best camp cooler

[Shortpants]

Re: best camp cooler

hehe! You got a point there...

[sdm74]

Re: best camp cooler

Ended up going with a big white Coleman extreme cooler. Worked great

[MacGyver]

Re: best camp cooler

I saw one major flaw with that Coolest cooler. It's got a riveted plastic hinge. Guaranteed to break eventually, with no easy fix.

[James.]

Re: best camp cooler

I saw one major flaw with that Coolest cooler. It's got a riveted plastic hinge. Guaranteed to break eventually, with no easy fix.

I don't know. It could probably be fixed with a piano hinge and some screws. Or maybe even a strip of leather.

[MacGyver]

Re: best camp cooler

I don't know. It could probably be fixed with a piano hinge and some screws. Or maybe even a strip of leather.

I've never been a fan of pop rivets in anything, especially plastic. Trying to drill them or grind them out usually results in large holes and/or semi-melted plastic. But, yeah, once they're out, the hinge or the leather would probably do the trick.

[Mike]

Re: best camp cooler

I saw one major flaw with that Coolest cooler. It's got a riveted plastic hinge. Guaranteed to break eventually, with no easy fix.

Absolutely correct. Plastic hinges are a sure failure, so-much-so that plastic hinge replacements are a common part available by Coleman for their coolers and they can be found in sporting shops where Coleman coolers are found. I do not believe that Coolest Coolers have some magically superior plastic hinge that makes them less prone to failure than any other hinge. I replace the plastic hinges on my coolers with brass hinges.

Like James says, you can replace them with leather hinges which works very well too, and are flush with the cooler and can take the abuse of getting banged around. Leather hinges get a little wobbly, but are generally workable.

Most coolers do not have any solid material inside the plastic shell of the cooler, so screws yank right out. You have to either inject some plastic fill where you want your fastener, or bolt it all the way through the wall of the cooler with braces on the walls of the cooler to support the bolts and hinges.

[James.]

Re: best camp cooler

I've never been a fan of pop rivets in anything, especially plastic. Trying to drill them or grind them out usually results in large holes and/or semi-melted plastic. But, yeah, once they're out, the hinge or the leather would probably do the trick.

I completely agree with you. Especially after having to replace the power window regulator in my daughters car. The stupid thing was rivited in so I had to drill them out. Not hard, just annoying. It obviously would be harder in plastic.


edit:
Hey! 500th post. I feel like I should have said something more profound.

[sdm74]

Re: best camp cooler

I figure I'll just be careful. For a cooler that size for the price I paid at Sam's I can find a fix ,if it breaks.

[hwc1954]

Re: best camp cooler

Maiden voyage with my new bear resistant coolers. And, wouldn't you know, they got attacked by a bear the first night. Muddy paw prints all over the coolers the next morning. Well, it might have been a bear. The paw prints were actually more the size of raccoon paws. Whatever.... I'm sure it was ferocious and the coolers survived a vicious attack unscathed!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X8VUQ_zUBLE

I bailed one day early. I was suppose to stay tonight, but he forecast deteriorated, now calling for heavy rain and flash flooding beginning before daybreak overnight. Breaking down camp and packing up in a driving rain isn't my idea of fun. Perfect camping temperatures. In the 50s at night. Very comfortable.





Campground was completely full -- peak summer season for family camping. I had a site on the "tent loop" -- a section of about 20 wooded tent sites along a mountain stream (although I couldn't get my usual brook side site). Fun to check out the assortment of tents. Everything from the usual blue tarp special family tents to a big LL BEAN King Pine 6, an REI Kingdom 8, and a Big Agnes Flying Diamond 8.

[Denni2]

Re: best camp cooler

Saw this video on youtube today and thought of this thread. It is 15 minutes but worth the watch.

He basically uses bubble foil (an emergency blanket?) inside the cooler to help with insulation. I like the idea of custom fitting a box but wonder if it would work better on the outside. I see it as something that can fold and pack away until you get to the camp site and then just open it up and drop the cooler inside.

The second thing he talks about is freezing SALT water for his ice. I didn't see anyone mention this here and was wondering if anyone has knowledge about it. Supposed to make the ice colder and last longer.

Thanks for posting this link. We have an old cheap cooler so we made the liner for the cooler. Boy what a difference! We use frozen bottles of water for ice and every thing kept really well for the weekend. We still had lots of ice when we got home.

We tried the salt water ice a long time ago. I think it melts too fast and you can't use it for drinking.

[howl]

Re: best camp cooler

I think that bubble foil would be under the brand name Reflectix. I was going to get some to make a blanket for me smoker. Definitely will now to use on a cooler too.

[Vern McGarry]

Re: best camp cooler

Hi,
There is no single best camp cooler, but there is something that can really lengthen the life of ice in any cooler. I am the inventor of the KoolerCap. The KoolerCap fits into the cooler cavity, directly on top of your ice and perishables and seals against the walls and corners of the cooler. I got tired of having my ice melt after a day or two, now it lasts at least 30% longer. The KoolerCap is made from a waterproof closed cell foam and is custom fit by the customer to their particular cooler. It is designed for coolers that are opened and closed during the day. The KoolerCap can be seen at www.facebook.com/koolercap and at www.koolercap.com. I also did a video side-by-side comparison test with two identical coolers that can be seen at http://goo.gl/UXQApS Not only does the KoolerCap make your ice last longer, but is also helps stop certain foods from getting soggy. Things such as sandwiches, chips, cookies, lettuce, etc. can be place in the area atop the KoolerCap and stay out of the ice and water below.

[James.]

Re: best camp cooler

Thanks for posting this link. We have an old cheap cooler so we made the liner for the cooler. Boy what a difference! We use frozen bottles of water for ice and every thing kept really well for the weekend. We still had lots of ice when we got home.

We tried the salt water ice a long time ago. I think it melts too fast and you can't use it for drinking.

Glad to hear that. I just got back from our camping trip Sunday night and admittedly didn't do a good job planning/prepping for this trip. That included trying the bubble wrap for the cooler.:(

I am curious, did you put it on the inside or the outside of your cooler. I was thinking the outside would be better but after spending a couple days outdoor in the dirt with the bugs I am thinking having it on the outside would be more trouble than it was worth.

[Denni2]

Re: best camp cooler

Glad to hear that. I just got back from our camping trip Sunday night and admittedly didn't do a good job planning/prepping for this trip. That included trying the bubble wrap for the cooler.:(

I am curious, did you put it on the inside or the outside of your cooler. I was thinking the outside would be better but after spending a couple days outdoor in the dirt with the bugs I am thinking having it on the outside would be more trouble than it was worth.

I put on the inside as in the video. I didn't tape the top of the foil to the sides but I did tuck it in so I could pull it out if needed.

[bluestar99]

Re: best camp cooler

My wife sewed me a cooler cover and it works great. The inside is bubble wrap with foil on it. Covered with denim. Looks like this...