Our daughter has Type 1 diabetes so whenever we travel we have to bring extra insulin with us that needs to be kept at a pretty specific temperature range which is hard on road trips. Does anyone have any experience with a very small refrigerator that would plug into a cigarette lighter style outlet in a car? Could you arrange it so the fridge would stay on when you make short stops during the day? Obviously you'd turn it off over night.

What's your budget? What's the insulin's temperature requirement? Do you want to be able to use it for more than just the insulin? Is the size of the fridge a concern/what vehicle are you using?

There are many different options now; the "overlanding" scene has prompted many different brands, sizes, and price ranges.

For example, you can get a plug in cooler for less than the cost of a Yeti or you can spend $3k for a fridge that will rival your in home setup. Larger is great if you want to also use it for drinks and food, but smaller units are easier to carry in to a hotel for the evening. You can get a separate battery to run the fridge in the car over night, but those can be expensive if it's not something you really need.

I just toss my insulin in a the same cooler that I keep in the vehicle for drinks. I've never had an issue. I've dealt with this for 38.5 years.

EMY92 said:

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I just toss my insulin in a the same cooler that I keep in the vehicle for drinks. I've never had an issue. I've dealt with this for 38.5 years.

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53 years for me. Same deal. I just make sure it doesn't get warm, or freeze.

Might be too big, but one of these may be a good option. Can plug into car power and then it has a decent battery to keep it cool when not plugged in.

https://www.anker.com/everfrost-powered-cooler

My mom just packs a small cooler bag with ice packs

Yea those Ankers are pretty sweet!

Yes normally we use a small dedicated cooler in the shape of a water bottle for the extra insulin and we keep a wireless thermometer in there just to make sure it doesn't get too cold or too hot (my wife is pretty obsessed with managing our daughter's diabetes).

Long term storage temperature is 2-8 degrees Celsius. Once opened, manufacturers state it's OK at room temrature up to about 77F (25C) for 28days. Insulin is a protein molecule and it can denature at very high temperature but we also have to remember active insulin molecules work in human body at temperature of 98.7 degrees.

Studies have shown insulins to be stable at room temp for over 6 months.

Nonetheless, follow the manufacturers storage requirement.

ReloadAg said:

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Yea those Ankers are pretty sweet!

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check out Set Power too for a budget line

FRIGIDAIRE Portable 10L, 15-can Mini Fridge Brushed Stainless Rugged Refrigerator, EFMIS188-SS

https://a.co/d/fMqBKga

I just bought a bouge one. Got it off Amazon. Just couldn't see the reason to spend a grand. It is nice enough

If using injection pens, as noted above, they are usually labeled as good for 6 weeks once taken out of cold storage. When I travel, I just put them in my shaving bag. I use Tresiba. Googling Humalog gets results that say 4 weeks at room temp.


ETA: if you do buy a cooler, get one that has a compressor. Thermoelectric units generally will only pull 40 below ambient temperature.

https://a.co/d/gd6nG7E

We have used this Coleman portable fridge for years on road trips. It's perfect for us as my daughter has celiac, so we always travel with safe food for her. Depending on the space you have available, it could work.

If you have a Tesla, there are several custom built fridges that fit in the nook behind the center console, the sub-trunk, and the left side pocket in the trunk. We have the side pocket fridge which can get down to 29 degrees F and stay on indefinitely with no fear that the 12V battery will be drained with the car "off". It uses around 0.5 kWh per day so about 0.6% of the Tesla's HV battery.

This might be the the rare time when a Yeti cooler is justified.

How much capacity do you need?

https://www.amazon.com/4Allfamily-Medicine-Approved-Diabetic-Insulina/dp/B08SR1TL4G/ref=sr_1_7?crid=FCV56OS37PLU&keywords=insulin+travel+cooler&qid=1692629396&sprefix=insulin+trave%2Caps%2C109&sr=8-7

That's exactly what we're using now.

I've had this model made by Bodega from Amazon for a few years now. It's larger than you're looking for - but I see they make smaller units.

It works surprisingly well. I was skeptical when I bought it. Use it to keep "dry" stuff cold when we travel. Runs on 12VDC lighter plug and also has a plug/brick to run off household 120VAC. The app works well on my iPhone. They run them on sale/coupons/etc all the time. Think I paid less than $200 for mine.

Bodega 27 QT travel fridge on Amazon