Best cooler on the market?
 

I recently bought a Coleman cooler with a cigarette adapter. That thing SUCKED. I've heard other drivers buying a more efficent cooling fan (such as one for a computer or something) and it made it a little more cooler.

I saw a Hot/Cold cooler in a Pilot truck stop. Sells for $69. Looks a bit more slim than the Coleman, and thought about buying that, since it would be easier to store. I bought a 1.7cf fridge/freezer, sitting on my passenger seat, but dont have an inverter, nor any good place to store it. so thinking of just selling it since it is too big.

What do you drivers have in your truck? What i am looking for, is something to keep my bottled water cool, something i'm able to keep meat from spoiling, etc.

The Coleman I have works just fine, and it is almost 2 years old. I keep the fins clean, I don't pack anything around the cooling unit inside, that is where I have my bottles contained. I keep milk, cheese, mayo & mustard, meats and fresh fruit without any problems.

I have found ice crystals in milk before. The only real problem I have is with water condensation.

I heard these coolers work very well. They must, because I see many drivers using them.
Don't know if they will plug into your lighter outlet though.
http://www.truckfindersinc.com/Trail...ft%20front.jpg

That right there is a big part of your problem. 12v coolers will only cool about 30 degrees below the ambient air temp and when you have it sitting on the seat you are subjecting it to extra heat from the sun as well as your truck heater. Put it in the sleeper and turn the heat down in there. Also if you put a ziploc type sandwich bag full of ice in the cooler it will help it cool faster and stay cooler inside. Just be sure to double or triple bag to avoid leaks.

I have owned both Coleman and Igloo 40 qt coolers and both have worked very well for me.

BTW: If your cooler is not getting cool at all and seems to be getting quite warm reverse the plug. Most 12v coolers have a heating function as well and when it is plugged in one way it heats and the other way it cools.

i kinda did the same thing. I used that devider or shelf right next to the fan, to keep the fan open. As far as the idea of keeping it on my seat....i may have to move my clothes bag that i keep in the cubbie hole under the bed and put the cooler there. might as well try buying another one i guess. i just dont like the idea of it only cooling 30deg below outside temp. I would rather find something that will keep things inside cool at a set temp.

i can always return it again i guess.....

What you want is an actual refrigerator then. You can get 12v fridge's, but be prepared to pay for such an item.

Well with good working a/c my cab never got much warmer than about 70 degrees ,but if you are not idiling in the summer while you sit ,and don't have an apu you can forget using a thermo-electric cooler to store much more than a beverage ,because in cab temps easily reach 90 or better in 90 degree and up summer temps when you are only blowing hot air around with a plug in fan , which means you get a 60 degree or warmer "cooler".

If you want that (in any size bigger than microscopic), you are going to have to go with a legitimate refrigerator, which isn't going to be portable in any way, shape, or form.

Engel 15

Something like that, but you are looking at spending $300-$400 for a small one and over $600 for a medium or large one, and yes several of these will run off a cigarette lighter outlet.

Heh heh heh.......Hey Big Jeep? Would that particular set up that you describe above be appropriately named a Gainey uncool, coolie cooler?:D

None, get a real refridgerator.

Yes it could apply to GTS and many of the big carriers that think a 12v plug in fan will substitue for an apu or idling the truck for A/C ... I remember having to call my dispatcher for "TIPS" on staying warm in winter and cool in summer ...At GTS they actually said I had no need to idle for heat in march 2008 despite temps being around 35 after sundown in Madison ,WI ...Because I could buy a good 30below sleeping bag ,and no need to idle while sitting in Laredo,TX in August at 115 degrees,because I could use window screens and a fan to keep cool and ... find shade to park in...LOL yep "shade" in the truck stop parking lot . But the funny thing was the head of the fuel department could keep a straight face while suggesting these options during idle counsiling .

Well...since GTS is getting to run from their debts, maybe suggesting that GTS turn the thermostat in their offices down to 35 degrees for heating, and 118 degrees for cooling...and give the exec's thermal undies for warmth and "Geisha" fans for cooling themselves, would be a good "foot forward" to prove to Taxpayers that they are sincere about saving money!!

:rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl:


Like that could happen!!!


:rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl:

I always pointed out the very comfy offiices in Grand Rapids ,and the potential savings to be had by shutting off the central air and only keeping heat at 50 degrees in winter to keep pipes from freezing ...Yeah when GTS filed chapter 11 in the beginning of 2008 they used that as an excuse to cut out idleaire reimbursement completely ,but yet still wanted no idle during layovers in hot/cold weather...

LOL.........well, look at the bright side Big Jeep! You could have ended up like this poor coolie carrier soul............... You ain't got nothing on this 50's guy Jeep LOL:p:lol::moon:

http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/l...frostymug3.jpg

I found a cooler that works !! Wanted to get any opinions from other drivers about this product. I was at a Pilot east of Memphis a month or so ago and saw one of those ROADPRO coolers. they were selling it for $69.99. Everywhere else i've seen them, they go for $20 more. I finally ran into another Pilot selling them for the lower price, so bought it. It fits perfectly under the lower cubbie hole in my volvo right behind the passenger seat. It works really really well, and keeps things MUCH colder than the Coleman cooler i had before.

