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TC-14FL (14L), TC-35FL (33L), TC-21FL (20L)Pros
Small, compact
Affordable
Designed for both warm and cool food or drinks
Cons
Maintains food temperature, rather than altering it
CherylMurray Region, NSW
- 5 reviews
Better than expected
Bought Waeco Cool Pro 14 litre and lent it to my truck driver son while his truck fridge was being repaid. He said apart from size was it was as good as his truck fridge/freezer. Kept drinks and food at a good temperature. Doesn't use much batter to keep it running.
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Big Lemon
Bought 21/02/2015. Used once, fishing out of Port Lincoln for 4 days, temp 18 to 20 degrees. Result, a box of rotten fish. What attracted me to the "cooler" was the notes on the box, from "0" degrees. I doubt that this would get anywhere near zero.
I sent it back in October to have it checked. I would have sent it back earlier except my friend, who I left the fish with, did not inform me of the state of the fish until October. Result working ok. I explained that this would not suit the purpose I bought it for to no avail.
Told to use ice packs. It now turns out to be a very expensive esky, which I could have bought at Bunnings for less than $90.00.
NOT HAPPY.
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Grahamw29NORTH SYDNEY
- 12 reviews
Good performance and value for money
I have had the Waeco 35 litre model cooler for one year now and it has proven to be excellent. I purchased the fridge from Super Cheap Auto, Acacia Ridge, Brisbane. Summers in Queensland get very hot but the Waeco has not failed to keep drinks as cold as the household fridge. In fact, beer bottles stored closer to the inside fan unit get colder, faster in the Waeco. The fridge runs off 12 volt, 24 volt, or 240 volt without the need of any external transformer, just plug in the cable, and turn it on.
The 35-litre space is adequate for storin...Read more
g drinks right up to the largest size bottle as well as food and fruit but it is not a freezer. A removable lattice-style plastic divider acts as a separator in the fridge. An external fan acts to draw away heat from the fridge while an internal fan blows the cold air around the contents inside. It is important NOT to block either of these fans. Allowing plenty of ventilation around the fridge is important and the internal fan needs space to spread the cold around evenly. When the set temperature is reached, a thermostat turns the motor off to save electricity and prevent the contents from getting too cold. A fridge thermometer placed inside stayed at the lower end of the blue “safe” reading mark on the dial when the room temperature was 32 degrees centigrade in Brisbane. The fridge temperature was set to 5 lights out of the maximum of 7. I tried the 7 setting but it was too cold however, it is nice to have the extra available. I found butter, milk, cheese, meat, and drinks stored in the fridge have been the same as if stored in the household fridge as the fridge thermometer showed the temperature in the safe range. There are photographs of this but there does not seem to be any way to upload them into this review. The TC-35L does not require being on a totally level surface, so as long as the fan vents are not blocked, they can be strapped onto the back seat of the car. An advantage of the thermo-electric fridges is weight. The TC-35L weighs in at 10 kg empty which is comparable to an icebox. The larger compressor fridges, or those with metal cabinets, are too heavy for me to lift, particularly when filled. I like the design and solid build of the Waeco. The lid and handles seem quite strong and the outside casing cleans with a damp cloth. The plastic construction has the advantage of preventing rust problems. I bought a battery-powered, Coleman automatic fridge light attached to the inside of the cabinet below the door hinge. An infrared sensor turns five LED lights on automatically when opening the door. It is a great accessory for extra convenience and the light makes it look like house fridge lighting inside.Similar opinion? Write a review on ieatwords.com.au!
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great little coolers
I own two waeco's a tc-35fl and a 12lt. all I can say are they are great and have never let me down. I bought them second hand on ebay. I do alot of camping mainly on moreton island. I use the 35 as a drinks fridge and the 12 as a day tripper when out and about. I also have a 90lt fridge/freezer in another brand to look after the food side of things. for what they are and the price new, they do a great job and are well worth it. I have never noticed any great draw or load on my batteries from the waeco's
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lynian
- 2 reviews
We would not be without it.
We have had ours for two years and would not be without it. We plug this in the 240 power point the night before we want to use it, and it is always ready to use in the morning. It keeps our drinks cold for us the next day. When we put the thermometer in it we always get it to 0-5 degrees, have also kept butter, milk and meat in it and they have kept cold enough.
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Marcus
- 4 reviews
- 6 likes
Garbage
absalute garbage, it takes at least 12hrs running to cool down. Don't waste your money and buy a fridge/freezer. Disappointed Waeco has created this rubbish.
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Very good
We borrowed my sisters waeco from Newcastle on a Xmas trip from Brisbane to Perth about four years ago and encountered temps in the 40's in SW NSW. Ran flawlessly, kept food and drinks cold, as cold as a shop fridge. Do not know if it ran continuously as it was in the back of a packed Territory and we could not hear it. Held temp with the car not running for hours including milk although when staying somewhere overnight we ran it on 240v to keep things cool. I am now looking at purchasing a unit of our own to take on a trip to Darwin mid year.
