How long do these top coolers keep drinks cold?
When it’s peak summer season, thoughts turn to every way to keep things cool. Your house, your car, you and your beverages. After all, no one wants to crack open a can of lukewarm soda or be forced to down a bottle of water that isn’t ice cold and refreshing.
To make sure you’re nothing but refreshed all summer, you need a cooler that’s proven to keep drinks chilled for hours on end, no matter how hot the summer sun. And surprisingly, not every ice chest out there is up to the task. We’re breaking down what you should look for in a top-performing cooler, how to ensure they’re doing the job they’re designed to do and which coolers you should consider the next time you are looking to buy one.
In this article: Yeti Tundra 75 Cooler, Coleman Steel-Belted Cooler, Igloo BMX 52-Quart Cooler
What’s a cooler, and how do they work?
More Top Picks Best Glass Washers
A cooler isn’t supposed to make things cold. Instead, it’s designed to minimize heat transfer, keeping your food and beverages at the same temperature as when they were initially placed.
Think of a cooler as a safe room that has enough insulation to keep heat from reaching the items inside. The better the insulation, the longer your food and drinks will stay chilled. There are other factors to consider, but insulation is the key player in how efficiently a cooler works.
What’s the best type of insulation for a cooler?
A vacuum is the best type of insulator because without molecules, the heat can’t transfer. However, the idea of lugging around a steel cooler filled with ice and perishables isn’t ideal, so companies have found a workaround. Polystyrene foam is the most popular because, not only is it lightweight, but it’s also made of tiny air pockets that make it difficult for heat to transfer inside your cooler. You’ll find this type of insulation in most large models.
What are other features that make a great cooler?
Even if a cooler features polystyrene foam, other factors could keep it from being effective. Here are some things to consider:
Does it have an insulated lid?
Some might forget to consider this, but buying a model that has insulation in the lid, bottom and sides promises to keep whatever you keep inside cooler for longer.
How thick is the insulation?
It’s not hard to figure out that the more insulation in your cooler, the longer things will stay cold. According to experts, 2 to 3 inches is ideal, although you’ll most likely only find this level of thickness in more expensive models.
What about durability?
What will you be doing with your cooler? Camping in the woods where bears might sniff out your stash? Or will you be spending the day at the beach? It’s important to consider where you’ll be hauling your cooler, but you should make sure any model you choose is tough enough to be thrown around a bit.
Don’t forget the seal
All the insulation in the world won’t help you if your cooler doesn’t close and seal properly. Top-quality models usually feature a gasket and clamps that pull the lid down to create an airtight seal.
How to make sure your cooler is working properly
Even the very best coolers out there need a little help from you to make sure they do the job they’re designed to do. Here’s how to make that happen.
Make sure whatever you pack is already chilled
Remember, coolers aren’t like refrigerators. They are designed to keep stuff at around the same temperature, not colder.
Pack it as full as possible
The more food, beverages and ice you have in your cooler, the less warm air is trapped inside it.
Put the ice in last
Warm air rises and cold air sinks. If you put your ice on the bottom of the cooler, it makes it that much harder for the cold air to reach whatever you’ve put in the cooler. Always put the coldest items on top.
Limit how often you open the cooler
If you let the kid open the cooler every few minutes, that gives more opportunity for ice to melt and cold air to escape.
Keep your cooler in the shade
Wherever you spend the day, try to keep your cooler in the shadiest place possible, because keeping your cooler at a lower exterior temperature means what’s inside will stay colder longer.
The best coolers for keeping things chilled in the summer sun
Igloo is a name long associated with ice chests and coolers. This heavy-duty model features ultraviolet inhibitors to protect the exterior from sun damage, holds up to 83 cans, and has insulation thick enough to keep ice from melting for up to five days.
More Top Picks Best Dslr Cameras
Not only is this a vintage-inspired design that’s sure to catch looks, but it has built-in handles, can retain ice for up to four days and it’s reinforced with steel belting, so it makes a great bench for people weighing up to 250 pounds.
Yeti Hopper Flip 12 Portable Soft Cooler
Yeti is one of the most popular cooler brands for a reason. This small model has all the features you know and love about the brand, including ColdCell Insluation, a DryHide Shell and the leakproof HydroLock Zipper, but it’s super portable and can go just about anywhere.
Another brand known for designing tough coolers that can take the heat, this model is designed for impact resistance, has 2.4 inches of insulation, keeps contents cool for days and has marine-grade rope handles that won’t break down over years of use.
Finally, the coveted Yeti Tundra! Designed with 3 inches of PermaFrost Insulation, an extra-thick FatWall and T-Rex Lid Latches, it’s a bestseller for a reason. Take it camping, fishing, on a picnic, use it for parties or just about anything else that requires you to keep items cold without refrigeration.
Prices listed reflect time and date of publication and are subject to change.
Check out our Daily Deals for the best products at the best prices and sign up here to receive the BestReviews weekly newsletter full of shopping inspo and sales.
BestReviews spends thousands of hours researching, analyzing and testing products to recommend the best picks for most consumers. BestReviews and its newspaper partners may earn a commission if you purchase a product through one of our links.
Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.