How to pack a cooler for camping
Coleman Classic Insulated Portable Cooler
$54.99The Coleman Classic 52-Quart Cooler ($54.99) is a sized, priced example of a standard weekend cooler, and every ratio and packing rule below is written against a cooler in this size class.
Check price on AmazonSpecsHow much ice do you actually need?
Pack ice to contents by volume at roughly 1:1 for an overnight trip, 1.5:1 for two to three days, and 2:1 for four or more days, which is what YETI and most rotomolded cooler brands recommend for their own products. Cubed ice runs about 1.2 lb per quart of packed space and block ice about 1.9 lb per quart, so a 10 lb bag of cubes fills roughly 8 quarts of cooler space.
Run your headcount and trip length through our ice calculator and cooler size calculator before you shop for ice, since most people underestimate how much a multi-day trip actually needs. Real-world ice life is often only 40 to 60 percent of a cooler's advertised days-of-ice figure, because that figure assumes a sealed, unopened, shaded cooler, not one opened at every meal.
What order do you pack food and ice in a cooler?
Ice and frozen items go in first, on the bottom, because cold air sinks and the coldest point in any cooler is the bottom, not the top. Items you need first, drinks and snacks, go near the top or in a separate cooler entirely so you are not digging past the food you need on day three to get a cold drink on day one.
Reusable ice packs like the Igloo Maxcold Ice Block ($8.55) work well as a base layer directly against meat or dairy, since they will not melt into water the way loose ice does, and the Kona XXL Ice Packs ($22.95) are large enough to line one whole side of a cooler as a cold wall for a multi-day trip.
Block ice, cube ice, or reusable ice packs?
Block ice melts slower than cube ice because it has less surface area for the same weight, so it is the better choice for trips over two nights where ice life matters more than fast cooling. Cube ice cools drinks and food faster on day one because it has more surface contact, which makes it the better choice for a short overnight trip.
Reusable ice packs never turn into meltwater, which keeps the cooler drier and food packaging dry, but they hold less total cooling capacity pound for pound than ice and work best combined with a smaller amount of loose ice rather than replacing it entirely on longer trips.
Gear this guide recommends
Should you drain the meltwater out of the cooler?
Only drain water that is directly touching food packaging in a way that risks leaking into the food, not water in general. Cold meltwater sitting in the bottom of the cooler actually insulates the remaining ice and keeps it colder longer, so draining a cooler on a schedule just to keep it tidy shortens your ice life for no real benefit.
If you are worried about food safety, keep raw meat and anything that must stay dry in a sealed bag or a separate hard container inside the cooler, rather than draining water the ice needs to stay cold.
Why do experienced campers run two coolers?
A cooler that gets opened constantly, for drinks throughout the day, loses cold air every time the lid comes up, which speeds up ice melt for everything inside, including food that is only opened at mealtimes. Running a separate drinks cooler protects the food cooler's ice life significantly on multi-day trips.
A soft cooler like the Hulongo Large Insulated Cooler Backpack ($39.99) works well as the drinks cooler, since it is easy to carry to a cooler-only stash point away from camp, while the hard cooler stays packed and mostly closed near the kitchen setup.
Where should the cooler sit at camp?
Keep the cooler in full shade for the entire day, not just at setup time, since direct sun raises the internal temperature of a cooler substantially even with the lid closed. Set it on a folding table or a couple of blocks of wood rather than directly on the ground if the ground gets warm in direct sun during the day, since a hot surface under the cooler works against the insulation from below.
Pre-chilling the cooler itself, filling it with ice or cold water for an hour before you pack food, is one of the simplest ways to extend ice life; an empty room-temperature cooler wastes a noticeable amount of your ice just cooling down the cooler's own walls and air space.
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Frequently asked questions
How much ice do I need for a 3 day camping trip?
For a family of four over three days, plan for roughly 1.5 times the volume of your cooler's contents in ice, which usually means two to three 10 lb bags of cube ice for a 50 to 60 quart cooler, refreshed once if you have access to a store partway through. Run your exact headcount and cooler size through the ice calculator for a specific number.
Should you put ice on top or bottom of a cooler?
Bottom. Cold air sinks, so the coldest zone in any cooler is at the bottom, and dense ice or ice packs placed there chill everything above them as cold air settles downward. Items you need to grab quickly, like drinks and snacks, are better placed near the top where they stay cold but are easy to reach without digging past food.
Does draining a cooler make the ice last longer?
No, the opposite. Cold meltwater sitting in the bottom of a cooler actually insulates the remaining ice, so it melts slower once water has accumulated than it would in a dry cooler. Only drain water if it is touching food packaging in a way that risks contamination; otherwise leave it and let it help keep the rest of the ice cold.
Is block ice or cube ice better for camping?
Block ice lasts longer because it has less surface area exposed per pound, making it the better choice for trips over two nights. Cube ice cools drinks and food faster at first because more of its surface touches what it is cooling, which makes it better for a single overnight trip where fast cooling matters more than total ice life.
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Used only to send the list. You can also read every setup free on this site.Researched guidance, not professional advice. Figures are published specifications or clearly labelled conventions; check your own gear's manual and your campground's rules.