What size small freezer for truck bed for elk?

[Marshfly]

It would be really nice if someone could make a refrigeration unit that could be retrofitted into a 150 qt cooler. You'd be a millionaire. We use our 150's to store gear on the way out and haul meat on the way in. About 10 -1 lb packs of dry ice in each one freezes the meat overnite in 70 plus degree weather and gets you home without thawing in 90 plus degree heat .

That is made for boats. It's called a chiller plate or freezer plate. For offshore you just dump a bunch of seawater in the box and it gets slushy. Sweet as hell. But highly maintenance intensive. The issue is they are designed to use a water exchange with raw water to shed the heat pulled from the unit.

TLDR, it's going to be way more expensive than a 7cuft freezer and it will require similar power.

 

[IAm_Not_Lost]

I wasn't disagreeing with you. More agreeing with you. haha

Gotchya! Yeah, we made the switch to a fridge in the truck about 7 years ago, and camping is 50% easier not having to deal with ice and soggy food. I’ve always got cold beverages in there.

 

[Marshfly]

Gotchya! Yeah, we made the switch to a fridge in the truck about 7 years ago, and camping is 50% easier not having to deal with ice and soggy food. I’ve always got cold beverages in there.

100%. This spring turkey hunting and such. Having a gallon of cold water, a few snacks like cheese or whatever, a couple of Le Croixs, and a couple of beers all nice and cold sure made life nice.

 

[NRA4LIFE]

FWIW, I have found that if the meat is cut, wrapped and froze you can get about 30 lbs per cubic feet, maybe a bit more if unfrozen.

 

[Wheels]

Just curious, how long does it take to freeze a boned out elk in a deep freeze? Considering ditching the coolers also and getting a 7cu/ft freezer. I’ve got a Honda 2200 to run it, just wondering how long it would take to freeze before making a 2 day drive home.

 

[Blockcaver]

I run a 5 cf freezer bought 8 years ago at Costco or an ancient 12 cf Maytag chest freezer with a Honda EU1000i generator. No issues. Neither of mine draw much power. YMMV. I have a Honda EU2000i as well but prefer the 1000 watt unit as it is smaller and lighter to deal with.

Use the smaller freezer for sheep, deer, caribou etc. Even just barely fit a Tule elk I cut up and vacuum sealed at the ranch in California (2/3 the size of a Rocky). Drove back to British Columbia in 100* F heat without needing to run the generator as the meat stayed frozen, but started with it frozen rock solid on the day and a half trip.

The 12 cf freezer holds a vacuum sealed moose that yielded 460# of bone free meat with room to spare….enough to hold a deer or two with ease.

And as a footnote, a 50 quart cooler with hold just under 50# of cut and packaged meat. An outfitter in the NWT has a stock of these coolers in camp. He sells you one for a reasonable cost if you want to take meat home and stay below 50#s to minimize airline costs. No scale in camp…mine filled with caribou came out at 49# including the weight of the cooler.

 

[Blockcaver]

Just curious, how long does it take to freeze a boned out elk in a deep freeze? Considering ditching the coolers also and getting a 7cu/ft freezer. I’ve got a Honda 2200 to run it, just wondering how long it would take to freeze before making a 2 day drive home.

I built a small platform that attaches to the receiver hitch on my truck and run the generator/freezer as I drive….no waiting for it to freeze if I want to get on the road and I have the freezer in the truck bed canopy.

Hard to give you an exact time to freeze an elk solid but likely more than 24 hours depending on the freezer and how the deboned meat is packaged. I prefer to vacuum seal.

Note that plastic packaging ensures you can get frozen meat out of the freezer. Caution…Game bags become one with meat when frozen and you have to spend days thawing the whole thing to get the meat out of the freezer to cut it up at home. I prefer to do it in camp if possible.

 

[Rjk300]

Just curious, how long does it take to freeze a boned out elk in a deep freeze? Considering ditching the coolers also and getting a 7cu/ft freezer. I’ve got a Honda 2200 to run it, just wondering how long it would take to freeze before making a 2 day drive home.

We had 3 elk boned out in quarter bags frozen in our 2 freezers within 48 hours. They were still frozen 40 hours later when we finished the drive home. This was rifle season in MT. It does take the bags a few days to thaw once we are back to process the meat.

 

[Weldor]

That is made for boats. It's called a chiller plate or freezer plate. For offshore you just dump a bunch of seawater in the box and it gets slushy. Sweet as hell. But highly maintenance intensive. The issue is they are designed to use a water exchange with raw water to shed the heat pulled from the unit.

TLDR, it's going to be way more expensive than a 7cuft freezer and it will require similar power.

I was thinking something like a mini split a/c unit just way smaller. pop a hole in the lid put the air handler on and fire it up. could be 12 volt or 120. Kind of like the diesel tent heaters in reverse.

