Questions regarding ordering a new Ice House

Hello,

Relative is going to be ordering a new icehouse shortly and I have a few questions. He isn’t online much so I am asking these questions for him.

1.) Brand: He is looking at a Yeti. How does Yeti compare to the other icehouses out there such as Firebrand, Ice Castle, and others?

2.) Flooring: He is leaning toward laminate floors rather than rubber. I think laminate is nice and would be easier to clean up. Are there any negatives to laminate flooring? What would you choose?

3.) Solar Power: He is going to order the 200 watt solar panel unit but doesn’t know if he should spend the extra money for the 200 watt solar panel Power Package unit which comes with a 100 watt inverter. What does the inverter do and is it worth it?

4.) Rockguard: The diamond plate rockguard at the front of the icehouse goes up about 3 inches but he is thinking about seeing if they can bring it up to like 3 feet to stop any rocks. Is that a good idea or a bad idea? If it’s a good idea, how high would you have it?

5.) Rattle Reels: What are the best rattle reels and what do you recommend?

Thanks in advance!

usmarine0352 wrote:

2.) Flooring: He is leaning toward laminate floors rather than rubber. I think laminate is nice and would be easier to clean up. Are there any negatives to laminate flooring? What would you choose?

this just came up a little while back in the ice fishing forum. Look for: Wheelhouse Flooring Preference?

The brand question can be ford vs chevy to some extent. Yetti/Firebrand are very well regarded. Sometimes it’s more of an aluminum vs steel debate. ex. Ice Castle is steel

usmarine0352 wrote:

Hello,

1.) Brand: He is looking at a Yeti. Aluminum is lighter then stick build or steal. If you get a steal frame have it galvanized for rust. Also look at SS cables and grease zerks.

2.) Flooring: He is leaning toward laminate floors rather than rubber. I think laminate is nice and would be easier to clean up. Are there any negatives to laminate flooring? What would you choose? Is not Laminate slippery when wet compared to rubber?

3.) Solar Power: He is going to order the 200 watt solar panel unit but doesn’t know if he should spend the extra money for the 200 watt solar panel Power Package unit which comes with a 100 watt inverter. What does the inverter do and is it worth it? The inverter takes 12vdc and turns it into 120vac for things like a TV.

4.) Rockguard: The diamond plate rockguard at the front of the icehouse goes up about 3 inches but he is thinking about seeing if they can bring it up to like 3 feet to stop any rocks. Is that a good idea or a bad idea? Good Ieda

5.) Rattle Reels: What are the best rattle reels and what do you recommend? There is a company that makes these light up ones that are really cool if someone knows the name.

There will be 100 more items he will work out as he uses it.

Thanks in advance!

I was looking at wheel houses this year and decided to wait a while. I’ve done a lot of research and looked at different models.

I think Yetti has good quality they are also expensive.

Seems like Ice Castle and Glacier have good prices. Some of the ice castles I’ve looked at that have seen some use seem to show the use rather quickly though.

It seemed like the used Yetti’s seem to hold up a little better.

The Yetti’s are also a little lighter.

I can’t comment on the flooring choices you listed other than I like the look of laminate/vinyl better. I’m sure it’s mostly personal preference. My last wheel house had carpet and I will never do that again.

I think a better option than the diamond plate would be to spend the money on some kind of a “rock tamer” system. I had diamond plate on my last camper and it still dents when hit by stones.

I like the rattlesnake rattle reels that have the discs you can mount all over and then move the rattlesnake reels around.

Exciting times and fun to look at all the options.

I did find when I was looking that stock seems low and some manufacturers were way behind on orders.

I decided to hold out, I think when this market corrects I will be able to grab a deal on someone else’s impulse buy.

Brand –Ice Castle is the most popular because of cost mostly. I have heard very good things about Yeti from previous Castle owners.

Flooring — Vinyl or rubber. I would go vinyl.

