MrBill,
Can you bring 650 lbs ice to the Big E on Sunday ?
NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!
ICE 101
The ice is still in my truck. The funny thing is that there is still about half left. I haven't had time to dump it yet. Here are some facts about coolers. Igloo sells two types of coolers. They now market at Sam's and Costco a 120 to 150 Qt "5" day coolers. These have the built in plastic handle. They sell for around 75 bucks. I have no idea why they call it a 5 day cooler. Maybe in Canada or Alaska. But down here in Texas in the middle of the summer it is a 1 1/2 day cooler.
They also sell the more expensive marine coolers. Mainly the 128 and 162 quart. These are the ones with the rope handles. They run 229 and 269 bucks. They are almost never on sale. They don't give a day rating on these coolers. The 162 has a nice built in double skid on the bottom. You can get 3 1/2 days out of these coolers in the Texas summer heat.
Is the marine 162 worth the extra money? Yes, At least for me. If you store the cheap coolers in the shade or in air conditioning, you might get 4 days before you have nothing but cold water.
The ice still sitting in my truck was loaded into 5 of the marine grade coolers. It's been cool at night (58 degrees) and the high has been about 80 degrees.
I still have at least 50% ice after loading them up last Wednesday evening. That's exactly 5 days. I also have been driving around. That slopping around is like being on a boat. It melts ice faster. The truck also has been sitting in the sun during the day hours. If I had loaded the ice in the cheaper "5" day coolers I would have 100% cool water right now.
I could go on and on about ice and coolers. I only have about 20 of the large sizes. That's nothing. I have friends with two to three times what I have. One friend has an ice machine with a 3500 pound bin. He has two 1200 pound a day heads over the bin. That's 2400 pounds in 24 hours. I can only produce 350 pounds a day. My bin is only 650 pounds. I like the reverse osmosis system. It gives you super clear clean drinking ice. No bad ice, no hangover.