Orca 26 Quart Cooler Review
Planning on a road trip to the countryside this summer? Or going on a camping trip with your family? Or are you going fishing? We all know how essential coolers can be in these scenarios. Not only they can keep our drinks and beers cooler, but also they can store our foods and can even store fishes and meats that we hunt in the wild. You will need the most long-lasting cooler you can get and what better option do we have than the Orca coolers.
The Orca coolers are hard-shell coolers. It comes in various sizes and the price increases with the size. Some of you may think that the Orca coolers are overpriced. So today let us talk about the Orca 26 Quart cooler. This one is not that overpriced. If you look at its performance and durability, the price is justified.
Orca 26 Quart Cooler Review Summary
The Orca 26 Quart is a medium-sized hard-shell cooler. It is one of Orca’s best in line. The design of the Orca 26 Quart cooler is like your typical chest-type hard shell coolers but a little higher in comparison. One thing that sets apart the Orca cooler from others is the cargo bag on its back.
The Orca 26 Quart cooler has a lifetime warranty. It is idle for any kind of outing. The price is high but considerable. So if you don’t mind spending some extra cash for getting a good cooler, you should consider the Orca 26 quart or bigger Orca coolers.
Pros
Cons
Where to buy Orca coolers?
Now if you are buying something expensive and premium, you would want to buy it from somewhere official or from a trusted retailer. You can go to Orca’s website and find their official retailer’s location. Or you can go to Amazon and other trusted online shops to buy one.
Design
The Orca 26 Quart cooler looks very ordinary. It comes in various colors. Some with plain color and some with two colors (lid and body). It is a hard-shell cooler. So the only way to carry it around with your hand is the side handles.
The side handles in the Orca 26 Quart cooler are molded to make it feel comfortable. Take note that you will need two-person to carry it. The capacity of it is big enough for storing drinks and foods for a long road trip with your family.
The outer hard shell of the Orca 26 quart is made with thick plastic. One thing that we love about the Orca coolers is that their lid/hoods do not bend/flex. You can stand on top of it or put heavy things there and it will not bend. This proves the durability of the Orca 26 Quart cooler.
Now let’s talk about the inside of the Orca 26 Quart cooler. When you open it, you will know that there is nothing ordinary here. It is similar to other hard-shell coolers. However, you get a nice embedded logo on the inside part of the lid, talk about branding. For insulation, the Orca coolers use thick layers of foam in between the outer and inside plastic layers. If you buy the white color one, it will keep the inside cool for about 7 days. (The brighter the color, the less hot it gets from sunlight)
So design-wise, the Orca 26 Quart Cooler is a great hard-shell cooler and stands up for its high price.
Orca 26 Quart Cooler Performance
Insulation
Before talking about the insulation of the Orca 26 Quart cooler, keep in mind that the color of the cooler is a great factor in the longevity of the cool temperature. If you buy a brighter color or white-colored cooler, it will be able to sustain the temperature inside for longer because bright colors absorb less sunlight. On the contrary, darker colors absorb much sunlight and get hotter. This makes the ice inside melt down quickly and lasts for a short period.
The Orca 26 Quart uses thick foams and thick plastic layers to keep the ice and drinks cold. The darker colored ones lasted for 3 to 4 days under bright sunlight. The white-colored ones last for about a week and there was still ice inside and the water inside was cold enough to keep beverages cold.
So we can say that the Orca 26 Quart coolers do a good job in heat insulation.
Durability
In terms of durability, the Orca 26 quarts rule it. It is made of durable thick plastic layers. It’s so strong that there is no flex when you apply pressure on it. You can even stand up on it and it won’t bend a bit. So in terms of durability, we would give it a 10 out of 10.
Functionality
As a hard-shell cooler, there isn’t much functionality available in the Orca 26 Quart cooler. However, there is one distinct feature and that is the cargo net at the back. You can place a bottle opener or other essentials in it. It will come in more handy than you can imagine.
Besides that, you can use it for cold storage drinks, foods, and even fish and meat that you hunt.
If you want to have more functions, then we would suggest you get the Orc light series coolers. They have built-in LEDs inside that are helpful at night.
Price
Judging by the durability and longevity of isolation of the Orca 26 Quart cooler, we would say that the price tag of $237 isn’t bad. You can also get a discount for less price which Orca does for promoting their brand.
Our Verdict
The Orca 26 quart is a great choice for a medium sized hard-shell cooler. It can keep your drinks cool for at least 3 days and last up to a week. The price may be a little high but if you want something good, the price is worth it.