Solar –not sure

Rockguard — yes, but not needed

Rattle reeels — the light up ones are made by Northern Lights –I run Ultimate’s they make a light up kit for them also, my only complaint is they are a little quieter but super smooth.

Good luck and feel free to pm me other questions if they come up.

I bought a used Ice Castle in order to learn what I like, what I’d change etc..
I’m thinking of ordering a new one this spring.
I wouldn’t get the bay window, it’s a heat waster.
I drilled holes in the bottom of the frame to drain water in order to reduce rusting. I’ll be getting a galvanized frame next time, which also has the holes drilled for the dipping process.

I have carpet now and don’t mind it but probably won’t get it next time around.

I have a fold down steel step and wouldn’t be without one. When folded up for travel I don’t need to lock the door thus not worrying a frozen lock (my door is in the V)

Get some spray foam and insulate the bottom of the hole covers.

I’ll add more as I think of it.

belletaine wrote:

I bought a used Ice Castle in order to learn what I like, what I’d change etc..
I’m thinking of ordering a new one this spring.
I wouldn’t get the bay window, it’s a heat waster.
I drilled holes in the bottom of the frame to drain water in order to reduce rusting. I’ll be getting a galvanized frame next time, which also has the holes drilled for the dipping process.

I have carpet now and don’t mind it but probably won’t get it next time around.

I have a fold down steel step and wouldn’t be without one. When folded up for travel I don’t need to lock the door thus not worrying a frozen lock (my door is in the V)

Get some spray foam and insulate the bottom of the hole covers.

I’ll add more as I think of it.

Cool. I believe Yeti insulates all sides, top, bottom, sides, so would you still need to spray foam insulate the bottom of the hole covers?

Did you add the step aftermarket?

Mine is spray foamed all sides including the floor but my hole covers weren’t done.
My neighbor just got his new ice castle and his step was $300. Its a nice one and is about 18″ wider than his door. You could obviously use an aftermarket step as well but I highly recommend it either way. Mine had it already.

Something else if he’s having one built that I plan on doing is having aluminum brackets installed on the opposite side of the propane tanks to mount a truck bed toolbox for my blocks, extension cord, charcoal etc.

belletaine wrote:

Mine is spray foamed all sides including the floor but my hole covers weren’t done.
My neighbor just got his new ice castle and his step was $300. Its a nice one and is about 18″ wider than his door. You could obviously use an aftermarket step as well but I highly recommend it either way. Mine had it already.

Nice, my friend always uses a pallet but it takes up a lot of space inside the shack and is in the way.

Something else if he’s having one built that I plan on doing is having aluminum brackets installed on the opposite side of the propane tanks to mount a truck bed toolbox for my blocks, extension cord, charcoal etc.
[/quote]

X2 Adding a storage box has been one of the best additions to our house. It’s a great place to keep all the stuff you use with the fish house.

Forrest Melton wrote:

Something else if he’s having one built that I plan on doing is having aluminum brackets installed on the opposite side of the propane tanks to mount a truck bed toolbox for my blocks, extension cord, charcoal etc.

X2 Adding a storage box has been one of the best additions to our house. It’s a great place to keep all the stuff you use with the fish house.
[/quote]

That’s a really good idea.

One more thing! A couple exterior outlets, I’d like one up front to plug in a oil pan heater to stick under the tanks. Nice to have in this -20 crap, won’t burn through propane as fast.

Here’s my step, easy to do yourself and save some a little cash.

belletaine wrote:

One more thing! A couple exterior outlets, I’d like one up front to plug in a oil pan heater to stick under the tanks. Nice to have in this -20 crap, won’t burn through propane as fast.

Here’s my step, easy to do yourself and save some a little cash.

Was there a pic supposed to be included?

The outside outlets for things like a oil pan heater are a great idea!!!

