10 Car Cooler Bag Packing Tips For The Next Family Road Trip

If you are going on a road trip for the first time, whether it be for a week or just a couple of days, you may not realise how important it is to pack your cooler bag correctly in order to make sure that your food and drinks last. That, or perhaps you’ve been on a road trip with the family before and learnt the hard way how important it is to pack your cool bag correctly and this is the reason that you’re taking a look at this article (perhaps soggy sandwiches and melted chocolate rings a bell?).

At Red Original, we want to make sure you enjoy your road trip without any mishaps, so we’ve put together some tips on how to pack your cooler bag correctly to ensure you don't have any disasters with your food and drink supplies on your journey.

Did you know a correctly-packed cooler bag can provide days of ice-cold storage for your supplies? It’s true, and there are many different ways to ensure you get the most out of them. For example, The Red Original Waterproof Cooler Bag can make ice last up to 3 days thanks to the thermal lock insulation technology.

Keep The Lid Closed

The first thing to remember is to not keep opening the cool bag or leaving the lid open, you must ensure that this is always shut when it is not being used. Doing this will keep the cool air trapped inside and stop it from escaping too much warming all of the contents inside.

It is easy to leave the bag open as it is a totally different concept to keep food cool than what you are used to at home, so why not think about your waterproof cooler bag as a fridge? You wouldn't leave your fridge door open when you were finished using it, so don’t leave the cool bag open.

Cool The Interior Temperature Before Packing

If you have had your car cooler bag stored in a warm location, it is vital that you move this into a cooler location and perhaps put it into the fridge (if possible) to maximise the cool temperature in the bag and ensure the longest use out of your waterproof cooler bag. This will cool the core of the bag down and will avoid any warm air reaching the internal of the bag.

Organise Foods

By organising your food in the order of the meals that you will be eating into your car cooler bag, this will help everybody to know where to find the items of food that they are looking for when you have arrived at your destination. Emptying your car cooler bag to reach something toward the bottom compromises its ability to remain insulated and decreases its effectiveness. Thoughtful packing, on the other hand, will allow you to quickly reach in and grab what you want, minimising the content’s exposure.

Remove Excess Packaging

To make sure that you have the most space possible to pack everything you need neatly into the car cooler bag, remove the excess packaging. By removing packaging from the products this will remove any unnecessary space and help you to utilise every part of the bag.

Utilise Every Bit Of Space

From removing any unnecessary items such as packaging from your food, as discussed, this will help free up space that can be filled with other items. Using all possible space in your waterproof cooler bag will help trap the cool air in the bag and ensure that you receive the longest duration out of your cool bag as possible.

Freeze Food That Isn't Needed Straight Away

Another great tip is to freeze some of the items that you don't need immediately and place these at the bottom of the cool bag, as you use the food throughout your road trip the frozen food will start to thaw out ready to cook when you need it. This works best when the frozen food is packed at the bottom of the cool bag as this will be where it will stay cooler for longer.

Make Sure Your Food & Drink Is Cold Before Packing

By making sure that your food and drink is cold before packing this will ensure that the contents of the car cooler bag is used in the correct way. The purpose of a cooler bag is to keep items cold not to refrigerate them. Therefore to achieve maximum efficiency from your car cooler bag always remember to refrigerate/ freeze relevant items before packing these to take on your road trip.

Use Ice Packs

For maximum efficiency of your cool bag, pack some ice packs into the bottom of your bag, and cover these with a piece of cardboard to avoid food slipping between these and things getting soggy. Using ice packs as opposed to cubed ice will help them stay frozen for longer, helping your food stay cooler for longer.

If you don't have any ice packs, freezing some items of food as mentioned above will have the same effect, you could also freeze some bottles of water to mimic the use of ice packs. Thanks to the properties in a waterproof cooler bag this means there is no need to worry about the condition of your bag as the ice eventually starts to melt.

Pack Into The Car Away From Sunlight

Lastly, when packing your cooler bag into the car for your road trip, make sure that you keep this away from any direct sunlight. If there is nowhere in the car to provide enough shade from the sunlight, cover the cool bag with some coats or a blanket and this should help keep it from getting too warm. Also as tempting as it might be to add this into the car first thanks to its accommodating shape, this should be the last item to go in the car and even be packed to make sure that the things in the cool bag can be kept in the fridge until the latest time possible. This will mean that you will get the most time out of your cool bag as possible and time won’t be wasted keeping the food and drink cool whilst you pack up the rest of the car.

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We’ve covered some very useful tips here on packing your cool bag for maximum efficiency for your next road trip, however, if you have any tips on how to best pack your car cooler bag, don't be afraid to share these with us on social media and we might even repost some of our favourites.