Peltier coolers

[Zephod]

Has anybody else played with them?

I had a go. Initially I got one side to get really cool while the other became ludicrously hot. Then both sides heated up. Not quite what I was expecting. I measured the hot side to be in excess of 200F and the cool side after initially being 7 degrees cooler than ambient then rose to 129F or 40F over ambient.

I'm pretty sure that's not how they're supposed to work but to be honest I find most of these tech toys are trash.

I blogged about it here...
http://www.schoolbushome.blogspot.com


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[Iceni John]

It sounds like yours is kaput.   When I used to go dry-camping far up sandy washes and canyons in the Anza-Borrego Desert some years ago I used a Peltier-type camping cooler running directly off a small Arco solar panel, and it kept food very cool for as long as we were out there, sometimes for almost a week or so.   With no moving parts and minimal power draw it was probably the most reliable thing we had with us!   Does any company still make these coolers now?   With a cooler like that and a sun shower I had all the comforts of home a long way from home.

John

[Zephod]

It sounds like yours is kaput.   When I used to go dry-camping far up sandy washes and canyons in the Anza-Borrego Desert some years ago I used a Peltier-type camping cooler running directly off a small Arco solar panel, and it kept food very cool for as long as we were out there, sometimes for almost a week or so.   With no moving parts and minimal power draw it was probably the most reliable thing we had with us!   Does any company still make these coolers now?   With a cooler like that and a sun shower I had all the comforts of home a long way from home.

John

Yup. Pretty well new too. Like I said... most of these tech things are utter trash. I shocked somebody the other day with my miserable experience of the led lighting scam. They thought led lighting was fantastic until I listed all the led trash that's failed on me.


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[belfert]

Yes, these coolers are still being made.  The biggest issue with the coolers is they generally can only drop the temperature about 40 F lower than the temperature outside the cooler.

[belfert]

Yup. Pretty well new too. Like I said... most of these tech things are utter trash. I shocked somebody the other day with my miserable experience of the led lighting scam. They thought led lighting was fantastic until I listed all the led trash that's failed on me.

My entire house is lit with LED bulbs since 2014.  Not a single LED bulb has failed on me yet.  I tend to buy bulbs that are well rated and not necessarily the cheapest ones.

[Zephod]

My entire house is lit with LED bulbs since 2014.  Not a single LED bulb has failed on me yet.  I tend to buy bulbs that are well rated and not necessarily the cheapest ones.

I've had 6 led household bulbs of which 4 failed quickly. They either went out totally or turned into disco strobes. Led flashlights/lanterns either fall apart or last about as long as the first set of batteries.

I won't ever throw more money away on led household bulb trash. As far as motorhome lighting is concerned, I'm a bit screwed. I can't find any lanterns with krypton bulbs any more. I'm stuck with paying $10 for an led lantern then tossing it fairly soon into the second set of batteries.


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[Brassman]

The LED should have an intrinsically low failure rate due to the physics of the thing. I experienced some failures as an early adopter, but no more. They are rock solid!

If one wants to open a discussion/can-of-worms it would be about the light spectrum output of LEDs.

[Zephod]

The LED should have an intrinsically low failure rate due to the physics of the thing. I experienced some failures as an early adopter, but no more. They are rock solid!

If one wants to open a discussion/can-of-worms it would be about the light spectrum output of LEDs.

Umm... and the pathetic output of most led lanterns....

Would you believe they actually call things with an output of less than 1000 lumens a lantern? They're horribly designed too. Most are designed to blind rather than illuminate because manufacturers know the public thinks blinding is brightness. All blinding is, is a low power unshielded led. They're not bright enough to see anything with any clarity.

I have one expensive GE lantern. It's badly made and produces three light levels... dim, barely visible and I know there's a lantern somewhere. The first thing to break was the handle! That has a diffused output and a comforting incandescent warm color. My others are blue jokes.

Yes, leds should have low failure rates as an actual component. They're probably way over driven to get extra brightness out of the cheapest of the cheap and I think the circuitry fails first. Hence my household bulbs that mainly turn into disco strobes before I chuck them out.




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[j.m.jackson]

Zephod,

On the peltier, did you have a heatsink and fan on the hot side to dissipate the heat that it was moving?

[Zephod]

Zephod,

On the peltier, did you have a heatsink and fan on the hot side to dissipate the heat that it was moving?

I have heatsinks both sides. I suspect I should have put a much bigger heatsink on the hot side. No fan... it's just a little plaything I built to amuse myself with.

I have wondered whether a roof hatch replaced by a big heatsink and a little chimney roof to promote natural airflow over the heatsink plus Peltier elements, all powered by roof mounted solar panels would work for cooling a bus. I don't have roof hatches so I can't experiment (and my wallet thanks me).


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[j.m.jackson]

Peltier junctions work, but if they're not cooled properly, they burn up like any other silicon in short order, and then just make heat on both sides.

[windtrader]

LED technology is advancing rapidly and I believe a lot of the stuff sold at discount is old designed stuff just being dumped. I've experienced same as you, poor light distribution, poor durability, etc. If you buy the newest stuff, it is quite nice lighting, color temperature, and durability thus far. I even have one that has the look of the very old incandescent lights, really cool.

[kyle4501]

I put some 12v LED strip lights in my coach. We love them. Almost instant on & a nice, bright warm light. Almost 2 years & no problems.

[Zephod]

The reason I'm sticking with lanterns is that it's easier than running cable. That and it gives the bus an old west feel.


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[muldoonman]

The reason I'm sticking with lanterns is that it's easier than running cable. That and it gives the bus an old west feel.


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Go kerosene lanterns and complete the feel.