Pic of the step wouldn’t load.

belletaine wrote:

A couple exterior outlets

Don’t forget the stobe lights, and outside speakers for your Techno dance parties! Didn’t think I’d find out did you? Word spreads fast in Hubbard County BT!

BigWerm wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>belletaine wrote:</div>
A couple exterior outlets

Don’t forget the stobe lights, and outside speakers for your Techno dance parties! Didn’t think I’d find out did you? Word spreads fast in Hubbard County BT!

ooooonce ooooonce ooooonce

Things I would make standard are spray foam the entire thing for sure. lift bed in the rear instead of a bunk, have the door in the middle of the shack instead of in the V. When the door is in the V I find it unhandy because every time you need to go outside your stepping over the other guys lines and poles. A/c unit for sure for summer use.

For rattle reels I have the ultimate outdoors brand. They are very nice and all CNC/stainless material and they have a very precise drag nut you can dial in.

Oh and I almost forgot, MAKE SURE YOU GET ONE WITH THE MOST STROBE LIGHTS AS POSSIBLE!

Coletrain27 wrote:

Things I would make standard are spray foam the entire thing for sure. lift bed in the rear instead of a bunk, have the door in the middle of the shack instead of in the V. When the door is in the V I find it unhandy because every time you need to go outside your stepping over the other guys lines and poles. A/c unit for sure for summer use.

For rattle reels I have the ultimate outdoors brand. They are very nice and all CNC/stainless material and they have a very precise drag nut you can dial in.

Oh and I almost forgot, MAKE SURE YOU GET ONE WITH THE MOST STROBE LIGHTS AS POSSIBLE!

Why the hell do so many icehouse manufacturers put the door on the damn right side of the house….should be the left side so that it’s on the driver side of the vehicle pulling it!!!

usmarine0352 wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>Coletrain27 wrote:</div>
Things I would make standard are spray foam the entire thing for sure. lift bed in the rear instead of a bunk, have the door in the middle of the shack instead of in the V. When the door is in the V I find it unhandy because every time you need to go outside your stepping over the other guys lines and poles. A/c unit for sure for summer use.

For rattle reels I have the ultimate outdoors brand. They are very nice and all CNC/stainless material and they have a very precise drag nut you can dial in.

Oh and I almost forgot, MAKE SURE YOU GET ONE WITH THE MOST STROBE LIGHTS AS POSSIBLE!

Why the hell do so many icehouse manufacturers put the door on the damn right side of the house….should be the left side so that it’s on the driver side of the vehicle pulling it!!!

Why not door on right side? Pretty sure every camper ever made has the door on right side.

Door is on the right so if you pull over on the side of the road and need to get in your not opening the door in the traffic side.

Just an FYI I have a 2020 ice castle for sale, fully loaded single axel hydro they are interested.

^^^^ Yep

They’re on the passenger side to conform with RV standards.

You can order a shack with the door on the driver’s side, but if you ever plan on camping at a campground it will be on the wrong side (the door will open to your neighbor’s campsite).

If you’re strictly using it for fishing or your own private camping, having it on the driver’s side would be preferable for most guys. But, keep in mind it may hurt your resale or limit your selling audience in the future.

As for the OP’s questions

Yettis are nice, but crazy expensive. Our last shack was a Yetti, but we ordered a new custom Ice Castle because we didn’t want to spend $65,000+ on an equivalent Yetti.

Hands down I would go with vinyl flooring over carpet or rubber. Like 100x out of a 100….

Solar doesn’t gain you much, especially in the winter. A two or three bank battery set with a good charger and generator is more beneficial. Having a single outlet or half the shack wired to an inverter and dedicated battery is nice, but only use it for lower draw appliances (smaller tv, dvd, etc). Not for a microwave, coffee pot, 50″ tv, etc.

Definitely get a high stone guard all the way around. It not only protects from stones, but banking hard snow chunks as well. (So you won’t dent the siding)

As for rattle reels, get whatever you want. The light up ones are cool and all, but not necessary by any means. You can put a kid’s motion activated glow ball in a $10 rattle reel for a cordless and cheap option that does the same thing.

