You’ve made not just a purchase, but an investment in Cordova Outdoors gear. We want to help you get YEARS of use out of it. This blog is intended to serve as a hyper-helpful cooler maintenance guide. Plus, some tips on drinkware maintenance are included as well.
But first, some perspective about the WHY (don’t worry, this part’s not too long and it’s mad informative):
How to Maximize the Lifespan of Your Cordova Cooler
Preventive Maintenance is a favorite topic of people who depend on their gear. There’s a saying in the SEAL Teams: “Take care of your gear, and your gear will take care of you.” Whenever an evolution concludes, the following order of priority governs the process of caring for equipment:
Team gear
Individual gear
Yourself
The priority is to make sure everything is ready to go again at a moment’s notice. If gear and operators are going to be used hard, and they are, everything has to be cared for and maintained so that it’s in perfect condition for the next go-round. Gotta stay sharp at the tip of the spear.
Gear Maintenance Mindset: Take Care of Your Gear; It’ll Take Care of You
This is a great life principle. Not always an easy one to adhere to after long days in the field, or really anywhere, but one that pays compound benefits. It takes discipline to consciously and continually take care of gear we expect to take care of us. And since we’re going down this road already, discipline is NOT the same thing as motivation. Motivation is doing something because you want to. Discipline is doing something that needs to be done, regardless of your feelings, like you LOVE it.
Mastering Cooler Care with Cordova Outdoors
OK, that’s the mindset, now here are the guidelines for taking care of your Basecamp Class hard cooler:
Keep it out of the sun when you can. UV radiation does the same thing to hard coolers that it does to paint and skin: It accelerates the aging of the material. Of course you’re going to take your cooler out and use it and it’s gonna be in the sun some when you do that, but don’t store your empty cooler in the sun for extended periods of time.
Keep it away from heat sources. Any cooler shell gets softer as it gets warmer. It starts to melt at about 250 degrees. So, no the sun won’t melt it, but if you put it right next to the campfire overnight, that may leave a scorch mark.
Clean it when you’re done. Nothing crazy, just hose it out, wipe it down with some bleach wipes or Simple Green and leave the lid open so the interior can dry well.
Store with the drainplug removed. Just unthread it and toss it in the cooler.
Prop the lid open with either the T-latches or use our patented lid lock. That, along with the drain plug being removed, makes sure the interior stays ventilated so funk can’t find a foothold.
Our Backcountry Class soft coolers are similar in their needs:
1, 2, 3 are the same as for the hard coolers - easy day.
This is where attention and care are required: LUBRICATE the watertight zipper before your first use and whenever the zipper isn’t flowing smoothly. It should be firm, but not resistant to pull.
If the zipper on your Backcountry Class soft cooler gets dirty (beach sand is a common culprit), hose it off or even brush it clean with an old toothbrush.
Drinkware is pretty bomb-proof, but if you want it to stay looking new:
Hand wash and air dry the tumbler/bottle.
Run the lid and neoprene base through the dishwasher periodically.
What NOT to do: Don’t NOT do the things recommended above.
One Last Professional Cooler Care Tip
But here’s where it gets kind of interesting and counter-intuitive: If your Basecamp Class hard cooler does have some residual aroma from that elk or something else that got a little warm while you were in extremis, DO try leaving it WIDE open in bright sunlight for a few days after you’ve cleaned it out. Like most things in moderation, sunlight can be beneficial. In this case, the center of our solar system is a powerful oxidizer, often just the thing to get the funk out.
