[Tubular Spey]

I have a Polar Bear cooler that is pretty awesome.....taken it both skiing and fishing and works really well....cheaper option than the big name ‘Y’cooler

 

[Nomadic Leisurist]

Some people even put spray foam insulation in the lid. The lids are usually hollow. There are a few Youtube videos on that as well.

Last summer I purchased a nICE cooler to keep in my truck. It is a Y cooler knock off and much less expensive. I could get about 2 days of keeping crushed ice in it. I made a Reflectix cover for the cooler and it made a huge difference in insulating the cooler. The ice landed much longer and I could actually feel the difference when I took the cover off.

 

[BNF861]

I was looking at new coolers last year and wanted rotomolded but was having a hard time justifying Yeti pricing. I ended up purchasing two Calcutta coolers, a 20L and a larger 55L from my local tackle shop. Used them on a couple trips and they worked great. I can’t compare to its yeti equivalent but the performance improvement was huge compared to my old cheap coolers. As others have mentioned, prechilling a cooler is the difference maker on cooler performance. I keep a couple frozen milk jugs in the deep freeze that I put in the cooler the night before a trip.

 

[Jason]

We got an Engel 65 cooler a few years ago, loved it so much we got an 80 not long afterwards. Depending on how long the trip is we try to size the cooler to minimize wasted space, or on really long ones we have used both on occasion. In more normal times my wife and I spend a lot of days camping out, and in the previous mid range coolers we were using the need to restock ice was a real issue at times. Sometimes the need for ice would even impact our overall trip itinerary. I penciled out the cost of ice per year (very rough guess), and it looked to me like the cooler could easily justify its cost over time. The added performance made the purchase worth it to us the first time we took a week long float in 90* weather, and still had some ice at the end of the trip!
The only two negatives at all are cost and weight. Both of those are more than offset by the performance of the cooler for me.

 

[hellsangler]

I have a pelican which is rotomolded like a yeti but has superior latches in my opinion. Also can find them on sale more often than a yeti. Keep in mine though they have a lot of insulation so they are large for the amount of carrying space you actually get. This is why im eventually moving to a fridge that I will hook up to a small power source. Yes, more expensive up front, but no more ice, no wasted space, soggy food, temp control, etc.

Just my 2 cents though

 

[fyshhead]

Hmmm, just looked at the Engel and Rtic sites. Looks like some reasonable prices compared to ........

I just bought a Engel for a lunch cooler for work. Returned it immediately, the walls were so thin on it I was afraid if something fell again it or rolled into it it would crack or shatter. Hollow walled too, pretty cheaply made for the price IMO!

 

[bwodun]

I have a pelican which is rotomolded like a yeti but has superior latches in my opinion. Also can find them on sale more often than a yeti. Keep in mine though they have a lot of insulation so they are large for the amount of carrying space you actually get. This is why im eventually moving to a fridge that I will hook up to a small power source. Yes, more expensive up front, but no more ice, no wasted space, soggy food, temp control, etc.

Just my 2 cents though

Same here, been using pelicans for years but the weight finally got to me and the old back so upgraded to an ARB fridge/freezer running off a jackery solar generator. expensive, very, but now I don’t have to worry about ice and have extra power for devices and can stay off grid for a long time

 

[SalmonCane]

This thread is mostly about rotomolded coolers, but wondered what everyones favorites are in soft-sided coolers as well. As usual, Yeti seems the best, but very expensive. Are there some good substitutes that anyone could recommend?

 

[hellsangler]

This thread is mostly about rotomolded coolers, but wondered what everyones favorites are in soft-sided coolers as well. As usual, Yeti seems the best, but very expensive. Are there some good substitutes that anyone could recommend?

I almost picked up an REI one the other day to use for weekend trips. If you wait for a members 20% off coupon it’s even more of a deal

 

[sinktip]

I have the Rtic one. The 30 can I believe. I’ve only had it a few months but so far it seems decent. The zipper is a bit hard to open even after being “greased” but it may loosen up. Bought it to have in the boat and works great for that. So far only winter steelheading though no idea on ice retention performance. 😂

In a few months will be regularly heading over to work on developing our property in Eastern WA so both coolers will get a true workout.

 

[Aldo]

What are you planning to use it for? Car camping? Week long floats? Day trips?

We are car campers, but our favorite spots are way off in the willywaws where going for ice can kill off the better part of a few hours - hours I'd rather spend on the water or lounging at the campsite than driving over sketchy dirt roads. So, ice retention is a primary factor. Not real concerned about weight. I get what you are saying about choosing the right tool for the job, so I intend to keep a couple of the smaller, lighter coolers we have for use on day trips and in the boat. Many thanks for the input!

Here's a good article about cheaper Yeti ripoffs...

Yeti Knockoff Cooler - Who's The Winner In The Battle Of The Knockoffs?

What's the best YETI knockoff cooler? In this in-depth post, we give precise answers and share the winners in both the premium & budget categories. Dive in!

bestcooler.reviews

Hoglord, this was the PERFECT resource! Thank you for sharing. I spent a few enjoyable hours last night looking at pretty much every brand reviewed (this is what we do for excitement when we can't fish in pandemic times ), and I'm leaning heavily twoard the Blue Cooler with the built in wheels. Looks like it might be just the ticket for me and the Mrs. to take on our car camping trips.

 

[reelstory]

A solution I have used is a dedicated cooler for block ice that only gets accessed to retrieve ice when needed to replenish day cooler.. Add insulation, and keep in shady area and covered. Also, adding dry ice is helpful to maintain it.

 

[Troutbum12]

Another tip I read years ago was to soak a towel and place it over the top of the cooler to slow the ice melting. Probably don't need this in a drift boat for a day float but it works well in a campground for a few days.

 

[ptmstrbbq]

Like Sinktip, I have the RTIC soft cooler. I don't think it's nearly as tough as the Y, but it does everything I need it to do. Yes, the zipper, even when lubricated is tight. I use the blue ice packs to keep cold or a black ice pack if I want to keep something frozen. I've found that a 40 qt soft side under the rowers seat and a 30 qt RTIC soft cooler in the boat for drinks works better than one large cooler for most situations.

When I have a chance to fish for a week or so I usually just use a RTIC45 and replenish each evening

 

[steelfisher1]

Yeti lost their patent, hence the knockoffs. Same as viagra, 😂 As stated before, check out the YouTube comparisons. No need to spend a Y amount.
We used to go on extended moose hunts , I used my big Coleman marine cooler.
A few hints: I froze ice in 5 gallon pails, block ice lasts much longer than cubes.
I filled the cooler, duct taped the latches, left it in the shade, and only opened it ONCE a day. Chopped off a chunk or retrieved food, and INSTANTLY, closed and revealed it.
Lasted over a week no problem. I've looked at the expensive brands, but simply can't justify the price, and as I get older, I don't camp away from essentials(ice etc)for any length of time, to spend that kind of cash. $2-3 on a block of ice when needed suits me fine now.

 

[jmwfish224]

Shout out to RTIC here. I've bought several of their products -- 45, 65, the modular components (i.e. rack and dividers), ice packs, tumblers -- and haven't had any issues. I do tend to camp a bit in the heat and it's also nice to be able to leave a cooler in a hot truck bed with a canopy and still come back to cold beers, errrrrr, food. One little note: a friend of mine and his wife (both very fit, strong people in their 30's) bought the 110 RTIC and the thing is so heavy when full that it takes the two of them to move it and it's real work. Having the 45 and 65 has been a great setup for us and I do, again, like the modular components to keep things organized. I'll have those coolers for 25-years, I'm sure of it.