BajaNomad

Leaky Polar Bear Cooler?

woody with a view - 5-24-2016 at 06:49 PM

We've had our red Polar Bear 48 cooler for 4-5 years. We bought it to bring filets home from Cabo and it worked awesome. Since then it's been the workhorse cooler for the beach since it takes up such small space. Toss in some ice and a few beers and we're off!

Last time out it developed a leak in the rubberized interior lining so I called them up, and for $50 they'd ship me a new one! Sounds like a deal until I started thinking another $50 leaker in a few years. I had a can of Plasti-dip black spray paint in the garage and it seemed like a no-brainer! 5 coats over the crack and two coats over the rest of the bottom and I think I'm going to enjoy my $3 repair!!!

Still have most of the can left over just in case!

4x4abc - 5-24-2016 at 07:19 PM

you are a bad citizen!
You must consume!
Where else should the new jobs come from?

let me go back to fixing my shower head, before I get too deep into this

Ateo - 5-24-2016 at 07:26 PM

Photo

Ateo - 5-24-2016 at 07:27 PM

Or I guess I could just Google "Polar Bear 48 cooler..............." That would be easier than uploading a photo to this site. Sorry.

woody with a view - 5-24-2016 at 07:34 PM

Soft sided VERY well insulated cooler.

http://www.polarbearcoolers.com/category/48-pack-soft-cooler...

[Edited on 5-25-2016 by woody with a view]

woody with a view - 5-25-2016 at 05:37 AM

They don't leak for the first few years! ;) The new ones have been upgraded apparently with a better lining.

Ateo - 5-25-2016 at 07:33 AM

Dig. And great for a tight fit when packing for Baja. Ice chest is always the last thing I put in and takes a certain amount of space if plastic. If flexible it can get shoved in somewhere a little easier!

Terry28 - 5-25-2016 at 10:06 AM

We have had one for over 15 years....no leaks and works like a champ!!

willardguy - 5-25-2016 at 10:33 AM

yeah they're great. I've had one made by american outdoors for 20 years, no leaks but like most things the zipper is the weak link :(

motoged - 5-25-2016 at 10:39 AM

Quote: Originally posted by woody with a view  
...... 5 coats over the crack and two coats over the rest of the bottom and I think I'm going to enjoy my $3 repair!!!....


Woody,
Glad you fixed your leaky bottom...that problem will wreck any day in Baja...:cool:

ehall - 5-25-2016 at 10:49 AM

Quote: Originally posted by Ateo  
Dig. And great for a tight fit when packing for Baja. Ice chest is always the last thing I put in and takes a certain amount of space if plastic. If flexible it can get shoved in somewhere a little easier!



Ice chest is the first thing I put in and pack everything else afterward. If it doesn't fit it doesn't go. LOL

tripledigitken - 5-25-2016 at 12:23 PM

They're very efficient coolers. I've had mine for 8 years. Has served time on the back of my motorcycle on our summer tours.

BajaBill74 - 5-25-2016 at 12:34 PM

I've had mine 8 years and it leaks. I read somewhere that you can spray it with Plasti-dip. Think Ill try it. Now where did I read that? ;) Thanks.

jureal - 5-25-2016 at 01:10 PM

AO coolers have a lifetime warrantee against leaks.
And cheaper too.

woody with a view - 5-25-2016 at 01:18 PM

There is a new product called Flex Seal spray that's $20 a can. If I didn't have the plastidip already I would have went that route.

weebray - 5-25-2016 at 04:19 PM

Quote: Originally posted by woody with a view  
There is a new product called Flex Seal spray that's $20 a can. If I didn't have the plastidip already I would have went that route.


Seems to me you shuda went the route of taking a lot less fish back to the states to rot in your freezer. A Playmate should be large enough. Now don't all you start tell'en me how you actually eat is all.

woody with a view - 5-25-2016 at 04:56 PM

for all of you guys stuck in the previous century they make this b-tchin thing called a FOOD SAVER. google it and then feel free to kiss my lily white patootie! some of us aren't just fast food, hamburger types.

weebray - 5-25-2016 at 05:18 PM

Quote: Originally posted by woody with a view  
for all of you guys stuck in the previous century they make this b-tchin thing called a FOOD SAVER. google it and then feel free to kiss my lily white patootie! some of us aren't just fast food, hamburger types.

Call it what it is - bait saver.

woody with a view - 5-25-2016 at 05:47 PM

weebray, i got nothing to prove to anyone. lucky you can go buy fresh fish any day you feel like it. me, i appreciate the few chances a year that i'm able to be on the water fishing. we bring home much of what we catch-SO WHAT?

i guess i coulda brought a Playmate (six pack sized from your days on the construction site?) like you suggested, but then i would have wasted 20 pounds of Dorado filets FROM THE TWO FISH we caught!!!

weebray - 5-25-2016 at 06:06 PM

Quote: Originally posted by woody with a view  
weebray, i got nothing to prove to anyone. lucky you can go buy fresh fish any day you feel like it. me, i appreciate the few chances a year that i'm able to be on the water fishing. we bring home much of what we catch-SO WHAT?

i guess i coulda brought a Playmate (six pack sized from your days on the construction site?) like you suggested, but then i would have wasted 20 pounds of Dorado filets FROM THE TWO FISH we caught!!!

I do apologize for the troll. I'm sure you can eat that much fish in six months but most families can't. Six months btw is about the longest time you can store fish in a home freezer and still have it taste something like it did when caught. My point, and I will keep bringing it up every chance I get, is that MOST of the fillets that leave in coolers from Baja California ends up being plant fertilizer at best. It's a shame and a scam. The irresponsible fishing hustlers in Baja sell the sizzle - meat in your freezer. Most of it never sees the table. Even you, and it sounds like you eat a lot of fish, throws away bad fish from time to time. The stocks are shrinking and the "sport" fishery has to share the blame. Go sit in the Cabo airport some day for a few hours when the planes are leaving. You won't be able to count on one hand the number of coolers headed north. It is a big deal.

woody with a view - 5-25-2016 at 06:20 PM

not disputing there is a ton of fish being hauled daily. i happen to like eating fish. in fact, my last YT slab is being removed from the vacuum sealed package friday afternoon for the Memorial Day weekend festivities.

weebray - 5-26-2016 at 06:39 AM

Good on you Mr. Woody. Unfortunately you are a small minority. For most visiting fishermen it's like going to an exotic foreign land and buying a colorful native icon or article of clothing. When you get it home in the context of your life it is shockingly inappropriate and you "put it away" for awhile intending to get back to it. All I'm suggesting is that you don't have to satisfy your daily limit. As the population grows hunting and fishing for meat becomes less and less viable. Hunting and fishing for sport becomes morally questionable. The old idea of mounting your trophy becomes more and more pathetic.

Chupacabra - 5-26-2016 at 06:49 AM

Quote: Originally posted by woody with a view  
We've had our red Polar Bear 48 cooler for 4-5 years. Toss in some ice and a few beers and we're off!


I like that you call 48 beers a "few." :)

AKgringo - 5-26-2016 at 08:09 AM

If your cooler was leaking ice water, that's bad. If it was leaking Pacifico, that's tragic!

Lengua - 5-26-2016 at 11:46 AM

Great cooler -had ours five years-no leaks and filets are frozen from Cabo to Portland OR