Icebox usefulness?

[Maggie]

When I bought my Kelt 7.6 from the previous owner I was told that the icebox "doesn't work" but I didn't pursue why they said that. I think they used it to hold their garbage bag, though it is clean. Its drain hose is not connected to anything.

I kept some cans of soup in there and found that they left rust circles on the bottom of the icebox. I have inferred that it must be decently insulated so as to cause condensation when the boat changes temperature at a different rate than the icebox overnight which in turn caused some rusting of the cans.

That led me to wonder if anyone actually uses their icebox with blocks of ice and finds it actually useful? It sure would save or extend the space in the Coleman cooler that I strap to the roof of the boat. If it's just a matter of the drain, I could reseal and have a meltwater container underneath.

Thank you for sharing your experience.

[Mark Williamson]

We haven't used ours in years but we used to use it on multiday trips.  I believe the foam insulation is thicker than most coolers and it is in a convenient spot.  Never used blocks or bags of ice I don't think.  We have tons of those gel ice packs.  We also have a digital thermometer with an "outside" sensor on a long wire.  We put this in the icebox compartment to monitor temperature to prevent spoilage.  Don't recall any condensation issues.  I believe anything draining from the icebox drain will go to the bilge which is generally considered an acceptable reservoir for clean waste water.  Hope that helps.

Mark

[Maggie]

Thank you, Mark. Some good tips there. Why haven’t you used yours in years? What has been your replacement? 

Cheers,

Andrew

On May 11, 2021, at 6:19 AM, Mark Williamson [via Kelt Sailboat Forum] <[hidden email]> wrote:

 We haven't used ours in years but we used to use it on multiday trips.  I believe the foam insulation is thicker than most coolers and it is in a convenient spot.  Never used blocks or bags of ice I don't think.  We have tons of those gel ice packs.  We also have a digital thermometer with an "outside" sensor on a long wire.  We put this in the icebox compartment to monitor temperature to prevent spoilage.  Don't recall any condensation issues.  I believe anything draining from the icebox drain will go to the bilge which is generally considered an acceptable reservoir for clean waste water.  Hope that helps.

Mark

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NAML

[Mark Williamson]

I guess we do use it but not to the extent that we did at one time.  For overnights we're not usually too concerned about keeping things cool for a long duration.  In the past we've had to maintain safe temps for three or so days which can be tricky.  Our last long trip was five or so years back I think.

[Maggie]

That makes sense, thank you! We have some multi-day trips coming up, I will try it.