Koolatron Compact KoolerBrand: Koolatron
Part Number: P-20WH
Manufacturer: Koolatron
Model: P20
Features:
- Designed to fit behind a car, truck, or van seat
- Cooling system plugs into your vehicle's 12-volt cigarette lighter
- Keeps contents 40 degrees F cooler than outside temperature
- Foldaway handle swings out for carrying
- Weighs 9 pounds and carries 23 12-ounce soft drinks
The Koolatron P20 Compact 12V Cooler from Koolatron was specially designed to fit in those tight spaces between and behind the seats of your car, van or truck. A 12-Volt cooling unit plugs into your vehicles cigarette lighter. Koolatron P20 compact cooler can be set to keep your food up to 40C colder than the outside temperature. The Compact Cooler has a capacity of 18 quarts, enough space to hold 23 12 oz. soft drink cans. Its latch-less lid can be opened with one hand and also features a swinging foldaway handle for easy carrying. Other features include a unique cord wrap, lighter storage spot and interior fan. The 12v Compact Cooler can be plugged into any vehicle cigarette lighter providing 12 Volts DC, or converted to operate on 110V or 220V AC with an AC Adapter (sold separately). Ideal 12v DC Appliance in your car. A long life brush less motor powers an interior convection fan, keeping air flowing through all parts of the koolatron P20 compact cooler. If you want your food to stay warm, no problem! 12v Compact Cooler can also act as a warmer.
Coolers are usually large and unwieldy, which is why Koolatron developed the Compact Kooler, specially designed to fit in the snug spaces behind the seats of many cars, trucks, and vans. Like many of Koolatron's coolers, this unit features a 12-volt cooling system that plugs into a car's cigarette lighter. The cooler's motor blows cold air over your food and beverages, keeping them 40 degrees F cooler than the outside temperature. The cooler also doubles as a warmer, if you'd rather keep the contents toasty. Outside of the car or truck, the cooler is still versatile, with a swinging, foldaway handle for easy portage and a latchless lid that opens with one hand. Other handy features include a convenient cord wrap and a unique storage spot for the unplugged cigarette lighter. Despite the unit's compact size and weight (only 9 pounds), it can still hold up to 23 12-ounce soft drinks. --Rivers Janssen
Before a recent road trip we decided to invest in a portable fridge/cooler, which we could use to help us save money on buying milk and other items for our 2 year old. After researching a number of coolers I decided to go with the Koolatron Compact Cooler based on the other reviews.
Before embarking on our trip, I pre-cooled the cooler as instructed in the owner's manual. One thing to keep in mind is that the cooler does NOT come with an adapter, which will allow you to cool the unit outside of a vehicle. I purchased the 5 Amp AC to 12V DC Power Adapter and had great success pre-cooling the cooler. The adapter never got really hot even after over 12 hours of being plugged in.
I filled the cooler to the max and plugged it in our car. Our road trip lasted over 12 hours and all the items in the cooler remained icy cold. On the trip back home the cooler was empty, so I didn't pre-cool the cooler. However, after making a few stops I had a few items to put in the cooler. After having the cooler plugged in the car for a few hours, without pre-cooling, I felt that the items kept cool enough and eventually became icy cold.
The bottom line here is that you probably want to pre-cool the cooler ahead of time, but if you have something already cold you can get away without having to pre-cool. If you are throwing in some items like cans of soda, which are room temperature you definitely want to pre-cool.
I only had two minor issues with the cooler, which prevented me from awarding it with 5 stars.
1. As previously mentioned, the cooler does not come with an adapter (AC), which will allow you to power the unit outside of a vehicle. The owner's manual specifically mentions that you should pre-cool the unit, but if you were to buy the cooler before reading reviews you would not know this bit of information ahead of time. I think Koolatron would be better off increasing the price of the cooler and including the adapter, since most people are going to need to buy this accessory.
2. The fridge is somewhat noisy or at least the fan is anyway. When you are riding in a car the sound is somewhat negligible, but if you are staying in a hotel overnight the sound of the fan spinning may keep you up. I was able to get around this by plugging in the fridge inside the bathroom and closing the door, which muffled the noise to the point where it was not noticeable.
Despite the two minor issues I mentioned, I am very happy with the purchase and I would make the same decision if I had to do it all over again.