B-man wrote:

^^^^ Yep

They’re on the passenger side to conform with RV standards.

You can order a shack with the door on the driver’s side, but if you ever plan on camping at a campground it will be on the wrong side (the door will open to your neighbor’s campsite).

If you’re strictly using it for fishing or your own private camping, having it on the driver’s side would be preferable for most guys. But, keep in mind it may hurt your resale or limit your selling audience in the future.

As for the OP’s questions

Yettis are nice, but crazy expensive. Our last shack was a Yetti, but we ordered a new custom Ice Castle because we didn’t want to spend $65,000+ on an equivalent Yetti.

Hands down I would go with vinyl flooring over carpet or rubber. Like 100x out of a 100….

Solar doesn’t gain you much, especially in the winter. A two or three bank battery set with a good charger and generator is more beneficial. Having a single outlet or half the shack wired to an inverter and dedicated battery is nice, but only use it for lower draw appliances (smaller tv, dvd, etc). Not for a microwave, coffee pot, 50″ tv, etc.

Definitely get a high stone guard all the way around. It not only protects from stones, but banking hard snow chunks as well. (So you won’t dent the siding)

As for rattle reels, get whatever you want. The light up ones are cool and all, but not necessary by any means. You can put a kid’s motion activated glow ball in a $10 rattle reel for a cordless and cheap option that does the same thing.

Why solar panel not good in winter, if not snow, cloud cover mess them up?

What Ice Castle did you get?

Solar panels in a Minnesota winter are teats on a boar for the reasons you mentioned, along with a poor sun angle and limited daylight hours. You’ll get “some” juice, but it won’t be enough to keep up with a furnace fan, let alone all of your lights and other 12 volt needs.

An hour of a generator and a battery charger will provide you with far more charging capabilities than an entire day of solar.

We ordered a full custom. It’s a 27′ with a 2′ vee (29′ overall). Full bathroom, slide out, RV, awning, queen lift bed, toy hauler, galvanized, tandem axle, stainless Furion appliances, A/C, etc, etc.

It’s the polar opposite of our previous 6.5’x16′ crank Yetti. The kids aren’t getting any smaller, and we wanted something to use in the summer as well. It was a great shack for the 7 years we owned it, but we simply outgrew it.

Obviously now we’ll need to travel to find 15″+ of ice earlier in the season, but I ordered it with the toy hauler so I can put the big Otter and a wheeler inside it for early ice and late ice trips (and still be able to sleep in comfort on shore)

B-man wrote:

Solar panels in a Minnesota winter are teats on a boar for the reasons you mentioned, along with a poor sun angle and limited daylight hours. You’ll get “some” juice, but it won’t be enough to keep up with a furnace fan, let alone all of your lights and other 12 volt needs.

An hour of a generator and a battery charger will provide you with far more charging capabilities than an entire day of solar.

We ordered a full custom Ice Castle. It’s a 27′ with a 2′ vee. Full bathroom, slide out, RV, awning, queen lift bed, toy hauler, galvanized, tandem axle, stainless Furion appliances, A/C, etc, etc.

It’s the polar opposite of our previous 6.5’x16′ crank Yetti. The kids aren’t getting any smaller, and we wanted something to use in the summer as well.

Obviously we’ll need to travel to find 15″+ of ice earlier in the season, but I ordered it with the toy hauler so I can put the big Otter and a wheeler inside it for early ice and late ice trips (and still be able to sleep in comfort on shore)

B-man wrote:

Solar panels in a Minnesota winter are teats on a boar for the reasons you mentioned, along with a poor sun angle and limited daylight hours. You’ll get “some” juice, but it won’t be enough to keep up with a furnace fan, let alone all of your lights and other 12 volt needs.

An hour of a generator and a battery charger will provide you with far more charging capabilities than an entire day of solar.

