Commuting - Need help with a backpack for carrying cold items in hot temps.

Ok, I need an insulated backpack that can hump cold stuff like popcicles, ice cream, meats, frozen items, things that go bad easily, etc. I would like ~28-30L space if possible. Need some recommends. I will be in ~33-40C temps for at least 30mins at best time or at worst 50mins if traffic is a PITA.

I'm not carrying a shoulder bag cooler as that has already ruined a jersey by the rubbing and I prefer the backpack for riding as it works best with me to stabilize the weigh shift.


Thanks in advance.

uhm ... have you tried putting a cooler in a backpack? you could always buy a cooler (not a big hard plastic one) and put straps on it?

Do you have a rear rack? A soft-sided cooler might fit into a "grocery bag pannier" that you can stuff some blue ice packs. The "cooler" backpacks I've seen have been a fraction of 30L capacity, more like 5-10 maybe. Good luck!

I'd try to rig something for a hard-sided cooler, simply because I don't think you're going to get any soft-sided cooler to stay that cold for that long in those kind of outside temps. I'd definitely test it, though -- borrow a soft-sided cooler, put a bunch of those crappy non-working "blue ice" things in it, stick a thermometer in it, put it outside and leave it there for 30-50 minutes. My guess is your ending temperature will be in the "melted popsicle" range, unfortunately.

You might be able to have a makeshift "cooler". Line a backpack with a heavy blanket and then stick an icepack on the bottom. Not sure how long it'd last, though, but it'd be pretty cheap!

Ok, I need an insulated backpack that can hump cold stuff like popcicles, ice cream, meats, frozen items, things that go bad easily, etc. I would like ~28-30L space if possible. Need some recommends. I will be in ~33-40C temps for at least 30mins at best time or at worst 50mins if traffic is a PITA.

I'm not carrying a shoulder bag cooler as that has already ruined a jersey by the rubbing and I prefer the backpack for riding as it works best with me to stabilize the weigh shift.


Thanks in advance.

Camelbak Blowfish. Pack the bladder with ice - it'll take about 7 lbs;) - and pack the popcicles next to it or pack them in with the bladder itself. Full of ice, the Blowfish stays cold for hours...even in 100F temps.

Where can one source dry ice? Is it avaliable to the public for sale? Do you need a lic. to own it? ANy downsides to using dry ice in a bag?

I currently own the Deuter Race Exp Air (http://www.mec.ca/Products/product_detail.jsp?PRODUCT%3C%3Eprd_id=845524442618765&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=2534374302693337&bmUID=1185580342389) and the Deuter AC28 (http://www.mec.ca/Products/product_detail.jsp?PRODUCT%3C%3Eprd_id=845524442590113&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=2534374302699687&bmUID=1185580342387). These are recent purchases andI would like to work with what I have as I have spent quite some coinage on them.

Go to food specialty stores: butcher shop, fish shop. If you live in a moderate city, go to the wet market.

I vaguely remember some grocery chains (Publix, Kroger, Ingles...) sells dry ice.

Where can one source dry ice? Is it avaliable to the public for sale? Do you need a lic. to own it? ANy downsides to using dry ice in a bag?

Lots of grocery stores in my area carry dry ice. I'd be very careful with it however. You do not want to have it up against your skin in the backpack. It will freeze you skin very quickly. Pack outboard of a water bladder would work because the water will insulate you from the cold. Don't put it in any kind of sealed container either. It has to out gas and will build pressure very quickly.

If you carry fruit or veggies in the same bag, keep them away from the dry ice, unless you like frozen vegetables;)

Just buy a soft cooler bag to put inside your current bag? Then you can use dry ice or fridge blocks in it with no worries about leakage or getting burnt by the dry ice.

http://www.google.com/search?num=100&hl=en&safe=off&q=soft+cooler+bag

Most grocery stores sell insulated 'shopping bags' like these:
https://www.kaesu.com/yourbaglady.com/insulated_bags/index.php

Just get one of them and use blue ice:
http://www.containerstore.com/browse/Product.jhtml?searchId=9777602&itemIndex=5&CATID=74067&PRODID=10016351

No handling probs like dry ice,and cheap and reuseable.

Just buy a soft cooler bag to put inside your current bag? [/URL]

That's what I do. Capacity isn't the greatest by the time you add some freezer packs, but it beats buying a specialty backpack.

What about a way to carry a cake (Fruit custard and Tiramisu) in 30+ temps without the cakes melting or ending up splattered everywhere inside the box? The cake shop is about 10km away but I have to fight a double hill tall and small hill on the return. Actually anyway I go I have to fight a hill on the return. I live on a hill. I find the ride to be ~15-20mins one way as I'm riding a way down to the cake place but on the return it takes almost triple the time coming back.

If I were you I'd eat the cake then ride. More fuel for the hill on the way home!

Maybe a trailer is your best option for a "soft" ride?

That frozen chicken feels so good on my back on a hot day. AAAHH.....

If I were you I'd eat the cake then ride. More fuel for the hill on the way home!

Maybe a trailer is your best option for a "soft" ride?

