COOL CAMPING

John Sootheran's top tips for keeping your Chardonnay chilled and your fish fingers frozen while you're on tour

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This in-depth guide reveals the best ways to keep food and drink cool while you're out on the road, using your motorhome fridge and electric coolboxes.

Some built-in, under-counter fridges can be a bit too small for a family of four or more, so keeping an electrically powered coolbox in the cab or in an awning is a great way to expand your cold-storage capacity when needed.

Here, we're looking at all the options to keep your provisions as cool as a cucumber which means, at 2-5°C!

MOTORHOME FRIDGES

Unlike a standard kitchen fridge, most modern motorhome fridges operate on absorption technology, meaning there are no moving parts and you have ultra-reliable cooling (the other type of fridge is the compressor, most often found in small campervans).

Even better, these absorption fridges work on three power sources: gas, 230V mains electricity from a hook-up, or 12V from your vehicle's engine when you're on the move. The latter is a good way to initially chill your fridge as you head off on tour, but once sited, the system will most likely switch to mains or gas power - a typical leisure battery would only be able to power the fridge for a few hours at most.

Before you set off, it's crucial to check that your fridge is functioning in all three modes. The last thing you want after a long, hot drive to your site is to find that your milk is now cottage cheese and your beers are scorchio.

Absorption fridges are really brilliant at keeping food chilled, but they need to be running properly on the right power source for the conditions.

Carrying out a simple test before you leave will save you the headache of spoiled food when you pitch up.