About Us


Last Updated by Brandon F. on December 22, 2022

Here at TheCoolerZone, we strive to be your go-to spot for all things related to coolers and cooler reviews.  What set out as a small blog has grown into the largest hub of cooler reviews on the internet.  We take great pride in our testing and reviews and, after speaking to countless readers, are constantly trying to come up with new ways to get you the information that you need to make an educated purchase.

Why You Should Trust Us

Let’s face it: coolers can be expensive!  With larger models running well into the 3 (and sometimes 4!) figures, a cooler needs to not only perform well but also last for a long time.  Because of this, doing the proper research beforehand is essential.

There is a lot of misinformation out there when it comes to coolers.  Trying to search for honest cooler reviews can be daunting.  Oftentimes it leads you to a cooler manufacturing website where the reviews can be biased or filtered to only show the best.  Other times it may take you to a site whose only concern is selling you the most expensive cooler so that they make the most money.

Here at TheCoolerZone.com, we physically put our hands on and test every cooler that we review.  This includes putting it through ice retention tests, trying out the various features, and transporting it.  This gives us first-hand knowledge of how a cooler performs that you may not find anywhere else.

About Us

We receive all of our coolers that we test from vendors or purchase them ourselves.  We don’t accept any sort of monetary incentive from a cooler manufacturer to rate their cooler better.  Because of this, our reviews are non-biased and stick to the facts.

Most of the testing takes place in Texas (where it gets hot!) so we can put these coolers through some of the most challenging conditions you will find.  We don’t hide the coolers in a dark closet.  We get them out in the sun and put them through the same conditions that you will!

We have tested hundreds of different coolers.  They have ranged in size from micro-sized handbag coolers way up to enormous rotomolded ice chests with over 400 quarts of storage volume!  Because of this, we have gained industry knowledge that few other sites can compare to.  No matter what your needs and applications are, we can likely find a product to suit your needs.

Our reviews and analyses have been referenced on tons of sites.  These have included professional blogs, newspapers, educational journals, and more.  We also answer many emails about specific cooler questions and also provide any assistance that we can in helping you make the best purchase.

How We Test

Cooler brands are notorious for testing their coolers in “optimal” conditions.  It is extremely frustrating spending hundreds of dollars on a new cooler only to find out that the ice life is half what you thought it was.  In addition, common components such as latches, drain plugs, and hinges going out can make an expensive rotomolded cooler nothing more than an expensive (and heavy) paperweight!

Let’s face it: most people who buy a cooler don’t plan on filling it up with ice, leaving it inside a dark closet, and never opening it.  They are putting other items in there, leaving them out in the sun, and opening them regularly to access items.

nice cooler loaded with ice

Beginning the process of filling the coolers up with ice for testing purposes.

So that is how we test our coolers.  We fill them up with adequate ice (usually around 1/3 to a half full), leave them out in the Texas heat, and open them a couple of times per hour for periods.  This gives you a more “real life” result that most people will be able to better relate to.

We consider the ice to be “done” once it is all completely melted.  Sure, even after all of the ice has melted it may still be somewhat cold inside but, in our experience, temperatures start to rise much quicker once all of the ice is gone.  So for us, that is an “alert” that it is time to empty the water and put some more ice inside!  mammoth cooler ice life

We understand that there is a lot of variance in how long ice will last.  Your local climate, what other items you put inside, how often you are opening the cooler, how long you are keeping the cooler lid open, how much ice you are putting in, and many other variables play a part.  So we create a range based on our results that capture these variances. That is why you will see on our graphs that a given cooler might have an ice life that ranges from 30 hours or more.

Keep in mind that if you are putting your cooler through extreme conditions, loading it up with very high/very low amounts of ice, or keeping it open for long periods, your results may not fall into line with ours.  So we recommend that you use our results as a compass for which coolers perform better than others.  So no matter what your specific conditions are, you are sure to be using the best cooler for the job!

In the process of testing ice life, we will also put the ice chest through various rounds of opening/closing, moving around, and testing out the various features.  We will make note of anything that we particularly enjoy or areas that we feel are lacking.

For aspects such as long-term reliability, we use our personal experience with extended tests in addition to reaching out to you, our readers, for your personal experiences.  We receive multiple emails every day from many of you telling us about issues that you have had with various coolers.  We make note of all of these and are sure to update our reviews accordingly if we see a pattern.

Finally, we try to connect the dots and give you a “big picture” of a cooler.  We will list out many of its notable features, break down the various size options, let you know what colors you have to choose from, and also discuss how good of a value it is.  Our ultimate goal is to look at all of the important metrics that people typically consider when buying a cooler so you don’t have to!

The Team

Without our dedicated team of reviewers and writers, we would be nothing.  Testing all of these coolers is a lot of work and our huge reviews take a long time to create.  So having people that share this vision is essential.

Brandon

self portrait

Brandon is the owner of TheCoolerZone.com.  He also manages daily webmaster tasks in addition to posting most of the articles.  He is an engineer by trade which helps hone in on the technical details of a cooler.  He loves being outdoors and was sick of not being able to find honest and informative cooler reviews which is what spawned him to start the site.

Mike

Mike is Brandon’s second-hand man and is the primary tester of the coolers.  Mike has been essential in designing and optimizing the cooler testing which helps you get the information you need as quickly as possible.  Mike is an avid hunter and fisherman and has incorporated his passion for real-life testing of products on many occasions.

Jason

Jason is the primary writer.  He takes what Mike finds during testing and puts it on paper.  Jason is a writer full-time at this other job so being able to convey the facts comes naturally to him.  He is a huge golfer and is playing with the idea of starting a golf-inspired cooler lineup of his own.

Thanks again for taking the time to check out our site.  If you have any questions or concerns about the site, don’t hesitate to Contact Us at any time.

About Us
TheCoolerZone tests and reviews various coolers to find the best products for you. When readers buy our reviewed picks, we earn affiliate commissions that help to support the site.