Anybody have this ROADPRO cooler, and what problems, if any, have you had with it??

I try to avoid any ROADPRO products.

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Now thats funny:lol2:

Same here......my Coleman, which I bought used, works great. I too keep the fins and fan clean (amazing how much dust and dirt collects on them). I store lunch meats, fruits, drinks, even frozen foods (they get eaten before fully thawing :p) the thing to remember is that it is a "cooler" and not a refrigerator. They are not designed to maintain a temp like a normal refer would. I believe Coleman claims it will cool up to 10 or 20 degrees less than the ambient temp or something like that. Mine also has the capability of being a warmer (reverse the plug) which I've never tried. Like Orangetxguy, I have had drinks actually form ice crystals in them from time to time and the same issue with condensation.

50's...well next Jeep build I'll need to step up my game from 44' boggers to 54's...But I remember playing the OTR game with GTS ,And running 1200-1500 miles a week ,and being expected to run the truck like I was driving a daycab on a local run only running the truck during shift ,And getting QC nasty messages for idiling for heat and AC ...I remember having a lady from the fuel department come out looking for my truck while parked at the GTS grand rapids terminal ,because the QC showed the truck running ...well it was 93 and I was sleeping when the bi@ch came knocking on my cab ,however I was not idiling I only had my fans on ,but with the key turned to the on position the QC showed truck running ...a smarter person than her could have seen no rpm data and realized truck was off ...

After paying $140.00 out of pocket for a 2 day motel stay in 100+ Dallas,TX and having only earned about $350.00 gross for the week it became very clear that I needed to re-examine my career choice ,And about 2 months later I handed them the keys ,and was looking to gamble on another OTR driving job ,but I decided to take a sure thing that pays hourly rather than spend another year OTR being paid on a system of CPM where my weekly pay is a gamble based on hoping to get miles .

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Now thats funny:lol2:

okay, i am an official 'RoadPro' product hater. WHAT A PIECE OF **** !!!!!!! I have had this cooler for what....9 days, and it's already ruined about $20-30 worth of ****. The plug went out (had a short), so went to wal-mart and bought a replacement and fixed it. Worked fine, then notice that THAT plug was toasted. Fuse was fine, but all my meat, etc. i dont know how long it has gone since not cooling, but i'm not going to chance eating it, and getting sick.

can ANYBODY give me the name of a cooler that ***in works !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

i'm going to put this cooler behind my trailer, and see what it looks like after i back over it, then take a picture of it, and send it to RoadPro and tell them what i think of their ****.

I apologize for bump this old thread, but I would like to share my experience in this matter, since when I was looking for good advice on this topic for myself.
The best performance by a good margin was block ice, especially if it's brought down to a lower temp in a home freezer before use. For example I just checked my freezer side of my fridge and a block of ice in there is currently at -26.2*F. The Techni-ice would start off just as cold, but is not as long lasting as block ice, but it's longer lasting than bag ice, while also being lighter weight.

Any time I pack the cooler, it's always a tradeoff between how much ice to use and how much beer will fit. If the purpose is to keep beer cold with no other source of ice for 6 days, I'd probably use 1 block of ice and a couple of Techni-ice sheets at either end of the cooler. If I only needed to keep the beer cold for 3 or 4 days, I'd probably opt for 6 - 8 sheets of Techni-ice and get a few more beers in the cooler, while also saving weight. In short,My T-I https://coolerexp.com/best-beverage-cooler-review/ has replaced bag ice when I have no source of ice on the trip. If I'm camping in the RV, it's not a issue because I have an ice maker that puts out about 20 lbs of ice between breakfast and dinner.

My fave setup for 2-3 day trips is one cooler for food with T-I layered in it, food stays really cold, doesn't get soggy. One cooler for water and soda with T-I in it and a 3rd cooler with beer, ice cubes and rock salt to get it colder, it doesn't melt any faster.I like watching a video on YouTube on such topics, I'll leave you one of them here, I hope it will useful to someone
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YGT6p0anc9Q

I use Cooluli electric cooler from last ten years, I buy it from https://fridgesreviews.com/cooluli-m...-option-white/ it come with AC/DC and USB adapters. It works awesome.

Small Ice Makers are the best for the chilling cocktails and soft drinks in the outdoor summer parties. Sometimes, we need more ice than our freezer can afford. Home labs Portable Ice Maker is the best portable ice maker I got recently. it Makes 26 lbs of Ice per 24 hours, Ice Cubes will be ready in 8 Minutes. This powerful ice maker creates delicious, chewable, bullet-shaped ice up to 1. 5 lbs. Features small or medium size options for bullet shape ice easily fit in water bottle openings, and the medium size is perfect for mixed drinks and more.