Debug

[0 - 2] - When you've gotta keep food cold on the go,

[2 - 5] whether it's for a picnic, tailgating, car camping,

[5 - 7] or at the beach, you need a cooler.

[7 - 9] But all coolers are not the same.

[9 - 12] - They come in two styles, hard and soft sided,

[12 - 14] in a shocking range of prices.

[14 - 16] We've tested all of them and we're here today

[16 - 19] to talk about the right cooler for you and your lifestyle.

[19 - 21] - As we tested, we also learned how to keep

[21 - 24] any cooler cold for longer,

[24 - 25] so stay tuned for that at the end.

[28 - 29] - Soft coolers are lighter

[30 - 32] and more portable than hard coolers,

[32 - 35] but how do they compare as far as keeping things cold?

[35 - 37] And which brand is best?

[37 - 39] Let's get into it.

[41 - 44] We tested the hard and soft coolers the same way.

[44 - 45] We filled them as if we were going

[45 - 48] on a large delicious picnic.

[48 - 51] We packed them with ice, ice packs, cans with ice packs,

[51 - 54] cans with ice, all different ways.

[54 - 57] We ran temperature tests two ways.

[57 - 60] First, by filling each cooler with 10 pounds of ice

[60 - 63] and letting it sit, tracking the temperature

[63 - 66] until the melt water reached 50 degrees.

[66 - 71] We also packed the coolers full of chilled 12 ounce cans.

[71 - 72] We checked the temperature hourly

[72 - 75] until they themselves reached 50 degrees,

[75 - 76] which was a temperature we felt

[76 - 79] was beyond the nice, cool, crisp drink you expect.

[79 - 83] The best soft coolers kept ice for three days.

[83 - 86] Three days keeping ice? That's pretty darn good.

[86 - 88] We found a technology called

[88 - 92] closed-cell insulation performed best.

[92 - 96] This is a technology that uses gas forced into foam

[96 - 101] to create air pockets that keep heat out and cold in.

[101 - 103] Lining. It needs to be leakproof.

[103 - 105] Some weren't leak proof and this makes a mess

[105 - 107] and it's not good for cold retention.

[107 - 109] The liner should also wipe down easily

[109 - 112] without lots of nooks and crannies to detail clean.

[112 - 117] We liked boxy-shaped coolers over the tote bag style.

[117 - 119] We found they fit more food

[119 - 121] and they fit larger items better.

[121 - 125] Our winner, the Engel HD20 has that boxy design,

[125 - 127] but it was a little taller

[127 - 129] and this allowed for us to comfortably fit it

[129 - 132] under our arm like we could the tote bags,

[132 - 135] but you still got that nice capacity and packing ability

[135 - 138] that you do with these square-shaped coolers.

[138 - 141] Soft coolers are more portable than hard coolers,

[141 - 144] but our winner here from Engel was particularly portable.

[144 - 147] There's a long strap to carry it by the shoulder.

[147 - 149] There are handles on each side,

[149 - 152] and then there's another pair of handles on top

[152 - 154] where you would carry it like a briefcase.

[154 - 157] The zipper was easy to use, which was great

[157 - 159] because some of these were not.

[159 - 163] With soft coolers, portability is where they really shine,

[163 - 164] and with our winner from Engel,

[164 - 166] you get that portability

[166 - 168] without having to sacrifice on cold retention.

[171 - 173] - For many years, coolers were basic.

[173 - 176] You spend about $25 for a plastic cooler

[176 - 177] and you called it a day.

[177 - 179] Today, there are premium coolers,

[179 - 181] their prices ranging from hundreds

[181 - 183] up to over $1,000.

[183 - 186] YETI was the first to disrupt the status quo.

[186 - 188] It sold pricey boxes that are sleek

[188 - 191] and certified bear-proof, but do you really need all that

[191 - 194] or are the basic plastic boxes good enough?

[194 - 197] We put it to the test, except for the bears.

[197 - 199] We tested hard-sided coolers

[199 - 201] the same way we did the soft coolers.

[201 - 203] We chose a mix of models at all prices,

[203 - 207] with wheels and without, and capacities of about 50 quarts.

[207 - 209] That's a size we think is about right

[209 - 212] for a weekend's worth of supplies for four people.

[212 - 215] The first factor, cold retention.

[215 - 216] YETI and other fancy coolers

[216 - 220] actually kept food refrigerator cold for five days.

[220 - 223] Ice didn't melt fully for 10 days in our winner.

[223 - 226] Now, it's not just about keeping your drinks cold,

[226 - 228] it's about food safety.

[228 - 230] With enough ice and careful packing,

[230 - 233] all the coolers in our lineup can safely store your food

[233 - 238] for a day or two, but our winner can do it for much longer.

[238 - 241] We wanted to know how do these hard coolers work?

[241 - 243] How do they keep everything so cold?

[243 - 244] So we cut 'em in half.

[244 - 246] We went in there and sawed apart

[246 - 248] hundreds of dollars worth of coolers.

[248 - 251] We made a mess, but we learned the answer.

[251 - 255] Turns out it's about the insulation and where it is.

[255 - 257] The insulation is thicker on models

[257 - 258] with better cold retention,

[258 - 261] and it's located all the way around the cooler,

[261 - 262] under the lid too.

[262 - 265] Cheap ones had no insulation under the lid

[265 - 268] and they had a half inch to one inch of insulation.

[268 - 272] The premium ones had one to three inches all the way around.

