Testing a Hacked Cooler - Better than a Yeti Cooler, Part Two! More Hacks and Upgrades!

[@dandixon4034]

So the moral to the story is if someone steals a $20 cooler out of the back of your truck you’re not going to panic, if someone steals a $500 cooler out of the back of your truck you’re gonna be pissed, great display on the comparisons

[@thomasmendez2816]

Near as I can tell. the ONLY reason to buy a $500 cooler is to be able to say you spent $500 on a cooler. Even if you used the $20 cooler every day of summer and had to add a bag of ice every day you used it. for the average cooler use. It would take years before the $500 cooler made more economical sense than simply buying more ice

[@garymurray3524]

Spending $500.00 on a cooler is like spending tons of money on Sitka hunting clothes. Its nothing more than bragging rights. I wonder If it's a certain kind of industrial insulation foam that Yeti uses that makes the ice keep longer and not the cheap hardware store stuff?

[@robertwilson2007]

There is only one problem, he never tested a side by side, Non-modified Coleman vs a modified Coleman to see if there was any difference.

[@Andr3tti24]

A great test would be 2 matching coolers, an un-modded along with the insulated and latched lid version to test the ice melting timeline. Great vid.

[@ExploringCanadaInfo]

Comparison video kzbin.info/www/bejne/rJ-chYaKeamegNE

[@gabrielgalaxygh]

Thats the only way to do it. This was basically useless

[@notyoung]

I have a truly ancient Coleman cooler, purchased before we married 50+ years ago to take on picnics - and it traveled in the trunk of my '57 Chevy. This was probably one of the early foam insulated coolers as the bottom third is covered with white plastic and the upper two thirds is metal over the foam. The interior is white plastic as is the underside of the lid but the top of the lid and the locking handle are metal. The flip-over bail locks in grooves in the lid's handle. That provides a secure closure and the pressure for a tight seal. I've never timed how long a bag of ice lasts but the soft drinks left over from one day's picnic went to work with me the next day or two so it keeps reasonably well for a 1960's vintage cooler. One positive of the plastic bottom is that it doesn't rust as the all metal coolers of the period did.

[@Klaaism]

Love those vintage metal coolers, and they aren't hard to repair. Especially today with foam in every home and garden store plus spray cans of expanding foam.

[@Road_Rash]

The only reason the modified Coleman didn't at least match the Yeti, is the wall/insulation thickness...but this is clearly the way to go cheap cooler wise & you still don't even begin to approach the Yeti price, but that type ice retention in a regular, slightly modified cooler is awesome as well as completely acceptable...I gotta modify all my coolers now...& I can put better latches & hinges on them too...excellent tips...🖖🏿😎👍🏿

[@adcashmo]

Exactly. The wall thickness of the Yeti is visibly much thicker. But bang for buck winner is the modified cooler by far!!

[@robertwilson2007]

There is only one problem, he never tested a side by side, Non-modified Coleman vs a modified Coleman to see if there was any difference.

[@MrHeepspo]

The Yeti and Not a Yeti had nearly identical results. DIY mod saves a ton of money

[@romeoneverdies]

it would be fun to get a cost analysis. but yea with things like "yeti" and such there is always a part of it thats paying for the brand

[@Klaaism]

Showing off your DIY chops: Priceless

[@franny5295]

Your wife absolutely adores you. And your tutorials will be the biggest help to me in "fixing" my cooler 😁 So thank you! Edited to add: The only thing I'll add is the reflectix to the outside. Maybe to the inside as well because we camp for up to a couple of weeks. The yetti didn't win enough to pay hundreds of dollars for it.

[@dkafsky]

Bear proof with LOCKING LATCHES w/ mini locks. Also ADD FEET A lot of thermal transfer thru bottom to ground or other surfaces. Air gap needed.

[@oldtimerlee8820]

Rather than adding feet, place 2-3 1x1 wooden strips under the cooler. Stow in the cooler, when not in use.

[@thumperthumper5322]

Upgrade for the hinge is a 2" x 4" price of webbing twice as thick as seatbelt material works perfectly .I did this to a cooler and it's lasted 4 years in ruff use conditions. Work's perfectly.

[@DoItYourselfDad]

I’ve seen this done before, when my hinges go, I’m definitely going with webbing.

[@screwitimout4920]

just get a chunk of seatbelt from a junk yard on gour next visit

[@herewegofans]

2:00 Use old garden hose split length wise like piano hinge. Screw in 8, 12, or 35 screws. Never fails.

