It’s important to drain off melted ice from your cooler to prevent the food inside from getting soaked and to keep any new ice you add from melting away too quickly.
But if you’ve ever owned a hard cooler without a drain plug, you know what a pain it can be to try and drain the thing.
I’m done wrestling with coolers, trying to tip them over to pour off water while using the lid as a strainer to keep any unmelted ice.
So when I was in the market for a new Yeti, one of the first things I checked was whether or not Yeti Coolers had drain plugs.
Most of Yeti’s hard coolers, including the Roadie 48, Roadie 60, all Tundras, and all Yeti V Series coolers, have built-in drain plugs to quickly and easily remove melted ice.
The Roadie 24 is the only hard cooler in Yeti’s current lineup without a drain plug. And, as could be expected, none of Yeti’s soft-sided coolers have drain plugs.
Tundra Coolers and Tank Ice Buckets use Yeti’s Vortex Drain System, which allows you to partially unscrew the drain plug to control the flow of water.
The Roadie 48 and 60 use Yeti’s BestDam Drain Plug and V Series Coolers use Yeti’s Deep Seal Drain Plug, which are both more standard, leak-proof, screw-off plugs.
Whether you’re on the side of never draining your cooler to keep the internal temperature as low as possible or draining off water regularly to make your ice melt slower, you’ll be thankful that (almost) all of Yeti’s hard coolers have drain plugs — especially since Yeti hard coolers aren’t exactly known for being lightweight.
Check out my deep dive on when and why you should drain your cooler to learn more.
Which Yeti Coolers Have Drain Plugs?
Nearly all of Yeti’s hard coolers have drain plugs.
That includes all Roadie 48, Roadie 60, Tundras, Tundra Hauls, and V Series coolers, plus Yeti’s Tank ice buckets.
The only hard cooler that Yeti currently makes without a drain plug is the Roadie 24, which isn’t too big of a deal since smaller coolers are pretty easy to drain without a plug.
None of Yeti’s soft-sided coolers have drain plugs either, which is pretty standard across the industry.
What Drain Plug Do Yeti Tundras Use?
Out of the box, all Yeti Tundra Coolers and Tank Ice Buckets include a Vortex Drain Plug, which can be partially unscrewed to allow water to drain slowly as your ice melts or fully removed to quickly drain your entire cooler in a couple of minutes.
You can pick up a replacement Vortex plug on Amazon.
This replacement plug perfectly fits Yeti Tundra and Tank Coolers and is designed to drain when partially open without having to fully remove the plug.
Or, if you want to control where your water goes (which is nice because moving a Tundra can feel like a full day’s workout)
They’re also compatible with a drain plug hose adapter so you can drain your cooler well away from your campsite or deck without moving it.
Replace your old or broken drain plugs and be able to attach most standard hoses to your cooler.
Easy to open and close, durable and tight fitting seal to ensure no leaks.
What Drain Plug Do Yeti Roadies Use?
While the Roadie 24 is Yeti’s only current hard cooler without a drain plug, the Roadie 48 and 60 include Yeti’s BestDam Drain Plug.
It’s a more standard plug than the Vortex, but it seals great and is always super easy to remove.
You can grab a replacement BestDam drain plug for a few bucks.
The leakproof BestDam Drain Plug keeps ice, water and the cold secured inside your Roadie Wheeled Cooler. Unscrew the plug for quick and easy draining.
