In my continuation to want to be ready to offer cooks up to 8 pork shoulders, or 20 racks of ribs, or smoked chicken qtrs for up to 20 -30 people, I started on professional cambros, and have not given up on that. But, I’m also considering a series of coolers of various sizes and locations. My main one would have to have wheels. Although I worry the size is not big enough for 8 pork butts, and likely too tight for even 20 racks of ribs. Any thoughts willing to share on coolers with wheels. I certainly do not feel compelled to buy yeti, just best I can find with wheels. That seem decent enough for a gravel pathway and grass. And solid on holding food for 2-6 hours.
We have a cooler with wheels we got it at Cabela's, it is really cool. We also got Purple Ice Packs, last about a week.
Marin grade. We also have cheap ones that work very well for resting meat wrapped in towels.
A good Ice Chest will keep hot things hot and cold things cold, but how do they know? I'm so confused.
+2 on Cabela's. The one my nephew has , looks like a Yeti but even better than our yeti, it has a button to help release that tight vacuum when trying to open it.
Igloo has some around 110 quarts with a good pulling system at about a third the cost of a Yeti. Not going to hold ice as long as the higher end Yeti, Rtic and Pelicans, but a day or so shouldn’t be a problem.
I’m looking to hold bbq for up to 6 hours, and another one to hold sides like coleslaw, beans, Mac and cheese, etc type of stuff. Just needs to also have good wheels and handle to pull behind somehow.
I agree with Don, Igloo has some great coolers at a lessor price point. I own a 48 quart that performs as well as a friend’s Rtic of the same size. 6 hour holds are not that difficult, you should find tons of cheaper options over Yeti.
Lol all I use are yeti products. They sell wheels that attach to them my biggest one requires both back seat and 2nd row laid down and put diagonal in the suburban. Once loaded down...it's staying put until empty, lol.
I love coolers and I’m an aficionado for Yeti coolers in particular. That said not sure what you are looking for needs that expense, however, their wheeled coolers work well.
That said, there are tricks to make all coolers work better. Assuming you find a cooler that isn’t a Yeti that will be of the size you want then I have found a couple of tricks. The first thing I do is try to "pre-warm" the cooler. I have an electric teapot and I heat up 2-3 containers of hot water and add them to the cooler to warm it in preparation for the food when I have to hold it for a longer time.
The corollary is when I need my coolers to hold ice longer I pre-chill with a 20 pound bag of ice overnight and this helps them hold ice better too.
For your purpose, I'd get a wagon and stick a cooler in it. Made to be pulled, will handle well off road, and gets the cooler up off the ground so loading and unloading is easier. This also opens up a much larger range of options in coolers since you would no longer need one with wheels.
Last edited by WI Bubba; January 19, 2022, 10:51 PM.
If not cooking outdoors, I am cooking on the stovetop with my 14" carbon steel wok, 12" CI skillet, or in the oven with my two Lodge CI pizza pans, or two dutch ovens. I've also got a nifty Lodge carbon steel grill pan that rocks for veggies outdoors.
I’ll be honest, I think that is way overpriced for the size (capacity). I use an Igloo ice cube 60 quart cooler for beer brewing as my mash tun, and those things go for under $30 bucks locally on sale, and I’ve had it hold ice for more than a day on the occasions I used it to store ice or drinks. Looks like they are more these days, but still widely available. The ice cube cooler also has an extending handle and decent wheels. That yeti requires someone to stoop to pull it.
You won’t be holding stuff hot or cold for days, so any cooler with thick walls should be good.
If not cooking outdoors, I am cooking on the stovetop with my 14" carbon steel wok, 12" CI skillet, or in the oven with my two Lodge CI pizza pans, or two dutch ovens. I've also got a nifty Lodge carbon steel grill pan that rocks for veggies outdoors.
If you want to spend money on a wheeled cooler, I like the look of this fancy Igloo with some beefy looking wheels and hauling handle better than the Yeti:
LSG Adjustable Grill/Smoker, MAK Pellet Grill, Large BGE with Several Attachments from the Ceramic Grill Store, Weber Genesis E335 Gasser, Cast Iron Pans & Griddle, Grill Grates, Mostly Thermoworks Thermometers, Anova SV Stick, BBQ Guru Controller and Fan
I second on Coleman Extreme. I have a wheeled one. As far as Cambros go, I paid about $100 for the styrofoam vertical which holds 4 pans. I love it! It's 3 years old and still holding up nicely. Not toting the heavy weight around is quite nice.
I just picked up a Yeti 45 today and I’m calculating how many bags of ice I’ll have to forgo to pay for it. Alternatively, they do offer a ‘first born’ discount.
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