[@Grimenoughtomaketherobotcry]

I have a Coleman similar to your green one; mine's blue with a white lid, and also 15 years old. My wife and I have done a lot of summer camping with it in many of Ontario's provincial parks. What I've learned is that I can get at least three days out of two bags of ice if I put both in two green garbage bags that I double-bag, tying it off tightly and leaving just a bit of air for insulation. This still leaves plenty of room for food, which stays quite cold if directly on top of the bag. And everything stays dry!

[@the.porter.productions]

I’m impressed...adding the foam did help the cooler perform pretty well.🙂 Radical!🤩

[@briantaylor2096]

Should of, could of, would of, the mod was cheap and a no brainer for anyone who doesn't want to spend 500 on a cooler. Good work!!!

[@timoortiz8732]

I agree.

[@jimschmidt7303]

Great idea. When I get around to it I plan to do the same improvements. I saw where someone put there cooler inside a plastic tote with enough room to add some foam insulation around all the sides, top and bottom. I may try that too just for kicks. It would go nicely in the back seat of my 1975 mustang which has about 3 times the horsepower than a stock version. Happy camping.

[@TheBeanHome]

“And ir better be”, haha! Your modified one is great. Thank you

[@JOHAN_PERJUS]

I would have put the foam sealer on the lid as opposed to the box, less exposed to wear as you pick and fill your cooler.

[@lmeade7401]

Exactly! AND just drill your holes and fill with expanding foam from the top (outside ) of the lid, and then seal with any kind of caulk, or hot glue, or liquid plastic .... it wouldn't have to be a food safe seal on the outside.

[@johnmichaels4330]

I'll be doing this to my little marine igloo for my kayak. Ty for the diy and test.

[@GanderFlight]

The rotomolded coolers sure are impressive. But as you said so is their pricetag - and just as important as that is their weight - there is no way youre lifting a fully stocked yeti of that size with one person for more than a few feet.

[@adcashmo]

Interesting that the expensive coolers focus on the roto molded aspect in their marketing. This factor doesn't affect the cooling much at all. The cooling is mainly achieved by the PU foam which is an extremely cheap material that the Coleman uses too. The expensive ones have thicker walls, insulated lids and are generally much more hardy, but certainly over priced considering the cost of the materials they use.

[@kmd33k]

About 40 years ago, there was a company called Gott that made coolers that were well insulated. They were sold in department stores and while they were priced the same as the major brands, they held ice a lot longer. They sold out to Rubbermaid and went away. I found a few at garage sales and thrift stores and use them all the time.

[@DoItYourselfDad]

Guess I need to start hunting Craigslist!

[@jimfoster150]

You are right about the old Gott's. We have one and you are correct about them having better insulation, it always outperforms our other igloo and rubbermaid coolers every time. I really need to find 2 more Gott's. lol So I can ditch the other 2 cheaper coolers we have.

[@danadunn3913]

the only way I could see dropping that kind of money on a yeti, is if I was in the organ harvesting business.

[@dennisnjeha3726]

LOL!

[@lindasue8719]

😆

[@MatanuskaHIGH]

I’ve bought a dozen cheap coolers over the last 15 years. That probably added to the same price as a yeti. My yeti has lasted longer than any of them and is way better quality. You get what you pay for is how the saying goes. But I also live in Alaska and use coolers more than most weekend warriors from the lesser 48.

[@biggusdickus9240]

@@MatanuskaHIGH "the lesser 48"? ...like Texans,you have nothing to look down on to make your misery bearable,so you project bullshit..you got ripped off with your WAY overpriced Shiti cooler...everyone makes fun of fanbois😉.

[@Bound4Earth]

Depends on what you do with your coolers. Yeti and equivalents like R-Tic and Twin Peaks cost more, but not much more when compared to 60-80 coolers once you see how much less insulation and plastic they use. A yeti type cooler will last a lifetime unlike a Coleman or Rubbermaid cooler and also last upwards of a week plus with ice. These are not for everyone, but if you camp, especially remote camping, or do outdoors stuff a lot it is an investment.

[@Useitorloseit1]

Wife and I lived on 31' power boat for a number of years. Noticed things would go missing from our Cooler we kept, at back of the boat. Knowing the other live a boards, on our dock, as we all partied together. We also knew who worked and who didn't. Noticed things would go missing, from the Cooler. So I took a piece of paper and wrote, "Mike get a Job" Placing that in the cooler solved the problem. Didn't have to provide, said person free Beer. As he no longer participated in our Dock parties.

