CS ice maker, and general chilling

[2beagle 2]

A couple questions - we've had multiple unforeseen expenses recently, and my husband is looking to cut unnecessary additional expenses before we head out Saturday,  arriving Monday at the Fort. 

We are staying in a pup,  and up until about 10 minutes ago, the plan was to buy a small fridge for it to keep dairy and perishables in...

The hubs just texted me-asking if we could just use the ice maker at the comfort station, and bring 2 coolers. I told him I'd ask in the forums for opinions of experienced FW campers. Told him I didn't want to be "that" camper that empties the ice machine and makes everyone else wait, and I also wasn't convinced that a cooler would keep up in Florida's 90+ degree days, especially if we were at the parks and couldn't refresh the ice supply. 

Ok, experienced campers, what say you? 

[DaveInTN 3,247]

Depending on how long you are staying, you might spend as much on ice as a small dorm fridge would cost.  This is the time of year that tons of dorm fridges change hands as kids head back to college.  Check your local craigslist....I see plenty in the $20-40 range in my area.  

[2beagle 2]

Ah, so the ice isn't "complimentary ", then?

Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk

[mouseketab.....Carol 1,261]

No, the is is $2.50 a bag and it is soft frozen ice. Melts very quickly. Depending on the comfort station, you might get a small bag for that $2.50 or you might get two bags worth.

If you do need to buy ice at the Fort, go to the Meadows trading post and buy it there. It is hard frozen, and a consistent size bag.

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

13 minutes ago, 2beagle said:

Ah, so the ice isn't "complimentary ", then?

Nope, $2.00 for an 8 lb bag at the comfort stations.  $2.50 for a 10 lb bag at the trading posts.

In the current weather conditions, you will probably need to replace the ice in each cooler daily- plan for a bag per cooler.

Another suggestion:  the prices for milk and eggs at the Trading Posts aren't as inflated as the prices on the non-perishable stuff (they need to sell the perishable stuff quicker).  You may want to buy a quart of milk each morning, rather than trying to keep a larger quantity from spoiling.

TCD

[Tuke 16]

I hate buying ice! We've always went with a mini fridge and supplemented with a 5 day Coleman ice cooler. This allowed us to have a place for perishables upon arrival before the mini fridge was plugged in and cool.

Before last year's week long June (90+ degrees) trip to the Beach and on to the Fort, I put the entire cooler in the freezer the day before and packed it with ice just before leaving. As a result, we purchased only one 10lb bag of ice at the Fort for the ride home so I wouldn't have to hear our remaining soft drinks slosh around.  The mistake most often made with multi day coolers is neglecting to pre-chill items prior to placing them into the cooler and leaving the cooler in the direct sun or inside a parked car.

[Travisma 1,317]

I had just replied with a lengthy post about our trip 6/28-7/6 at the Fort, but when I sent it I got a message that the site was down, and it's now gone.

In a nutshell, we used 3 coolers, long term, day to day, and drinks.

All 3 are Coleman Extremes,  Dollar for dollar one of the best chests you will find.

Long term was frozen dinners, meats, etc. Only adults allowed to open

Day to day was cold cuts, cheese, milk, condiments, etc.

Drinks were drinks.

The first two we used frozen gallon milk jugs and some smaller containers from Dollar tree. We still had ice in the long term jugs on 7/3. 

We added ice from a small ice maker we brought and 2 bags of ice, one from the meadow and 1 from Wal Mart.  Same bags, 75 cents less at Wal Mart, but not worth the drive unless you are going for something else.

Keep out of the chests as much as possible.

Keep them in the shade.

Cover them, I used my pickups silver reflective windshield shade, made a big difference.

Cabelas.com has hints on getting the most out of your coolers.

If you can't transport the dorm fridge upright you have to let them sit for quite a while so the Freon and oil settle. Sometimes up to 12 hours depending on the brand.

 

[rtguy007 74]

2beagle,

We get there on Saturday and will be there to the 14th. I have a plug in Coleman cooler that works on 12v or 110. I can bring it with me if you need something to use while you are there. We do not use it often but it works well once it is cooled down. Takes a few hours to cool down and everything stays frosty cold. Let me know before tomorrow and I will toss it in our TT. It is the size of a normal cooler and not a small 12 can cooler.

Ryan

 

 

[Travisma 1,317]

One of the things mentioned in articles about ice chests is to use a sacrificial bag of ice and to bring the ice chests into a cooler environment before loading them up.

Use the sacrificial to cool down the ice chests before loading them up, just drain the melted water out but leave any remaining ice.

And bring the chests inside before loading, don't leave them in the garage or on the porch.

[2beagle 2]

2 hours ago, Travisma said:

I had just replied with a lengthy post about our trip 6/28-7/6 at the Fort, but when I sent it I got a message that the site was down, and it's now gone.

In a nutshell, we used 3 coolers, long term, day to day, and drinks.

All 3 are Coleman Extremes,  Dollar for dollar one of the best chests you will find.

Long term was frozen dinners, meats, etc. Only adults allowed to open

Day to day was cold cuts, cheese, milk, condiments, etc.

Drinks were drinks.

The first two we used frozen gallon milk jugs and some smaller containers from Dollar tree. We still had ice in the long term jugs on 7/3. 

We added ice from a small ice maker we brought and 2 bags of ice, one from the meadow and 1 from Wal Mart.  Same bags, 75 cents less at Wal Mart, but not worth the drive unless you are going for something else.

