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IceyTek

41 replies

MinimalistMommi · 21/07/2013 17:48

How long/how many nights will it keep food cold without exchanging freezer blocks half way through?

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thisisyesterday · 21/07/2013 17:54
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MinimalistMommi · 22/07/2013 09:39

Bump
Perhaps everyone with an Iceytek is camping...Wink

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SparkyUK · 22/07/2013 13:59

I think this is really hard to say. They are supposed to go 5 days I think? It depends of course on how hot it is, if you keep it in the shade, if you have pre-chilled it, if your food inside was frozen, etc etc. I've only gone a long weekend with ours so far and it was great, but things were thawed by the end of the weekend. This is mostly because it, being so much colder than the one our friends brought, became the drinks cooler and was being opened every 5 minutes or so.

If you asked or did a serach though, I'm sure people here could give you loads of advise on how to keep it coldest for longest. In my experience, pre-chilling did really help. And then you just top up by either exchanging blocks or buying a bag of ice. They are only about a pound for a huge bag.

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thisisyesterday · 22/07/2013 14:46

this may be a really really stupid question, but how do you pre-chill it?? in your freezer?

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SparkyUK · 22/07/2013 15:24

Eek, only if you have one of those industrial walk in freezer Envy

If I am going away on Friday, I take a large empty water bottle or two, and fill them with water and freeze those in my freezer Wednesday. Then Thursday night I put those in the empty icey-tek. I then put another bottle of water or two into the freezer and anything else that I want frozen, and freeze those overnight so that Friday before leaving, I can take out replace Wednesday night's bottles with super cold ones.

This method works for any cooler, not just icey-teks. The difference is that the wednesday night bottles should still be pretty frozen. I also don't freeze that evening's meal as it would still be too frozen when we arrived at the campsite.

Also, make sure anything else going in there (wine, beer) is good and cold too.

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Blu · 23/07/2013 17:25

I use that method of pre-chilling too.

I pre-chill with old water bottles full of frozen water, and then put in freezer packs when I fill the box with food. I have also used some of those polythene bag type ice cubes, too, so that they chill the box but then I can add ice to drinks.

Keep it open for the minimum amount of time and don't allow the kids to rummage in it and keep the lid open.

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SparkyUK · 23/07/2013 18:13

That's another good point. I've heard of people organising the food so as to ensure what they need day 1 is on top, day 2 beneath that, day 3 beneath that, etc etc to minimise rumaging and by extension the amount of time the lid is open.

Do you reckon that the ice blocks stay frozen longer than bottles of water? Or is it just the better shape?

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lostmykeysagain38 · 24/07/2013 14:31

I was wondering about freezing cartons of juice to use as ice packs to start with. Do you think that would work?

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YellowDinosaur · 24/07/2013 14:44

Yes definitely lostmykeys. Freeze everything you can. Cartons of juice, milk, wine in a bag (from a box), meat, fish, everything you can think of.

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MummyPigsFatTummy · 24/07/2013 15:00

Just in case anyone is considering getting an icey-tek but not sure about cost, it might be worth considering a Coleman Xtreme. We have the 50 quart version with a pull along handle (www.gooutdoors.co.uk/50qt-extreme-wheeled-cooler-p175405) and it has been great. We have used it on three or four long and normal weekends and have always come back with some ice still frozen and everything still cold. Even the first weekend in July, which was boiling there was a little bit of ice left and we had it out in full sun for much of the weekend.

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MummyPigsFatTummy · 24/07/2013 15:02

It's not as prettyas an Icey-tek admittedly Sad

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YellowDinosaur · 24/07/2013 16:32

You're clearly less shallow than me MPFT! I had the smaller version of that reserved at go outdoors last summer when it was on offer for £50. I decided it wasn't as pretty as the pink Iceytek and didn't buy it. Ok the 10 days to keep things proper child compared with 5 did have a part to play especially when selling it to dh but I can't deny the pretty colours of the Iceytek free me in....

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YellowDinosaur · 24/07/2013 16:33

Free = drew

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MummyPigsFatTummy · 24/07/2013 16:53

Oh, does the icey tek keep things cold for 10 days? I thought it was 5. In that case, it beats the Coleman on function as well as form Grin. Luckily we only camp for weekends mainly so it is not a problem but I can now see why people go for the icey-tek (other than just for its beauty).

Luckily I am stingy and am therefore not as devastated as I would have been to hear of the icey-tek's great superiority over the Coleman, as I have saved £50 to spend on other glamping crap to invest in our futures.

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lostmykeysagain38 · 24/07/2013 17:16

Hadn't thought of freezing a bag of wine! What a fantastic idea. It's the first time that we have used the Icey Tek so am hoping that it justifies the cost.

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YellowDinosaur · 24/07/2013 19:46

MPFT slubber said that when she went to Germany there was still English ice in it at day 10. I haven't got that much out of it yet and topped up with a bag of ice on day 4 (was still cold but not as cold and I didn't want it to warm up anymore). Think I need to work on the not opening it too much technique though....

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thisisyesterday · 24/07/2013 21:21

yes we have the coleman xtreme too, but i was thinking of upgrading to icey-tek

the coleman didn't fare brilliantly last week in wales BUT it was bastard hot and it was prob getting opened more than it should and I poss didn't have it placed brilliantly in the tent (ie, it had sun shining straight on it most of the day)

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bico · 24/07/2013 22:47

Just back from first trip with Icey tek. Packed Thursday early morning and white wine was still very chilled Monday evening. I used two large freezer blocks that had gone liquid by then but everything was still cool and didn't pre-cool before packing.

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Bramblesinforrin · 25/07/2013 20:36

Just back. Things were still chilled on day five for us. We pre chilled, arranged meals in order in ziplock bags. Froze everything else in there.

We also covered it over with a sleeping bag or two during the day so that gave extra insulation during the sunny warm times.

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thisisyesterday · 26/07/2013 22:45

cool... what size box do you havE?

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bico · 26/07/2013 23:31

We got the 40 litre size.

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Bramblesinforrin · 27/07/2013 00:04

I have a 25l

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MinimalistMommi · 27/07/2013 07:49

We're a family of four, don't eat meat if that makes a difference. What size do we need? We camp four nights max.

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YellowDinosaur · 27/07/2013 09:48

We're a family of 4, we do eat meat, and have a 40l. I guess it depends on how much fresh stuff and alcohol you take. Don't think we could do with smaller but i'm sure you'd manage by shopping while you're away. I prefer to menu plan and take stuff

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bico · 28/07/2013 20:34

There are only two of us and I was amazed how much I filled the 40l size. I did put more drinks in than I would if it had been smaller but I didn't find it overly big and I liked the fact that I didn't have to plan on doing shopping every day. In fact the only thing I bought whilst we were away for 7 days (6 nights) was milk and that was only because we ran out. Usually I'd end up buying milk every day in hot weather as I never had a coolbox that kept it cool enough to stop it going off.

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