I wish I could. More for friends and family that is then personal eats. Tho that does make me want to buy a seperate slice just for the extra energy tho and keep the cake whole.

The trailer thing is nice but price is another issue. Also HTFF do you lock a trailer? Not to mention the extra weight can really be felt when on the hills.

I wish I could. More for friends and family that is then personal eats. Tho that does make me want to buy a seperate slice just for the extra energy tho and keep the cake whole.

The trailer thing is nice but price is another issue. Also HTFF do you lock a trailer? Not to mention the extra weight can really be felt when on the hills.

Have the cake shop freeze it. Or will they deliver? Or can you get someone with a car to pick it up? Cars are handy at times;)

Have the cake shop freeze it. Or will they deliver? Or can you get someone with a car to pick it up? Cars are handy at times;)

Well I was looking for biking ideas. I could drive my car but I prefer to ride. More training mileage you see. :D While looking at an audiophile shop I noticed on the Roksan turntables (you know, LP's, records to you youngings :p) have some absorbing shocks at the bottom of the turn tables to take out vibrations that can skip the records. Now I also remember seeing something about that in building built in earthquake probe areas of the world that I recall seeing on the Discovery Channel.

So just wondering if there is some suspension rack to dampen out vibrations and bumps out there?

http://www.themaskedmerchant.com/store/product.aspx?prdId=484473

I was on this site and thought about this thread. It is not too expensive. It won't solve the cake issue though.

Dry ice is sold in the grocery stores down here, Publix carries it. Flexible plastics that become too cold can crack.

It sounds like what you really want is a trailer and a good cooler.
A Burley Flatbed and an Igloo Extreme cooler would be ideal.

Buy one of the cheap bags that grocery stores sell to put frozen items in. They are only a few dollars.

I use a bike trailer with a real cooler and regular ice frozen in milk cartoons.

Companies that sell oxygen and other gas bottles often sell dry ice.

Is it possible to store dry ice for times when you need to use it? Like can you buy bulk then chip off bits to use then save the rest in the deep freezer? Will it hold or will I lose X percent if in the freezer?

Thanks.

That's what I do. Capacity isn't the greatest by the time you add some freezer packs, but it beats buying a specialty backpack.

+1 works fine for me too. A lot of times i don't bother with the cooler at all, just bring a towel and wrap it around the cold stuff. I regularly transport beer, meat, etc 20-30 minutes w/o issue. Even if it warms up some, get it back in the freezer/fridge at home and it'll be fine.

Cheers

Is it possible to store dry ice for times when you need to use it? Like can you buy bulk then chip off bits to use then save the rest in the deep freezer? Will it hold or will I lose X percent if in the freezer?

Thanks.

You will loose X% unless your freezer can maintain temps below 110ºF.

{edit** uh, that would be negative one hundred and ten degrees Fahrenheit.
Thanks LBB, I'm slow this morning.

Ok, I need an insulated backpack that can hump cold stuff like popcicles, ice cream, meats, frozen items, things that go bad easily, etc. I would like ~28-30L space if possible. Need some recommends. I will be in ~33-40C temps for at least 30mins at best time or at worst 50mins if traffic is a PITA.

I'm not carrying a shoulder bag cooler as that has already ruined a jersey by the rubbing and I prefer the backpack for riding as it works best with me to stabilize the weigh shift.


Thanks in advance.

For temporary situations, I've had good luck with layers of newspaper and bubble wrap complimented with a freezer brick. This was out in the desert.

You will loose X% unless your freezer can maintain temps below 110ºF.

My freezer has no trouble doing that. Does yours? If so, why do you call it a "freezer"?

My freezer has no trouble doing that. Does yours? If so, why do you call it a "freezer"?

oops, left out a negative sign there.
And yeah, depending on how many kids have locked themselves in, it can get quite steamy in there with it sitting on my front porch and all. ;)

I'd use extreme caution when using dry ice with a food item. It's possible to freeze your tongue to the Popsicle if the Popsicle gets too cold. *Reminds me of the scene in A Christmas Story where the kid is dared to touch his tongue to the flagpole in the winter and he does.*

We occasionally receive packages shipped with dry ice. I like pouring the pellets into a sink full of water and watching the mad scientist fog roll down to the floor. Bwahahahaha...

You will loose X% unless your freezer can maintain temps below 110ºF.

{edit** uh, that would be negative one hundred and ten degrees Fahrenheit.
Thanks LBB, I'm slow this morning.

Or -78C for reference for anyone reading this. http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&rls=WZPA%2CWZPA%3A2005-39%2CWZPA%3Aen&q=-110f+to+c

I think my deep freezer is ~-10C max. I think that is more or less what most freezers are at in most house holds. I could be wrong.

I'd use extreme caution when using dry ice with a food item. It's possible to freeze your tongue to the Popsicle if the Popsicle gets too cold. *Reminds me of the scene in A Christmas Story where the kid is dared to touch his tongue to the flagpole in the winter and he does.*

We occasionally receive packages shipped with dry ice. I like pouring the pellets into a sink full of water and watching the mad scientist fog roll down to the floor. Bwahahahaha...

Add soap.;)