[272 - 275] They work like a refrigerator with no power.

[275 - 277] That insulation really makes a difference.

[277 - 278] The next characteristic

[278 - 281] we really wanted to look at was portability

[281 - 282] and general ease of use.

[282 - 285] We filled these coolers up and we carried them

[285 - 289] or we wheeled them over a pavement, gravel, grass,

[289 - 292] up and down stairs, and in and out of the back of a car.

[292 - 295] And there is no way to sugarcoat this.

[295 - 298] These big old premium coolers are beasts.

[298 - 301] All that protection and cold retention comes at a cost.

[301 - 303] We couldn't really rent a bear

[303 - 305] to test the bear-proof claims.

[305 - 307] We wish we could. We checked into it, can't get 'em.

[307 - 309] So we pushed full coolers

[309 - 311] out of the back of an SUV five times,

[311 - 313] and we operated all the handles

[313 - 314] and the latches and the hinges

[314 - 317] a minimum of a hundred times each.

[317 - 319] Now, latches on the premium coolers,

[319 - 320] they stayed closed no matter what,

[320 - 323] but the cheaper ones dumped out their ice,

[323 - 325] handles or pieces broke off.

[325 - 326] They're just not as tough.

[327 - 328] Maintenance is really important.

[328 - 330] You wanna be sure you clean

[330 - 333] and fully air dry your cooler between uses.

[333 - 335] We wanted ones that cleaned up really nicely.

[335 - 337] You wanna use hot soapy water

[337 - 339] or an all-purpose spray cleaner

[339 - 341] and you wanna dry it really well.

[341 - 344] If you can, prop that lid it open when you store it.

[344 - 345] With a little bit of care,

[345 - 347] your cooler's gonna last years in great shape.

[347 - 350] Our overall winner is the YETI Tundra.

[350 - 354] It comes in a few different sizes, costs about $300,

[354 - 357] but the YETI outpaced every other model

[357 - 359] in cold retention and durability.

[359 - 363] Since our winner is so expensive, we also chose a Best Buy,

[363 - 366] and that's the Coleman 50 Quart Xtreme Wheeled Cooler.

[366 - 370] It's about $65. It still retains cold really well.

[370 - 371] It has a roomy interior.

[371 - 375] It's got a telescoping handle and wheels like a suitcase.

[375 - 376] It's not as well insulated,

[376 - 378] but we still think it's a great value

[378 - 380] and a really nice cooler.

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[403 - 406] - All right, what about the tiniest cooler of all, a koozie?

[406 - 409] We tested these because we saw a bunch of the newfangled

[409 - 411] stainless steel models around.

[411 - 414] We compared them to a classic neoprene sleeve.

[414 - 416] - Now, just like the hard-sided coolers,

[416 - 418] hard-sided koozies actually won the day.

[418 - 421] This is a stainless steel vacuum insulated koozie.

[421 - 424] It works a lot like the hard-sided coolers,

[424 - 426] kept everything colder for longer.

[426 - 428] This one by Igloo is our favorite.

[428 - 431] It has a little rubberized collar inside

[431 - 433] and that keeps the drink from falling out.

[433 - 435] A lot of them had screw-off tops.

[435 - 436] This one is one piece,

[436 - 438] and that rubber collar does the same thing.

[438 - 441] It also keeps the cold inside your can

[441 - 444] so your beverage stays much colder for longer.

[444 - 445] For more information about koozies

[445 - 448] and our full testing and hundreds more reviews,

[448 - 449] go to americastestkitchen.com.

[453 - 454] So now for some tips and tricks

[454 - 457] for keeping food colder in any cooler.

[457 - 461] - First up, ice packs versus plain old ice.

[461 - 463] - Ice packs are reusable,

[463 - 464] but you need somewhere to store them

[464 - 466] and you have to remember to freeze them

[466 - 467] before you need them.

[467 - 471] - And in our temperature tests, plain old ice took the day,

[471 - 473] beating out the packs for keeping food and drinks

[473 - 475] colder for longer.

[475 - 477] - Where should you put ice in the cooler

[477 - 478] for the best performance?

[478 - 480] - We tested this and found

[480 - 482] if you are chilling down your drinks or food,

[482 - 484] you wanna put the ice on the top

[484 - 487] so the cold ice melt drips down and chills everything.

[487 - 489] If your stuff is already cold, put the ice on the bottom

[489 - 493] to form a nice cold base, as we know heat rises.

[493 - 496] If you want the best of both worlds, put it all over,

[496 - 498] a little bit on the bottom, sprinkle it throughout,

[498 - 499] and then a layer on top.

[499 - 503] - And should you drain the melt water? Actually, no.

[503 - 506] That ice cold water actually works really well

[506 - 507] to keep food cold.

[507 - 509] Just make sure anything that you don't want to get wet

[509 - 511] is in a waterproof container.

[511 - 514] - So now you've seen the ins and outs of coolers

[514 - 516] and can choose the best one for you.

[516 - 519] What is your style? Let us know in the comments.

[519 - 520] - For more information

[520 - 522] about all the gear we talked about today,

[522 - 523] check out the links below.

[523 - 526] And for this and hundreds more reviews,

[526 - 528] go to americastestkitchen.com.

[528 - 529] - Make sure to like this video

[529 - 531] and subscribe so you never miss an episode.

[531 - 537] - And we'll see you next time. - Stay cool out there. (upbeat music)