[@Clearanceman2]

I've got a coleman like this that's 30 years old and the hinges still work so they last much longer than they look like they would last. I did upgrade the screws to stainless steel though.

[@gregsimpson621]

Excellent video and follow up! I like the addition of the foam around the lid with latches. I'm still going to mention reflective foil if in the sun AND have a gap. Reflective foil doesn't insulted but rather reflects the heat or sun. Finally, when I put ice in, I put in the ice freely but keep half the bag tied up which decreases the rapid ice melt. Like and subscribed!

[@wildestcowboy2668]

Reflective foil is a safety Hazzard.

[@mark2621Texas]

@@wildestcowboy2668 Foil is a Safety Hazard? How so? Thanks

[@wildestcowboy2668]

@@mark2621Texas Elementary my dear Watson.

[@johnklug5146]

In scouts, we always put the picnic table bench over the cooler. Racoon are not moving a picnic table. Lol

[@DoItYourselfDad]

Very clever, the troop I was with was a backpacking troop, so we didn’t have tables, we used to set up their bags and trees.

[@johnklug5146]

@@DoItYourselfDad I've got to do that too at Philmont.

[@seanwoodburn2616]

I have seen a black bear open a locked Toyota...I bet the Not a Yeti is just as effective as the Yeti as far as Ursine intrusion goes. Fun videos, great content!

[@bentley1960]

The yetti seems to be much thicker walls giving more insulation space leading to a higher R value. My guess is if you set the modified cooler down in a bigger box and packed news paper around it or some other insulator it would match up to the yetti.

[@adrieneanders0n998]

Great video. I am going with the # 2 . This was a lot of fun to watch .

[@johnblack7111]

Nice video; another example of how most luxury goods only provide mild performance increases in exchange for large increases in price. To get some actual numbers and percentages, I'd suggest weighing out a precise amount of ice into 3 bags; then, poke holes in the base of each bag to allow for drainage, and weigh the unmelted ice at multiple time intervals. Then you could calculate the actual dollar amount per unit of performance difference.

[@jeromereyes584]

You live up to your name! Dad jokes and DIY, all in one! Great video!

[@SuperPussyFinger]

Jerome Reyes - Not to mention the ironic, super-creepy dad mustache.

[@markahlert9607]

I like it! To make the test most Fair, the volume of the cooler should be comparable.

[@DoItYourselfDad]

Very true, but technically the smallest cooler would’ve had the advantage, and it’s a loss.

[@MikeJones-vb1me]

These tests do compare coolers, but when people just do that 5-day I’ve challenge, it’s so misleading. It doesn’t account for constantly being in the cooler getting drinks, or replacing them with warm ones. People think a yeti will still have ice after 5 days of actual camping. Also anyone who thinks any plastic cooler is actually bear-proof is in for a great disappointment.

[@omgnoi]

Bear proofing is required at a lot of places so I think that’s why

[@MMcDowell23]

Vegan snacks would definitely keep me from. Exploring a cooler!!

[@alexcontreras8835]

Love your experiment and I will do the same with my old cooler. Thanks for the tests.

[@mac11380]

As far as bears go, put a device to put a rope on and pull it part way up a tree hanging from a branch. And for how much those Yetis cost, you could buy a reg cooler and place it inside a bigger cooler with your modifications and still save a ton..

[@socalsteeler7135]

👏 👏 👏 👏

[@bathizargupta249]

You could tilt them and open the drain plugs. Then measure the water that drains out for an accurate test.

[@southernsurvivaloutdoors8582]

I'm from the California desert myself (Barstow Ca) and I know the heat ! Great test . Gonna have to do this for sure !

[@thomasmendez2816]

I replaced the hinges on an old Igloo cooler I have with a small set of door hinges. Works just fine and I know the hinges will never ever break

[@dreamthyf]

If more of us YETI owners, owned up to wanting the Apple IPhone of coolers, and acknowledged that other coolers can perform decently and with work, closely, instead of being snobbish to justify the purchase to others, maybe we'd draw less distaimn from the camping community. (Proud Yeti 45 owner here)

[@gravewalker1632]

I was thinking you should have done a pre-modification comparison test and then one after. We really don't know if the the mod made any difference on that model of ice chest. Nice vid though.

