Building a Tripping Cooler

[alsg]

ps Also, I've been spurred on to reading about insulation thanks to this thread, and pondered reflective properties of a radiant barrier. The white exterior of the Nyeti goes a long way in providing this. Good simple idea.

The color choice was indeed a deliberate decision.

 

[Guest]

I was thinking of doing something like that since it is well known that a solid block will last longer than an equal weight of small cubes.


Also was looking at water bladders that might be partially filled/frozen. Lots of options.

One of our block ice favorites is half gallon plastic milk jugs, well rinsed of course. Being rectangular, 4 wide x 11 tall, they fit nicely in the corner of the cooler. Just leave some headspace and take the caps off before freezing.

The ones with the screw on lids are best; the little snap lids always pop off and go missing in the cooler.

Once the consumables are gone that fresh water, uncontaminated by deer steak drippings (OK, hot dog juices) is handy, especially in places where we have to pack in potable water.

BTW, if melted ice cooler water is needed for drinking, even from a cooler that has held only beer cans, I still filter it. Apparently the tops of beer and soda cans can be bacteria (and worse) laden, simply from the way they are stored and transported. One study showed that the tops of beverage cans to be as contaminated as public toilets.

Yuck, I do not wipe the top of my beer cans. I may only be alive today thanks to the alcohol content.

 

[Odyssey]

The color choice was indeed a deliberate decision.

So there I was just minding my own business in the curb lane coming into town, when out pulls a semi hauling ammonia or something or other. No probs I say, I touch the brakes and ease on down giving buddy up front plenty of room. Except the hotshot BMW behind me wasn't in the neighbourly mood. So I decide to swing into the "fast lane" to slide on by good buddy hauling ammonia or something or other as he climbs the gears, but a couple decide to peel outta Timmies with their double-doubles no doubt and straight across the semi into my lane...and then they slooooowwww down. What. The. F. My neighbourly gauge was nearly on empty at this point, especially as Mr I spent more $$ on my car than you see in a year which means I'm entitled to drive like a jerk is still hot on my tail...so I decide to flip my left hand turn signal...rather than the bird...heading in the other direction...and go visit my local TSC. I wonder what's on sale?
And just as simple as that my world turned from having a bad day to having a good one. Step inside to nice cool air conditioning (unlike my old vehicle) and appreciate the country tunes echoing down from the dusty speakers overhead. Racks and racks of plaid shirts wool socks Wrangler jeans - yup, I'm feelin' it now. And what is staring me straight in the face in aisle 2? A neatly stacked store display of Yeti coolers. Up on top are camo coolers and tan/blaze orange coolers bragging how waterproof they are as bold as you please. I check the price and am immediately confused. $339.99?? Must be a misprint. They only hold a half dozen bee...er I mean ginger ales? But as I don't need another cooler I glance at the Yeti drinking bottles. I pick one up and burn myself on the price tag. Yikes! Fifty bucks?! But lo and behold I spy at the bottom the mother of all coolers, a pearly white box that looks...it looks...looks just like that Nyeti I've been reading about. I know better than to rummage round the precariously piled bling bags. Don't want a cleanup in aisle 2. Besides, I don't want to know how much they cost. I'm still having a nice day, no sense in spoiling it. Think I'll stop at the DQ and then head home for an update on our Nyeti project. And count the beers and sodas.

 

[alsg]

6:45 PM 8/15. Total elapsed time: 76 hours. Still 32 on the inside thermometer. Today's high temperature was 89 degrees.

The melt rate appears to be picking up pace but the beer is sill perfectly chilled! (I pulled one out after snapping the picture).

 

[latremorej]

But I am also toying with the idea of simply pouring several inches of water into the NYETI and putting it in the freezer to freeze up solid. The danger would be that the expansion might go outward rather than upward and cause compression damage

All you would need to do to mitigate that danger is put something in the middle for the ice to climb up. Maybe a tennis ball floating around in there or something. Kinda like putting the float bag in the middle of an above ground pool over winter.


great results so far... come September, the ice will last even longer, high temps should be at least 15* cooler by then.

maybe add a refletix sheet on top to stop the hot sun from heating it up while in the canoe? Just a thought.
jason

ETA:

i also like the half gallon milk jug idea. They do fit well in square spaces. I usually grab the 1 liter water bottles and freeze them before a trip and then drink 'em up after they have thawed.

