At 09:15 PM 6/30/2009, Paul Chubbuck wrote:
>Does anyone on the list have experience with those Coleman DC coolers?

Me.

>It is said to cool down 40 degrees below ambient.

On a good day, with your mouth held just right...nah.  35 maybe?  It
performs noticeably better if you use a much higher-capacity fan and
open things out to get some serious airflow across the external heat
exchanger.  I left the original motor just powering the internal fan.

>   Do you think it is as well
>insulated as a normal ice chest?

I think likely as good as a regular one.

>   It would be great on travel days, but much
>of the time when I'm camping, I won't be running the engine, or have
>sufficient battery power to keep it plugged in.  Do you think it would
>continue to keep things cool if there was ice in it?

I've got (I think) an Igloo I could compare it with -- chunk of ice
in each and see how it keeps.  Give me a few days.

  --
David Beierl - Providence RI USA -- http://pws.prserv.net/synergy/Vanagon/
'89 Po' White Star "Scamp"