Overland Cooler Size

[GeneralJ]

Hello,

I'm really new to overlanding and I'm having trouble figuring out what size cooler I need. Are there general guidelines for how many people can eat out of a cooler for how long based on size? Or something like that? Like one person for 6 days and two people for 3 etc...

Thanks,
Ryan

I don't think there are any guidelines like that. Some of us are totally obsessed with coolers and stick with samekind beverages and food as in home and don't even think outside of the box. Then there are some that know what MRE stands for and know how you can survive without ice even in desert.

Cooler thing is so personal that all I have to say is think what you are going to eat and drink, and then think again is there something you can change for something that doesn't have to be frozen or cold.

 

[TXpedition]

Ok, I'm reviving this thread just to add my 2 cents:
As previously stated, get the biggest you can, within reason.
I bought an Igloo Sportsman 55.
I've used it out on the trail a few times and it's awesome.
Downside is it's heavy... it's heavier when filled with ice and food.

Most of the time I take it out at camp and find a spot for it. In a few weeks it's going to live in the back of the FJ while I overland through the west texas desert. I'm thinking this will convince me to get a fridge or a smaller cooler for overlanding.

 

[Scott]

The fridge vs cooler debate is a tough one.. I would say that if you decide to go the cooler route, do yourself a favor and go high quality like yeti, rtic or pelican. I will also say this.. You can get a decent sized truck fridge for about the same money as a large yeti, and I wouldn't trade my fridge back for an icechest if you paid me.

 

[OverlandHiker]

Really, for an extended trip I find having a fridge and an ice chest is a good combo if you have the room. All perishable food goes in the fridge and drinks go in the ice chest. If you put 1 lb of dry ice covered in cube ice on the bottom of the ice chest it keeps drinks cold for many days.

 

[TXpedition]

Really, for an extended trip I find having a fridge and an ice chest is a good combo if you have the room. All perishable food goes in the fridge and drinks go in the ice chest. If you put 1 lb of dry ice covered in cube ice on the bottom of the ice chest it keeps drinks cold for many days.

That's a great tip, thank you.

 

[TXpedition]

The fridge vs cooler debate is a tough one.. I would say that if you decide to go the cooler route, do yourself a favor and go high quality like yeti, rtic or pelican. I will also say this.. You can get a decent sized truck fridge for about the same money as a large yeti, and I wouldn't trade my fridge back for an icechest if you paid me.

The one I got is high quality. I got a great deal on it at Sams Club. I did the flashlight test on about 8 of them until I found this one.
It kept everything cold for the 4 days I was at the Lone Star Toyota Jamboree last May. Kept all my food and drinks icy cold, even with my frequent opening and closing of it.
Once this trip is done, I'll evaluate need vs want... the want is big for sure :)

 

[Jake Wettern | iamjake]

I have an RTIC 20 Qt cooler - it keeps food cold for a good 3-5 days and is a perfect size for myself. It is also rated to use dry ice, although I have not used that as yet.

 

[ArmyofMike]

My overland trips utilize two coolers; one for drinks, a smaller 30-40qt and for my food items, I use the
Coleman 70 qt Xtreme Marine Cooler, White


https://www.walmart.com/ip/Coleman-70-qt-Xtreme-Marine-Cooler-White/34105098?wmlspartner=wlpa&selectedSellerId=0&adid=22222222227022580964&wl0=&wl1=g&wl2=c&wl3=42977388152&wl4=pla-81469724552&wl5=9031864&wl6=&wl7=&wl8=&wl9=pla&wl10=8175035&wl11=online&wl12=34105098&wl13=&veh=sem


I've been VERY Happy with it and it is only around $50 at Walmart! Has great reviews otherwise and has steel latches and a tight fitting lid, no tilt drain, comfortable handles and plenty of room at 70qt. I'm a happy camper!

 

[000]

Really, for an extended trip I find having a fridge and an ice chest is a good combo if you have the room. All perishable food goes in the fridge and drinks go in the ice chest. If you put 1 lb of dry ice covered in cube ice on the bottom of the ice chest it keeps drinks cold for many days.

I agree, fridge for food and yeti for drinks. If the trips short everything goes in the fridge and I take a small yeti (roadie or hopper) full of ice just in case and for campfire cocktails. Though I love my yetis, I will always have a fridge in my rig, dry and consistently cold food is too awesome.


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[Mike W]

I think everyone has some great points in this thread and I realize that the choices are very personal. I now use a fridge, but have a small (low quality probably) cooler that is nice for drinks, that I sometimes use along with my 'main' food cooler.

But my real curiosity is ... where do you keep these monster coolers?!? What does your setup look like? Got photos? I would love to see how people organize things. (I have a bit of an obsession with seeing how people pack things.)

