If you've gone out and spent a lot of money on a Yeti tumbler cup on bottle, because you heard it can keep ice for ages, only to find out ice is melting quickly you are likely going to be pretty disappointed.
However, this isn't meant to be the case and there may be a simple explanation and fix as to why ice is melting so quickly in your Yeti tumbler cup or bottle.
In this article you learn the main reasons why your ice is melting so fast and what you can do to fix it so you've got ice cold water all day long.
How Long Should Ice Last in a Yeti Tumbler?
If you fill up your yeti Tumblr cup or bottle with a good amount of ice and then fill it up with cold water (not water straight from the tap) and you're not exposing your Yeti to extreme heat then you should easily get 24+ hours of ice retention from your Yeti.
But maybe you're like this person you're finding that:
“I'll put ice in with cold water in the morning and by noon all the ice has melted. By 3:00 my water isn't even that cold anymore.”
– melrose7 (Windsor Peak Press forum)
If you're having issues with your Yeti and the ice is melting extremely quickly and your drinks are becoming warm then it's most likely that you have a problem with the insulation.
But it could also be caused by you not using your Yeti correctly so it's important to consider both reasons and try to work out why ice is melting so quickly in your Yeti.
Here are some of the most common reasons:
1. Your Hydro Flask Has Lost It's Vacuum Seal
When people complain about the kitty cups or bottles not holding ice for a long period of time the problem is usually the insulation.
Yeti bottles and cups work so well because they have an inner and outer wall of stainless steel and in the middle they suck out all the air to create a vacuum.
Heat really struggles to move through a vacuum and this protects the ice inside from the warm outside air.
However, the vacuum seal can break and the inner compartment can fill up with air. When this happens heat now has a way to get from the outside into your Yeti, melting your ice.
This can happen if you've dented your Yeti or dropped it or damaged it in some way. Or sometimes it just happens through no fault of your own and it's a manufacturing defect.
Yeti Rambler tumblers and bottles all come with a 5 year warranty from Yeti, which protects you against loss of insulation.
So if you feel like this has happened to you then you first want to confirm why your Yeti cup stopped working and if you can confirm it's the insulation then get in contact with Yeti and get them to arrange a replacement.
You can learn about Yeti's warranty and make a claim here.
2. You're Filling It Up With Room Temperature Water
If you put ice in your yeti and then you fill up your yeti with room temperature water directly from the top then that water is going to make your ice melt really quickly.
Because the water isn't as cold as the ice heat from the water will transfer into the ice making it melt.
This will make your water colder and making it nice to drink, but it means you won't have ice very long and your water will warm up faster than if it still had ice left in it.
If you're drinking all the water in your Yeti and doing multiple refills with tap water this could be the cause of your ice melting so quickly.
It's best to fill up your Yeti with ice and then pour in pre-chilled water that you get from the fridge. This water is already close to freezing temperature and so it won't melt your ice as quickly.
3. Your Ice Is Warm
Ice starts to melt at 32ºF (0ºC) but it can actually become much colder than this.
Your freezer at home is likely set to 0ºF (-18ºC) which makes the ice much colder than it's freezing temperature. This means it needs to warm up a lot before it melts.
However, freezers at service stations or ice vending machines often give you ice that is warmer than 0ºF (-18ºC).
This “warm ice” is much closer to it's melting temperature and therefore it will melt much quicker.
So make sure you're using the coldest ice you can and your ice will last longer.
4. You Need More Ice
It's definitely possible that ice could be melting quickly in your Yeti because you just aren't using enough ice overall.
If you're filling up you're entire cup or bottle and then just throwing in a couple of cubes of ice that isn't going to be enough ice to last all day.
However, if you fill your entire up with ice, then pour pre-chilled water in around it that ice will last way way longer and your drink will stay cold for longer.
Larger ice cubes also last longer than smaller ice cubes, so bigger is better in this case. However, make sure you don't freeze your Yeti cup or you might break it.
5. You're Leaving The Lid Off
Maybe you're like me and you've owned your Yeti cup for 5+ years and lost the lid a couple of years ago but you keep using the cup because you love it and you haven't bought a new lid because you don't love plastic.
Or maybe you just like to leave the lid off for convenient drinking at your desk.
However, if you leave the lid off ice will melt faster as warm air can get inside your cup or bottle and melt your ice.
Keeping the lid on adds a layer of plastic insulation but is also stops this warm air flow. So if you want maximum ice retention then make sure to leave your lid on as much as possible.
6. You're Drinking The Water
If you're drinking all of the water out of your Yeti cup quite quickly then this could lead to more ice melt.
When I looked at the best coolers for ice retention I found an interesting result. When coolers aren't filled up all the way they perform way worse.
The same would be true for Yeti cups and bottles. A 10 oz Yeti Lowball filled to the top with ice will have better ice retention than a 30 oz Yeti Tumbler filled with the same quantity of ice.
The extra air space inside your cooler, on in this case cup, melts the ice faster. But Yeti cups are designed to be drunk from so you're kind of using it as intended and can't really avoid this.
If you're drinking all your water and then using the tap to refill your cup on bottle multiple times per day this will also cause the ice to melt rapidly.
Each time you add room temperature water more ice will be melted as it brings that water down to a cold temperature.
Time To Upgrade?
While Yeti cups and bottles shouldn't lose their ability to keep ice over time maybe your faulty Yeti cup is the perfect excuse to update to get that new size or color you've always wanted.
See the latest price of Yeti Tumblers at Yeti.com
(or compare prices to Yeti Tumblers at Amazon)
See the latest prices of Yeti bottles at Yeti.com
(or compare to prices of Yeti bottles at Amazon)
