Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

I'm having trouble finding a cooler that will fit below my counter. The space is shallow. I need something that is no more than a foot high and a foot deep. A thought occurred to me that maybe I can make a custom cooler.
My thought is to make a wooden box to fit, put a plastic tub inside and insulate in between the 2 containers. The lid could be tricky but seems doable.

Has anyone done something like this?

I have loosly planned a couple out in my mind. You could wind up with one of those EXTREME coolers if you use thick foam. As long as you get a decent seal around the lid it will work great. I knew a guy once that built a large cooler/box out of 2 inch styrofoam and covered it with fiberglass. I dont remember if it even had a lid but it would keep a keg cold all weekend.

Some of the best coolers I've seen are made out of 2" rigid foam insulation... they hold ice for a very long time.

I found an article on-line a while back about a guy who made a cooler out of epoxy and fiberglass for his boat. Sounds a bit more complicated than your idea or the foam board insulation idea but it was water tight

Billz, you might want to check out the Foamie threads... we're building all sorts of things with foam ...Custom Cooler would be easy ...

Bringing back from the dusty archive, first thread I could find,
I built a below floor storage compartment I think I'm gonna turn into a cooler. Its about 24" by 16" and slopes from about 10" deep to 16" . I have sheets of 3/4" styro, gonna layer them in, then sit a plastic tub and trim the top. There will be a gap, I am thinking of shooting in expanding foam to fill in the gaps, in couple of layers to let it expand. I have a ply wood lid that I will glue a layer of styro to to fit inside box, will be a flat lid all the way around with a thin rubber gasket to seal. Thinking 1.5 to 2" of foam most of the way around. Weight will be right behind the rear axle, down low, easily offset by a 5 Gallon jerry can of water on the tongue. Is there a better brand of expanding foam for getting the most expansion? Thinking this will be mostly to have ice in for drinks over a weekend, or maybe top off another cooler as needed. Not sure if I need a drain or not, maybe a small plastic siphon pump or suck it out with a straw (drinking water!) What say the Hive?

I've just completed doing a similar project, by using two existing coolers, rigid foam, Great Stuff, foil duct tape, and EPDM foam tape. I was trying to use the composite? cooler (one Cube cooler inside a larger Cube cooler) to fit in the small space. Initially, I just used the larger Cube cooler, but it wasn't keeping my perishable foods cold enough for even a three-day trip, so I thought I'd try making it more efficient. I had mediocre results, but haven't given up, yet. Here's the thread : http://www.tnttt.com/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=68543

Seems like a Great Idea and one of a kind.

In fact Timberleaf Trailers even offers one as an option:

http://www.timberleaftrailers.com/the-trailer/#galley

I made a cooler. The outside is a 49 quart Rubbermaid tub. The inside is a 12 quart Rubbermaid tub. Between the two there is 2 inches of 1/2 inch polyiso sheet cut to fit. The 12 quart holds 10 pounds of ice and a 9 x 13 aluminum baking pan that sits on top. The food stays dry in the aluminum pan. The lid is 1 inch poly and the 49 quart lid. It keeps ice 7 (June) to 10 (January) days. Without the 9 x 13 pan it would be good for drinks for a weekend. Spray foam Great Stuff would be a lot easier, cheaper, and probably better insulation.

I made a cooler out of 2" foam ...
details here :
viewtopic.php?f=55&t=56441&start=439

Order a Ham. From Honey Baked to be delivered. They come in a box with a foam cooler inside (lid and all). The problem is that the cooler isn't structurally sound and needs the box or it will break, but, building a box for the Styrofoam cooler shouldn't be a stretch for the people who build trailers. Just build a smaller one to fit the cooler if you have problems. BTW They also come with a handy reusable ice pack, for the sore muscles from building it and for keeping it cool.