Igloo Coolers as MT's

[HopSong]

I posted this in the Eqpt are.. received no response.. so figured I'd post it here.
How do these hold up with the 170* water? I just bought a 2g Igloo Sport Beverage Cooler to use for small 1g batches. I know they are made for cold beverages and water.. but, not designed for hot beverages..

What say you..? I'd hate to have this go belly up and not be able to return it.

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So, I called Igloo to talk to the 'experts'. They said NONE of the Igloo coolers are designed for hot liquids and would be ruined. They do have insulation.. so, not too worried about losing temps. too much.. but..

This begs the question... How are all the folks using both the Yellow and Orange round coolers.. and the rectangular coolers getting away with it. Do they warp a bunch or ??

I guess I could put my pot in a warm oven or even my temp controlled electric smoker but that would be a bit of a pain.. not to say the possibility of getting some of the smell from the smoker in the wort/beer

 

[webby45wr]

I use an old Coleman 52 qt cooler. No melting or warping and the temps hold great. I've dumped boiling water in as well with no ill effects.

 

[broadbill]

What would you be out? 15-20 bucks? Between that and all the other people who use Igloos without problems, I wouldn't be worrying about it.

The Igoo people are saying that because they don't recommend hot stuff in their coolers. Doesn't mean it can't be done.

 

[IrishBrewer74]

I've gone up to 185 degrees in mine and never had any warping what so ever. I am using a 10 gallon cooler but I would think inner wall thickness and material would be the same. I also warm it up in two stages before mashing in. I first use hot tap water (about 120) and prewarm it while my strike water is heating up. Then i toss in 185 degree water and let that sit for about 5 mins. I dump that back into my HLT and let it come back up to desired mash in temp then fill and mash in.

Only problems I have heard of is when someone dumps literally boiling hot water directly into them.

Happy brewing.

 

[webby45wr]

Yeah, I guess I should clarify my other post - I've poured boiling water in during mashout with the grain already there to absorb some of the heat.

 

[duboman]

I use a 10 gallon Rubbermaid as a MLT and it works perfectly fine, I get a small bubble in the side wall when I mash I assume because the plastic expands in the heat but it holds the heat very well and it's been in service for over 4 years with no issues. Once the vessel cools, the bubble disappears.

 

[HopSong]

They are cheap.. sure.. just didn't want to blow it on this cooler if another small 2g proved to be a better option/quality than the sport cooler.. Maybe all of Igloos small coolers are alike.

Thanks for the replies. Looks good. Now I'll have to get my wife to make a bag for it so I can pull everything out w/o having to use a stainless waterline cover for a screen.

 

[TheSmithsEra]

I've poured a few gallons of boiling water in them to preheat several times and haven't had an issue. I use a 10 gallon Igloo and on amazon where I bought it it said it could support hot and cold. lol I was a little sketched out about doing it but so far so good. Maybe i'll only do 180 water because i'm all paranoid now

EDIT: Its a round cooler if that matters not the rectangle ones