[@DoItYourselfDad]

Check out the link in the pinned comment or the description. We did do a comparison test in another video.

[@risky1]

I drilled holes in one of my cooler lids / sprayed PAM all over the inside of the lid / and sprayed the foam in it. It worked ok .....BUT ....... 3 weeks later after spraying the foam in it....it still is letting the expanding foam leak out through the holes. It's gotta quit sometime I know..... but just thought I would put that out there just so you are not surprised.

[@otxoawolf9054]

PAM as in the cooking spray? Why?

[@risky1]

@@otxoawolf9054 To keep the foam from sticking to the lid when you break off from when it starts oozing out of the holes. Try it without it and you will see why.

[@RCOverKill]

Good job!! I would definitely mod my cooler b4 1 spend 400 on a cooler.

[@lexwaldez]

Would you mod it before you spent $250 on a cooler that's better than the Yeti? What's your price point? What if it were 100% made in USA unlike the cheap Chinese stuff?

[@RCOverKill]

@@lexwaldez 100.00 is still a lot of money for an ice chest. I would pay 50.00 for a good yeti type chest, otherwise a 5 dollar can of foam, drill bit, and with a little work it could look as nice as anything on the market, especially if I bought a 30.00 chest, and spent 50 upgrading I doubt you find one for sale as nice.

[@crazysquirrel9425]

Perhaps a cooler inside a cooler might work? Also, piano hinge for the lid is a good suggestion. Placing a cooler on some 1/2" or larger piece of plywood can help reduce heat loss. Concrete is a good conductor of heat compared to plywood. If cooler is outside, throw a blanket over it to help keep the heat and sun away.

[@xxxYYZxxx]

You got it, just find a cheap Styrofoam cooler (or 2) that fit snuggly into a larger plastic cooler.

[@crazysquirrel9425]

@@xxxYYZxxx Hard to find the exact fit. You could fill in the gap with perlite. Lightweight and has insulating properties.

[@xxxYYZxxx]

@@crazysquirrel9425 Medial grade foam coolers are expensive but a great "scrounge" if you find one in a recycle bin or such. They have straight sides, so more likely to fit something. I think it's a conspiracy that cheap, tapered foam coolers don't fit, or else thick, straight-walled ones cost like $100+ each.

[@crazysquirrel9425]

@@xxxYYZxxx Get some styrofoam, cut to fit. Remove it then glue the pieces together. Reinsert. Also, you conduct a lot of heat from the bottom sitting on the ground.

[@Lando1214]

Hahaha the "Vegan Snacks" to keep the two legged cooler thieves out got me! Awesome stuff. Liked and subd!

[@kmd33k]

We had a lot of refrigerator piracy on my job 35 years ago. I would put my boss' name on my lunch. Guess whose food didn't get stolen?

[@thomream1888]

@@kmd33k Hope nobody messes with "the bosses" food... we worked for a flaming a**&%% and "spicedup" his food quite often. His wife could never figure out why he got diarrhea all the time...

[@someoneelse745]

Vegan snacks is a nice touch

[@omgnoi]

Your anti bear and yeti sticker crack me up

[@lic.carlosavila4865]

Hey DOITYOURSELF dad! great video, where im from, no bears and i have a tonneu cover so no worries with critters, great way to enhance a coleman cooler which in my opinion is the best outdoor gear company hands down!!!!!!

[@daltonx6177]

Cool video. Would have been nice to measure cold temperature between the three coolers though. Good Job ! 😉

[@lawrencemckinney6738]

Nice video doing the same to my old Coleman

[@TexansForChrist]

Cheap cooler with wheels and light weight and nobody wants to steal it...that's what I want. And I can mod it like this for fun 👍🏻

[@luisHernandez-qd5nx]

You should also consider the thickness of the top, walls and bottom of each of the coolers and based on that the heat transfer varies in each of the coolers.

[@jerrywald6481]

Something you want to remember is FILL THE COOLER with rags towels...anything after your food is in there to take up the air space so there isn't any...

[@darkclouds27]

jerry Wald that’s what I did when I went camping Labor Day weekend! I campedThursday-Monday and used block ice and filled the empty spaces with cubed ice and laid a towel over before closing the lid. I kept 2 towels over it and I still had blocks of ice Monday although 3/4’s melted and I had to buy a bag of ice each day to fill the gaps since it was 90+ degrees. My cooler is a Coleman Extreme. I’m going to DIY filling the lid with foam and see what happens next year.