 

[alsg]

8/16 at 6:45 AM. Elapsed time is now 88 hours. Inside thermometer is at 33 degrees. Overnight low was 68 degrees.



Looking at the accelerating melt, I can only conclude that by taking a beer out of the cooler last night I must have set off some kind of exothermic reaction.

It is supposed to hit 90 today so I will be curious to see if any ice survives to the end of day 4, which will be at 2:45 PM. I won't be home, however, at 2:45 PM. So, I will check back in around 7 PM.

 

[Guest]

Looking at the accelerating melt, I can only conclude that by taking a beer out of the cooler last night I must have set off some kind of exothermic reaction.

The increasing air space as the ice melts and things are removed is not good for remaining ice retention.

I resolve this issue by bringing more beer, putting it in a dunk bag to chill in the lake and keeping the cooler relatively full. Off season camping I just leave a 12 pack out overnight and stick it in the cooler the next morning.

 

[Odyssey]

Well, you got half the food groups right, and managed to omit a few others. But that's okay. We can work it out. And in this day and age of science and superstition, we can always make crap up and who would none the wiser? Eh? But I like how you roll. So let's get to it.
I am seriously looking forward to a TR with this cooler. A solid block of frozen meat, say the other food group you forgot, a prime rib, might last till day 5 or 6. Very nice for a celebratory meal however long you're out there for. You can say "hey honey, we can postpone that post-trip burger and fries (another other food group you forgot, not to be confused with another - poutine), 'cause we've got a real deal meal - prime rib!!" Yeah. I'm looking forward to those pics! We managed even without your superior food management device to eek out a steak meal by day 3. We never pushed our luck with chicken. Frozen skinless boneless was eaten on day 1. There was a day long drive and paddle in to start the trip after-all. It's true a big block of frozen whatever will last longer than itty bitty cubes of the non-food group variety. (Chicken is only a food group if it's crispy fried). And here's a conundrum. What about taking frozen vegetables? I see ice as useless cubes of cold. You really don't need to save it to drink. Not when you're virtually surrounded by water. But frozen food can act as a cold pack and calories.
All in all I think you'll be golden with this Nyeti. But I'd substitute the ice with food groups. The food groups are always open for discussion. And sampling.

ps I can't believe I just opined about frozen vegetables. Let's forget that ever happened. And incidentally, it's NOT a food group.

pps I'll gladly eat my words. I don't know enough about Mexican food to consider it a food group. But I hope to be better educated someday.

 

[alsg]

8/16 at 6:45 PM. Elapsed time 100 hours! And there is still ice! I assumed I would come home to all water but there is still ice, and not just chips. Mostly submerged though it may be, there is still a block of ice in there. Thermometer (also partially submerged) reading 29 degrees. Outside high temp was 89 degrees. I consider this test a total success even under sub-optimal starting conditions and am drinking a victory brew as I write this.

 

[Odyssey]

A victory brew. Why didn't I think of that? But given what you have at your disposal, that ought to be a shandy. Beer and ginger ale would work.
Congrats!!

 

[alsg]

8/17 6:45 AM. Time elapsed 112 hours. The last of the ice gave up the ghost overnight (low temp 76 degrees). The water, however, is still just above freezing and will keep these beers/sodas comfortably chilled a while longer.

 

[Guest]

8/17 6:45 AM. Time elapsed 112 hours. The last of the ice gave up the ghost overnight (low temp 76 degrees). The water, however, is still just below freezing and will keep these beers/sodas comfortably chilled a while longer.

That closely mirrors the 4+ day ice retention results I had with DIY dry bag coolers, insulated inside and out with sleeping pad foam. Some minor variances in test methodology; daytime temps 80s to 90s, nighttime lows 60s-70s. I completely filled each of the coolers with ice and set them in partial shade.

I expect that, filled to the brim with block ice, frozen victuals and cubes, the NYETI would be good for another day or two.

Soft side cooler test
24 hours later:

El Cheapo cooler: The ice is mostly melted, with approximately a double handful of ice floating in 6 inches of water. Maybe I will check every 12 hours, I expect the ice in that one will be gone by dusk.

