WHAT SAY YOU ON COOLERS?

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Big_Daddy_Jp

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So it’s time to buy some new coolers. Pretty much all of my coolers are Igloo. I have a 150qt cooler that my son and his girlfriend use all the time and my wife and I use it for our week long trip during thanksgiving. The cooler is pretty beat up now and I would like to replace it. I’m thinking about getting another one that size for my son to keep and get 2 more that are around half that size for us. I’ve been looking at rotomold coolers but they are damn pricey! Any suggestions?

 
I have Rtic and Hooked. Both roto molded. The Rtic is lighter. I have a small Yeti too but bought that used - too damn expensive for the name. All my roto coolers keep ice the same. I have found that if you pre chill the cooler and everything you are going to put in it the ice keeps much longer

 
If I were looking at replacing what I already have, the Lifetime from Walmart would be at the top of the list for price/ice usage.

They don't have one that big though.

 
I have a RTIC that works well.  They alway have sales so the price is not to bad.  

 
Whats wrong with sticking with Igloo?  I picked one up at Costco and loaded it with ice and drinks for a party and left it sitting 4 days after party.  Opened it up thinking it would have water, but was surprised and 80% ice remained.  Made me a believer for the inexpensive brand. 

 
We have a couple of the light RTIC coolers and have been very happy with them, like said above they have sales a lot so price isn't to bad.

 
JBL said:
Whats wrong with sticking with Igloo?  I picked one up at Costco and loaded it with ice and drinks for a party and left it sitting 4 days after party.  Opened it up thinking it would have water, but was surprised and 80% ice remained.  Made me a believer for the inexpensive brand. 
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There are a lot of cooler comparisons on YT that are done fairly well, identical conditions, and sometimes they yield some surprising results. For example, the Lifetime cooler is $99, but keeps ice slightly longer than the same sized Yeti. The Yeti is a high quality cooler, but it was built to be bear proof and rugged, the extra thick plastic transfers heat inside faster than other coolers. Price doesn't always mean better ice retention.

I lean toward lighter weight coolers. For example, a 45 qt Yeti weighs 24 lbs empty. Then add in your beverages and ice and it could weigh over 100 lbs. I bought some Rugged Road coolers that are 45 qt and only 8 lbs while retaining ice approx. the same. I haven't looked at coolers in the 150qt range, but I'm sure there are test results on YT.

 
I prefer the Rtic myself , We did a comparison over the summer on a camping trip, We had one Rtic,one igloo ,one Yeti and one Cabella , All about the same size and we keep them inside a inclosed trailer and after 4 days the Rtic did the best, There were some variables of course on what was inside of them ,But for the most part the Rtic won hands down and everyone agreed , I came home and bought 2 Rtics for the boat and 1 for the RV.The only downside like someone mentioned is that they are heavy,When they are empty and you pick one up you would of thought it was full.

 
matt86m said:
I have Rtic and Hooked. Both roto molded. The Rtic is lighter. I have a small Yeti too but bought that used - too damn expensive for the name. All my roto coolers keep ice the same. I have found that if you pre chill the cooler and everything you are going to put in it the ice keeps much longer
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That’s the trick, you need to put cold stuff in the cooler first. The cooler is to maintain cold not to cool items. 
 

My in laws have a nice (heavy) Yeti, and they still complain their ice melts. Problem is they put room temperature drinks & cans in it, then expect the ice to cool it. Then they are in & out all day long, with no urgency. Open it, look around, dig to the bottom, find a drink and close it. I’m a get in and out quick, to keep the ice. 
 

My 15 plus year old 150 qt Igloo gets a block of ice in the middle, and everything  is pre chilled before it goes in. Then I ice it all down. That old cooler can go 4 days at the river slid under the back of the RV out of the direct sun. When I get home there is still some block ice still in the bag. 
 

Rotomold coolers are nice & better then my cheap Igloo, but cost 4X as much and are way heavy! 

 
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I have a 55gt ozark trails and a 28qt lifetime cooler both work pretty goodi like the 28qt for its size and it does a pretty good job keeping ice.The ozark does good too but it wont hold as good as an rtic or yeti but also cost alot less and i only use it a couple times a year.

Like to have 2 different sized coolers vs one large one carying them ful gets heavy and it allows me to keep one for the food where i dont have to open often and other for drinks.

 
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Bobalos said:
I have looked at a number of them, but just can't seem to get passed the fact that I can buy a LOT of $5 bags of ice for the price of one of those rotomoulded coolers.  

That said, the catorgator is what I've been looking at.  

https://www.webstaurantstore.com/catergator-cg65whw-white-65-qt-mobile-rotomolded-extreme-outdoor-cooler-ice-chest/215CG65WHW.html

But...

  If I can support a semi local company (canyon coolers), I would rather do that. 
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The Lifetime cooler ranks right up there with the $300 coolers in terms of ice retention but only costs $99 at Walmart. To me, I'd rather use less ice and dump less cold water out, thus making life easier. 

 
It really depends on what you are using a cooler for. If you are putting drinks in it and it will be opened continuously throughout the day with people grabbing a drink and closing it, then a basic igloo will do just as good as as a Yeti or other knock off type rotomold coolers. If you are putting frozen food or other items and will only open it once or twice a day, the the Yeti style will work better. I have a 150 qt Yeti, a 162 qt Marine Igloo and two other of the blue igloo extreme. They all work the same for general drink use when being opened regularly. For drink use in the boat, I like the big 162 qt. I line the line bottom with blocks, put drinks in, then cubes on top. Holds tons of drinks. The cubes melt then the blocks keep the water in there cold for many days. Don’t drain the water if you don’t have to. The cold mass keeps the ice longer. 

When we go on a long trip we put frozen food in the yeti. It keeps stuff frozen for 5 days or more. 

 
Dockmaster said:
It really depends on what you are using a cooler for. If you are putting drinks in it and it will be opened continuously throughout the day with people grabbing a drink and closing it, then a basic igloo will do just as good as as a Yeti or other knock off type rotomold coolers. If you are putting frozen food or other items and will only open it once or twice a day, the the Yeti style will work better. I have a 150 qt Yeti, a 162 qt Marine Igloo and two other of the blue igloo extreme. They all work the same for general drink use when being opened regularly. For drink use in the boat, I like the big 162 qt. I line the line bottom with blocks, put drinks in, then cubes on top. Holds tons of drinks. The cubes melt then the blocks keep the water in there cold for many days. Don’t drain the water if you don’t have to. The cold mass keeps the ice longer. 

When we go on a long trip we put frozen food in the yeti. It keeps stuff frozen for 5 days or more. 
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It’s funny you say not to drain the water. That was the exact question I asked my dad this weekend! I wondered if the water helped melt the ice or keep it longer since it was already cold. I guess that’s for another thread!

 
JBL said:
Whats wrong with sticking with Igloo?  I picked one up at Costco and loaded it with ice and drinks for a party and left it sitting 4 days after party.  Opened it up thinking it would have water, but was surprised and 80% ice remained.  Made me a believer for the inexpensive brand. 
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Nothing wrong with sticking with Igloo. I actually was looking at the Igloo Bmx. Then I read the reviews and it seemed 90% of the reviews complained about the hinges pulling out right away. So that got me thinking and figured I would ask you guys what you use.

 
The cooler will be used mainly for food and drinks for my son. In and out frequently. For me, I use the coolers for water bottles and cocktail ice. So it will be opened frequently as well! No sense in spending big money on a roto molded cooler if it doesn’t hold ice way better than a cheaper cooler for the application I’m using.

 
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