EcoFlow Glacier Evaluation: Good moveable cooling

Verdict

Whether or not you need further space for storing for drinks at a celebration, you need a picnic companion, or a fridge-freezer for travelling, the EcoFlow Glacier does all of it. It has versatile space for storing, and is usually a fridge, a freezer or each; a helpful ice maker; and it might run from an non-obligatory battery for off-grid cooling. Nice for shorter-term storage of recent and frozen foods and drinks, my solely actual criticism is that the helpful deal with and wheels set are an costly non-obligatory further.

Introduction

Whether or not you’re tenting, on a picnic or just internet hosting a celebration at dwelling, having sufficient cooling for meals and drinks will be a problem, until you will have the Ecoflow Glacier, that’s. A transportable fridge/freezer, this intelligent contraption can cool, freeze and even make ice.

Even higher, it might work off-grid by way of its battery (chargeable by way of photo voltaic), if it’s good to go someplace with out energy.

Design and options

• One giant compartment or two smaller ones
• Built-in ice maker
• App managed

Trying like a small chest freezer, the Ecoflow Glacier is a gorgeous little fridge with a 38-litre capability. It comes with two giant carry handles, so it may be moved round the home, or from dwelling to automobile (and automobile to tenting website), comparatively simply.

It’s a slight disgrace the non-obligatory wheels and pull deal with aren’t supplied as commonplace, and are a £109 improve. In the event you’re primarily going to make use of this for picnics and tenting, then the wheels seem to be an necessity, or it’s possible you’ll be higher off with the Anker EverFrost, which has this as commonplace.

Flip open the lid and also you get entry to the within. This has simply over half the area taken up by a wire basket, with the rest open up. It’s helpful having the wire basket, as I might raise out many of the gadgets, making the fridge simpler to hold to its vacation spot.

A complete of 38-litres of area is an effective quantity: it matches a load of soppy drinks and beers, when you simply need a drinks cooler. I managed to get some 2-litre bottles in there, too, though they have to be put in at a slight angle to get the lid to close.

On this mode, the EcoFlow Glacier can set a goal temperature utilizing the controls on the entrance. It may be set between -25°C and 10°C, going between a freezer and a fridge.

Nevertheless, EcoFlow additionally gives a divider within the lid, which slots into place subsequent to the wire basket. With this in place, the Glacier has two individually controllable climates, so it may be a fridge and a freezer unexpectedly.

There are some limitations on this mode. First, it’s beneficial that the left-hand compartment (the one with the basket) is about because the freezer, and the right-hand compartment set because the fridge. On this configuration, the fridge compartment is as much as 15°C hotter than the freezer zone.

Sometimes, I’d set freezers at -18°C and fridges at 5°C. Right here, to compromise and take into consideration the compelled temperature distinction, I set the freezer to -11°C and the fridge to 4°C. As such, on this mode, the EcoFlow Glacier isn’t actually very best for long-term storage of meals, though that’s probably not what it’s designed for.

Nonetheless, having this flexibility is nice. I might pack a load of ice lollies alongside some drinks for a picnic.

I really like the ice maker on the EcoFlow Glacier. Fill the compartment with water as much as the road, after which the management panel lets you choose giant or small ice cubes, which can take between eight and 20 minutes to make, relying on the chosen dimension and temperature of the water.

An ice-making session creates 18 cubes, and a full tank of water is sufficient for 4 goes. On the finish of the method, the ice cubes detach and will be lifted out of the tank, prepared to be used.

In addition to utilizing the bodily controls, the EcoFlow Glacier can be app-controlled utilizing the EcoFlow app. This is similar app for the corporate’s different merchandise, together with the EcoFlow Blade robotic garden mower.

From the app, I might management temperatures and activate the ice-making perform, in addition to monitor the charging standing.

Battery and charging

• Works off-grid with non-obligatory battery pack
• Will be photo voltaic charged

Though the mains can energy the EcoFlow Glacier, it additionally takes an non-obligatory 298Wh battery pack (£299). This may be charged in-situ or by way of its USB-C 100W enter/output. As soon as linked, the battery can run the EcoFlow Glacier for as much as 40-hours, relying on the setting and ambient temperature.

Activate the freezer perform, and battery life will drop right down to round 10 hours of use – that’s nonetheless sufficient for a picnic. With the EcoFlow Glacier set to a temperature of 5°C, I discovered that it lasted previous the 40-hour mark, though that was within the Trusted Critiques testing lab, which stays cool all-year spherical.

Simply pay attention to utilizing the ice maker in battery mode. I discovered that making giant ice cubes used 8% of the battery.

With the battery put in, the EcoFlow Glacier can be utilized with photo voltaic panels as much as 240W. These will energy the fridge and cost the battery; if the voltage drops, then the Glacier runs off the battery.

The battery pack is rated to final 800 cost cycles till it hits 80% cost. That’s comparatively low in comparison with extra up-to-date battery packs, such because the EcoFlow Delta 2, which can final for 3000 cycles till the battery is at 80% capability.

That stated, the battery within the Glacier is probably going for use loads much less incessantly than a battery station. And, whilst you might use a battery energy station to maintain the fridge operating, the built-in battery is a far neater answer. In the event you usually wish to use the Glacier away from an influence socket, then it’s an honest improve.

Lastly, EcoFlow gives a automobile energy cable within the field, which lets the Glacier run from a 12V energy socket – helpful if you wish to maintain the fridge cool whilst you transport it in a automobile or whereas tenting. This set-up also can top-up the battery, however the charging algorithm prioritises retaining the Glacier operating first, and charging the battery second.

Efficiency

• Good for short-term storage
• Barely increased temperature fluctuations than on a daily fridge/freezer
• Decrease operating prices in fridge-only mode

Though small and compact, the EcoFlow Glacier isn’t essentially the most environment friendly fridge freezer. Setting the freezer to -11°C and the fridge to 4°C, I estimated that the Glacier would price £38.73 a yr to run. As a comparability, the Hisense RS818N4TFE fridge-freezer prices round £80.75 a yr to run, and it’s received a complete capability of 632 litres: greater than 16 instances the dimensions of the Glacier.

Run the Glacier as a fridge solely, and I discovered that operating prices would drop right down to round £38.73 a yr.

With the Glacier in fridge/freezer mode, I took temperature readings to see how properly temperatures have been maintained. On common, the fridge recorded a temperature of 4.7°C (0.7°C increased than the focused temperature). With a most of 11.2°C and a minimal of two.2°C, temperature variance is slightly increased than with a daily fridge. Commonplace deviation confirmed that temperatures largely fluctuated between +/-1.23°C. That’s not horrible, significantly for a conveyable fridge, which can primarily be used for short-term storage.

With the freezer, I discovered that the common temperature was -7.8°C, in opposition to a set temperature of -11°C. Commonplace deviation confirmed that temperatures largely fluctuated +/-1.57°C. At this degree, the Glacier is sweet for short-term storage of issues like ice lollies and short-term meals storage, however I’d positively use a daily freezer for longer-term storage.

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