After I first noticed the Ecoflow Glacier, introduced at last year’s CES, I instantly thought, Nobody wants this. Properly, not nobody. I would like it. However I dwell full-time in an RV. I’m an outlier. Hardly anybody wants a conveyable, battery-powered cooler. Not lengthy after that, I used to be on the seaside in Florida once I noticed two college-aged males struggling over the sand dunes with a large ice maker, semi-portable fridge, and gas-powered generator. I’m fallacious! Folks do want the Ecoflow Glacier. It’s not simply me. The Ecoflow Glacier would have eliminated all of the humor from the scene, but it surely seemingly would have made this group’s spring break a bit simpler.
With an impressively giant storage space, a built-in ice maker, an honest set of wheels, and an optionally available battery, the Ecoflow Glacier is all the pieces it’s good to preserve your meals and drinks cool on a scorching day on the seaside, or a weekend within the woods. It most likely gained’t roll over dunes all that effectively, but it surely’s not too onerous to hold.
Ice Chest
EcoFlow targets the Glacier at full-time RVers, van lifers, and boat house owners, however in case you’ve bought the house and cash, it’s an amazing substitute for an ice chest regardless of the place you reside. It’s an amazing possibility for weekend journeys in case you choose up the battery (offered individually), which is able to permit you to be off the grid for as much as 40 hours (much less when ambient temps are larger). Throw in 200 watts of photo voltaic panels and also you’ll have the ability to have refrigeration practically indefinitely as long as the solar is shining.
Sadly, out of the field, the Ecoflow Glacier can’t cost off photo voltaic, nor do you get the battery. It’s nonetheless a high quality fridge, and the worth is aggressive at $1,000. That will get you the unit itself, 12-V and 120-V chargers, a basket, and a divider. The divider permits you to cut up the principle compartment into fridge and freezer sections. What’s good is that while you’re not utilizing it, the divider tucks neatly up into the lid, out of the way in which.
All the things in regards to the Glacier is extremely effectively designed. The seals are tight, but it surely’s simple to open. It’s gentle sufficient that I can carry it round simply with the included handles (it’s 51 kilos when empty). When you load it up with meals it will get more durable, however two folks can handle it.
The management panel is straightforward to make use of; I by no means needed to learn the guide. Talking of, you don’t get a guide, which is disappointing in a product aimed toward folks going off-grid. You may obtain the guide from Ecoflow, however I’d have most well-liked paper.
{Photograph}: Ecoflow
The Glacier has a 38-liter capability. For reference, that’s about 60 12-ounce cans. You should use it as both a fridge or freezer, setting the temp to wherever between 50 to 32 levels Fahrenheit (10 to 0 levels Celsius) for the fridge mode, and 32 to –13 levels Fahrenheit (0 to 25 levels Celsius) for the freezer mode. For those who use the divider you find yourself with one part that’s 23 liters and one which’s 15. You may then set the temperature independently, with both aspect as a freezer. The Glacier detects when the divider is in place, and robotically gives two temp settings on the display, which is fairly slick.
There may be one catch to the divider. The left aspect could be as a lot as 77 levels Fahrenheit larger than the suitable, however the suitable aspect can solely be 59 levels Fahrenheit larger than the left. This barely unusual limitation most likely gained’t come up for most individuals because it’s onerous to give you a situation the place you’d need that massive of a temperature distinction.
Temperature, together with all the pieces else in regards to the Glacier, could be managed both by means of the app by way of Bluetooth or you’ll be able to add the unit to your Wi-Fi community. For those who don’t wish to use the app, you’ll be able to all the time use the settings panel on the Glacier. There are good massive plus and minus buttons that make it simple to manage all the pieces on the unit. The app is great although and makes a pleasant possibility in case you’re planning to place the Glacier in a drawer in a van or RV.
The restrictions are that the Glacier can’t run straight off photo voltaic panels with out the battery. You’re not powering the Glacier, you’re charging the batteries. Equally, you’ll be able to’t make ice off the 12-V energy provide. You want the battery (or to be plugged into the wall). For these causes, I extremely recommend you purchase the battery, which additionally provides you a bidirectional 100-watt USB-C PD port so you’ll be able to cost devices whereas additionally powering the fridge (powering each off photo voltaic you probably have the panels).
Six Months of Testing
I examined the Ecoflow Glacier for greater than six months and located it delivers on all of Ecoflow’s claims. It cools the quickest of any transportable fridge I’ve ever tried, shockingly effectively, and it held its inside temperature after all the pieces summer time threw at it.
For some context, I dwell full-time on 12-V refrigeration powered by photo voltaic panels. I’ve a Vitrifrigo refrigerator (which I don’t advocate) and an Engle freezer (which I like, though it might be quieter). For many of final summer time, I swapped out the Engle with the Ecoflow Glacier. Ecoflow charges the Glacier able to 40 hours off the 298-watthour battery. That is underneath utterly excellent circumstances with nothing within the fridge. In my real-world testing with ambient temperatures starting from 75 to 85 levels Fahrenheit, the Glacier’s battery held up for practically 24 hours, which is spectacular.