Kept drinks to nice cold drinking temp.
None
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Neil.W59AU
- 4 reviews
- 2 likes
Save your Money - get a real fridge/freezer
This Waeco is a waste of space. It doesn't cool as much as stated and struggled to keep things even chilled in the back of a vehicle in winter. Save the money and spend it on a small fridge/freezer as even in winter if it doesn't chill to 4 degrees it is a health hazard for anything other than cans of drink.
Didn't cope in the back of a car in winter.
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Moree, nswMoree
Excellent product
I really wasn't sure to buy one because there's a lot of negative reviews on the net. I end up buying one of waeco seconds site for $120, best choice I made. It sits in my truck to keep drinks and lunch cold. I run it for about 14hrs a day. I put a thermometer inside and always reads between 0-5 degres cold. Recommend it to any one in a truck or tractor
Very cheap $120
Could of have a digital temperature.
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sturtdesertsydney
- 2 reviews
- 2 likes
Waeco TC-14FL thermoelectric cooler
Does exactly what it is supposed to - cools food close to 30deg C below ambient temperature. I have tested it half-full at +22.5 deg C, and it pulled the temp down to +5 deg C. It will without a doubt struggle at an ambient temp upwards of +30. This test was conducted at maximum cooling setting. Great for keeping your beer cool, or sandwiches for a picnic etc, but will not be suitable to use for camping for keeping milk/meat etc at a safe temp. Otherwise, a fantastic little cooler. Note also this will drain your car battery far more readily than a compressor portable fridge.
Compact, cools effectively in moderate ambient temperatures, quality construction.
Not effective in high ambient temperatures besides cooling beer/drink/sandwiches etc.
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Mr Mojo Risin'CHATSWOOD
- 6 reviews
- 12 likes
Comments apply to all Thermoelectric models & brands basically.
Thermoelectric coolers/warmers, of any brand, should be treated as the most...Hmmm, basic portable electric powered cooling devices that are readily available for purchase. Their benefits are that they are much lighter than compressor fridges, and Hmmm, "cheaper"...The models with the warming function, do work quite well in that mode, but apart from that...I really can't get too excited talking about them. I own 4 different sized Waeco thermoelectrics. Two older models and two current "FL" series. None were purchased new. They do fill a role fo...Read more
r the occasional day tripping outing, or for long car trips, but if you're thinking of getting one for camping holidays for more than a day or two, think again. This is not a fault with Waeco or Engel or whatever brand by the way...In general, their energy efficiency is very very very poor, they will suck your car's battery dry in less than a day, their fans can be noisy, but worst of all, on a warm day, their "cooling best" is barely good enough...On a hot day, or worse still inside a closed, parked car for a couple of hours or more, forget about your "cold drink" waiting for you on your return. Think very carefully about buying one new, especially the TC-35FL, only because its RRP is TOO much $$$ to spend. Put a some more bucks towards one of their MANY compressor fridges, available in 11/18/25/35/40/50/60/80 & 110 litre capacities. They are a far far better proposition. Cheaper than compressor fridges, & lighter. Hot box function works well. Very poor performance as a "fridge" in our climate. Massively power hungry on a hot day. (They'll run constantly)Similar opinion? Write a review on ieatwords.com.au!
hopalong
- 2 reviews
OK
we bought this unit to save loading our bigger waeco for day trips and considering the price of $159..00 plus "freebie" from a*** C**** we are happy with our cooler,we run this from an aux.battery,so battery drain when stopped is not a problem,great carry handle,"esky like".we have'nt tried the heating function (65 degrees)? yet, but should be good for bringing home the takeaways.
good sturdy unit,does the job of keeping our day trip goodies cold(given a nice mild day) The power connectors location actually force you to leave enough space for v...Read more
1 comment
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Questions & Answers
Tom jasked
Keeps clicking on 240v & doesn’t start.But works on 12 volt
No answers
Zita S.asked
I have Waeco 12v car fridge model TC 18UG-12, is the internal fan for cooling or heating (or both) and the
internal fan is not turning, can someone give me a spill on this pls?
No answers
Zita S.asked
I have a 12v Waeco car fridge Model number TC 18UG-12. External fan runs, internal fan does not. Is it supposed to run on heating or cooling?
No answers
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claire ensor
i have this type of fridge on my boat. a milk container spilt, and to my horror the printed circuit boards are not protected from the inside of the fridge. Inside the fridge after it had blown up, s... Read more
omeone had put a sticker saying not to put liquids inside it. Many boat owners would put ice into their fridges to prolong their life. My fridge is now dead and I cant find out how to get it mended if that is possible.