Turning Icebox Into Yeti Cooler

Rick R.

Rick R.

Contributing Partner
April fools?

Seriously, if you've looked inside a Yeti Cooler you know there must be something special about the way it is insulated. I mean, how can they keep ice from melting for weeks?

Wouldn't it be great if we could upgrade our iceboxes to have the same properties?

Does anyone here know what type of insulation makes these things so effective?:confused::confused::confused:
 
gadangit

gadangit

Member III
Our ice box is shot. We've been considering permanently mounting a Yeti or equivalent cooler in it's place. I could never build something this well insulated. No April Fools!
Chris
 
Randy Rutledge

Randy Rutledge

Sustaining Member
Rick

I am thinking of lining my ice box with 2" pink or blue foam and then building an epoxy liner to seal the foam. From what I have read the high dollar coolers use the same type closed cell foam, they advertise 2" thick. At the least it will add lots of life to the ice.

You have a refrigerator, how taxing on the battery bank is that, That is also a consideration in addition to the added insulation.
 
Rick R.

Rick R.

Contributing Partner
Randy Rutledge said:
Rick

I am thinking of lining my ice box with 2" pink or blue foam and then building an epoxy liner to seal the foam. From what I have read the high dollar coolers use the same type closed cell foam, they advertise 2" thick. At the least it will add lots of life to the ice.

You have a refrigerator, how taxing on the battery bank is that, That is also a consideration in addition to the added insulation.
Click to expand...

I only power the fridge when plugged in to shore power or motoring. With a head start (running it at the dock before a trip) it keeps ice for several days. One issue with running the fridge on our boat is it causes condensation in the chart table above.

Fellow Viking Lawrence B Lee did the added insulation mod on his 32-200 a couple years ago although I don't think it was 2".
 
L

Lawrence B. Lee

Member III
Beefed up box

Rick is right. (Hi Rick) I did extra insulation on my icebox using 1 in. pink foam from Home Depot, West systems epoxy and some fiberglass to protect the inside of the box. Started by cutting out cardboard templates which I used to cut foam pieces. I painted the interior panel parts white and glued them in. You want minimum gaps between panels. If I can find them I will post some pix. It really was a hell of a project. We had to build a table in the starboard lazaret (top of waste tank) to mount the compressor. We had to snake (sneak) gas filed tubing from the compressor, through the head, and to the plate in the icebox and I had to build a separate electric system to power this puppy. No more room on existing elec. panel. Will try to report more soon.

Larry Lee
s/v Annabell Lee
e-32-200
Savannah
 
markvone

markvone

Sustaining Member
Adding Insulation to the Interior of the Ice Box turned Reefer

My ice box has 1 inch thick insulation added by the PO to the complete inside of the ice box except the lid. The foam pieces are pretty tight-fitting, but not glued in or taped together, I can move and re-move the panels. The foam pieces are covered with a foil tape on the edges and a paper-like covering that either came attached to the foam or more likely was added to seal the foam after the pieces were cut to size. It's not a rigid surface but it's fairly waterproof so it's easy to clean spills and gunk off of. It would be a lot easier but not as durable to install foam with this system vs adding a fiberglass or laminate skin over the foam FOR A BOX WITH REFRIGERATION and no water from melted ice to deal with.

Mark
 
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