Yeti hopper 20-test

9ftleader

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Jun 20, 2015
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Just picked up the yeti hopper 20. I've probably read over 100 reviews on countless websites about the hopper and if you've looked you know it's a mixed bag! All the reviews I've read, range from "this thing is horrible, didn't keep ice for 12 hours" to, this thing is amazing put Ice in Thursday at 5pm and it still had ice Sunday at 6pm."

I'm trying to set the record straight! Here's the test. I filled this with 12 16 oz water bottles. And a 10lb bag of Ice this morning at 8:00am. I'm working today (I am in sales, it will sit in my car all day. The high is suppose to be 100 here in central Wa.) I am headed to Montana in the morning to fish till Sunday. I'm gonna see how this thing stacks up! I'll post updates every 12 hours or so! I'll include in the update how many times it was opened and closed (yeti says that's a determining factor), and how Much direct sunlight it has on the cooler.

Lastly, I used a "burner bag" of ice to cool down the hopper before filling it.
 
What makes people unhappy with a Yeti is that they don't understand pre cooling the insulation. If you took a warm Yeti cooler and loaded it with ice, it will melt faster than a cheapo cooler. That is because all that thick insulation takes a long time to cool down. So the first load of ice is gonna go quickly. It's sacrificial. That is why you'll see mixed reviews. Load it back up with ice and that second load will last a long time. Or place the cooler in a walk in (I know ,not practical) first. What I do is use 2 litre soda bottles filled with water. The night before I want to use my Yeti I'll toss in a few bottles. In the morning, pull them out and put back in freezer and then fill with ice. Then it will stay for days.

Sounds like you understand this concept.
 
What makes people unhappy with a Yeti is that they don't understand pre cooling the insulation. If you took a warm Yeti cooler and loaded it with ice, it will melt faster than a cheapo cooler. That is because all that thick insulation takes a long time to cool down. So the first load of ice is gonna go quickly. It's sacrificial. That is why you'll see mixed reviews. Load it back up with ice and that second load will last a long time. Or place the cooler in a walk in (I know ,not practical) first. What I do is use 2 litre soda bottles filled with water. The night before I want to use my Yeti I'll toss in a few bottles. In the morning, pull them out and put back in freezer and then fill with ice. Then it will stay for days.

I own a few Grizzly coolers and couldn't agree more with this. The 500qt takes a full 24 plus hours to chill but once there it lasts weeks. Another tip is to use three different ice sizes (Block (gallon milk jugs), Med (liter bottles), and crushed) adding Course Sea Salt will also reduce the internal temp a few deg. Keep covered with a wet towel or in the shade, and reduce the amount you open it up.
 
5 hours in, opened 1 time. It's 97 outside and it has been in the car with ac for about 2 of the 5 hours.

Very little melt age but there is some. Not much.

This afternoon/evening will be a good test, I'll be out of the car no AC and super hot outside.
 
Almost at the 9 hour mark its still going strong! Ice looks like it's out of the bag and there's minimal water! 103 right now and I am sure it's more than that in the car. Opened it 4 times in total today!
 
Almost 25 hours in I am at about half ice half water.

I've opened it about 8 times. Yesterday evening it sat it my car for 5 hours with no AC, temps outside were 103 I think, car had to be pushing 120 at least.

I'll add to my review/test that this thing is built like a bomb shelter, not that we would expect anything less from yeti but I zero worries about tossing this thing around.
 
Curious why you went with the hopper and not the roadie. Shoulder strap?

It works better with my lifestyle. I'm on the road constantly and lug it in and out of offices, then throw it on my boat. It just moves a lot abc I thought it would be a good option. It's pretty small though.

The test is over. 28 hours in and the ice is nearly all gone.

Overall I think it performed very well. It's been crazy hot and had to sit in my car the whole time. I am sure thAt under more realistic circumstances it would go 36-48 hours. It's far better than any other soft sided cooler I've had!
 
I'm just putting the final touches on the biggest cooler review to date by Travis Bertrand (Drhorsepower). It'll launch Monday. He did some thorough testing on some of the top contenders-- stay tuned
 
I was thinking about a hopper but when they jacked the price up by $50 after they launched the second size I backed out. $350 is way too much for a soft cooler. A great looking cooler but come on it's a soft cooler........ If anyone has a 30 they don't like I'm willing to spend $150:)
 
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