Coolers for meat

alsatian

Active Member
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495
How many coolers do I need to bring home about 200 LBS of butchered, packaged elk meat? What brand of cooler do you recommend?

I typically put dry ice in the bottom of my cooler, 1/4" of newspaper on top of the dry ice, the packaged meat on top of the newspaper, another 1/4" layer of newspaper on top of the packaged meat, and then dry ice on top. I close the cooler lid and seal the lid with duct tape. This method has worked very effectively for me in the past, carrying pronghorn meat 1,300 home from Wyoming to Texas.

I looked at some 50 quart coolers last night and thought maybe four 50-quart coolers would be enough, but then I began to doubt and worry about the size of the coolers. What guidance can you give me?
 
We've only packed one bull back home. It was cut/wrapped by a meat shop and it fit into two 120 quart Igloo coolers, just barely. I'm taking the two 120 quarts and a 60 quart along this year, just in case. A boned out bull should have 200-250 pounds of meat.
Gregory
 
You can also use card board boxes. They insulate pretty well, I've used em and they are easy. You can keep them folded up and then just build em and use a strong tape. Pack solid ice blocks and then your meat, you'd be surprised how well they work to transport meat yet keep it cool. We have plenty of coolers , actually more than we can take on multi person hunts. A meat cutter in Springer NM turned me on to this card board box thing on an antelope hunt where we all shot bucks and needed to get the meat back in healthy condition.Its just a means to get meat transported keeping it cool , I'm not saying to store meat in it for days , and make sure if you do use boxes , seal them as that keeps the cool in...
 
A couple 120 quarts for the meat will be tight with ice, but no problem if you can get it frozen before the trip. Also, I used a 3rd 120 quart to keep the cape on ice for the trip home and the trip to the taxi.
 
I believe Coleman makes a model that has the title of "Extreme" in the model name and keeps ice for 5 days at 95 degrees. i have 2 of these coolers and have been impressed. I had frozen meals in the coolers on the 7th day of last years Kaibab hunt.
 
I have put 50 pounds of packaged elk meat in a 48 quart cooler with a room to spare to take on an airplane(I know what I had because I weighed it so I wouldn't be over the airline 50 pound limit) so I think the one quart per pound should be more than sufficient. Can't remember for sure but I think I had 185 pounds in a 120 quart once also.
 
If you bone the elk out completely, You'll probably make it fine with 2 50 Qt coolers. If it is "beef cut" and the bone is packaged you'll probably need all 4 coolers.

John
 
I second the 2 120Qt Igloo they are great for a whole elk and ice, You will not have much room left. On the trip up we pack them full of food(breakable stuff) and stuff that needs to be keep frozen or cold (bacon,porkchops,Salsa,eggs,etc) By the time we head back the food is gone and the coolers are ready to be loaded down with dry ice and elk/deer meat(1 cooler per deer too) Hope this helps.
 
I dont see how a large bull elk can fit in 2 120qt coolers. My moderate size tule elk, barely fit in 2 120 qt. and they were butcher wrapped. brubo
 
>I dont see how a large
>bull elk can fit in
>2 120qt coolers. My moderate
>size tule elk, barely fit
>in 2 120 qt. and
>they were butcher wrapped.
> brubo
Well it did. It was a 3.5 YO 5x6. The meat was cut/wrapped/frozen by a meat locker.
Gregory
 

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