Yeti, Engel, Pelican, Grizzly... Who has an extreme cooler?

[milee]

It's time to replace one of the coolers on my fishing boat. Plus, we may try more camping trips in the future. I'm considering springing for one of the extreme coolers rather than replacing the Marine coolers every few years. Anybody have one and want to give me some advice?

How did you choose a brand? Research, word of mouth or what was available locally?

How happy are you with your cooler?

I know they're much heavier than regular coolers. How much of an issue is that and is it a problem?

Any features you especially like or hate?

Anything special I should look for?

Thanks.

[8 Bit WWBG]

To some degree, I have been partial to Coleman.  Not a new one; but scouring Ebay for an older one.  You know back when they were made with real metal and had proper tight seals and all that.  A lot of Amazon reviews for new ones say that old ones were better  Sadly, the looks of some of the insides of the Ebay offerings kind of scared me away!

I always wondered whether it could be reinforced with window insulation or something.

I'll have to look up the brands you've just listed; as I'm not familiar with those in and of themselves.  My needs are different though; just something in the trunk for the occasional grocery trip on a hot day, or tailgating party.

I'd say as big a component as the coolers themselves are the ice packs you stuff them with.  I've accumulated a good supply of packs due to ordering various perishables over the years.  Something that won't puncture easily, and that has a non-toxic, non-caustic gel is the way to go.  The cheapies from Target haven't held up very well.  There was a type of icepack on kool tools a while back that I need to see if I can dig up again.

ETA my grandfather has a small Coleman that is probably 50 years old.  Back when everything was riveted and secure.  I hope he still has it.  I'd love to get it when he doesn't need it anymore.

[8 Bit WWBG]

Zounds, OK I looked up those brands.  Definitely a few steps above the Coleman.  I'd totally spend $200+ for something that really delivered.

I am somewhat familiar with Pelican; in that I talked to their sales reps at a trade show.  Pelican knows how to make cases, thats for sure.

[milee]

Of the brands listed I like the Pelican latches the best, but it's also the only one of those that isn't bear certified. Not sure that bear certification is something I'd need, but I'm wondering if lack of it is an indication that it's less well constructed or just that they didn't bother to get the certification.

[8 Bit WWBG]

In the complaints I'd read about other brands, bad latching was number one.  I always assumed that the claims of keeping ice solid for 4 days is assuming you hardly ever actually open the cooler.

If you are going to go based on name, I'd choose Yeti over Pelican or Grizzly.  Its hard no to think of cold when you hear "Yeti".

Damn, there is a certification for everything.  I need to invent one so I can have people buy me off to get it!

[Abby Normal]

I can't remember which brand (coleman I think), but we purchases a 7 day cooler a few years ago.  Yes, the less you open it, the longer it lasts.  So if we are camping for a long time, we take two.  One for the beginning and one we don't open until the later part.  I took a frozen roast one time, figuring that we'd cook it on our last days there.  Surprise, when we opened that 7 day cooler, and it was still frozen 5 days after we left.

[milee]

That sounds similar to the marine coolers I have. They're good, but in SW Florida on a boat, nothing is going to keep frozen for 5 days, unfortunately. Plus, every few years, I have to replace the handles and sometimes the hinges or latches because the sun just destroys them. That's one of the things that is kind of appealing about the Yeti type coolers, the hinges are integrated so probably more durable, one set of handles is molded into the body of the cooler so no need to ever replace those and the other set of handles is rope, which I could replace out of the spare sailing line I have laying around.

[8 Bit WWBG]

Now I want one...

[bookkeeper]

We bought some ice packs at an RV show a few years ago we really like. They are called Techni Ice. We use them on the boat all the time and we usually get by with half the ice we used to. They come in sheets that you soak in a sink of water. After they are hydrated you can freeze them or heat them to use for potlucks.  They are awesome in the food cooler because nothing gets wet.

I'll be looking for more when these wear out.