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View Full Version : WARNING, WARNING, WARNING - EVAKOOL



jethro6641
16-05-2006, 07:32 PM
Just wanted to let everyone out there know about how Evakool works. Evakool makes a pretty good ice box, but I think my tropical is much, much better. I have two Waeco firdges and up until recently I had a 90ltr Evakool fridge/freezer, that was until the compressor and electronic unit packed it in. I rung evakool, they bought up my details on there computer and saw when I purchased it, a touch over three years ago. I was advised to take it to an authorised repairer and was given the impresion that it would be covered under warranty. This is not the case and now I am told that it is going to cost around $1,300 to repair. It can be replaced for around $1,500. I spoke to Peter at Evakool and was basically told to bad to sad the warranty is only two years on the compressor and one year on the electronics. I said to Peter I cannot believe how Evakool could be making any money as they must only be making about $50 to $100 per fridge. Of course this is not the case. You would think a company the size of evakool would offer to replace the required parts at cost price to keep the customer happy and one of there products out there. But no.

Interestingly enough you can buy a Waeco fridge with the exact same compressor and they offer a 5 year warranty. I know what I am going out to buy this weekend.

Hope this helps anyone out there about to buy a fridge.

Cheers.

CHRIS_aka_GWH
17-05-2006, 08:31 PM
three years ......

the waeco is also more expensive

jethro6641
18-05-2006, 07:48 AM
Think you might have facts wrong there Chris.

The evakool is $1699 and the similar sized Waeo is only around $1299.

I do not think that three years is old for a fridge by any means

reefraider_II
18-05-2006, 09:58 AM
i paid 1200 for my 80L waeco and cant complain it is very good.But I got a feeling that this thread will bring about the Waeco v Engel debate.

Any way I went to buy a evacool esky and have some more interesting facts. I was looking at spending $300 on evacools new yellow plastic esky they have released (100L) but was steered clear of it by BCF as they said they all warp in the sun and have had many returns. He pointed me towards their 100L BCF esky which was cheaper than the same fibreglass evacool and came with a rack in it and $100 cheaper.
Yeah maybe he was trying to sell BCF stuff but he said it was the same composite as the evacool at a lesser price. He also had one . I have had this for a couple of months and it is the best esky I have ever had. It has a good latch system unlioke some of the ones I have seen on the new evacools I have seen in the shop
My 2 cents worth

Marty

SURF_SNIPER
18-05-2006, 01:39 PM
when your paying that much for a fridge/ freezer wouldnt you want quality and reliabilty? . my 100L snapper freezer cost me $2500 custom built with everything fully welded alloy and marine grade stainless yes it was exspensive but since i was spending a fair bit of money i wanted something that would last me the next 20 years. i have had it over three years now, running 24/7 in the landrover and it hasnt ever missed a beat. i know guys who have had them for a lot longer then that and treat them alot worse.

for $1500 bucks i wouldnt be buying a fiberglass/ plastic fridge freezer.

jethro6641
18-05-2006, 10:52 PM
Marty, I do not wish to start a debate about which fridge is best or better. The engel is an outstanding fridge and is tried and proven over and over again but when you are buying a portable fridge there are so many variables such as weight, size and capacity. When i bought the evakool I went out with the full intentions of buyinf the stainless steel 80ltr engel but went for the evakool because of its weight and overall demensions fitted into the back of the landcruiser better. Now I am put into this situation i am going to buy the 60ltr waeco which is half the size but a bit taller. Same compressor but better warranty and from my experience a better company to deal with.

Surf Sniper, I totally agree with what you are saying but at the end of the day it is what you can afford at the time. The waeco suits all of my needs and the price is good. With the 5 year warranty and the original price paid I think this will do the job.

The only reason I have started this thread is to highlight the many reasons why it is important to fully research an item before buying it.

Thanks for the replies.........................................

PinHead
19-05-2006, 02:29 AM
what conditions are written in the 5 year warranty ???