[@Ivan_Glamdryng]

"Vegan Snacks" eeeiiIIRRRGGGHHH!!! RUN! Well done. Good looking video and I still like the Not Yeti more than the real thing.

[@kilroywashere9343]

I’m glad I’m watching this, this is such a well made video

[@janetjilote6495]

I live in a camper without electricity, water, and sewer. I use a generator for a few hours a day. Just bought a cheap cooler then realized it is good for making cold water or drowning food. So, I was looking for serious help. Instead I found seriously funny help. Thanks. Have you used foil at all?

[@DoItYourselfDad]

You're welcome! I have played around with reflectix, which is like foil and bubble wrap combined, it works really well!

[@akvilinaskovera4312]

All you need is to reflect sun, I put windshield deflector on the top of the lid and made inside cooler lid, i have Ozark stock 52 quart cooler put 4 plastic 33 oz bottles of frozen water. They did outlast ice packs. After 7 days water was still frozen and ice packs defrosted. Buy yourself a decent cooler

[@dennismattson8383]

Keeping the bag of ice sealed and/or putting in a separate container helps a lot too.. A 7 lb bag fits perfectly into my dollar store trash basket that fits my cooler, works great, with bonus of keeping melt away from the food.. I also use a 23" liquid transfer pump, $10 from Harbor Freight, that uses 2 D cells, and has a 24" output hose attached.. insert, turn on, and it quickly pumps out melt, 5-6 qts/min.. Especially useful keeping a cooler in the trunk..

[@BillLeonard-c8s]

The foam around the lid with the compression is the secrete more so than the foamed lid. I expect that two stock coolers without foam insulation with one with the foam tape and latches will show a marked difference. The lid air gap is more efficient than the solid foam lid with regards to heat transfer.

[@d2mightydork649]

place that "Not A Yeti" in a rubbermaid container and surround it with spray foam. Boom...a "Still Not a Yeti, but Closer"

[@mikey6071]

I have a cheap coleman cooler, I put my drinks in, comeback with ice, layer iodized salt on top. This lowers the temp of the ice down by 8 F, making the ice temp 24F, and it will freeze the bottles of water. Now, in an emergency of no power, I'll take my frozen foods, place them in large zip lock bags, place in cooler, fill slowly, adding a little ice cream rock salt , ice - ICRS, ice- ICRS all the way up to the top. Tossing on quilted blankets. This drops the ice temp from 32F to 0F

[@jameshalleron7484]

You live in the California heat. I live in the Florida humidity. I love your version of a Yeti which is way overpriced. Thanks for making this video. I am always on the look out for my uncovered pickup truck for my Handyman business. I've stared using 5x5 plastic fence post covers as tool boxes with a smaller size fence post cover as a drawer. The unused pieces I use as parts bins by making wooden caps ends and dividers. Store bought is nice but are either to big or small so you can custom fit them. I got the idea from KZbin. I have ladder rack so I am trying to come up with a retractable sun shade that I can incorporate into the rack so it's lite and does not hinder the use of the rack. Any ideas, please start a series of pickup truck storage ideas. Thank you.

[@caimbus]

YES!! I love it. That is how you deal with trolls😂

[@evolutionaluminum2336]

A better test would be left in the sun , especially in south east texas

[@Underpantsniper]

Texas sucks

[@ThatOneGuyMatt]

3-4 days with a bone stick coleman is damn good.

[@murrayandru7527]

The tape will Fall off over the open / close operation !! Try some silver bubble insulation and trace the top of the cooler opening . Then cut a full piece of the silver bubble insulation and place it on top of the opening and close the lid . That's your seal , easy peasy !!

[@JP-vw7pb]

Red Green and Tim “the tool man” Taylor had a baby? Lol

[@vttony]

Great sense of humor.

[@shawnbranch900]

OMG I’ve never seen so much senseless violence towards ice bags! What did they ever do to you?! Lol

[@DoItYourselfDad]

Ice bags would happily take all of us out of they had the chance...

[@warped2875]

@@DoItYourselfDad . IBM, ...(Ice Bags Matter)

[@mguerramd]

Foam plus latches really makes a cheap cooler perform much better! You can’t increase the wall thickness but these two mods help you get the best possible out of a cheap cooler. I suspect foaming the lid is only fractionally helpful. All these cheap coolers leak air at the lid. Fixing that is huge.

