Chillin Brew Series

These work great for a day at the beach or tailgating. I use them in an Ice Mule cooler and they keep everything COLD all day without issues.

Tried this out on the recommendation of a friend.I have not been disappointed. As with all cooler applications, Pre-chilling both the cooler and the contents is paramount for optimal performance.While the Arctic-Ice literature states that you can use it to completely replace the need for standard ice, I have found that for beer cooler/tailgating type use this does not work well. That said, what it does do is virtually eliminate ice melt within the cooler up until the phase change has completely occurred. I put 2-4 2.5lb panels in my K2 20 quart, along with ice and beer, and in my 65 quart Yeti use 2-3 of the 5 lb panels, plus ice and beer. Without having some ice in the cooler, there is too much airspace, which gets filled with warm air each time you open the cooler. This causes the panels to change phase more quickly than desired, and the beer to be slightly warmer than optimal. By using a combination of ice and Chillin Brew panels, you can achieve good ice to beer contact, with a minimum of air space. This will give you very cold beer, and good solid ice for 1 1/2 - 2 days, even with getting in and out of the cooler constantly. This works very well for me, as we typically spend all weekend on the lake, and I virtually never have to add ice to the cooler throughout the weekend.Alternately, if you are looking to pack food for a vacation, camping trip, etc, there is no need for ice, as you won't be getting in and out of the cooler. For this application I really like the panels much better than ice, because you don't end up with a watery mess. One trick I like to do is to put any raw meet in the bottom of the cooler (in plastic bags of course), then put a Arctic Ice panel laying flat on top of it, and put my other fresh items in the top (Fresh items also in plastic bags for safety). If you do happen to end up with a slight leak, the panels are dishwasher safe, making cleanup a breeze.I don't typically try to transport frozen items that absolutely need to stay frozen, nor do I care if my fresh items such as carrots, celery, get a bit frosty. For this reason I find the Chillin' Brew version of the panels to be the only variety of Arctic-Ice that I need. That said, if you want to strictly handle frozen items, or refrigerator temp items, you may want to look at either the Tundra series or Alaskan series.

Works great to keep items cool for hours! It looks like this will last a long time unlike other styles that look like tge would easily be broken open spulling jelly like substance over your food and drinks.

Am extremely happy with this item.Two of these fit in my Extreme Igloo with room to spare. I purchased them not to completely eliminate the need for ice, but the keep it to a minimum and extend the ice's usable time. They work extremely well, are very easy to place in the cooler and remove, they clean up in a snap if you get food on them and the design itself seems to be optimal.The reason for 4 stars instead of 5 is that they don't stay cold quite as long as I hoped they would. These are my expectations and they might not be realistic, but the item is not inexpensive. Even so......Would purchase again in a heartbeat!

Freezes colder than standard ice, and held up through 5 days of summer travel in a cooler.

It takes a while to freeze for the first time - but it takes an even LONGER time for it to melt when being used! Compact and easy to handle - and easy to make room for in a cooler.

i have XL/LG/SM of these products; saves on ice and ease of use. You may or may not recoup costs of ice vs. cost of arctic ice; but you will gain convenience of having dedicated product in your freezer ready to go in a moments notice. There is on caveat that kinda bums me out JUST a BIT and that is the indention of the product if you lay it flat; kinda impossible to have steady drinks on it (if you use it at the bottom of a cooler). There is a multitude of ways you could use these products and they will keep your drinks/products near icicle cold. If you place a drink next to it or ice; do not be surprised if you have a nice 'chunk' that is iced together. Depending on the size of the arctic ice and cooler/bag your using will kinda dictate the 'cool' factor. I have used the 5lb in a Bison/Brute Cooler and have gotten 32 degrees up until 4 days in controlled environment w/o ice (garage). I've use 2.5 and 1.5 lbs for smaller ice bags and have gotten minimal 12-18 hours easily of gr8 coldness (w/ very lil bit of ice).I do so recommend this version of the arctic series and I do feel they are a good investment, more so in convenience and ease of use versus having to go out of your way for ice sometimes. I like them and intend on buying more as time goes on, recommend all sizes for whatever need you have!

Great product