RTIC coolers?

Hi, Agree with @CCC .  We bought a  45 Qt RITC just before our recent 8 week trip out west.  It was much heavier (empty) than our older Coleman of similar size.  And very heavy when full.  But, it kept the ice and things cold for a long time.  Much longer than our older Coleman.  I have no experience with a Yeti.  We kept it in our tow vehicle the entire time but was very heavy just to slide in and out, let alone lift (as stated above).  After the inital use of all the food in the cooler  we found the TAB refrigerator was large enough for 4-5 days worth of food and all we needed was smaller drink cooler and go shopping every 4-5 days.  We plan to buy a smaller cooler that will fit on the front platform of our TAB.  If you lived closer..I'd sell the 45 qt cheap.   Best wishes and happy cold food & drinks...

After much "research", my sense of things is that the rtic is as good as the yeti. My opinion, don't want to offend the yeti fans.  Have used an rtic 20 for several years.  Happy with it, but it is heavy when loaded with drinks and ice.  Any heavier and I wouldn't be able to lift it into my tow vehicle.  I use it for drinks mainly, as that means frequent opening of the cooler. Norcold holds the food, and only gets opened a few times a day.

I'd like the space of the rtic 45 quart, but I'd have to load it into the tow vehicle empty and then add drinks and ice. No way I'd be able to lift it when full.

@PNWtabber Generally, reviews of the 52 are good, I’d just say dig around to make sure you’re getting what you expect.

Ultimately I stuck with my ancient Igloo cooler as a no-power option due to the weight of the roto coolers, but it literally never gets used. I went with a 12v Iceco go20 as my backup fridge; it will run for days off the Tab’s 100ah AGM or even my Goal Zero 400 lithium, without the hassle of ice.

Also, this thread was helpful to me in getting my fridge running on propane: https://tab-rv.vanillacommunity.com/discussion/8585/lighting-3-way-refrigerator-pilot#latest

PNWtabber said:

I think the basket is an accessory item for Yeti and Cascade:

Hi, We did get the basket with our RTIC and it’s a great option for any cooler that has it.  Nice to keep those few items out of the melting water.

We purchased a Lifetime 28 qt cooler (from Wally World) to supplement the Tab's fridge for last year's 3 week adventure.  It too is rotomolded and heavy, but works well.

We bought the COHO 55 Quart Rotomolded Cooler from Costco ($140), and used it for the first time this year at uCamp, where we had several daily temps hovering around 95 or higher. We used it for food only and had a separate cooler for drinks. We were impressed as it performed as advertised: it kept food cold for five days. We used two Artic blue ice and three frozen half gallon tropicana style plastic bottles, which were still cold when we left Saturday morning. And for our drinks we had a cheap Costco igloo cooler that we tried an experiment on: we drilled holes in the lid and sides and squirted Loctite Tite Foam for Gaps and Cracks, which acts as added insulation and immediately expands to something like 20 times its volume. Surprisingly that experiment worked too as we used three frozen tropicana style water bottles, but we did add two five-pound bags of ice, one each day, on Thursday and Friday.

We have the 52qt RTIC.

It's pretty amazing how long it will keep ice. From the reviews I looked at, it performs 'close enough' to the Yeti that way (although I don't have any other experience with a high-end cooler).

We love the basket, and the frozen divider is a great feature too.

It closes tight with its gasketed lid, and the lid closures are simple and effective. There are incorporated hold-down-strap holes, which probably add to the bear-resistance.

Yep, it's heavy, so I indulged, cuz I knew I'd have complaints, and added on a set of Badger Wheels (excellent quality):

Expensive wheels, but definitely well made. These wheels protrude beyond the side walls, which can be awkward, but after getting used to it, it hasn't been a problem.

I have Rtic 52. Love i, t lighter and keeps ice for about 5 days before liquified. Have used it on my trip to Alaska. I really like the 2 compartments.