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Iceless coolers


paulengr

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Thinking about an iceless cooler in the work truck. Been carrying a cooler for years. I used to do the ice thing but it’s a constant hassle. With a good thick “Yeti” style cooler (I have the Walmart version) ice lasts a day or two in summer but I noticed that it insulates so well that even ice free water stays roughly “average” temperature which means slightly cooler in the daytime and drinking “lukecool” water isn’t too bad. So I’m already using the space in the cab and thinking a cooler that would hold maybe a half case of water and a sandwich or two would be really nice. My service area is 3-4 hours so I typically have a 2 hour ride on average both ways so plenty of time to chill down on the road.

 

Any experience with these things? Igloo advertises heavy but I was not impressed with what I saw in a local store. Truck stop units look tempting but hey it’s a truck stop...could be good, could be a waste of money. Anyone have any experience good or bad?

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I used to have a cheaper one--probably still do, somewhere.  Mine also had a heating mode and, while it lacked the speed of a covering drinks in ice, it worked well for road trips so long as the food and drinks were already chilled.

 

For cold drinks during long and sweaty work periods as a Drill Sergeant in Georgia, I adopted two methods of carrying water after tiring of the ubiquitous gallon jug which starts sweating as soon as you step outside.

 

The first was freezing smaller bottles of water and sticking them in the assault pack.  After I picked up two of the orange 80-oz Igloo jugs at HD a few years ago, I started filling both up with water or decaffeinated unsweetened green tea.  The handles were plenty of sturdy for even a 12-mile foot March and I had cold water even after 16 hours in 95 degree heat.

 

Back to the original topic...a quick search finds this one that has good reviews and is only $89: https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00U9C322C#aw-udpv3-customer-reviews_feature_div

 

I don't know the load out of your truck cab, but you can get these things for well over $1000, or even 12v compatable semi-tractor mini fridges for a few hundred.

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Service tech. Plenty of cab space. Service area includes Lejeune, Bragg, and on Monday I’ve got work to do on part of the water system for Seymour Johnson. Was thinking of the typical tractor trailer size roughly $100-200 range. They sound great but when I looked at one of the Igloo models in Walmart for instance it was obviously only useful for say keeping medication cold.

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Sounds like fun, dealing with Lawn Darts and Jarheads all of the time.  😉

 

Seriously, though, it sounds like a tractor trailer style one will work.  I'd recommend getting one designed to replace OEM coolers/refrigerators.  If they're built for over-the-road driving, one should work well for your needs.

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