Slider
19-05-2006, 05:02 PM
The Snappers are expensive but they are fantastic. Have had mine over 10 years and it stays in the tray and I'm on the beach near every day of the year. The fridge works as well as new and the freezer freezes water bottles solid easily on low. Know a bloke (might be a mate of yours actually Neil - Indian Head crew anyway) that rolled his truck and totalled it but the snapper was fine and is in the back of his new cruiser.
Can't speak highly enough about them.

michael_k
19-05-2006, 10:29 PM
i had an an evacool fibreglass esky that was 2yrs old and used 4 times as it was won in a comp and kept as a spare.it developed cracks and holes in the gelcoat both internally and externally.it was inspected buy evacool manager and rep and i was told it was my fault.i then took it to an independent fibrglass manafacturer for a report and was told cracking was due to delamination due to problem at time of manufacture.when i spoke to evacool with this information ,i was told that this was there problem but it was up to me ,including all exspenses to get esky to and from there factory,where they would pacth problem areas.i did not accept this offer ,i then was told the rep would ring me when in my area(gold coast) and he would pick up esky.that was 6 months ago, esky still hasnt been picked up and no phone calls .i have just bought 2 downunder eskies and cant say enough about the quality.

cheers
mick

waykel
20-05-2006, 08:06 AM
I have a couple of Downunder 5 stars and they perform heaps better than the Eva cool poly boxes. Since Evacool started getting ther stuff made overseas, there quality has dropped. The fiberglass ones look good but are too heavy and do get cracks, sinker stars. Tropical Ice Boxes make the tropical, Downunder and a Glass one. All good.
Cheers
waykel

PinHead
20-05-2006, 03:19 PM
i had an an evacool fibreglass esky that was 2yrs old and used 4 times as it was won in a comp and kept as a spare.it developed cracks and holes in the gelcoat both internally and externally.it was inspected buy evacool manager and rep and i was told it was my fault.i then took it to an independent fibrglass manafacturer for a report and was told cracking was due to delamination due to problem at time of manufacture.when i spoke to evacool with this information ,i was told that this was there problem but it was up to me ,including all exspenses to get esky to and from there factory,where they would pacth problem areas.i did not accept this offer ,i then was told the rep would ring me when in my area(gold coast) and he would pick up esky.that was 6 months ago, esky still hasnt been picked up and no phone calls .i have just bought 2 downunder eskies and cant say enough about the quality.

cheers
mick

you complained to the manufacturer for an item you have won??? and 2 years old???

jethro6641
21-05-2006, 07:54 AM
Whats the difference if it is won or bought???????????? Do they use seconds or a lesser qaulity for prizes????????????????????? And I think the point in relation to only being two years old is a very relevent one.

The interesting about Evakool is there was some discussion on some years ago about Eakool's lake of interest in supporting warranty claims and aftermarket service. With the prices paid for things these days about the only thing that really matter is qaulity of the product and service. I think all will agree that unfortunately we are seeing more and more, products that are poor qaulity and over priced.

Do you work for Evakool Pinhead??????????????????????????????????????????

PinHead
21-05-2006, 04:44 PM
mate..he is talking about a fibreglass esky...no working parts..an esky..how much warranty do you want on an item like that???
No..I do not work for Evakool...but surely you do not expect a 2 year warranty on an esky??

CHRIS_aka_GWH
22-05-2006, 06:01 PM
I have a couple of Downunder 5 stars and they perform heaps better than the Eva cool poly boxes. Since Evacool started getting ther stuff made overseas, there quality has dropped. The fiberglass ones look good but are too heavy and do get cracks, sinker stars. Tropical Ice Boxes make the tropical, Downunder and a Glass one. All good.
Cheers
waykel


tropical boxes are made in malaysia (or so the sticker on mine says). They are tough as. I got a tropical after watching forklifts at Sam's seafoods throwing big versions around on concrete.
I got one because I decided fibreglass boxes are not suited to the beating fishing hands out. I liked my evakool to much so decided to save it for picnics etc. The evakool i have was won at a straddie classic is four years old & going strong (3 years it was my boat esky). The pins in the rubber latches lossened so I replaced them with adapted rivets. The blokes I know with them have few complaints....

tibbs
22-05-2006, 07:04 PM
I just had a problem with some Torpedo lights I had purchased from Camp Mart in Springwood.

Basically after a couple of months both lights only put out a glow and I had lost my receipt and after 8 months I decided to send Evakool an email and was told they would still have a look at them for me with no receipt

But then I found my receipt anyways sent them down and was told that the bulbs were at fault and no covered by warranty.

