What types of coolers/fridges do you use on road trips?
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So my cooler is a pain in the ass. It doesn't keep ice whatsoever and keeps things cold for a day max...not ideal. I'm looking into getting a new cooler for my truck and was wondering what everyone else uses and what works. I've thought about getting some solar panels for a fridge or buying a cooler that runs off 12V. What do y'all think? |
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If I buy the block ice, it lasts for two or three days in my large Coleman cooler. The cube ice will melt much faster. |
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Used my REI rebate/coupon for a yeti 45 in the spring. It was fantastic on my trip to Tuolumne and the Sierras. One block of ice 9 days. Seemed like a lot of money, but for the food saved, fresh, etc...well worth. |
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Depends on what you're looking for in terms of size and time. I bought one of these (it was originally available w/ prime) for general weekend trips in a smaller car, but found it to be surprisingly good for the price. |
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Cheap-ish Coleman cooler. |
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We just put everything into this. It has a full size refrigerator and freezer. Good to go. |
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Coleman extreme. Will keep ice (2x frozen 3/4 gal jugs) 3 nights / 4 days and one more depending on temps. |
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As for powered refrigerators, over cooling to the point of freezing food can be a problem but maybe that was just a problem with the rig my friend had. |
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Tim Lutz wrote:Cheaper than Yeti with a better dry food and drain design amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B009QLink doesn't work. Things to consider for a cooler setup: 1) How long do you need things to stay cold before you can recharge with ice? Temp will effect this of course. 2) How easy is it to refresh said ice? 3) How much do you want to spend? I break down outdoor cooling options into 3 categories 1) Coleman Extreme and the like. Perfectly decent coolers that won't cost a ton, do their job etc. You'll have to refresh the ice more often but well managed, it will handle an extended weekend trip without much issue. 2) Premium Coolers - Yeti, Pelican etc etc. Unbelievably expensive in my opinion. Do they work better than the Colemans? Yes. Do most people need them vs the Coleman? No. These coolers best serve groups like river guide services where they need extended cooling, large capacity AND have limited or no access to off grid power. There a good series of posts on here with an actual guide talking about how they pre freeze supplies in ice IN their Yetis and then use them chip it out over the course of an extended trip. 3) 12V Compressor Coolers. These are pretty much limited to vehicle supported camping as they're too heavy to transport far by hand. They're also the only option for extended trip where you won't be able to resupply ice AND they have the added nicety of not soaking any of your food. Be prepared to pony up $$. A good ARB, Engel or Dometic will run you $650-$950 and then you need to plan on a battery pack and possibly solar add on. They're awesome but COSTLY. I'd make a WAG that 80+% are best served by option #1 with the other options needed only by expedition style outings. More and More I see the Yeti stickers on the back of a truck and think "you just spent $300 more than you needed to" |
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Dometic CF-35 Seems to have pretty low power consumption. We have a second battery in the van for the fridge, sound, LED lights and electronics. No solar yet, everything charges off the alternator. We haven't parked the van for more than a full day and never ran the battery down. So much better than a cooler! |
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The ice quality is the most critical thing. Grocery store ice is just ice chips that have been compressed together, and it is as much air as ice. I use a chest freezer and some large tupperware containers to make large solid ice blocks that fit tightly in the cooler. This ice will last several times longer than grocery store ice. |
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I went through the same dilemma a handful of weeks ago. We needed a food cooler for a Ten Sleep Canyon trip and didn't want to run into town every day or so to get ice. I read through piles of threads in forums from this site all the way to boat captain forums. It seems everybody has a strong opinion on this topic. I could go on-and-on. |
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I'm very happy with my Grizzly Cooler: |
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Thanks everyone for the solid feedback! Anyone try the 12v plug in ones though? |
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Taylor Spiegelberg wrote:Thanks everyone for the solid feedback! Anyone try the 12v plug in ones though?I have an ARB freezer/fridge. It is amazing, I have actually frozen beer in it on accident, nothing beats an IPA chilled to 20 degrees, and no soggy burger patties and water at the bottom from melted ice. |
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I second Matt N. Coleman Extreme in the 60ish size. Any smaller and the days of holding ice is negated. We also have a Yeti 65 and it is junk, heavy, and prone to having the lid warp. |
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I have owned a Coleman Extreme and recently upgraded to a Yeti 75. I swore by the coleman extreme but now that I have both there is absolutley no comparison the Yeti used the same cube ice in the red in July for 9 days. Was it $250 more than a coleman extreme, yep. Is it worth it saving time and money getting ice, yep. |
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Sumbit wrote: More and more I see cars with Yeti stickers and I think "There is a person that made a wise long term investment"I see the same stickers and have a different reaction. I think of the rotomolded cooler craze in a similar vein to the high end hardshell jacket craze of years past. Many, Many people opted to buy a $350+ GoreTex jacket that saw very little "hard use". Nothing wrong with that per se as yes, it is a really nice jacket but reality was that they could have likely gotten a $120 jacket that would have been just as good for them, lighter etc etc. The Cooler Craze of late is similar but the performance similarities make the price differential even harder to swallow (And the over the top "real tough manly man" marketing doesn't help). I 100% agree that the high ends do better, though not significantly so, and are much more durable than an Xtreme. How many people are really beating the crap out of their cooler weekly and require unsupported cooling for 5 days? I've looked at them A LOT (and would get a Bison or Canyon 70qt) but the reality is my (and likely most) needs are long weekend (3 days) unsupported MAX. $50 Coleman 70qt Marine Xtreme vs $400 Bison or $370 Canyon. That's a lot of $$ to buy gas and ice or a plane ticket to climb etc etc. My needs will likely change as my kids age so I don't rule a nice one out BUT the idea that's it's a good investment questionable. These are BY FAR, the best two articles on the subject. Their info is solid as is their testing. Cooler Tips Cooler Test |
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My wife bought my Yeti with her 20% REI coupon and her dividends. I have a 65 and it's awesome. That's all I can really say. Holds ice great, especially if you manage it like others have said. |
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mattm wrote: I see the same stickers and have a different reaction. I think of the rotomolded cooler craze in a similar vein to the high end hardshell jacket craze of years past.Are cheaper coolers not rotomolded? Would the cost be significantly less if they were injection or vacuum molded? I have spent a lot of money on coleman coolers over the years. I wish I would have bought a Yeti and saved the money and time. Engel make a really nice 12v cooler/fridge too. |
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The weight of a Yeti would be an annoyance. Those old, low bear boxes in Tuolumne are a pain with my Coleman as is. And I can at least load a full Coleman in the car by myself (including down the stairs), a Yeti, not likely. |