Coolers

The yeti is the only way to go. They always seem to be about the same price no matter where they are sold.

You will have to go "bigger" as there secret is very thick sides and top insulation which really cuts down the room inside of cooler. I looked at one last week for 350 bucks. If I used a cooler the entire camping trip for many/many trips it might make since but $1.50 to $2.00 a bag I sure can buy a lot of ice. I only have to wait 4-6 hours for my frig to get cold so not much ice is needed. Smelly Tuna.

I have the Igloo marine http://t.basspro.com/Igloo-Marine-Ultra-72-Cooler/product/12011005011422/?cmCat=CROSSSELL_PRODUCT it's the 72 quart size for $80. Ice last 3 solid days they have a 128 quart one for $229. I'm sure it's just as good.

The DW bought a Coleman 5 day cooler Walmart over the summer, $39.00 I believe, and it
works great. Once all drinks are in we place two thermal bags over the ice. Cooler actually made five days with the original thirty pounds of ice and us opening it several times a day. We purchased an ice maker over Memorial day and with new cooler spent 8 days at the lake and never purchased ice. For a total of $140 I think it is a good deal. I cannot justify a Yeti unless I was doing some serious boondocking. Happy Camping.

You can buy a lot of ice for the price of a Yeti, but sometimes buying ice is not an option, or you cannot make ice. While I think the Yeti is overpriced, it definitely does the job better than anything I have ever owned. It's kind of like buying tools, you can burn up two or three cheap Black and Decker Drills for the same price as one good Dewalt drill, but when you need a drill, you don't need to worry about it working. Same with a Yeti, the price is crazy, but it works and you don't have to worry about it. I have looked at Orca's and Pelicans I think they probably would do a good job as well.

The thing that drew me to a Yeti was the overall construction. I can't tell you how many coolers over the years I have thrown away because the hinge or handles broke, a corner got cracked, it smelled too bad from fish, or the lid couldn't handle my big rear. My Yeti has taken an absolute beating from work, hunting, fishing, camping and it hardly has a scratch. It even fell out of the back of my truck and hit the pavement, didn't even spill a drop of water.

Engel coolers are another brand I've read good reviews about on a boating forum. There has been mention of some cheaper knock-offs also. I can't afford, or won't pay for, any of them and use a 15 yr old Igloo :)

If money is not an issue buy the Yeti, I have an Igloo 5 day and it does a very good job. The money saved will buy lots of ice. Large amount of ice to start with, limited times opened, warm or cold stuff going into the cooler, outside temps and keeping it out of direct sun really helps keep ice in any cooler.

I have a Pelican, my buddy has a Yeti. His ice lasts longer than mine does but not by much. Costco has the Pelican's.

I like the Yeti quite a bit, but the cost and storage requirement kills the deal for me.

My cooler as supplied wasn't so cool (pun intended) so I modified it:

My Cooler Mod

lawnspecialties wrote:
Honestly, we're just tired of buying ice every day because it melts so fast in the coolers we have.

If you are tired of dealing with Ice, ARB makes a line of 12 volt Fridge/Freezers. A little pricey and need a 12v supply (draws less than 2 amps), but you never have to deal with ice again.

I own a 100 Quart MaxCold by Igloo cooler. I bought it about 10 years ago for about $100. On a 5 day camping trip years ago we had a big cook out for about 80 people on the last night. I pre-froze all the meat, chicken and hot dogs beforehand and put it all in the cooler. Covered it with ice and stuck it under one of the beds of the pop-up we owned then.

On the morning of the last day, I opened the cooler to find everything was still frozen solid and no ice had melted. Temps got in the mid-80s all week long. The contents of the cooler was exactly as it was when I packed it 5 days earlier.

-Michael