For decades, an icebox has been the go too for icy drinks and fresh meat at camp! But nothing is worse than digging through icy water. So we’ve put together some tips and tricks for getting more from your icebox.

With dozens of iceboxes on the market, the choices are nearly endless, so it’s easy to get caught paying top dollar for a unit that resembles the old foam chest, that your dad had floating around the back of the family car when you were growing up. But technology has gotten better and the performance you can expect has improved a lot since the good old days.

A typical modern icebox like the type found in the Adventure Kings Icebox range has much higher quality moulded polyurethane body that is tough and ding free, coupled with high-efficiency CFC free internal insulation. The durable polyurethane plastic body is corrosion resistant and hard wearing and is designed to make your ice last much longer and to keep your beers much colder and serve you well into your old age (better than your dad’s old one did)!

A few features to keep an eye on when shopping around are:

-Thick polyurethane insulated walls and lid – The thicker the walls of your new icebox are, the more insulation they can provide, and the colder your ice (and beers) will stay

-A firm and effective waterproof EVA seal with strong metal latches – Unlike old fashioned plastic clips, the Kings Icebox’s have strong latches and heavy-duty hinges that seal in the cold and prevent any unwanted warm air from spoiling your refreshments!

– built in drain bungs – seems like an obvious one, but it definitely beats tipping your icebox on its edge and hoping all your ice and beers stay inside.

With these pro pointers, we’re sure you’ll end up with a top-shelf Icebox that is capable of holding ice and keeping it cold for days on end… but wait… it’s not that simple.

Opting for a handy ice-box over the more versatile Fridge/Freezer designs on the market is almost definitely a cost-based decision and ensuring that you get the best performance out of your Icebox isn’t just as simple as chucking a bag of ice in it every few days.
The following are our time-tested trail tips for getting the most out of your ice, without carting around a box full of sloshing water, on the tracks!

Preparation is key!

The results you get are always based on exactly how much preparation you perform and the best way to get more from an icebox is to pre-freeze any of your long-term food like your meat and a handful of water bottles in your freezer at home.

Pre-freezing homemade ice bricks provide you with a long-term and practically free solution to buying yourself ice and when given enough preparation you can make enough ice to easily cater for a long weekend away.

Broken ice like the stuff in the bags you buy at the servo can chill your Icebox quickly but will also melt faster than bigger homemade bricks and can end up sloshing around in the back of your car!

Keep it in the shade

You’d be surprised by just how much you can improve an icebox’s efficiency by keeping it in the shade! If you can keep your Icebox out of the sun, it won’t heat up as much this tip is easier said than done, but if you have an Adventure Kings Awning or a Kings Gazebo you can hide your icebox underneath to keep the beaming rays of the sun tain that they will last much longer!

A cheap silver windscreen reflector can add a bit of sun protection if you have your ice box in the back of your car. But keep in mind, just like your pets and your children, a 30 degree day your car can reach temperatures in excess of 70 degrees, a day or two like this will give you warm beers till you get home!!
SHUT THE DOOR!

Just like when you were young, and your parents yelled at you for taking too long to look in the fridge, a standard ice box’s insulation is next to useless if it is kept open for too long. Your ice will melt quickly a and will take longer to cool back down if you keep opening it up to look at your beers.

PRO TIP: If you are getting up to get a beer, offer to grab one for everyone else. This seems generous but it’s actually a little bit selfish it’ll save your ice and decrease the stress on it being exposed to the warm air as often!

TOP IT UP

As mentioned above, the modern efficiency of an icebox is only reliable if it stays shut. Another way to keep your ice working efficiently inside your icebox is to keep it full. This reduces the volume of air that needs to be chilled and increases thermal conductivity between the cold stuff. Basically, keeping more stuff colder for longer!

If you’ve run out of beers to chuck in, look for other things, like water bottles, cardboard boxes and even empty Tupperware, this will decrease the amount of circulating air, and increase the length of time between needing more ice!