Expensive Coolers!, YES or NO

I never thought I would buy one of these expensive coolers....but.

Here is my review of the Engel Deep Blue 65.


Engel Deep Blue Cooler 65 Review

Editor: Mike iReviewGear.com


Just the Facts:

Engel Deep Blue Coolers are Roto-molded of seamless polyethylene, it's tough enough to stand up to a hungry grizzly bear. (In fact, it's an approved bear-resistant container.) A full 2″ of dense polyurethane foam is injected top, bottom and sides to provide 8-10 days of cold-keeping capability. But this is just the start?
deep-blue-features
engel-yeti_comparison1
The Inside Story
HOLD ICE FOR 8-10 DAYS
2″ of high Quality Polyurethane insulation Top, bottom and Sides
KEEP THE COLD WHERE IT BELONGS
Air-Tight Freezer Gasket Seals Entire Lid
DRAIN WITHOUT STRAIN
Pitched, Self-Draining Bottom
ONE TWIST OF THE WRIST
One-Turn Drain Plug
YOU WON?T COME UNHINGED
Integrated Walls Withstand Freezing Effects of Dry ice
EASY TO KEEP CLEAN
Any Non-Abrasive Cleaner Brings Back the Clean
The Outside Story
CERTIFIED BEAR-RESISTANT CONTAINER
Rugged, Roto-Molded Polyethelene Construction
DON?T JUST STAND THERE
Non-Skid Lid Built for Standing and Sitting on
KEEP OUT THE BEARS ? AND YOUR BUDDIES
Holes in Front Corners for Lid Locks
WHEN IT?S TIME TO GO
Molded Hand Grips and Convenient Rope Handles
BUILT TO STAY PUT
Large, Non-Skid, Non-Marking Feet Keep the Cooler From Sitting on the Deck
WHEN IT?S TIME TO SWAB THE DECK
Raised Base for Easy Cleaning
AN OPEN AND SHUT CASE FOR BETTER LATCHES
Flush Mounted Marine Grade Latches with Stainless Steel Hardware and Backing Plates
THEY DON?T HAVE WINGS ? TIE IT DOWN
Easily Secure Cooler with Most Tie-Down Systems. Our Patent Pending Multi-way Attachment-System.

Story:

I have been using the Engel Deep Blue 65 Cooler for about 1 year now. It is not the only cooler in my arsinal, I also have a 100 Quart Igloo, and a couple of Coleman Coolers.
I have used the Engel for 3 different unique functions:

1: I take it in my ski boat, and use it in the HOT Southern Utah weather to keep our drinks cold for 2-7 days.
2: I take it in the back of my truck, when camping for 3-7 days, and need stuff cold for multiple days.
3: I have used it in my 17 foot aluminum fishing boat, to keep drinks in, and also to keep my fish in, after catching them. I do this on 1 day trips, and use it as a seat.

Function 1, the Ski boat:
The Engel passed this test with flying colors! I use the cooler at Lake Powell in the burning hot sun for 7 days, and not once did I have to restock it with ice. WOW. I placed 1 large block of ice in the cooler, and as many drinks as I could fit. The cooler kept them cold the entire 7 days. This certainly was not the case with the other coolers. I had to add ice on a daily basis. MONEY and TIME saved? GREAT WORK!
goat hunt 013

Function 2, Truck camping
The Deep Blue Cooler functions perfectly in this environment! On a recent Mountain Goat Hunt I left the Engel in the back of my truck for 4 days. I had placed a gallon size zip lock bag of ice, several water bottles, and a quart of milk in the cooler. The temperatures outside reached 70 degrees each day.
When I returned I was surprised to see only 50% of my ice had melted. WELL DONE ENGEL!
I felt the cooler really had not close to enough ice in it before the trip, but it handled it perfectly.

Function 3: Day Fishing in small boat
This is by far the roughest trip I expose my cooler to, BY FAR.
The fishing boat I have is small with little room for anything that is not serving a purpose. I have tried my cheaper Coleman coolers in the boat, but they do not withstand: Sitting on them, tossing them out of the way to fight a fish, etc.
The coolers on my day fishing trips are abused, sat on, bounced around, and just hammered! This is a huge problem for lesser coolers, but not for the Engel! It stays looking perfect, and is easily cleaned at the end of the day.
I use 1 zip lock back of ice (1 gallon) on these day trips, and I have yet to run out of ice with the Engel.

Summary:
This is one TOUGH, and well functioning cooler! It stands up to heat, abuse, and just takes it.
The ability to keep stuff cold is unparallelled in lesser coolers.
I was NOT a fan of $400 cooler before using this cooler, but I am now. Get one and never look back. It will look great and function perfectly for a life time.

What they could do better:
-Get the weight down, not sure how that is possible, but it is heavy.
-Keep working on the price, even though they are less expensive than Yeti, they are still expensive.

Price is not normally a consideration for me but I ended up going with a Canyon Cooler Outfitter which is comparable in almost every way to the Yeti and other high dollar ice chests. I have been extremely happy so far and it retails for about 25% or $100+ dollars less than the big name brands.

BTW, I have an Engel 12v/electric portable fridge (looks like a nice aluminum cooler) and it has worked very well for years.

Wade
www.HardcoreOutdoor.com

I bought one of the big(400qt) expensive coolers(Sportsmans Warehouse off brand) two years ago for the fishing trip I go on with my son and his friends. We spend 6 days fishing, drinking beer and shooting stuff. We always had problems the last couple days keeping stuff cold. With the new cooler I freeze 2 cases of bottled water, get the beer cold and freeze the food. I load the beer first, frozen water then the food. Even with opening and closing a lot the mountains are still blue on day 6. My other coolers on about day 4 the mountains were not blue. I say yes!

Great adds guys, thanks!
HardCore.
I also have a 12 volt Engel for jeeping. I love it and it has served me well.
I like that it monitors your battery and will not drain it.

Thanks for the tip on that other cooler!

yeti and canyon both have been great, (takes a lot of your beer money .) but once you have one. you will never go back to coleman,