 

[Marshfly]

Just curious, how long does it take to freeze a boned out elk in a deep freeze? Considering ditching the coolers also and getting a 7cu/ft freezer. I’ve got a Honda 2200 to run it, just wondering how long it would take to freeze before making a 2 day drive home.

Does it really need to be frozen? I will honestly probably use this more as a huge fridge. Fresh game that is cared for correctly is good for a couple of weeks before it needs to be frozen or cooked.

I can't understand why people would freeze quarters only to thaw them a couple of days later. I guess if you have zero way to plug the freezer back in each night or during the drive, maybe.

 

[wapitibob]

Does it really need to be frozen? I will honestly probably use this more as a huge fridge. Fresh game that is cared for correctly is good for a couple of weeks before it needs to be frozen or cooked.

I can't understand why people would freeze quarters only to thaw them a couple of days later. I guess if you have zero way to plug the freezer back in each night or during the drive, maybe.

That's what I would do, 35 degrees or so. No way I'd freeze it.

 

[chizelhead]

I was thinking something like a mini split a/c unit just way smaller. pop a hole in the lid put the air handler on and fire it up. could be 12 volt or 120. Kind of like the diesel tent heaters in reverse.

I know some guys that use a coolbot with a window ac unit. They fab a uhaul and treat it like a mobile walkin cooler. They meat hunt, so they're transporting at least a dozen deer. I'm wondering if that would work in this set up by cooling the area under the topper and keep the meat chilled at 34. Then one could have a ac unit option for hot days.

 

[wowzers]

You can run an Inkbird controller on the freezer to turn it into an efficient fridge too. We use one at our place that is off grid and it uses very little power.

https://www.amazon.com/Inkbird-Max-1200W-Temperature-Controller-Greenhouse/dp/B01HXM5UAC/ref=asc_df_B01HXM5UAC?tag=bingshoppinga-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=79852084167078&hvnetw=o&hvqmt=e&hvbmt=be&hvdev=m&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=&hvtargid=pla-4583451662988860&psc=1

 

[fmyth]

Does it really need to be frozen? I will honestly probably use this more as a huge fridge. Fresh game that is cared for correctly is good for a couple of weeks before it needs to be frozen or cooked.

I can't understand why people would freeze quarters only to thaw them a couple of days later. I guess if you have zero way to plug the freezer back in each night or during the drive, maybe.

If it comes home in quarters I won't be butchering it until all of my gear/truck/trailer/utv/tent is unloaded cleaned, repaired/serviced and put away for the next hunt. Then I'll get caught up on work, household chores etc before I butcher. I'll take out 1 quarter a week to thaw in a big cooler and butcher grind wrap etc. It's what works for me. Everyone's situation is different.

 

[Wheels]

Does it really need to be frozen? I will honestly probably use this more as a huge fridge. Fresh game that is cared for correctly is good for a couple of weeks before it needs to be frozen or cooked.

I can't understand why people would freeze quarters only to thaw them a couple of days later. I guess if you have zero way to plug the freezer back in each night or during the drive, maybe.

I was just thinking that frozen would last until I can get home. I hunt solo and typically stop for the night on the way home, I worry enough about just leaving my truck outside a motel in BFE let alone having a $1000 generator sitting out for someone to steal.

 

[Marshfly]

I was just thinking that frozen would last until I can get home. I hunt solo and typically stop for the night on the way home, I worry enough about just leaving my truck outside a motel in BFE let alone having a $1000 generator sitting out for someone to steal.

If you do this often, a 1000w inverter is cheap and easy to install. Just something to consider. Having the 2000w built into my F350 changed the way I think about power on trips a lot.

 

[Caseknife]

We take a freezer that is about 9cf pig hunting in N Cal in April every year, driving 14 hours from NE WA. We don't actually freeze the meat, but use it more to chill. Don't plug it in on the way home. Goes into a walk-in cooler when we get home and then processed 4-5 days later when convenient.

Made the mistake of hanging elk quarters in my BIL's walk-in one time without checking the temp setting since it was already on, he had it turned down to 15 degrees or so because he had processed meat in there. Glad I checked on the way home the next day, oops.

 

[fmyth]

I was just thinking that frozen would last until I can get home. I hunt solo and typically stop for the night on the way home, I worry enough about just leaving my truck outside a motel in BFE let alone having a $1000 generator sitting out for someone to steal.

I've never run my freezer on the 2 day drive home. When I hit the AZ border the temps will be in the 100's when I get home from an archery hunt and between 90-100 when I get home from an Oct rifle hunt. Meat is always still frozen. I ran a Honda EU 2000 for 14 years. Recently replaced it with a much lighter weight HF Predator 1400W for under $400. I do still lock it to the bed w a cable and padlock. Same in camp. Generator is always locked to something hard to move.