Question:
Over the last several years I have purchased quite a few 12 volt appliances to use on the truck. Some I have been very satisfied with while other I considered a total waste of money. I have provded links when possible to show you the products I am talking about. I do not endorse a particular brand nor the web site I link to. The sites and product links are for demonstrative purposes only. Most of the products can be found at most truck stops, larger camping and RV stores, and sometimes at Wal Mart.
Here are my opinions on them.
12 volt portable stove: Great item. A must have if not allowed to install a large inverter and hook up a microwave. 12 volt stove
12 volt Drive and Grill: If you are familar with the George Forman line of grills then you know about this one. It is very similar and is 12 volt. Works well. Have cooked steaks, burgers, chops, sausages, etc on it. Takes a little longer than the 110 v versions but all in all have been quite staisfied. Have seen them at TA's and Petro truck stops. So far the Koolatron model is the only model I have seen.Drive and Grill
12 volt Pizza Oven: Not a bad product all in all. Heats to about 320 deg. Have used it to make meatloafs, baked chicken, fish sticks, pizzas, etc. Not a "must have" especially if you own the 12 volt stove already.....but it does work.
Pizza Oven
12 volt coffe makers. A waste of money in my opinion. Takes up to 15 to 20 minutes to make one small pot of coffee. 12 volt coffee maker If you wish to make coffee in the truck a better alternative is to get a 12 volt heating element and use Folgers singles instead. 12 volt submersion water heater
12v TV's, TV?VCR's, TV/DVD combos. While these do work the overall quality is not nearly as good as the 100v versions. For about the same money you can purchase the 110 volt and a 400 watt power invertor (yes the 400 watt pulgs into the cigarette lighter) and they generally last longer. The 400 watt inverter will power a 13 inch tv and a VCR or DVD player just fine. or a combo unit.
12 volt 40 quart Cooler/Warmer. This is the one must have in my opinion. They work well and will genrally keep lunch meats, fruits, etc fresh for up to a week or more. They cool to about 30 degrees below the air temp inside the vehicle. If you wish to carry fresh meats freeze them before putting in cooler and they will keep for 1-2 weeks. Many Wal Marts carry these for around $70 or can be bought in most truck stops for aroun $90-$100. 12 volt cooler
I will always be a mutter trucker at heart.
Answer:
I checked out the link for the drive and grill (very cool) and then checked out all the stuff they had out there. they actually have a 12 volt freezer. i'm so psyched. i can have frozen dinners in the truck so i can stay on my diet. cool. i was wondering tho where exactly are the outlets on your truck? is it just the cigarette lighter or are they in the back as well. i know there is one for the cooler and one for the t.v. but are there more in the sleeper or anything? do they all look like your cigarette lighter?

Answer:
Some trucks have 3 or more 12v outlets in the sleeper area while others have none.
I will always be a mutter trucker at heart.
Answer:
Due to some new iintrest back to the top
Answer:
I bought my 12V - 40 qt cooler at Walmart for $62.73.....works just as good as the $120.00 model sold in t/s's. I bought a 13" 110V tv at Walmart for $86.00....and use an inexpensive 300 watt inverter to run it and my laptop. I had the company put a 2000 watt inverter in for $200.00 and they wired it in for free, so I can use my microwave, coffepot, and I also have a small electric skillet for when I get the urge for something special and have the time to cook with it.
I also have one of the 12v "lunch box cookers".....works really well. The inserts can be bought at Walmart (I mean, where else????) for about 15% of what a t/s charges....but I use the "oven bags" that are like the ones used to cook a turkey in an oven....and there is virtually no clean up when done. The lunchboxcooker gets far hotter than you think...and it will cook things fairly quickly.
Stay away from the 12v pots they are selling now....they have a fuse in the plug that blows out very quickly....and I could not find a single truckstop that carried the fuse.
Ended up taking it back for credit.
12v Freezers.....be careful with that one. Make sure that it is "compressor" driven....like the "Minus 40's", or Adler-Barbour....and I think Norcold has one that is sold at "Camping World". The good ones that are "reliable" are not cheap. For one with adequate capacity...you are looking at $700.00 and up. But if you want a freezer that will actually keep food frozen....like ice cream, it will have to go down to about -5 degrees F. I'm considering buying two of them... one for my liveaboard boat, and one for the truck...... (ouch!)So I like what I do, you don't, too bad, get over it. Get on with your life, I am.

Answer:
xx

Answer:
Companies that allow the installation of the large inverters (anything greater than 400 watts) will remove them for you when you swap out trucks. All you have to do is let them know you had one installed and need it put in your new truck.
Most companies do not have a problem with the plug in type of inverter (400 watt and under). Some companies do allow the larger inverters, how many though is hard to say. It seems more will not allow them though than will. Also those that do allow them often still have limits of how large you can put in. Often this seems to be 1000-1500 watt max.
Off a 400 watt plug in inverter you can run a 13 inch TV, VCR or DVD player at the same time with no problems. You can also run a crock pot, laptop computer, electric heating pad (like you would use for sore muscles) and several other items. They will not run a microwave, coffee pot, etc. since these typically need 700-1000 watts (or more) of power.
Answer:
Good topic, and i will get into full bore later; Current (no pun intended) idea is to carry one, two, three, whatever it takes deep-cell batteries in the truck, possibly under the sleeper bed and run an electric, oil filled type heater at night. This way no idleing; Quiet and no vibrations. The deep-cells would be connected to the trucks batteries for charging and would get charged while truck was/is running.
But more importantly, why was uturn2001 not admonished for "digging up" a supposed "old post?" Well?
Could it be due to..................... hypocrisy?

Answer:

Hmmm...missed the boat again Chad....

Plus the fact there's "common sense" involved in
moving instead of starting all over.
Answer:


I did too.Whoa is me. Yup, put the brakes on the trucking crapola and haven't looked back.


Answer:
Thanks, Uturn. Some good stuff. The only reason I haven't bought any of these items is because most of them draw 15A, and every 12V socket in my Freightliner is rated for 10A.
Answer:
FattyT: I have never had a problem with over heating or blowing fuses using only 1 item per outlet per time, and most of the trucks I have used them in have been freightliners.