10L dry bag: An internal cylinder of clumped cube ice, down a couple inches from the filled level, with a half inch void on the sides and a couple inches of water at the bottom.

20L dry bag: Ditto the 10L bag, with a bit less melted void space on the sides. Odd because the 10L is double insulated. I guess the available volume of ice matters.

Solar Bear: Hard to compare, different shape and a lot more volume of ice. The ice level is down two inches from topped off full.

Day 2:
El Cheapo: Zero ice left and the residual water is only cool, not cold.

10L dry bag: Still a clumped cylinder of ice in the middle, but slightly more shrunken on the sides and down another inch in height.

20L dry bag: Ditto.

Solar Bear: The ice level has dropped about 4 inches from topped off full.

Day 3:
10L dry bag cooler. No longer a shrunken cylinder of ice, just a floating layer of cubes.
20L dry bag cooler. Still a shrunken cylinder, now free floating in several inches of water.
Solar Bear 24. Still a solid mass of near cooler sized ice, floating 6 inches down from the fill level.

Day 4
10L dry bag cooler. Not much ice left at noon. No ice by 8pm, but the water is still cold.
20L Dry bag cooler. No cylinder, but an inch of floating ice. 8pm, ice gone, water is dang cold.
Solar Bear 24. The large center floe is breaking up, but considerable ice remains. 8PM, a much diminished ice raft 6 inches below the full line, floating in 5 inches of water.

(BTW, all of the coolers got smacked during day 4 by errant basketballs, so the ice floe breakup had help. dang the variables in my procedures and methodology).

Day 5
10L dry bag cooler. No ice, 64F water.
20L dry bag cooler. No ice, 66F water.
Solar Bear 24. No ice, still dang cold, 45F water. 8pm check, 55F water.

Time to dump and measure the water.

Totals
Cheap soft side cooler. Just under 3 quarts of water, so about 6 lbs of ice. Barely lasted 2 days.
10L dry bag cooler. A hair over 3 quarts, so just over 6lbs of ice. Ice/cool lasted through day 4
20L dry bag cooler. A hair over 6 quarts of water, so just over 12 lbs of ice. Ice/cool lasted through day 4+
Solar Bear 24. 11.5 quarts of water, so 23 lbs of ice. Ice/cool lasted into day 5.

 

[Odyssey]

Loading up for a cycle ride today it occurs to me similar strategy might be employed for a tripping cooler. I put frozen fruit into our water bottles and filled with water leave them in the freezer the night before to freeze up solid. They gradually thaw on our hot summer cycle ride making sips all the more cold and refreshing. Eventually as the water gets low the fruit becomes pulpy, and goes down well on a final few gulps. I don't know if you'd want to freeze water bottles (kinda heavy) but the fruit might be appreciated as the trip goes on. Not sure how much cold contribution ziplock bags of frozen fruit might be, but just a thought. Fruit cocktail for dessert or added to pancakes?

 

[alsg]

NYETI got a little try out this weekend on the Paw Paw Bends section the Potomac between Paw Paw, WV and Little Orleans, MD. It was only an overnight but she worked quite well.

 

[alsg]

Update: Filled with two frozen five liter flexible water containers and food. Taken out of freezer on Saturday 9/8. Still has the majority of its ice on Saturday 9/15. (Food all gone).

Also, don’t ask me how I know this, but it also free-floats down river at least a half mile, bounces off rocks, without sinking or accumulating any visible damage and only allowed in a few tablespoons of water.

 

[dougd]

Come on now alsg there is a tale to be told! Spill your guts and fill in the gaps!

 

[alsg]

Doug there is a trip report to be written that will include the embarrassing details.

 

[Guest]

Film at 11?

 

[Odyssey]

So it sounds like Nyeti passed the river run test. I guess if it is reasonably sealed it ought to be buoyant even with some ice as ballast. You are one gutsy dude to be doing the old "you can sink or swim, so you might as well swim" test. At least you were sensible enough to eat all the food first. A very nice way to ease the Nyeti into tripping going on a pleasant overnighter. Looking forward to the story.

 

[alsg]

Just got home and 9.5 days later, the cooler was still cool inside and you can see solid ice in the two 5 liter ice bags.