Update: They seem to work better without salt in the water. This may be different if you do the "science" on it and get the salt ratio correct. When I used salt i just poured some in. And I used ice cream salt because I had some sitting around. What are your thoughts?
I believe that to be correct also. Performance wise, I'm not really seeing a difference as far as actually using them. The straight water tubes seem to last longer but that may be all in my head.
@@PenguinOutdoors probably because we are taught that frozen is colder but that's not always the case because it would be like saying the unfrozen water in Antarctica is warmer than ice in a typical freezer. at least that's how i justify it in my head
Another better option is to just by bottled water then freeze a few for cooling and not only do they work for cooling but you can drink water. Just refill with tap water and repeat. Cost after initial purchase if free
I don't know if its a better option but certainly an option. I think I referenced bottled water in the video. While I do that from time to time it takes up more room in the cooler and they don't tend to remain frozen as long as the tubes. Sometimes I'll toss 1-2 bottles of frozen water in among the tubes if I think I'm going to need it. Thanks for the feedback!
@@PenguinOutdoors You don’t want water to just stay frozen! Ice cools by melting itself, absorbing heat from items within the cooler that you want to stay cool. Why would you want to cool PVC tubes!??
My local Lowes had zero registers open (Except Pro Svcs and it was 7 deep) two saturdays in a row. Done with them and their self check. Between my local Ace and Tractor Supply I don't need them.
I think you're right about the salt, as with most mis-information there is a small kernel of truth but overall is misguided. i.e. - when we add salt to the ice cream maker ice it makes the ice 'colder' but it is temporary, in other words it accelerates the release of heat (melting) but in the end the ice is gone away sooner - hey, but the ice cream is ready! and nobody notices. With enough salt in the water to prevent solid ice from forming in the tube you would essentially allow for slightly MORE volume of superchilled water thus it would last a little bit longer just as a frozen gallon jug would out last a water bottle.
Ice cools better when at the top of the cooler - heat rises! Placing frozen ice containers on top is most efficient. Small plastic bottles of frozen ice can be placed atop and within the food for better cooling. You can even use and replace them!
You are awesome! I was going back-and-forth with buying a small portable fridge and hook it up to solar or a yeti. Now I’m going to buy a yeti and make these ice cubes with salt. I will definitely save money with the yeti option. What kind of salt do you recommend? Thank you for this video!
I would suggest checking into the igloo BMX coolers like the one in this video. They are right up there with YETI for a fraction of the cost. As for the salt I have always been told that larger crystal salt is recommended. I do not suggest ice cream salt as I used. Thanks for watching!
Salt water doesn't get colder than saltless water. ICE from salt water is. It takes lower temperatures to freeze saltwater. Slushy saltwater and saltless ice can be the same temperature. That's why salt is used on roadways in winter.
The salt in the water will lower the freezing point of the mixture. If it doesn't freeze completely, it means you have so much salt that it lowered too much the freezing point. Another thing that you might want to consider is that your freezer might not be low enough. For example, if your freezer is set for 0 F and with the amount of salt you put, the freezing temperature of the water is 2 F. It will take forever to freeze or you might end up with slush.
I`m no expert, but here in the UK, i`ve found the best cooler seems to be 1 litre cartons of frozen orange or apple juice. So no extra cost really, as the juice gets drunk.
There are also flat rectangular plastic bottles for mineral oil and similar products. Not a good idea for drinking water but filled with ice is a very efficient shape for cooling within a cooler! Most ice packs come in this same flat rectangular shape - best for efficient heat transfer!
It should be fine. Any plastic pipe that can seal water tight will work. The most important thing is to make sure you do not overfill the pipe, leave from for expansion. Thanks for watching!!
You also use a mix of pink RV antifreeze (non toxic) and water in soda bottles as ice extender, keeping the ice frozen. Otherwise I would just use frozen water bottles.
These take up less space and stay frozen longer than bottles of frozen water. I usually have 1-2 bottles of frozen water for drinking purposes, though. That is a cool tip on the RV antifreeze I would not have thought of. Thanks for watching!
@@PenguinOutdoors Thanks for the reply. I adjusted the RV antifreeze water mixture to freeze/unfreeze at about 10F. It's important that it freezes solid. Ice has about sixty times the cooling power of water of the same temperature.
@@PenguinOutdoors PVC means a more plastic than water compared to water bottles which come in so many shapes and sizes they can take up minimal space just like PVC tubes do - with more cooling fluid closer to the surface because of the thinner container…
@@zeebest1004I was wondering if that would matter. Did you do any tests? Maybe the cold service doesn't actually have to come into contact with the item.
The ones I have made with salt have an anecdotal difference at best. As for filling 80% I have never had one break or push the cap off. Thanks for watching!!
I wonder why everyone goes straight to PVC for this project? What about metal, like a rust resistant metal pipe, metal transfers temperature much faster than PVC. Maybe even PEX, or a million other ideas. Not saying this is wrong, just wondering
Because it's cheap, it's light weight, many people already have it laying around, and plastic is not going to scratch or damage the plastic or fabric interior of coolers when it gets bounced around like metal may.
@@PenguinOutdoors but plastic is an insulator. Takes longer to freeze and doesn't relay the cold well. Granted, metal ones might send an alert about pipe bombs, but metal ones would work much better. Aluminum or copper wouldn't tear up your cooler
@@tam6051 Copper is expensive AF!! It”s used in cooling system tubing because Freon doesn’t expand when getting colder like freezing water does! Also this coolant is recirculating as it carries away fridge heat so you only need a minimal amount. Imagine the cost of many copper containers of frozen water to fill a cooler!!
They work amazing. I actually just gave a few away at the lake last weekend to some fellow fisherman who were running out of ice. Thanks for watching, don't forget to subscribe!
Having used water bottles for a very long time I completely disagree. Water bottles take up more room and don't stay frozen as long. I usually toss a frozen bottle in for the purpose of drinking but these longer lasting, space saving tubes are superior.
Mentioned them @ 0:56. Sometimes I do, I like these better. I usually toss in 1-2 small bottles of frozen water for drinking purposes. As for keeping everything cold the cooler tubes last much longer. They also don't wear out like the bottles eventually do which means less garbage. Thanks for watching!
Salt water freezes at a lower temp than water without salt, thus it's colder initially. What I've learned through this video and the feedback though is that salt water in turn melts faster than straight water does, thus it is better to use water free of salt for this purpose. Thanks for watching!
Correct! I won't pretend to understand the science but that is the conclusion I have reached based on experience and the feedback from the video. Thanks for watching!
