Looking for any suggestions/pros/cons of various models and whether a thermal shack covering is worth the extra $100 or so. Wife and I want to buy a two-man portable ice shack for our son that lives in Rice Lake, WI.
Thanks
If you have a means of pulling(not man power)your portable weight isn’t a factor.. I have never owned an insulated ice house before but I don’t theink i have missed out on anything..
I have owned Otter ice houses soe several years now and the Otter Medium Cabin with the bench seat has enough room for 3 adults. This unit is nearly indestructable… 900 denier shell and the tub(Roto-molded vs. thermal or blow-molding) is nice and deep to store plenty of gear under the bench seat…
Roto-molded means no thin corners to wear out..equal thickness thruout the tub.
Otter is the only house on the market designed from the ground up to be towed by a machine. The solid tow-connection-points, locked into place with steel pins and cotter keys, are the toughest on the market. Nothing else out there even comes close. Rather than a modified hitch meant to do “in-a-pinch”, the otter tow system is meant to deal with the abuse that high-speeds and heavy torque can impart.
These are just a few of my thoughts on an ice house i have come to love..
You can look and compare and i’m guessing you will agree with me..
good luck and have fun shopping…my favorite part !!
I would fore go the thermal lining, as any decent heater will keep a shack warm even under the most extreme conditions.
I’ve owned some of the best known houses on the market, from Frabill to Clam to Otter and I will say the Otter house has been the best out of all 3 that I’ve owned. The Frabill I was forced to make alterations for comfort, as I don’t care for bench seats. The sled was a little light in construction and seemed to bend upward in the middle over the years because of the weight from myself and others was too much for the plastic to handle. The Clam, I didn’t much care for the round poles and again, the sled was in the same ballpark as the Frabill.
The Otter covers all those issues nicely with a extremely well-built sled, square poles that slide with little effort and canvas that’s unbelievably strong. The sled also offers manufactured slots for Hi-Fax runners to slip into, adding many years to the sleds life. For me, that was a must have because I drag my sled behind 4-wheelers and even my truck when need be. I need my ice house to be completely durable from top to bottom.
The 2-man Otter Ice cabin is large enough for 2 people to comfortably fish 2 rods each with little to no cramping of individual space. 
Dave, you need to look at a CLAM…. what makes Otters tow hook-up any different ??? In fact, I know where Otter got the idea …. 
CLAMS are steel brackets, with clip pins also… I will put my CLAM against any Otter any day In fact I have 
I have seen the Frabill sled and they are NOTHING like a CLAM sled…. night and day, not even close. 
FWIW, portable house to me means, light, easy to use. I don’t think you need to bulk one up with insulation or heavier material. Most run a heater and insulation is gonna do what ?? Retain 2′ more ?? 
big G
another for otter- I don’t see a positive to getting a thermal lining in a portable fish house.
Big g- I used to run clams, and before the x series from clam you had to drill and bolt on the tow hooks points for the sled… for the yukon, voyager, guide, scout, etc. They were not molded into the sled…then the x’s came out and they are molded now?
I think otter has been molding them on for as long as I can remember…
Quote:
Dave, you need to look at a CLAM….
Yep, I have a Clam and I have a Otter. The Clam is lighter for a few reasons, the plastic is thinner the canvas is thinner even the zipper is lighter. I took mine to PDC a couple years ago when we started the morning on the ice it was -7 so I cleared the snow off of the ice and set up the Clam banked snow around it when I stepped inside the floor broke. I have only fished inside my clam about a half a dozen times and the zipper is jacked up to the point that it no longer works.
On the other hand my Otter is bullet proof, yes it is heavier than the Clam but the weight makes it so much stronger and reliable. Reliable to the point that I don’t have to worry about something breaking on it when I get to my destination. I wouldn’t trade my Otter for five Clams.
I have had 2 Otters now, sold my Cabin to a bud and bought the Lodge for more space.
On both outfits I added Hyfax, hitch and covers. As long as the mice are kept out during storage in the offseason there is no reason an Otter shouldn’t last MANY years.
They are one of the more expensive houses for a reason. -Mark
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