Ice Blocks for Cooler

So far, we have found this to be the best solution for ice in our 54 qt. Coleman and 75 & 105 qt. Yeti's. We have collected empty plastic containers from nuts and other types of snacks purchased from any of your typical warehouse stores (Costco, BJ's, Sam's Club). Fill, most of the way, with water and freeze. They are square-ish, and fit very nicely in the cooler. Then add your food and drinks. We try to freeze as much of the food as we can, and store it in lock n' lock containers to keep it safe from the melted ice water. After packing cooler, you can top it off with ice cubes. We have found that by using the blocks, you get extra days out of your solid ice. Even after 3 or 4 days of camping in warm weather, we always return with some portion of solid ice remaining. Best thing about the Yeti's is the plexiglas partition Jim made, that can separate the ice blocks from the food, and the basket still fits over the ice blocks.

blocks fit under basket. notice plexiglas partition. we had all of this ice left after 4 days of camping in 80+ degree weather.

emptied snack containers from Costco. there is still ice at the core after several days of use.

 

Great idea! Thanks for sharing.

 

The advantage of this over buying block ice is that there would be less water in the Yeti as the blocks melt.

I think the Blue Ice from Yeti is a better solution, however, as they melt slower/stay cold longer.

But that's more expensive than using this solution which is close to free!!

Plus, if you are boondocking, these containers of water are an extra water supply later in the trip!

-Al

 

That was my thought too.

 

One downside is, when the ice is gone, and once you've used the water, you now have a container that you have to store (while camping). And you won't want to leave it IN the cooler, as that water is sucking cool right out of the remaining ice. (I don't recall if it's better to leave the "block" of water in the cooler, or if your cooler stays colder if you remove the block of water, replacing water with air.)

Not a big deal, obviously, in most circumstances.

-Al

 

.........and no one even mentioned the other big benefit........all those yummy snacks!!

 

Forget where I read it, but FWIW, water is a better insulator than air. So a beer stays cold longer in a cooler surrounded by cold water than by cold air, everything else being equal. Of course, lots of stuff gets yucky if it wallows in the cold water that pools at the bottom of an ice-chilled cooler.

We use 'homemade' blocks of ice in those square, half-gallon milk cartons, lying on their side in the bottom of the cooler. We've never had to resort to them as a back-up water source, although take some comfort that they're there for that purpose if needed. And as long as the carton doesn't fail (which happens), ice melt is contained. Four of the ice-block-cartons will fit in the bottom of the cooler and have the additional benefit of providing sort of a floor that keeps the contents elevated above any melted water that may collect.

 

June 3 through June 15 my Store bought 2 blocks ice lasted the trip to Florida in a Coleman extreme 70qt cooler. Yes by the 15 they were pretty small. The blocks where aided by 4 Half gallon jugs frozen and also supplemented along the way with cubed ice. The cooler sat most of the time in the back of a pick up w/black surface. The outside temps ranged from 80's at night and mid 90's to the one high day of 103. For the price variance of a Yeti and the Coleman extreme 70qt I was pleasantly surprised how well the Coleman kept the cheese we were delivering cold. The lid snapped very tight and everything was kept very cold. I drained the Coleman usually twice a day, by about day 7 the half gallon blocks where fairly small and the larger store bought blocks lost about an inch or two.
One other note we have a reverse osmosis system, the water from the tap contains more air? the reverse osmosis water seems to freeze harder and stay longer?

 

Yes, it's better to leave the water in the cooler than to drain it (thus replacing the water with cold air)

(carl u: I don't think you want to be continually draining the cooler (unless you are also adding ice when you do that).)

But it's better to keep adding fresh ice than to simply leave the water, and you may not have room for your food if you don't drain the water and just keep adding ice every week or so.

The only real downside to using plastic containers filled with ice (which turns to water) is that those containers take up room that you may want to replace with ice as the days pass and the ice melts. Likely not a big deal unless you pack your cooler really tight, or if you are boondocking for more than a week and need to keep adding ice.

Since you'll have loose ice in your cooler in addition to the block ice, I don't see the benefit of having the ice inside a plastic container (other than the fact that making your own block ice is cheaper than buying block ice). But you do get that additional source of water, which can come in handy when boondocking for a week or so.

 

Do you re-use the cartons? Are these the cardboard cartons? I would be concerned that those cartons would eventually hold a lot of bacteria which I likely don't want to introduce into my cooler. (But if you only use them once, it's probably fine.) I like the plastic bottles for this, better.

 

I freeze those 1 gallon bottles of crystal geyser, then as someone said, drink it later. Toss the container in the trash on the way out so I don't have to pack them out. They are conveniently semi-squared off for hugging the corners of a cooler. In a coleman, both the one I got with the trailer and an old 1970's one, the frozen water lasted 3 days before I pulled them out to start defrosting them for cool water on hot camping days.

 

I think the advantage of the CostCo snack containers over the Crystal Geyser bottles is that the CostCo containers fit in the Yeti under the removable shelf, which is really nice. Of course, if the CG bottle is too tall you could just lay it on its side....

 

that is what I do, lay them on their side and put food on top of them, then surround everything with loose ice.

Speaking of coolers, Costco has a Kysek 105 quart cooler for 330, which is about 100 bucks cheaper than a yeti!

 

If I'm camping for more than a weekend I make block ice using my bread pans as a mold. It takes advance prep to fill halfway one day and fill up the next but I'm a planner so it's no bother. I find large blocks last longer than bags of cubes.
3 blocks fit nicely on the bottom of the Coleman, and then a wire shelf w legs goes over them. On the shelf I store my perishables in bins with holes that keep items out of water and are fast to remove. Drinks go in a separate cooler.
Works well for me boating or camping.

 

I've filled a waterbrick and froze it in my chest freezer and it fits perfectly in the Coleman cooler by laying it flat across the bottom leaving just enough space on the sides for the quart size milks or other tall thin items (olive or pickle jars) that might otherwise spill. Lots of space for food on top of the waterbrick. It keeps things cold for days, no soggy food, and good drinking water for later use.

 

Another advantage of the Costco snack containers, besides being able to fit under the basket in the Yeti, is that (if needed) we can drink the ice cold filtered water from the ice blocks, as they melt!

 

We have our is frozen bottles or jugs. Works great for short trips especially.