[@username8171]

If you have an old cooler, glue some 1" foam board to the inside walls, this will increase your insulating value a bunch !

[@JoeyIngles]

Cool vid. You can buy a lot of ice for the price difference. However, if I were on a week long expedition with no access to ice, I’d consider the $300 yeti.

[@kathyfann]

The Ice to cooler size Ratio should be the same the coolers are different sizes therefore there’s more warm air in the larger cooler then there is the smaller cooler so there’s more than insulation at play here

[@DoItYourselfDad]

It gives the advantage to the smallest cooler, which still lost.

[@danielgilbert3283]

Yea Karen

[@aldoogie824]

I'd probably go for latches on the sides too

[@WeAreNotAlone69]

You can fix the hinges cheaply with a pet food bag, fold over,make layer and put it under existing broke hinge, run the existing screws thru the existing hinge section.

[@GyspyDave]

rubber inner tube is what I used to repair the broken hinge on mine..

[@klosnoski]

Best cooler I ever owned was a pillow sided all metal hams beer cooler. All metal construction and fully insulated. It now is the eternal resting place for my first fishing buddy fritz. All macabre aside. In the lake boat it kept lake trout fillets cold for 5 days and zero spoilage.

[@DoItYourselfDad]

Now I need to start trolling craigslist for one!

[@Wavy_Potts]

The modified cooler is still a fraction of the price and was close in perforamance to the yeti

[@cashmoney9256]

The handle broke on my old coleman so I put on a rope/PVC style handle....and now I'm adding that foam!

[@TheScoobysnack08]

Who needs ice to last for days at a bbq that lasts 1 afternoon? Guess yeti good for campers and those who want status🙄 Great diy hacks👍🏻 keep the videos coming!

[@dingfeldersmurfalot4560]

Good for truckers and other travelers, as well as people who have to leave their car in the heat for a while.

[@kilroywashere9343]

There not really meant for BBQs

[@TheScoobysnack08]

Rxslinger Apparently you didn’t read comment.

[@Treestandtroubadour]

Yeah for weekends at the lake they are nice or the beach but I understand what ya mean

[@ToyManFlyer1100]

TheScoobysnack08 Well , maybe you dont, but not ev'ry one has a good paying job, 4 or moire walls to live in , ass loads of money, access to "amenities" like a refrigerator and freezer and dont enjoy paying $2.50 /a bag for ice at Wallyworld that turns to water in 2 hours in 100 degree heat!!!!!!....So to wake in a "non'traditional space" ev'ry day and have a cool/cold drink is just peachy!!!!...You uppity mofos need to find out how the "other side" lives!!!!...Knock you off your "high horse" a few notches, bro !!!!

[@JonJon-uk5qb]

One thing I experienced with coolers in hot heat areas is if you leave the drain plug open and allow the water to escape the ice COULD last all day. That's with a pelican cooler. Guess it depends how many times you open it to.

[@DoItYourselfDad]

I’ve heard the same thing, but haven’t tested it. Makes sense though.

[@JonJon-uk5qb]

@@DoItYourselfDad I've done wildland firefighting on a brush truck and thats where i got the experience of making ice last in a cooler 😆

[@archedgeworth]

Not if it’s crushed ice, 1/4 to 1/2 water makes the lowest temp and ice lasts for days

[@whynot2934]

I still have my 1980ish Coleman cooler. I drool over the Yeti coolers, then ask myself why I need a Yeti. I don't. Maybe I'll insulate the lid. Maybe I won't.🤣 But thanks for the video and the vegan snacks sign was brilliant.

[@nickwillard4471]

An ideal test would be to get two identical coolers. Apply the upgrades you've done to one of the coolers and leave the other as you bought it. Then pour one or two gallons of water into the coolers and throw them into a chest freezer or any other kind of freezer which will fit them. Leave the lids open so that the water freezes solid. Then take the coolers out and place them at the same time in the temperature controlled room for 24 hours. After 24 hours has passed, pour the melted water into a container and measure how much water each cooler had. Whichever cooler has less water is the more efficient cooler. You'll easily be able to see how effective your modifications are by how much less water there is. If there's half as much water, that means your cooler is 2x more effective.

[@fp2231]

Not sure if anyone else talked about alternative to the foam would be some type of rubber weather stripping. The foam may accumulate water drips but rubber does not. I love this series and I'm hacking my little baby cooler according to your guide.