But they replaced the bulbs for me anyway as a good will gesture and I couldn't be happier.

I too also own a 47ltr Evakool fridge which has pretty much been good to me and the only grudge I have is against the sub contractor in Burleigh heads who appeared to use my fridge over the weekend as when we went to pick it up it stunk of off fish...........Yuck!!!!

Rang evakool who gave me the trick of using vanilla essence to get rid of the smell which worked a treat.

But yes every business has it's good and bad stories.

Rod_Miles
25-05-2006, 12:08 PM
G'day Jethro6641,

I have just returned from a Trade Show in Canberra where a gentleman advised me of your chat room WARNING regarding your EvaKool Fridge/Freezer and the problems you are having with it. Could I ask that you contact me directly so that I may take control of your concerns directly.

Contact details appear below.

Regards,



Rod Miles
National Manager
Nexberg Pty Ltd t/a Evakool Ice Boxes
16 Enterprise Street, Caloundra
Queensland. 4551
AUSTRALIA
Tel: +61 7 5492 7777 Fax: +61 7 5492 7733
Mbl: 0414.925.533
email: rod@evakool.com
web: www.evakool.com

CHRIS_aka_GWH
25-05-2006, 07:24 PM
rod,

my evakool keeps running out of beer ..... ::)

jethro6641
25-05-2006, 09:48 PM
I would be more than happy to Rod. I will call you on Friday. And thank you for taking the time to persue this.

This is the point I am trying to make for everyone out there that has read this. I am not asking for Evakool to fix the fridge for nothing, extend the warranty or take full responsibility for what has happened to the compressor. I was simply wanting to get what I considered to be a reasonable level of after sales service. As stated before this means a great deal more to me these days than many other things when researching and buying a product.

With the internet now being accessed by more and more people and with so many forums out there, alot of people are taking the time to ask questions of others to get opinions and information on different products to hopefully in the end form there own opinion. Sure you can get information from salespeople but to really get the good oil, asking someone who owns and uses the product can be much more accurate. Word of mouth can and will either make or break a business.

I am not simply wanting to bag a company out for no good reason. I am simply voicing my opinion on what I consider to be poor service.

I will post the outcome of my discussion with Rod.

Thank you to all who have replied.

Jamie

fishscale
27-05-2006, 03:32 PM
hi i will tell you about waeco and its shit service as i brought a 120l esky and it bubbled up so it was returned and replaced arter two weeks. >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:(Then the next one a went to pick up which is the replacement for the the first was opened up only to find a hole in the bottom of it so it was closed up and sent back again. >:( >:( >:( >:( >:(Third time lucky (not) and another three weak wait we opened this to find that the inside was rubbed back in places into the gel coat which i would say was to be resprayed but was never done so if you ask me about a waeco i would be glad to bag the arse out of there products so i went and brought a evercool esky and had a similar problem with a small bubble in the lid which i thought was going to be another waeco experiance but when i rang them they said it would be picked up from me as the bloke lived near me and was dropped back two days later and has been good for the last four years but i now have two ingel fridges and have never had a problem with there products thanks ash..... >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:(

bassgirl
29-05-2006, 06:49 PM
I really love my evacool esky. the ice lasts heaps longer then my tropical one. it is easy to clean. and it is great to sit on in the back of the boat when my back is aching from standing up casting for hours!

BillB
01-06-2006, 09:38 PM
I have got a Trailblazer 60 lt fridge. Had it for years (since 1995 I think). It hasn't missed a beat. Dosen't look as trendy as the others but I can't complain about the reliability. You often seem them on the back of utes out west
Cheers,
BillB

jethro6641
02-06-2006, 10:33 AM
Well folks there are some decent people and companies out there and I am extremely happy to report that Rod Miles from Evakool is exactly that. For those of you who have read through this thread you will notice the concerns I raised and that Rod had posted a request for me to contact him direct. I did this last Thursday and was very impressed with how the matter was handled by Rod. He advised me that my expectations that the fridge should last a long, long time were correct and asked me to send the fridge up to him so they could test it themselves and provided me with a reply paid mail address. I sent the fridge off on the Friday and was advised by Rod that he would call me on Wednesday once they had looked at it and determined what was wrong. Sure enough Rod rang on Wednesday as promised and advised me the compressor had in fact siezed and put to me a very reasonable offer to repair the fridge, provide a new full warranty and freight the fridge back down to me. He even offered me a payment plan to pay for the repair costs and advised the fridge would be returned as soon as the first installment was paid and as soon as it was repaired.