Keep out of the chests as much as possible.

Keep them in the shade.

Cover them, I used my pickups silver reflective windshield shade, made a big difference.

Cabelas.com has hints on getting the most out of your coolers.

If you can't transport the dorm fridge upright you have to let them sit for quite a while so the Freon and oil settle. Sometimes up to 12 hours depending on the brand.

 

Thanks for all that info! I wondered if the fridge would need to be transported upright, due to freon. The ones I'm considering are too tall to put in the pup, not sure if the back of our Suburban has enough height for it to fit. 

[2beagle 2]

15 minutes ago, rtguy007 said:

2beagle,

We get there on Saturday and will be there to the 14th. I have a plug in Coleman cooler that works on 12v or 110. I can bring it with me if you need something to use while you are there. We do not use it often but it works well once it is cooled down. Takes a few hours to cool down and everything stays frosty cold. Let me know before tomorrow and I will toss it in our TT. It is the size of a normal cooler and not a small 12 can cooler.

Ryan

 

 

Thanks for the offer! When the hubs gets home from work, I'll see what he decides and let you know if we'll take you up on it.

[rtguy007 74]

1 minute ago, 2beagle said:

Thanks for the offer! When the hubs gets home from work, I'll see what he decides and let you know if we'll take you up on it.

That works.

 

Ryan

[caveat lector 181]

I agree with Dave. Get a used college dorm frig for 20-30 bucks. Then used top compartment to freeze blue ice.

[BradyBzLyn...Mo 2,023]

4 hours ago, Travisma said:

...we used frozen gallon milk jugs

 

I did this back in May for WWW.  With temps in the high 80s-90 range, keeping the cooler in the shade (and it wasn't my best cooler), it took about 3-4 days for it to thaw completely.

When it comes to cooler tricks, I've also found that it helps to put a big beach towel on top of everything before you close the cover. That way when you open the lid, all the cool air doesn't get immediately sucked out.  Bonus points for being organized enough to know which side of the cooler what you're looking for is on, so you don't have to take the whole towel off to retrieve it. 

[keith_h 420]

1 hour ago, BradyBzLyn...Mo said:

Bonus points for being organized enough to know which side of the cooler what you're looking for is on, so you don't have to take the whole towel off to retrieve it. 

Beer and other alcoholic beverages on the right. Soda, juices and mixers on the left.

[2beagle 2]

4 hours ago, rtguy007 said:

 

 

4 hours ago, rtguy007 said:

That works.

 

Ryan

Thanks again, Ryan. I went on Facebook and put out a general request for a used fridge, or one to borrow, and a fb friend of mine came through -yay! 

[rtguy007 74]

5 minutes ago, 2beagle said:

 

Thanks again, Ryan. I went on Facebook and put out a general request for a used fridge, or one to borrow, and a fb friend of mine came through -yay! 

OK. I will leave it at home then. Maybe catch you sometime next week.

[Travisma 1,317]

2 hours ago, BradyBzLyn...Mo said:

I did this back in May for WWW.  With temps in the high 80s-90 range, keeping the cooler in the shade (and it wasn't my best cooler), it took about 3-4 days for it to thaw completely.

When it comes to cooler tricks, I've also found that it helps to put a big beach towel on top of everything before you close the cover. That way when you open the lid, all the cool air doesn't get immediately sucked out.  Bonus points for being organized enough to know which side of the cooler what you're looking for is on, so you don't have to take the whole towel off to retrieve it. 

Cabelas has some good hints

http://www.cabelas.com/category/Camp-Cabelas-Cooler-Tricks/729578880.uts

They make a "gasket" out of thin closed cell foam to lay between the food and the lid.  Reflectix may work also. I was going to make full covers of Reflectix for the coolers.

The company that makes PUGs makes cooler covers also.

[DaveInTN 3,247]

2 hours ago, keith_h said:

Beer and other alcoholic beverages on the right. Soda, juices and mixers on the left.

Similar to my cooler.  Only I keep beer on the left, and beer on the right.   

[Beckers 1,136]

We keep a drink cooler outside of the camper and I've been buying 20 lb bags of ice every other day and it's not even that hot up here. But I think the cooler may be older than me. We should probably invest in a good one.

[Travisma 1,317]

2 minutes ago, Beckers said:

We keep a drink cooler outside of the camper and I've been buying 20 lb bags of ice every other day and it's not even that hot up here. But I think the cooler may be older than me. We should probably invest in a good one.

I saw a largish sized Yeti at REI the other day, for the low low price of $900.

[Beckers 1,136]

Just now, Travisma said:

I saw a largish sized Yeti at REI the other day, for the low low price of $900.

What???? I can buy a lot of ice at $3 a bag with $900!!!

[Travisma 1,317]

12 minutes ago, Beckers said:

What???? I can buy a lot of ice at $3 a bag with $900!!!

Or about 6 of the same sized Coleman Extremes.

[keith_h 420]

11 hours ago, DaveInTN said:

Similar to my cooler.  Only I keep beer on the left, and beer on the right.   

The wife isn't a big beer drinker so I have no choice but to keep some mixers and soda in mine. You know family harmony and all that stuff.

[BradyBzLyn...Mo 2,023]

1 hour ago, keith_h said:

The wife isn't a big beer drinker so I have no choice but to keep some mixers and soda in mine. You know family harmony and all that stuff.

You need his and hers coolers.