems oil will not be in the right place in the compressor if you lay it down, also the way the coils and piping are arranged so that oil will not get trapped within the tubing.

Idea: small chest style freezer and a honda generator(cause they are quite).

 

How about a window mount air conditioner with the thermostat swapped out for one that goes a bit colder? It could be built into an insulated box that slides into the bed camper- style.

I've seen trailers rigged up like this for use as portable coolers for catering.

 

Window a/c's are no different from home a/c in the fact that they are designed to cool an area within a set temperature range, so swapping the thermosts out for one that will go colder will not work because it will cause the evaporator coil to freeze up. Basicaly there is a heat exchange between teh air and the refrigerant at the evap. coil, the refrigerant is usally 25-30 degrees cooler than the return air temp (provided unit has been running and conditioning the space) so if you are trying to use an a/c unit to cool and area cooler than it is designed it will cause the refrigeration temps to dip close to or below the freezing point of water and it will cause the condensation to freeze on the coil.

Freezers, refrigerators, and coolers account for this and have a defrost system in them.

 

If you want to buy something that exists, here are two of many choices:

http://store.altenergystore.com/Ener...source=froogle

http://www.bigfrogmountain.com/engel/Engel%2065.htm

Since you have an inverter, you could just buy a top-door meat freezer and plug it in. We have one in the basement, and it's smaller than a refrigerator turned on it's side.

Another option is to acquire a top door freezer, and remove the electric motor and install a pulley, a belt, to a 3.5HP B&S gas engine you pull off a mower someone tossed to the curb.

Many ways of doing this. Personally, I'd not bother trying to run cooling lines, condensers, and other parts when you can buy a nicely insulated freezer and have significantly less aggrevation.

 

A defrost timer can be added easily. A simple timer set to turn the unit off for a 30minutes to an hour every 6-12 hours would probably do it. If your using a generator then run it 4 hours on / 4 off or something similar

 

Man, way too complex. Make an insulated box in the bed, use 2" foam sheet (you can glue, stack, and carve this stuff to make it look good too), build in a small second section vented to the main chamber with two 12v computer fans at the bottom, and small vent at the top into the main chamber, put as large a block of dry ice in there as you can fit, plug in the fans, and let it circulate. This can be done without the fans, but there will be a larger temperature difference between the ends of the main chamber.

 

Boats have refrigeration units that are adapted to all sorts of strange shapes and spaces.
http://www.westmarine.com/webapp/wcs...man/asc/0/grid
It can be pricey.

Also look at Boats U.S.

 

Biggest problem here is the the compressor isn't belt driven, they are direct drive. The motor is encased in a steel housing with the compressor immersed in the refrigerant oil.

 

Aaaaah. Mine is belt driven, hence my idea

I know this because I had to replace the belt last april. Oh well!

 

Wow, great idea sixman,

What if a person just stopped by the local recycle center and picked up a old chestype freezer for free , avoiding the labor /costs of building one ? The weight would help for rear end traction it seems to me when offroading, pu/s are bad for light rear ends losing traction.


On edit.
Just a reminder for this good thread for hunters. Whenever using or building anything airtight for refrigeration large enough for a child to get in to, there is a danger of children playing in them and getting suffocated. This is one of the reasons we have a law here for our trashed refrigerators being put on the streets. All doors must be removed before putting them out on the curb for city pickup.

 

I haven't seen any regular fridges and freezers with a belt drive yet, just commercial units on occasion. I recycle appliances, and take the compressors off, split them and separate the parts, copper windings on the electric motor, press the crank out, and separate the cast iron and aluminum.

 

You want simple??
We've cooled a moose carcass down by covering the truck bed with a wet bedsheet then driving around slowly to get the water to evaporate.

Stop for appropriate beverage....rewet the bedsheet (with water :-)) , continue driving. Our huntcamp has enough bush roads around it to do this for several hours without ever meeting any traffic.