Cooler talk

CTELK83

CTELK83

Active member
Joined
Sep 6, 2016
Messages
254
Location
Rochester, NY
Hey guys, I'm driving from western NY to British Columbia this fall for a moose hunt. I don't want to spend $1000 on 2 coolers. What are your thoughts for a large cooker to get the meat back safely? Meat will be processed and frozen or at least frozen prior to the drive home. Was also thinking about making one with plywood and blue board.... thanks in advance for the possible options.
 
I bought 2 120 qt Coleman Xtreme marine coolers for a bit over $100 each. They go hunting with me every time I go. Used one on a week long camping trip last summer. Filled it half full with frozen gallon jugs of water. Worked just fine.
 
I picked up my processed elk for the trip home to NY last fall. Unfortunately it wasn't all frozen hard. I packed it all into a coleman 150. Left enough space for dry ice on top. My thought is that cold moves down. It was very warm on the trip home which took 2 days. Was a little nervous for the meat. Upon my arrival at home I found the entire cooler of meat frozen solid. Good Luck on your trip.
 
nylogger said:
I picked up my processed elk for the trip home to NY last fall. Unfortunately it wasn't all frozen hard. I packed it all into a coleman 150. Left enough space for dry ice on top. My thought is that cold moves down. It was very warm on the trip home which took 2 days. Was a little nervous for the meat. Upon my arrival at home I found the entire cooler of meat frozen solid. Good Luck on your trip.
Click to expand...

This ^^^^ is all you need to do. The processor that does your moose will probably have dry ice on hand.
 
nylogger said:
I picked up my processed elk for the trip home to NY last fall. Unfortunately it wasn't all frozen hard. I packed it all into a coleman 150. Left enough space for dry ice on top. My thought is that cold moves down. It was very warm on the trip home which took 2 days. Was a little nervous for the meat. Upon my arrival at home I found the entire cooler of meat frozen solid. Good Luck on your trip.
Click to expand...

^^+1 on this info^^ I have brought back two 120 gallon Coleman Xtreme coolers full of salmon from BC several times. Pre cool the coolers overnight with a couple blocks of ice, then in the morning take the ice out, replace with frozen meat and put a couple 4"x 4"x 2" pieces of dry ice on top. After a couple of days of traveling in the back of my boat they have always remained frozen solid.
 
Last edited:
While I recommended dry ice, that's only for coolers that are kept out of the vehicle's passenger cabin. Back of a pickup or trailer only.
 
Coleman Xtreme as others have posted. Not expensive and will do the job. That's all I use.
 
Depending on your vehicle and budget you could buy a small-medium chest freezer. I am on the fence with my elk hunt this fall. I have a chest freezer that I am considering doing this with and pre-freezing it, then loading it into the truck and filling it with frozen milk jugs. If you are going to have access to power where your going then it shouldn't be hard to keep frozen on the way home. I will be backpack hunting and a friend is staying in a campground with my Motorhome so mine would be plugged in the whole time.
 
I have been doing the chest freezer loaded with frozen milk jugs program. I believe the cost for the unit was $175. I was happily surprised at how good a job it does keeping things frozen when unplugged. Mine is nearing the 4th season of it's life and still running with probably 8k miles of travel in a pickup bed. The big negative would be how hard it is too load/unload, however it provides extra freezer space for me year around when the cupboards over runneth with veggies or game.
 
How long does a chest freezer acting as a cooler keep meat frozen? Ill use dry ice.
I was thinking a outing making a cooler w blue board insulation and other materials at my shop
 
A few years ago a locker in Wyoming charged me $80 to put two Coleman ice chest in their cold-storage for 3 days. When we picked up the ice chest the meat was only chilled. We then bought a few pounds of dry ice to add to the coolers and duct taped the seam on the lid then shagged ass back to central CA. Next year I bought a small chest freezer for $120 at bestbuy filled it with two quartered deer which froze solid and had to wait two weeks for it to thaw enough to start cutting it up packaging once I got home
 
For that price you could just do the large chest freezer idea and run it with a generator...at least it'll stay frozen as long as you need.
 
The problem with chest freezers is that all the bouncing around they do in your truck or trailer can lock up the compressor. I know from experience.
 
Been using Coleman Extremes for the last 5-6 years. Never been disappointed by them. 2 70 quarts coolers just fit perfectly in front of my wheel wells. Added a 150 quart this year. That one if full is a bear to handle but I have more tags to fill on one trip. I freeze 1/2 gallon milk jugs. Also when I add ice I like to put it into a zip lock bag, usually a 2 gallon one. Ice will keep lots longer if in a bag like that. Also I then don't have water in my meat or in the bed of my truck if the drain is open.
 
Haha. 48x28x28 exterior dimensions. Really not as heavy as it looks maybe 60 to 80lbs
Just need it to keep meat cold for 3 days. Using dry ice.
 
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