Any use for small styrofoam coolers and resuable ice packs?
Posted by FormerNavy@reddit | preppers | View on Reddit | 49 comments
My wife gets her medicine in these small styrofoam coolers with reusable ice packs. Is there any use for these or reason to keep them as far as prepping uses is concerned? Just want to make sure I’m not overlooking something, as I was thinking about throwing some or all of them out. They are roughly 11” w by 9” d by 10” high. Thanks!
HappyAnimalCracker@reddit
I save those ice packs to take up space in my chest freezer when it’s not completely full of food. Keeping the freezer full helps it run much more efficiently and if the power goes out, those ice packs will keep the contents frozen for much longer.
HappyPierogies@reddit
Can you elaborate on the keeping a freezer full aspect? My partner is convinced that this will break our freezer and I feel like they’re kind of made to be filled. In an organized fashion of course.
HappyAnimalCracker@reddit
Here’s an article I found that talks about it. It’s more energy efficient.
https://greenyplace.com/is-it-better-to-run-a-freezer-full-or-empty
Ok-Half6395@reddit
Yep, this is what I do. I also keep bottles of water in there so my freezer is always packed full and then take them out if I need to put food in. Same for my fridge. If I have a power cut, I open them both once as quickly as possible and put any food I want for the day in a small cooler with a couple of ice packs in... this way, I only open it once a day which preserves power and then I open the small cooler multiple times during the day whenever I need something.
HappyAnimalCracker@reddit
That’s the way to do it!
WhiteVeils9@reddit
I don't know what size they are but I donated a bunch of cooler -sized ones to an organization that made winter housing for feral cats.
dittybopper_05H@reddit
Do we really want feral cats to survive the winter?
I mean, I'm a cat owner. I've got 3 adorable Persians. Love them to death.
But feral cats are a real problem and they can and do cause real ecological damage. They are an invasive species and I don't think we should be making it easier for them to survive, any more than we should be making it easier for Burmese pythons in the Everglades or zebra mussels in our waterways.
Our cats are spayed and we keep them inside not only because they are expensive (they are!), but even before we had Persians and just had regular domestic cats, it was to prevent them from being destructive to the local wildlife, and from reproducing unnecessarily.
Ok-Half6395@reddit
The answer is not to let cats suffer and die... it's conducting/donating to TNR projects (Trap/Neuter/Release) so that their populations decline. Feral cats have no less personality or desire to avoid suffering as your "expensive" Persians. If one of them somehow ended up on the streets... would you prefer they suffer a slow and horrible death or find somewhere warm to spend the night?
dittybopper_05H@reddit
I’d prefer that they be quickly euthanized instead of helped. Because helping them is hurting native species. They need to be trapped and if suitable for adoption, adopted. If not, euthanized.
It’s funny, you seem to care more about feral cats than the animals they kill or displaced. You know, the ones that actually belong, unlike the cats.
Why is that?
Safe_Mix_515@reddit
Remember when north America belonged to the native Americans......this means we can euthanize white, black and yellow ppl....right??
The red and brown ones can stay
THIS IS ALL THE FAULT OF PEOPLE TRAVELING!!!!!
dittybopper_05H@reddit
You’re right, it is our fault, which means it’s our responsibility to fix the problem. Making it easier for feral cats to survive is not fixing the problem. That’s like feeding Burmese pythons in the Everglades.
Oh, and if you’re equating people with cats or vice-versa, you are sick in the head. I’m serious about that. People are not cats, and cats are not people.
joshak3@reddit
In the warmer months, I keep a cooler in my truck so that when I go grocery shopping, I put the frozen and dairy items together in the cooler to keep them from warming up or thawing on the drive home. I'm rural enough that it's a long drive. A reusable ice pack would of course make it even better.
Stutztown@reddit
You should consider getting one of those car fridges- something like BougeRV. I use one in the summer due to the grocery store distance
Unlikely-Ad3659@reddit
I used to have a stack of them from my butcher neighbour. They seemed too useful to throw away, I could have had hundreds of them for free.
