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Black & Decker TC204B Travel Cooler & Warmer | 
| Brand: Black & Decker
Category: Automotive Parts And Accessories
List Price: $59.98
Buy New: $43.23 (On sale from $56.19)
You Save: $12.96 (23%)
New (4) from $43.23
Rating:  3 reviews
Sales Rank: 15313
Color: Black
Media: Misc.
Shipping Weight (lbs): 9.8
Dimensions (in): 15.1 x 10.3 x 7.6
MPN: TC204B
Model: TC204B
UPC: 885911064941
EAN: 0885911064941
ASIN: B0013AX81O
Availability: Usually ships in 6-10 business days
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| Features:
| • | Thermo-electric system cools down to 40F below ambient temperature and heats up to approximately 120F | | • | Plugs directly into vehicles or boats 12 volt DC outlet or any other 12 volt power supply | | • | Rests on vehicle seat, tailgate, hatch or floor for easy access during travel | | • | 12 volt DC power adapter (included) | | • | Single can/cup holder |
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| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
mfr: Vector BLACK & DECKER TC204B 8 Can/6 Liter/1.6 Gallon Travel Cooler/Warmer. Thermo-Electric system cools down to 40 degrees below ambient tempature and heats up to 120 degrees F; Rests on vehicle seat, tailgate,or floor for easy access; Plugs into vehicles or boats 12 volt DC power supply
POWER DISTRIBUTION & ACCESSORIES WEATHER CHANNEL>
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| Customer Reviews:
waste of money September 19, 2008
1 out of 3 found this review helpful
This item is a big waste after I pluged it in to my car it bearly cooled my water much less keep it cooled. After I read the instructions it tells you to buy an adopter, another 20 bucks, so you can plug it into your home, It does cool down after about two hours, when you get into the car and plug it in there on a hot day even with the AC on it does not hold the chill. Don't bother, I'm a diabetic and I need to keep my insulin cool
it only does after you plug it in at home for hours and then not for too long after it's in thr car.
Not the way to cool stuff in the car! September 13, 2008
9 out of 10 found this review helpful
I've tried several designs and I'm afraid this applies to ANY thermoelectric (aka Peltier) cooler. These rely on a semiconductor device. Run current through it and one side becomes cool, and the other side becomes hot. Reverse the connection and the cool side becomes hot, allowing them to be a "warmer" as well - that is the tip off right there! In cooling mode, the hot side needs a big heatsink and fan to get rid of all the heat, while the cool side needs a small heatsink to absorb as much heat as possible. Unfortunately, without making a dissertation on thermodynamics here, they do not make an efficient COOLING system because you pull very little heat out of the cold box for the amount of power they draw - and they will drain your battery.
The exception to this are what I would call 'active' refrigeration or phase change refrigeration devices. These are just like your refrigerator at home. Danfoss makes a 12VDC compressor for R134, except it runs from 11-24 VDC. I have been using one in my truck continuously now for a year - it has a freezer section, refrigerator section, and adjustable temperature. While styled like an igloo cooler, it needs no ice and very little power from the battery. Many companies buy the Danfoss compressor and make an insulated box/lid to go around it for a great travel freezer/fridge.
Why? The reason is simple - phase change refrigeration takes about 3A at maybe 25-30 % duty cycle, which is like 0.8A all the time if you run it 24x7. The Peltier cooler B&D used takes about 7-8A @ 100% duty cycle (it never shuts off) - so in 24 hours it will drain your battery while the real compresser designs only use about 20 AH from a battery that has a reserve of 70-80 AH and recharges when you run the vehicle - it's like leaving your lights on for an hour each day.
The disadvantage of the Danfoss compressor based units of course is their price. They are the only people making 12VDC honest refrigeration compressors and they are not cheap - a compressor alone costs over $180. If your object is to be able to go camping, carry perishables, frozen food, cold drinks, it is the only way to go. If you want to pre-freeze your drinks, then put them into the console-style peltier cooler and keep the engine running so your battery doesn't die, well - this will work but you'll be disappointed by all the effort you spend and supplemental ice needed for something that is advertised to work all by itself.
Simply put, this entire class of "travel" "coolers" are not thermodynamically efficient and therefore have severe drawbacks. They can keep cold or frozen drinks relatively cool and drinkable, while a refrigeration based system can actually make ice if set to "freeze" mode. None of the peltier systems can make ice unless it's below zero outside - they even tell you to pre-cool your dirnks in a real refrigerator before putting them inside. What if the nearest real refrigerator is 100 miles away?
Disapointing August 7, 2008
3 out of 5 found this review helpful
One of the main reasons I bought this cooler was because everyone claimed (including amazon) that it had a low battery cut off switch. I quickly found out that it doesn't. It will suck your battery dry, possibly leaving you stranded somewhere. But that wasn't the only disappointment. This thing is CHEAP. The power switch on mine was bad. It was near impossible to put into warm mode, or turn off. And sometimes if you moved the switch in certain position, the fan would start spinning insanely fast.
But one of the biggest problems is there's no insulation. The peltier cooler actually does cool pretty good, but since it's constantly battling the temperature in your car, it takes 6+ hours to even start cooling things down. You might as well leave the lid open. It might even work better that way...
This is one of the worst coolers you can spend your money on. I figured Black & Decker was a name I could trust, but these days I should have known better. They don't make things anymore, they just license their name to other companies (in this case, Vector).
Stay far away from this, and all other Vector coolers. Luckily, the store I bought it from gave me a refund and told me to throw the cooler away (what does it say when the store doesn't even want it back??).
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