[@petergriffinson1907]

Is the bottom of the NOT YETI also insulated? Also have you tested how long it can keep stuff hot/warm??

[@DoItYourselfDad]

Yes, the bottoms are insulated from the factory. We did a comparison test here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/bYDJhaWmnJiNkNU&t

[@stylishranchgirl]

Do you sell the a Not a Yeti, and bear sticker? That really makes it!

[@mikeweathersby7060]

stylishranchgirl I think he has them for download on the “making of” video for this cooler.

[@TCSkiFilms]

Testing apples to oranges. You need to test two identical coolers side by side. All those tests show that the foamed lid melts the ice faster. There is more stored energy or stored heat in a foam lid than one that is using air as the insulation.

[@DoItYourselfDad]

You’re right, but the difference in sizes gives the advantage of the smallest cooler. Which still lost.

[@mathewgoebel4078]

I noticed on your 1st check that the modified cooler was the 2nd opened but the 3rd shut that's Considerably more Open air time

[@8stringmonkey]

Get some lengths of sched. 40 pvc cap one end, fill with salt water 3/4 of the way, cap other end. Freeze - reusable ice packs.

[@eldnah2]

I would rather you tested the "NotAYeti" unmodified vs modified and then vs the Yeti. I also wonder just how much that foam tape helps. My 150 qt Coleman lid is already very tight.

[@jaimevilla9142]

what about foam to the bottom half of the cooler? does it have insulation already?

[@DoItYourselfDad]

Yes, the bottoms are already filled with foam.

[@christinasanders6813]

If the non yeti and yeti were filled with the same percentage of ice I think the yeti would have way more. However the stock one was filled pretty much to the brim with ice and still lost.

[@WeShootBack1776]

Bear proof 😂 that makes me laugh when people say that, if i encounter a grizzly bear in Pennsylvania he can have the cooler

[@KNT.63]

Cool video ✌🤜🤛👍I can relate👀 I love to rig as well I bet just plain styrofoam works better than all of them never tested it but I'm a tie wire and duct tape man I don't go for high price things like the yes'serie'teete&a' blankety blank... ones👀

[@james10739]

I did basically the same stuff oh a bunch of years about now and did not see a big difference i did not do latches but i dont recall what kind of latches mine came with but i think a rubber seal would be better

[@jeromebullard6123]

The yeti had the advantage based on its volume. Your modded cooler, considering that yeti volume advantage, did just as well.

[@WilbanksUSMC]

I would suggest dual-layer insulation, especially if you have the "luggage latches". having another window seal on the bottom of the lid, and the rim of the cooler would be best if possible.

[@pazolini07]

Great video mate! I jsut had some issues trying to screw into the cooler... screws are not holding well and they are slowly popping out from the cooler body. Any suggestions ?

[@DoItYourselfDad]

Sounds like they may have been over tightened. Do you want to use one with the thick thread and not torque it down too much.

[@JERRYR708]

I'm going to use a bag of Styrofoam peanuts to fill the extra air spaces. Will bring extra foam sheets to thicken the walls to replace the ice as it melts and drain the water. Any thoughts?

[@DoItYourselfDad]

Great idea!

[@IowaKim]

Lol, vegan snacks! Brilliant! Reminds me when I travel, I use totes & the one that had valuable equipment I labeled as "Bibles & Books". Lol.

[@joang.4430]

Adding the latches was a great idea. Tough break for the raccoons though! Nice to know that a modified inexpensive cooler can work so well.

[@wallacegrommet9343]

I put a wet wrung-out towel on my cooler. Seems to help squeeze out another day

[@DoItYourselfDad]

Great tip!

[@desertheart4650]

How did the screws on your draw down latches hold up? Did they start to pull out after awhile? I screwed a locking hasp onto a cooler to critter proof it and found that the screws pulled out after a few camping trips. I tried again with screw anchors with not much more success. Ideas?

[@youknoweverything7643]

I been doing all the steps you done to cheap 10 dollar Walmart 110 cans plus coolers and keep ice no melting with a rubber seal for ,,6 days in 100 degree f southern Gulf coast summer heat 24 hours a day for 6 days. And seal the lids next time with latches on the ones that had latches ice won't mel on a day and half in a properly shut yeti more like 5 days in ,100 degree heat all day and night will it start to become watwr