To me this shows excellent service, integrity and a strong desire to keep the customer happy. Afterall Evakool do not make the compressor but as a company have taken care of the matter and now have another happy customer.

I cannot recommend Evakool as a company enough. I have always been happy with there product up until this fault occurred and the only reason I started this thread was due to the attitude of an employee.

Thank you to all those who have replied.

Good on ya Rod for providing excellent service and restoring my faith in your company.

Regards,

Jamie

jenna2007
18-12-2007, 08:24 PM
It seems you are all unaware that Evakool make both the Tropical and Down Under Iceboxes. The Tropical Iceboxes are simply Icemates with different stickers. As are the Down under iceboxes. Just food for thought....

ColacGirl
20-12-2007, 10:47 AM
It seems you are all unaware that Evakool make both the Tropical and Down Under Iceboxes. The Tropical Iceboxes are simply Icemates with different stickers. As are the Down under iceboxes. Just food for thought....

I'm not sure the two companies would agree.

EvaKool (division of Nexberg Pty Ltd) is an Australian company based at Caloundra QLD 4551
Evakool and the factory seconds, Fishing Team, fibreglass boxes are manufactured by EvaKool in Queensland.
IceMate, FridgeMate and IceKool are developed and marketed by EvaKool Ice Boxes Australia.

Michael Hillier's Downunder Ice Boxes is also an Australian company based at Warana QLD 4575
Their Downunder fibreglass boxes are imported.
They also market Tropical Ice Boxes & Downunder Five Star Ice Boxes.

Both IceKool & Tropical are imported, and are made in two different countries.

--
Bev

TheRealAndy
20-12-2007, 11:04 PM
I have a 35year old finch 3way that I aquired off my old man. He used to keep it on his yacht. I recently removed the old chipboard sides and made new ones out of plywood. Also repainted the the steel back cover. STill goes strong. So now I have a cf50 as a freezer and the finch (about 20litre) as a beer fridge. I put the thermometer in it the other day and when full of beer the temp is about 4degC, perfect!!!

AS for the evakool, my inlaws have a freind who has had one for ages and its a great unit. Uses the same compressor as the waeco, so if the evakool is crap then so is the waeco.

Longshot
20-12-2007, 11:17 PM
I have a Baileys 80l and a Baileys mackeral box both fibreglass, both 10-15 years old, both still perfect condition. when i went to buy one for son no one knew of them.

Where are they and/or what hapened to Baileys??

Alchemy
27-12-2007, 05:23 PM
I have a Baileys 80l and a Baileys mackeral box both fibreglass, both 10-15 years old, both still perfect condition. when i went to buy one for son no one knew of them.

Where are they and/or what hapened to Baileys??

Pretty certain that Baileys is now Evakool...

whynott
27-12-2007, 07:14 PM
I have 2 evacool eskies, ranging from 50 to 65 ltr, and can't speak high enough of them.
Graham.

Tangles
28-12-2007, 05:06 PM
Well,

I bought an Evacool icebox about 10 months ago, the white seals around the top of the base part are loose so it doesnt seal properly, doesnt hold temps well and still leaks through the bung ( after trying a new one), must of been made on a Friday;D. Lost the receipt, silly me but hopefully BCf should have my name on their database, ill be giving them a try as it has a 5 year warranty but if not i suppose a tube of silicone will have to do. Supposedly a great brand but I lucked out with this one.

My other old esky an Islander (similar to the Tropical) is still going strong after many years and half the price

mike

ColacGirl
28-12-2007, 06:34 PM
Hi Mike,
Did you fill in the warranty card when you purchased the box?
If you don't have any luck with BCF contact Rod Miles at evaKool (details posted in his reply above). He's excellent to deal with :-)

--
Bev

Tangles
28-12-2007, 07:15 PM
Uum,, nope.. just wacked it in the back of the car, if i have no success with bcf ill give him a call, must write a note to oneself to fill out those warranty cards in future, i never do, always forget

mike