Alpicool, TotalFreeze CF35 fridge comments

[thegreenman]

Looking to replace our old Dometec cf26 with something a bit bigger, I thought I would give one of these a try. The one I actually bought was a SmartIce unit priced at £199. They all seem to be identical however and the Smartice pairs quite happily with the Alpicool app.

I tested the unit overnight and it certainly cools quickly, but it is a bit noisy. However the real issue for me is the build quality. It feels very flimsy and poorly put together. The lid of the unit already has a small hole in the corner, which looks like a fault with the injection moulding. Also, the control panel is a very cheap ovelay which does not fit the recess properly so has started to fit in the corner.

Another thing I didn't like was the fact that just touching the power button would turn the fridge off immediately. there is no delay at all. Guaranteed to turn the fridge off accidentally when moving it or just reaching past it. Really poor design in my opinion. I will be sending it back and biting the bullet on a Dometic CFX35.

For anyone wanting to take a chance on the cheaper model, The Alpicool CF35 is available for £165 on Amazon at the moment. It's a very good price if wou can live with the shortcomings.

 

[Stargazing]

It sounds like you were sold a lemon with the Alpicool - I have the same model and it has been flawless for well over a year now. There will always be a hum from the fan which will be more noticeable at night, but Mrs Stargazer says it helps tone down my snoring its certainly not excessive though (and my snoring!)
The control panel on mine is solid and requires a firm push to switch the fridge off.
Regarding the plastic, its all solid, so a hole on a corner suggests either a drop before packing, missed quality control or you were sent a previous damaged return.
Hope you get sorted with the Dometic-but with my experience the Alpicool does the job just fine.

 

[OtterCali]

I have a Totalfreeze 35, purchased 2 years ago. Mine also has the small hole in the moulding of the corner of the lid, and I find the fan very noisy (especially in a tent!). I suspect they are all like it.

 

[Ch1pbutty]

We have just sold a totalfreeze 35 - they are good and keep perfect temp, but they are a lot noisier than dometic CFX when the fan kicks in.

The small pinhole on the corner lid is supposed to be there as prevents the lid from expanding in heat, and will allow any condensation to escape (from the lid).

The older style Dometic units were on offer (or mispriced) for £399 on eBay this week, but price has now gone up to £599.

 

[thegreenman]

We have just sold a totalfreeze 35 - they are good and keep perfect temp, but they are a lot noisier than dometic CFX when the fan kicks in.

The small pinhole on the corner lid is supposed to be there as prevents the lid from expanding in heat, and will allow any condensation to escape (from the lid).

The older style Dometic units were on offer (or mispriced) for £399 on eBay this week, but price has now gone up to £599.

They are also £399 pn amazon.
Interesting about the pin hole. It doesn't look clean enough to be intentional so I assumed it was damaged. I could probably live with the noise, but not the control panel misalignment and it peeling off