My setup... 2nd row middle seat removed, strap points installed where the seat bolts are. ARB 50qt is as large as I can fit there and gives the kids an arm rest. I have it wired into my Traxide SC-80 dual battery setup, with anderson connectors (cig plug seems like a bad idea for a fridge)

Access seems really simple there, so its not a big deal to not have it at the rear of the vehicle. The lid fully opens without issue there. Plus on the road the family can get in it for drinks. The front center console also has a built in 'cooler' that is powered, but its not anywhere near as powerful or cold as the ARB. I can only fit about 4 drinks in the center console cooler.

 

[Mike W]

I have been binging @iamjake videos for the last two days, and he just liked my last post. wicked. Now that is an impressive guy with his fairly small artic on the back/outside of his rig. Getting by with that tells me we can all get by with our ridiculous setups! ha.

Be safe out there Jake. Definitely a subscriber.

 

[Jeepney]

As far as where the coolers go

3 blocks of dry ice in the rtic for 1 week. The other cooler on the ground was useless.


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[Jake Wettern | iamjake]

I have been binging @iamjake videos for the last two days, and he just liked my last post. wicked. Now that is an impressive guy with his fairly small artic on the back/outside of his rig. Getting by with that tells me we can all get by with our ridiculous setups! ha.

Be safe out there Jake. Definitely a subscriber.

Hey, mbwesner! Welcome to the channel and thank you so much for subscribing! My small RTIC does the trick all right. It's all about outfitting and explore! Thank you for your support and following my journey! Safe travels and enjoy that open road!

 

[MOAK]

Here is our Engel, finally installed utilizing all the factory mounting points and the proper Engel mounting plate. I had to modify the release catch by moving it to the left rear corner and making it operational by drilling a hole in the rear side corner of the plate to fit a screwdriver through to release the catch tab. The Yeti mounted in oour trailer can be seen here.

 

[LandCruiserPhil]

The answer to this question is based on each individual needs. Just had a couple of friends finish 9 months in South America with only a small drawer fridge while I have another extended travel friend that carries a fridge and a freezer. Both are happy with there set up and it works for them. For myself Im good with a 50Lit that provides me with enough space for a week without restocking.

 

[Garth Jones]

I don't know why everybody seems to want to spend so damn much on a ice chest. I bought120 quart igloo for $50 at a garage sale and when I go hunting for 9 days it holds 35 pounds of ice for the entire time. Ambient Air Temperature averages around 45 to 50 degrees. We feed five people out of that ice chest for the 9 days.

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[Mike W]

I don't know why everybody seems to want to spend so damn much on a ice chest. I bought120 quart igloo for $50 at a garage sale and when I go hunting for 9 days it holds 35 pounds of ice for the entire time. Ambient Air Temperature averages around 45 to 50 degrees. We feed five people out of that ice chest for the 9 days.

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I think it is just that you can get better quality and insulation, but at significant cost and less return on investment. I was just browsing at the ACE hardware the other day, looking at the Yeti stuff. It is nice, but man is it pricey. They have an insulated beach bag looking thing for $400!! I do admit though that the little coolers they have are well built. I think having my ARB fridge is money better spent though than just (nice) plastic and insulation alone.

Fun to see where people keep them. Anyone else?

 

[MOAK]

I don't know why everybody seems to want to spend so damn much on a ice chest. I bought120 quart igloo for $50 at a garage sale and when I go hunting for 9 days it holds 35 pounds of ice for the entire time. Ambient Air Temperature averages around 45 to 50 degrees. We feed five people out of that ice chest for the 9 days.

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The major difference is that you are in, as you stated, ambient temps of 45 to 50 degrees. We had one of those types of coolers for a few years, until we started heading west to the high deserts. Our since retired Coleman Extreme couldn't keep ice for much more than 2 days in 75 to 80 degree weather, let alone 90 to 100. Yup, the damn things are overpriced, in my humble opinion, but sometimes ya gotta pay the piper to get anything of quality.

 

[adventure_is_necessary]

I've found that the chipped/chuck ice never keeps. I spent 5 days on the road with an old steel belted coleman cooler. I had small homemade ice blocks, and a couple frozen bottles. It kept everything cold the entire trip and the ice outlasted what food and drink was in the cooler. What has also helped is bagging up the smaller ice blocks and the ice chunks. Keeps the melt contained and seems to keep the ice longer as well. I also freeze or pre-chill all of what will be going in the cooler. These extra steps help a lot and keep me from buying ice all the time. Granted this cooler is a loaner till I get my Grizzly, it still has worked better than how most use their coolers.

 

[Garth Jones]

I took that Igloo ice chest to a bbq contest in Wendover Nevada last August. The night time were in the high 70s and day 105°. Four days and thee night I never needed to get ice for that ice chest. I got ice for other ice chest but the Igloo only lost about 20 of the 40 lbs I had in it. It was out of the sun most of the time but it was on the asphalt. 120 quart how much would it cost for a high end to get that much storage?

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