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My "Cooler improvement" project

PostPosted: Fri Sep 06, 2019 11:53 am
by JazzVinyl
Folks here said "PMF a cooler" to get the gist of how to apply canvas to foam. Good suggestion, and what I have been doing for the past couple of weeks. I do agree with what many have said...that patience is king, when trying to PMF foam.

Started with this 'donor cooler':

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It was bought years ago, when the family wanted to go on a "leaf peeping" trip one fall day. We wanted cold soft drinks avail in the car.

The cooler worked for an afternoon of coldness, but we also saw that you had about 3/4 of one day before your drinks were swimming in water...ice all melted.

So, decided to build an XPS Foam box around it...added great stuff inside the lid, and PMF'd the outsides to practice the 'art'...

We tested this on Labor Day Weekend (before finished) and the ice lasted an amazing 4.5 days! Easy to say we were very pleased!!

It is an open top box of 1 inch (R value 5) XPS foam, that was glued together with the "caulk-like" Gorilla Construction Adhesive. Holds great!! Really like that flavour of Gorilla glue.

After glued, I did some lightweight spackling and sanding, and did the "rubbing alcohol wipe down" then primed the exterior of the foam. Let that dry a couple days, then applied the canvas via 50/50 TB2/Water mix. I definitely agree with ghcoe, that use of the water spray bottle to "relax" the weave to be more agreeable to smoothing is the way to go. Immediately noticeable, the reaction to the added water to the top of the weave.

Let that dry a couple of days, then went over the canvas again with 50/50 TB2. Let that dry a couple days, then used exterior primer, let that dry a couple days, then used latex "primer/paint", three coats, couple days dry time between coats. It is in dry mode now, after the third coat.

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Here is my seam...not too bad:
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The PMF process went well, but does require that healthy dose of patience!! Don't be in a hurry!

Not quite done, yet, when the last coat of primer/paint fully dries, will glue in the cooler to it's foam wrap via the Gorilla Construction Adhesive, then use Great stuff to fill in the small gap between cooler/foam wrap and will glue on a piece of 'space blanket' on top of the lid, to reflect off solar warmth. Will post more photos, when completely done.

As I said, been tested, and wowzers, does it ever "work"!!

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Cheers!!
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Re: My "Cooler improvement" project

PostPosted: Fri Sep 06, 2019 2:10 pm
by RJ Howell
Great job! :applause: Thought practicing on the seams (enforcing them) was going to be good enough. Then doing the tough to reach flats.. I used bedsheet for this. I'll tell ya, good practice but... What a difference working canvas vs. bedsheet!

I know I'll end up making a few "too size" coolers at some point, yet sure as heck I'll be using bedsheet for the simplicity of it!

Curious what the oz weight of your canvas is?

Re: My "Cooler improvement" project

PostPosted: Fri Sep 06, 2019 4:07 pm
by JazzVinyl
RJ Howell wrote:Curious what the oz weight of your canvas is?


Thanks, RJ..I used the 10 oz Harbor Freight "heavy duty canvas drop cloth".

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Re: My "Cooler improvement" project

PostPosted: Fri Sep 06, 2019 8:16 pm
by tac422
Great job !


I did it the other way, built a teardrop first.
123715
Then built a cooler.
Here's a picture
146831

Re: My "Cooler improvement" project

PostPosted: Fri Sep 06, 2019 8:27 pm
by JazzVinyl
tac422 wrote:Great job !
I did it the other way, built a teardrop first.
Then built a cooler.
Here's a picture
146831


Haha yes!! And you built the IDEAL tear that I would love to have!! One I could stand up in!!
But, I better stick with the simple 4x8 rectangle of ghcoe's #2 for my first 'sleeper trailer'. Not sure I could execute yours...as I have no real "workshop".

Love your cooler and your camper, tac!!

Your the MAN!!

Re: My "Cooler improvement" project

PostPosted: Sat Sep 07, 2019 10:41 am
by Postal_Dave
It doesn't take much to make a regular cooler into something that will hold ice almost as well as a $400 Yeti.
My little cooler was for a motorcycle saddlebag. I made it from left over foam. It holds Ice all day long and then some.
Crumbruiser made the best mug I've ever seen. :lol:
http://www.tnttt.com/viewtopic.php?f=55&t=50719

Re: My "Cooler improvement" project

PostPosted: Sat Sep 07, 2019 1:00 pm
by RJ Howell
Postal_Dave wrote:It doesn't take much to make a regular cooler into something that will hold ice almost as well as a $400 Yeti.
My little cooler was for a motorcycle saddlebag. I made it from left over foam. It holds Ice all day long and then some.
Crumbruiser made the best mug I've ever seen. :lol:
http://www.tnttt.com/viewtopic.php?f=55&t=50719


OMG! Is that cool!

Re: My "Cooler improvement" project

PostPosted: Sun Sep 08, 2019 5:44 am
by GPW
Quote: (copied) " and the ice lasted an amazing 4.5 days! “ … Amazing what a bit of Foam does … COOL !!! 8)

Re: My "Cooler improvement" project

PostPosted: Mon Sep 09, 2019 11:45 am
by dbhosttexas
Only cooler "improvement" I have done was took my Coleman so called "Extreme cooler" and punched some holes big enough for the nozzle / hose from a can of Touch N Foam and filled the inside of hte lid with spray foam, then epoxied the holes over., and lined the bottom of the lid with that silver aluminum HVAC tape as a radiant barrier. Now it actually holds ice / cold food like it should have from the factory.

Never considered PMF-ing a cooler. I was thinking my camper build, I am planning on some foam cabinets to hold things like the camp stove and fuel, probably build those from PMF first to get a feel for it...

Oh, FWIW, the 50QT Coleman cooler, is going to be my cold food storage in the camper unless my lovely bride decides we are going to go further away from the house / longer periods of time...

I'm not sure I want to spend more than 5 days at a time camping out of the back of a pickup truck.

Re: My "Cooler improvement" project

PostPosted: Mon Sep 09, 2019 3:41 pm
by RJ Howell
all he did wa a sided wrap. Imagine if you will.. Oh my ages showing..

If he had done it taller and placed a top on it. How much longer could it have lasted?
Not even sure it would need to be PMF'ed, yet better is it was for leakage..

My Sleeper Cap gives me 9" of usable space under the bed area. Using my extra foam, thought is to make a insulated cooler that fits and see how well t works. Yet the idea works in so many different variations. Why by a store brand when we've learned how well this can work? Think draw or space you have. Oh the possibilities! :thinking: