Ice Box

[IslandInfedel]

Originally Posted by Chayal

I’ve personally never seen an icebox without a drain.

I haven’t had any damage or discolouration, however, my icebox has a metal insert

. Maybe someone can chime in with this one since lots of newer ice boxes/coolers are of a plastic variety.

I honestly found getting all the stored food off the icebox floor and onto a rack made a noticeable difference. I highly recommend this.

Do you have any details and photos of your insert and tray?

Thanks!!!

[Chayal]

Just a cut to size baking cooling rack. Easily removable.

https://www.amazon.ca/Checkered-Chef.../dp/B00WS3OCWE

[ArmySailor]

Originally Posted by Chayal

This is true ^ My icebox has a drain, maybe to avoid this dangerous scenario? Kind of like a propane locker needing a dedicated vent (thru Hull usually/hopefully) lol

I only use dry ice.

I use dry ice frequently. In a top load ice box with no drain. I can smell the co2 and certainly wouldn't try to sleep with my head inside it.

But genuine question here... How much dry ice would be needed to melt fast enough to be dangerous? How much air in a vessel cabin exists and what is the threshold of co2 danger?


I don't mean this in a snarky way. It's just that...co2 is not co. It's not methane. Sure I wouldn't sleep in a closet at home with a 50 pound block as my pillow. But is there any real danger to 10 pounds in my ice box melting slowly over the course of 3 days?

How much does my breathing alone affect the co2 concentration of a vessel. ? Etc.

My gut tells me it's very low threat. Like... Almost nil. But I'm curious if anybody has knowledge about this stuff beyond my layman's use.

[Steve Bean]

Why not use dry ice to pre-chill jugs of water ice? You'll have the coldest ice possible, end up with drinking water, no danger of asphyxiation. That is "nil."

[sanibel sailor]

Normal atmospheric concentration is .04%. It is for molecules in 10,000. Oxygen is roughly 20%. You need a ton of CO2 to displace a significant amount of oxygen leading to asphyxia. The body is very sensitive to blood concentration of CO2 I imagine that an excess atmospheric CO2 concentration would be Noticed long before it became a hazard. That’s a medical opinion from a non-pulmonologist.

[Steve Bean]

The people who have died in documented cases of carbon dioxide poisoning /asphyxiation are not present to join this discussion. It is odorless. I don't need any food or beverage cold enough to take the risk, no matter how remote, of using dry ice on my boat. I enjoy cold beer; I enjoy warm beer.

[JPA Cate]

Originally Posted by Doug Rutherford

Have a large icebox on my boat and am spending 2 months about this summer.
Have no experience with an icebox. Are there any tips or tricks I should know about? IE. Are several ice blocks better than one for longevity? How long will blocks last? Any tips would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

Hi, Doug,

What is the average water temp there in BC? If it is really cold, your ice will last about 5-7 days, maybe longer if the water's really cold. A solid block lasts longer than blocks of crushed ice, if it is available where you are. How much you'll need to cool will depend on how many of you there are aboard, and on what you actually need to keep cold. In Mexico, we took a 50 kilo block of ice for a week, but it was getting pretty warm (for an ice box) by then. By the way, contrary to popular belief, there's no need to refrigerate eggs, and we have never refrigerated mayonnaise, either, just use a clean spreader, store at room temp.

If you are planning to keep the boat, I'd consider putting in a little Adler Barbour or similar unit. The compressor's pretty small. It will need air flow. One problem with ice for refrigeration is that it uses up space in your cold spot that you might want to have for food! We cruised a year with an ice box, and what with the expense of ice, at the end of that year, we bought a fridge (as above). It had a tiny "freezer" section and we could make ice cubes, which was a real luxury for us in the tropics; I made a closed cell foam lid for the freezer, and we made an effort to only open the lid as little as possible. Jim also added insulation all around the fridge, as the boat came with only 2" and it really needed more. Compared to the year's cruising with ice, it was really nice to have refrigeration.

At one time we were five in my family, and we used to car camp, using a Coleman cooler, and various styrofoam coolers over the years. I would make meals ahead, and freeze them, so that the ice had help keeping things cold. Of course, after the first week or so, we just needed more ice. We did camp in the provincial parks in BC, and a week was still about all we'd get on a 25 lb. block of ice.

Ann