Which cooler would you recommend?

[fexlboi]

We try to find the right high-quality cooler for our camper set-up. Size should be around 50L. It should be very durable and able to holde the temperature for at least 3-4 days.

So fare we found the Coleman Ultimate Xtreme Cooler http://www.coleman.com/coleman/colemanc ... d=6273A721 ,which is too big. The smaller sizes from Coleman are unfortunately not as good insulated.

Also the IRP Ice Otter http://www.irpoutdoors.com/html/iceotter.html has our attention too

The rest of the coolers we found so far are really low quality and just good for one or two nights....

Which cooler do you use and could recommend?

Thanks

[delicat]

This is the one I have, had a block of ice in it and it kept my food cold/frozen for 5 days. Actually, at the end I still had some of the ice block left. I try not to open it too often so I plan ahead for it, that way I keep the cold in... And size is decent.

http://www.canadiantire.ca/browse/produ ... earch=true

[thelazybrownfox]

The ultimate cooler would be a propane fridge for our delicas cuz I haven't found many coolers that hold up well.
When it's hot I move my cooler into a shady well ventilated location and cover it with my down sleeping bag. That's my best solution and holds for 4-5 days.

Keep it closed as much as possible and store your beer in cold water.

Wayne

[JMK]

The Coleman Extereme referred to above has pretty whimpy hinges. Ours broke in no time, and then tore the seat fabric of our car when we pulled it out of the back seat and didn;t notice the sharp broken hinge protruding out. Poor quality is nothing new to Coleman products, they all appear to suffer from the same flaws, poor QC and workmanship.

[delicat]

There must be some different but similar model 'cause mine doesn't have hinges, just to removable lid which I much prefer. (and it's a red box with white lid).

As for quality, I have no complaints. It's doing what it's supposed to do and does it well. And since these regularly go on sale the price is hard to beat.

I know CT is not what it used to be but I'd be sad if they no longer existed...

[fexlboi]

Thanks guys for your recommendations, we had a look at the Coleman coolers this week. The Ultimate Extreme version would be good isolated, but even the smallest version is pretty big and will not fit in our planed "kitchen".
After looking around quite a bit and a lot of research on the web, we decided to go with the Mobicool Power Cooler. It was an sale for $99. You can hook it up to a 12V plug if you need, but we want to use it with ice as well. Had a look at RV fridges as well, but $1500+ for the cheapest compressor fridge is way too much. We will see how it goes when we use it on our trip.

[dfnder]

You could always call a few RV service locations and ask if they have any used smaller fridges for sale, they would likely have small ones available over big ones... you never know.

[jessef]

Engel 45.

Look for them on ebay. Best fridge for the money.

[Golf Cart]

Mikes Hard Lemonade ...............oh wait , wrong cooler, my bad

You could get creative and mount a permanent cooler, and utilize the A/C . Kinda like the cold storage box thingy some people have, just longer lines to the box.

Ive had propane fridges and at best they stop the lettuce from wilting. Electric coolers...nyet. I stick with frozen water in plactic milk jugs. They seem to last the longest and as they slowly melt, you get really cold drinking water. Meat is frozen solid before I leave, it acts like an ice block. And I never ever ever put any aluminum cans in a cooler. Aluminum seems to suck the cold out of the ice. And I usually camp close to water, usually moving water where I can submerge some of the food to keep it cooler.

[fexlboi]

@dfnder
None of the RV places had used coolers in the size we wanted. It is probably the wrong season to look for something like that.

@jfarsang
Way too big for us and still too expensive even on ebay.

@Golf Cart
We looked at propane fridges as well, but all of them a too big for us. We just want a cooler for meat/fish, milk and a few drinks. We will by veggies etc fresh if they are available anyway. Thanks for the tip with the frozen water bottle.

[almac]

You could also use that reflective insulation inside it to prolong the cooler temps.

i found some interesting stuff on TT&T here:
http://www.mikenchell.com/forums/viewto ... 099#227099

and apparently the lids on most coolers dont have a really tight fit. time for some cooler modding? ;)

[norisan]

Check out www.edgestar.com I believe they have small compressor type units at a more reasonable price.