Ideas for keeping food cold when camping in Pop up!

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MkesAnderson

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Joined
Jun 14, 2014
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6
My family and I plan on camping with a popup for 5-7 days at a time. We have a very healthy diet because I have a son with a disease where he is allergic to most foods so the foods he does eat need to be fresh. (Veggies, fruits, meats). The pop up we are hoping to get has a tiny little fridge which obviously isn't going to hold the food. Are there electric coolers and freezers made
For camping and such? Just need some ideas!
 
Will you have access to electricity? Back when we had a pop-up, I used a dorm fridge. We just tucked it under the end of the camper on a couple of planks to keep it off the ground.
 
I do not recall if I got the Dorm Fridge in my PUP days or after I got the hard trailer, but think it was in the PUP days.

With the doors tied shut (For safety) they will stay cold for 8 hours or more on the road, then you plug in.

In my case I used ice chests and bought ice (like it was going out of style in August) till the park started charging 4.00/day for electricity.. Well I averaged over 2x that in ice purchases.. Spent a hundred bucks (Back then) on the dorm fridge at sears and started making my own ice for drinks (2 trays) and not using the chests,  Food was better (Epically lunchmeat) and everythign was good.. When I got the class A I sold the fridge to some Truck campers who continued the same as I did.. Worked great.

The only special recommendation I'd make is something to set it on outside the RV. a couple of planks or a square of 3/4 inch plywood just a bit bigger than the bottom of the fridge.. They need not be level but.. it's nice and that keeps the feet cleaner.
 
Yes we will only stay at places with electric since my son also has a feeding tube and pump. I know they have plug in coolers... I just don't know of anyone who has one to ask what they think.
 
Having recently owned an Aliner and being a vegan, I understand your question.  What we did was to load the refrigerator as much as possible with non-bulky items and in my pick-up bed we carried Coleman coolers, for the bulky items and food items that would not fit in the refrigerator.  Depending on the length of the trip, determined which size and how many (up to 3) coolers we brought.  Of course that meant replenishing ice and having to paw through the ice to retrieve food.  Another strategy we employed is using the fridge for as much of the bare essentials, a small cooler for drinks and making more frequent visits to a local grocery store.
 
I have a Coleman electric cooler that works quite well.

http://www.coleman.com/Products/8570/thermoelectric-coolers#
 
I had a 12 volt cooler.  Turns out they only cool 30 degrees cooler than the outdoor air.  Not the best .for your needs.  I'd go with the dorm fridge with a real compressor
 
PS, what ever you get, if using it outside, lock it up with lashing straps or something to confound the raccoons who are notorious for shopping out of outside coolers and fridges.  ;D
 
I used a small (Office/Dorm size) Fridge when I trailerd, Do not recall if I used it with the PUP or not but it would have fit, Just, in teh PUP,  It was the last thing I put in the Scamp (I remember that) I'd plug it in a day before we left,, Wife would fill it, I'd set it in just before I hooked it up...  I had some cargo straps on it to act as handles and to tie the door shut.. There are nicer ways to latch the door.

When we got the "A" one of the first trips out I met some fellow ham radio opeartors, They had a pickup camper and they liked the idea,, Fit perfectly in their Camper too.  Works great.  (They bought mine) 

Lunchmeat comes out just like at home,, We made ice for drinks (2 trays) instead of buying it, and the reason I got it is one campground started charging for Electricity, I figured "if they gonna charge for it, Im' going to use it"  Where I used to buy up to 3 or 4 bags of ice a day (Hotter months) I now paid 4.00 a night for power... He He He.
 
When we first started camping back in the early 80"s the pop up we purchased only had a ice box. We purchased a tall dorm style fridge and it was the last thing that went in before closing the bed slides. They slid right over the top of the fridge.
 
I have a combo freezer/fridge 12 v with an adapter for electric. I kept it under the table in our pop up. I understand the problems involved with traveling with special needs, we do home hemo dialysis while traveling and living full time in our 5th wheel. I admire your willingness to not let the problems stop your child from experiencing the great outdoors.
 
A high quality cooler such as a Yeti, and DRY ICE will keep food cold a very long time.
 
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