But after a year, I threw them away.
I have a couple of camping type cool boxes, that is more than enough temporary cool storage.
Secret-Bobcat-4909@reddit
I’d have used them to make a little insulated play house! In a shtf situation in winter, without heating if you use electtic and it goes out, could line the walls, ceiling, and floor of a room to insulate
Unlikely-Ad3659@reddit
Insulation with them was my idea too, trouble is, they have no fire retardant in the mix and the smoke if they catch on fire is highly toxic.
But they started smelling after a bit. They weren't made to last.
Secret-Bobcat-4909@reddit
Good point about fire safety, would definitely need to watch out to not use flame or heating elements in those. Sometimes I see pictures of rooms lined with blankets (tapestry style) for insulation (to save heating costs as finances get super tight), and electric being on… which looks hazardous in case of fire. I suppose people who are freezing to death might attend to more immediate worries.
Maybe if planning to build a hideaway can build as one of those alternative construction modalities like pour concrete with styrofoam filling the core to add to the R value and using less concrete. No oxygen access so so burning hazard. Less wall mass so building is not as hard to heat. (Masonry home construction in europe carries a distinct chill and is quite expensive to heat.)
Unlikely-Ad3659@reddit
You can buy polyurethane (pu) sheets with paper covered (or not) aluminium facing that has a fire retardant in the foam mix, 2.5 m by 1.2 meters, in a variety of thicknesses. Easy to build shelters from, you can tape the together with aluminium foil tape. Kingspan and Celotex are the big names in my country.
I tried burning my off cuts once in a bonfire, very slow to melt, an hour in a bonfire it was just 50% melted, and they don't catch in fire or sustain a flame. I imagine the smoke is not good for you though smoke from burning plastic is never good for you.
You can buy polystyrene sheets with fire retardant in too. They will melt faster than PU, The insulated boxes just don't have any fire retardant in them.
Barbarian_818@reddit
Gasoline+ sytrofoam= napalm. use that information how you see fit.
Skwonkie_@reddit
Hypothetically, how would one store this concoction? Glass?
Barbarian_818@reddit
There are two traditional options:
500 lb bomb casings
Upcycled glass bottles stoppered and then with a chunk of rag around the neck.
Foodforrealpeople@reddit
learned that when the first anarchists cookbook came out LOIL
Natural_Wedding_9590@reddit
Very effective.
Skwonkie_@reddit
You can dispose of them in gasoline.
Old_Dragonfruit6952@reddit
Insulation .. line your food storage area with them to keep from freezing .
infinitum3d@reddit
I keep one in the trunk of each vehicle with a couple water bottles, trail mix, and beef jerky pack.
Emergency field rations if you will.
Difficult_Basis_9578@reddit
You can use the Styrofoam and acetone to make a plastic that you can shape and some icepacks can be used to make explosive.
Beneficial-Sound-199@reddit
Keep them for just that in the event of an evacuation.
DeafHeretic@reddit
Same here - family member gets meds in those containers. I use them in my chest freezer to hold meats, ice cream, etc. - foods that are valuable or need extra protection if the power goes out for my chest freezer. I also add the littleish freezer packs, and I put milk jugs of water in the bottom of the freezer to keep it cold longer in a power outage, and to stabilize the temps in the freezer by adding thermal mass.
FullSendRetard@reddit
Have you tried using them to keep something cold? Seems like thays what I'd go with...
Traditional_Fan_2655@reddit
Save them for cooling body temps in extreme heat without regular power. If frozen, you can lower your body temp considerably by wrapping in a thin towel and placing on the neck, I side elbow, or small of the back.
TheLostExpedition@reddit
Ice packs can be placed in special pockets in the lining of a jacket to survive ridiculously hot days. I did this for a summer. I am the only person to get frostbite in a heatwave that I'm aware of.
cunning_vixen@reddit
Yeah Id keep a few, theyre handy for short trips, power outages, or even just storing food when the fridge is full. The ice packs are always useful too. If you end up with too many extras you can donate them or recycle, but having a couple around can come in clutch.
barascr@reddit
You can use them for their intended purpose, as s small cooler with ice pack to keep things cool, or you can settle stow items in there and tape them shut to preserve things you don't want moisture to get to.
