It is possible for Yeti tumbler cups to stop working and to no longer keep your beverages hot or cold for long periods of time?
Yeti Tumbler cups stop working when the vacuum seal is lost and air fills up the space between the inner and outer wall of the cup. This causes the cup to lose the majority of it’s insulating properties and unfortunately there is no way to fix this issue, the cup will need to be replaced.
This is a rare issue, but it does happen for time to time in defective or old units.
What Makes Yeti Tumbler Cups Stop Working?
Yeti cups work due to the fact that they are double walled with a vacuum in-between the inner and outer wall.
Most heat needs particles to travel through, and because I vacuum has no particles this means heat struggles to move from the outside to the inside of a Yeti cup (and visa versa).
It is possible for the vacuum seal on a Yeti cup to be compromised and for the vacuum to fill up with air.
When this happens there are now particles between the inner and outer wall of the cup, allowing heat to more easily pass through.
It is unclear why this happens. It could be due to a manufacturing default, or could be due to an issue with the glue.
Some people speculate that washing your Yeti cup in a dishwasher may cause this issue, however Yeti tumblers are considered to be dishwasher safe.
How To Know If Your Yeti Cup Is Broken or Not
You cannot tell is your Yeti Rambler cup is broken just by looking at the outside of it.
There only needs to be a small compromise in the vacuum seal for the cup to fill up with air.
But there are three ways to test whether or not your vacuum seal has been compromised.
Test #1: Does Your Yeti Cup Float?
I recently did a Yeti tumbler float test and proved that when completely filled with water Yeti cups actually sink.
If however your vacuum seal has been compromised, filling the inside of your Yeti up with air, the your cup should float even when completely filled with water.
To test this fill up your bath, a sink or a bucket with water. Take the plastic lid off your Yeti and submerge it in water, making sure to get rid of all the air in the cup.
Then let go of the cup. If it sinks then it is likely your vacuum seal is still in tact. If it floats then your vacuum seal has likely broken and you need to contact Yeti for a replacement.
Test #2: Does Your Yeti Cup Not Hold Ice As Long?
This test is less exact but if you are noticing that your Yeti used to keep ice for a certain length of time and now it is keep ice for a much shorter period of time then this is an indication that you have a problem.
A lot of people have reported this happening and while not extremely common it does happen.
Test #3: Test Your Yeti Side-By-Side With Another Tumbler
If you are another Yeti cup, or any other brand of vacuum sealed tumblers then do a side-by-side ice test comparison of the two.
Fill up both cups with the same amount of ice and see how long they hold ice for. If the ice in your Yeti cup is melting much faster than the ice in your other cup there is likely an issue.
Above you can see my Yeti next to my RTIC Tumbler. Luckily for me both tumblers currently work fine, but if one was to stop working I could test them side by side.
Even though they are different sizes it can still give me an indication as to whether or not one of them is broken and not working properly anymore.
Do Yeti Cups Degrade In Ability Over Time?
Yeti cups use a very basic technology. It’s a stainless steel cup with a vacuum seal.
Your cup should work just as well in 5 years time as it does today. It shouldn’t get worse at keeping ice as time goes on.
If it is getting worse at keeping ice then it is likely broken or has an issue.
Can You Fix A Yeti Cup That No Longer Works?
Unfortunately you cannot fix a Yeti tumbler cup that is no longer working properly. This is because it’s very difficult to recreate a vacuum.
If your Yeti cup no longer works then you will need to contact the manufacturer and request a replacement cup. This should be covered under warranty.
Do Yeti Tumbler Cups Have A Lifetime Warranty?
Yeti Rambler cups have a 5-year warranty. So if anything happens to them and they stop working within 5 years of purchasing it you can contact Yeti and they should replace your tumbler free of charge.
In order to claim your warranty you will need to have your original purchase receipt and have purchased your cup from an authorised Yeti dealer.
If you no longer have your receipt it’s still worth contacting them and trying your luck. If it is outside of its warranty period you will need to purchase a new cup.
What To Do If Your Yeti Tumbler Cup Doesn’t Work
If your Yeti cup is no longer working in the way it should then you should contact the manufacturer and ask for either a refund or a replacement cup.
Yeti cups are covered by a 5-year warranty so if anything happens to them in that time they should replace the cup for you free of charge.
It is rare to have these issues, but it’s good to know that if you do have them Yeti should replace your cup for you free of charge.
TAMU Hunter stated in this forum post:
I had a 30oz that was very similar and called Yeti and they replaced mine for free. The new one is much better.
Buy Yourself a Yeti Tumbler
You can purchase Yeti tumblers direction through Yeti’s website, at any store that sells Yeti products or you can purchase them with free shipping from Amazon.com
I’ll link up to the different sized Yeti tumblers below if you’re interested and you can see the latest prices and reviews on Amazon:
