Maximizing Ice Retention
Tips for Maximizing Your YETI Cooler’s Performance
YETI Coolers are very strong and tough, but durability is just one of the benefits of a YETI. Outstanding thermal properties set YETI apart.
YETI coolers are among the best insulated coolers on the market today (a full 2” or more of polyurethane insulation in the walls and lid of most sizes). This insulation, combined with a freezer-quality sealing gasket and durable one-piece construction gives YETI industry-leading ice retention. Use the information below to maximize your YETI Cooler’s performance.
- Due to the insulation in the product, the cooler will retain heat as well as coolness. For this reason, to maximize ice retention, try to store your cooler in a cool environment before loading it with ice. If stored in direct sunlight or in a warm environment, a significant amount of ice will be melted to cool the walls of the cooler. In extreme cases, clients have placed the coolers in a commercial freezer to pre-chill their coolers.
- Ice temperature is paramount; the temperature of ice could either be hovering at 32 degrees or sub-zero before you put it in your cooler. Therefore, ice that is colder will last much longer under identical conditions.
- Chilling or even freezing the intended contents, such as drinks and food is an often overlooked solution to longer ice retention. Remember, the colder your contents are before loading, the less energy these contents will use to cool.
- The amount of ice is important. We recommend filling the cooler with as much ice as possible to keep the air space to a minimum. Large areas of air will cause ice to melt faster. A small bag of ice in a large cooler will melt faster than if the same amount of ice were in a small cooler; however, a large cooler filled with ice will keep ice longer than a small cooler filled with ice. In summary, the more ice the better; however, if weight is a concern, you can use other materials, such as towels or crumpled newspaper to fill the air space voids.
- Surface area to volume of the ice also affects how ice melts. Block ice will melt much slower than small cubes or ice shavings. However, as ice melts, it absorbs the heat from its surroundings; therefore, smaller pieces of ice will chill the cooler faster. Also, it is easier to keep food cold using smaller pieces of ice. Using a mixture, for example, putting food on top of block ice, then covering the food and filling empty spaces with cube ice will help retain ice, chill, and keep food cold.
- Once the cooler is in use, we recommend that you do not empty the cold water. The water in the cooler will be almost as cold as the ice and will help insulate the remaining ice.
- Use dry ice to keep ice longer. For more information visit: Using Dry Ice
- There are many variables that affect ice retention, such as frequent lid opening, outside environment, placement in direct sunlight, etc. Careful attention to these simple details will significantly extend ice retention.
Using Your YETI
Look Who's Using YETI
"If you put all the coolers that I’ve bought throughout my lifetime end to end, you’d have coolers from Homestead to Houston…Now why would YETI come along and ruin a perfectly good consumer like myself?"
Flip Pallot, Legendary fisherman/TV show host
Read More"When I’m in the wilds of my Yukon moose territory, I need the toughest coolers on the planet to keep our supplies safe and fresh. Nothing compares to YETI."
Jim Shockey Hunting Adventures
Read More"I never really knew there was such a big difference in the quality and effectiveness of a cooler until I got a YETI. Makes all my other coolers seem very temporary. Everyone always wants to borrow my YETI. I don’t blame them…but go buy your own."
Jay Gregory, The Wild Outdoors
Read More"We log lots of miles each year pursuing deer, elk, and all sorts of other big game. Being tough on our gear just comes with the territory. Thanks to YETI, we never have to worry about melting ice, spoiling meat or broken coolers. YETI does the job like no other! Everyone else is playing for second place!"
Lee & Tiffany Lakosky, The Crush
Read More"In my world, a cooler is as important as a home refrigerator. Coolers have to be much more than just a place to keep cold drinks. They have to be a seat for a 300 lb man and a casting platform. I used to buy coolers frequently as the lids would be destroyed and they would no longer hold ice. No more! I have a YETI now; a lifetime investment."
Tom Rowland, Saltwater Experience TV
Read More"Insulated to the hilt and built like an armored truck! Finally, a cooler tough enough for serious outdoor use. YETIs are not only durable, but best of all they keep ice like no other cooler. Get a YETI and you’ll be out of the cooler market for years!"
David Morris, The Bucks of Tecomate
Read More"Everything in my life is supernatural-safari grade from my underwear, to my bow, to my vehicle, to my YETI COOLER. Anything less than a YETI COOLER is like bringing a vegetarian salad to my birthday party Bar-B-Q."
"Razor Dobbs Alive" TV
Read More"YETI Coolers are the most durable ice chests I have ever owned! We use them on our guide boats every day and they look like new, keep ice for a week and make great casting platforms."
Rich Tudor, Saltwater Experience TV
Read More"The YETI Coolers are the Rolls Royce of all coolers. I have taken mine on several flights already and they even stand up to the baggage handlers in the airports. That’s the quality I need in a product."
Dick Scorzafava, The Radical Bowhunter
Read More"Knowing the ice in my YETI Coolers will still be frozen when I return to the trailhead, I am able to hunt longer and farther into the wilderness. With a YETI, I know that the meat that I have harvested will be kept ice-cold until I’m able to get it out of the mountains."
Mark Seacat, Live Hunt
Read More"I’ve never seen a product that is so far advanced from others in its category, truly top in class. There is absolutely no match for a YETI."
"As professional guides we want professional equipment. YETI Coolers are definitely professional grade!"
Rick and Julie Kreuter, Beyond the Hunt TV
Read More"Chasing big bucks from New Mexico to Saskatchewan, we demand the highest level of performance out of our gear. YETI Coolers protect our meat and capes en route to the processor and stand up to rugged abuse in the field. We don’t leave home without them!"
Pat Reeves & Nicole Jones, Driven TV
Read More"Finally a cooler that works and stands up to my lifestyle!!! Whether I’m chasing Roosterfish off the beach deep in Baja, catching world record Redfish in the Gulf of Mexico or surfing a remote reef break in mainland Mexico, YETI Coolers keeps everything cool and fresh even in the hottest locations. There is no cooler on the market that can stand up to a YETI. PERIOD!"
Conway Bowman, Fly Fishing the World
Read More"I got the YETI Tundra cooler, it’s awesome, a real hunter’s tool."
Mike Hanback, Big Deer, Inc.
Read More"If you think you’re saving money by going with a lesser cooler than a YETI, you are dead wrong. YETIs stand up to heat, weather, bumps and bears all while providing a comfortable seat for our rafting guests and keeping food and drinks cold for days. We used to replace coolers at the end of each season before we wised up and invested in the quality of some YETIs. Best on the river."
Zach Collier, Northwest Rafting Company
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