CCWaterBug@reddit
I saved 3 of them for that purpose, simple storage for items I'd like to save but not in a cardboard box
I gave a couple to a friend that packs lunches often to be used 'whenever"
PrepperBoi@reddit
I put them in my deep freezer in layers until I need the space. They would really come in handy during a power outage as I could keep my freezer cold longer or take them out and cool ourselves down with them. Use the generator to recharge it
churnopol@reddit
You could store rice and grains in the styrofoam coolers. Or do what I do, use the styrofoam coolers for my favorite white elephant present, a live lobster on ice.
Not gonna lie, when shtf I'll definitely be playing with my cooler blocks as if they were Lincoln logs and legos. Some of them have holes through them. Man you can stick dowels or actual Lincoln logs through them holes and come up with all sorts of building methods.
The liquid or gel in the ice pack is non-toxic. I can't think of any prepper use for it. Is there a life or death situation that would call for a laxative? If so, that's the only thing I could think of.
Fancyonetoo@reddit
Oh man, I gotta remember the lobster! We get the coolers too, and your white elephant idea would be ideal this season!!
hornetmadness79@reddit
Most of those ice packs that are shipped are nitrogen based. You can let it defrost and poor it on your plants to help them.
HunterLC23@reddit
Definitely keep them! They r perfect for keeping medications cool during power outages or short-term emergencies.
RedYamOnthego@reddit
Just decide what's a reasonable amount, and save those. Great when you are giving people leftovers or little presents of cream cake. Also handy when people are eating at different times, and you want to keep a dish cold.
But for long-term prepping, not so great. Mice can eat through styrofoam and make a huge mess. And the icepacks don't last super long.
socothecat@reddit
I use to get medicine like that. I called the school down the street from me and asked if they had need for the ice packs, and they were super happy to take them and give them to students for their lunches
bikumz@reddit
I use these to just store stuff down in stackable containers, but sorta rare use tbh. I do always keep a few around handy for work/water coolers. They are also handy to keep around when the power does go out you have a way to keep stuff cool, such as those meds.
No_Character_5315@reddit
Could donate them to meals on wheels or something if you have more than you can use.
SetNo8186@reddit
I get those and it's sad to say, they can't even be given away. Yet they tell me that medicine is cheaper shipped with all that, not from a pharmacy. Yeah sure. I should write RFK.
I use the boxes over my outside water spigots now in winter. The cooler packs we have saved back stay in the freezer but I toss just as many every year now. Considering the hundreds in the metro who use the same Rx, it's a wonder.
Maybe cut them and pour concrete in them like the foundation walls are done . . .
Resident-Welcome3901@reddit
If you have the inclination and patience, you have a lot of free insulation material. You can add to the insulation jacket of your hot water heater, freezer, or make yourself a prairie cooker.
mikenkansas1@reddit
Keep all the frozen packs that you can in your freezer.
Small Styrofoam coolers might hold your fishin worms...
MOF1fan@reddit
We sometimes get grocery delivery that comes with said ice packs. I keep several in the freezer as a hedge against a power outage. Ive actually had power out and moved several to the fridge to help keep it cold. Saved a lot of food
mediocre_remnants@reddit
I think it's useful to have a couple of the coolers on hand in case of an emergency, if the power goes out and you want to pull the food out of the fridge. Reusable ice packs are always good to have for keeping food cold in coolers and for injuries like sprains or swelling.
They're not great for keeping frozen food frozen, if the power goes out your best bet is to leave everything in the freezer and not open it at all, up to 24 hours.
So yeah, I would keep a couple of the styrofoam coolers, maybe 3-4, and as many of the ice packs as you have room in the freezer for. They're not useful just sitting on a shelf, though.