We ordered a full custom Ice Castle. It’s a 27′ with a 2′ vee. Full bathroom, slide out, RV, awning, queen lift bed, toy hauler, galvanized, tandem axle, stainless Furion appliances, A/C, etc, etc.

It’s the polar opposite of our previous 6.5’x16′ crank Yetti. The kids aren’t getting any smaller, and we wanted something to use in the summer as well.

Obviously we’ll need to travel to find 15″+ of ice earlier in the season, but I ordered it with the toy hauler so I can put the big Otter and a wheeler inside it for early ice and late ice trips (and still be able to sleep in comfort on shore)

Nice.

Do you think you’ll not be allowed out on the lakes earlier in the season with the single axles with your dual axle?

No, the big shacks and big trucks have to wait for obvious reasons.

Most resorts open their roads in a progressive order according to ice thickness.

Something roughly like this:

Foot traffic 3-4″
Atv/Snowmobile Traffic 4-7″
Atv’s and single axle shacks 8-11″
Half tons and single axle shacks 12-13″
Half tons and tandem axle shacks 13-15″
3/4-one tons and tandems axle shacks 15″+

Some resorts will push those numbers, other err for more ice and caution.

If you have a big shack and truck, you miss out on a couple weeks on average (sometimes more, sometimes less) depending on the winter and ice conditions. Hence the toy hauler for fishing early and “early-ish” ice.

What is your buddy’s intentions? How many people? Where does he live? Does he plan to travel? What is his tow vehicle? Is he using the shack in summer?

All of those questions and many more will determine what he can get by with, when he can, and where he can.

I’d love having a 6.5’x12′ toy hauler too for solo or buddy early/late trips, but just can’t justify owning, maintaining, insuring and storing two hardsided shacks. So a wheeler and a portable it is (hauled in the big shack’s toy hauler)

patk wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>usmarine0352 wrote:</div>
2.) Flooring: He is leaning toward laminate floors rather than rubber. I think laminate is nice and would be easier to clean up. Are there any negatives to laminate flooring? What would you choose?

this just came up a little while back in the ice fishing forum. Look for: Wheelhouse Flooring Preference?

The brand question can be ford vs chevy to some extent. Yetti/Firebrand are very well regarded. Sometimes it’s more of an aluminum vs steel debate. ex. Ice Castle is steel

Thanks!

Update:

Ordered a Legend 8×17 toyhauler.

Can’t wait for next year!

Thanks for the advice.

usmarine0352 wrote:

Update:

Ordered a Legend 8×17 toyhauler.

Can’t wait for next year!

Thanks for the advice.

Sweet! Curious what that set you back?

B-man wrote:

No, the big shacks and big trucks have to wait for obvious reasons.

Most resorts open their roads in a progressive order according to ice thickness.

Something roughly like this:

Foot traffic 3-4″
Atv/Snowmobile Traffic 4-7″
Atv’s and single axle shacks 8-11″
Half tons and single axle shacks 12-13″
Half tons and tandem axle shacks 13-15″
3/4-one tons and tandems axle shacks 15″+

Some resorts will push those numbers, other err for more ice and caution.

If you have a big shack and truck, you miss out on a couple weeks on average (sometimes more, sometimes less) depending on the winter and ice conditions. Hence the toy hauler for fishing early and “early-ish” ice.

What is your buddy’s intentions? How many people? Where does he live? Does he plan to travel? What is his tow vehicle? Is he using the shack in summer?

I think his intentions will be fishing a lot during the regular season, using the toy hauler to bring up an ATV and portables for the early and late season using the shack as an “hotel room” to base camp out of. Usually 2-5 people. Extra if my kids come up.

He has an F150 w/ the Ecoboost.

He doesn’t plan on using the shack in the summer, perhaps in the fall to camp out of for bear hunting.

All of those questions and many more will determine what he can get by with, when he can, and where he can.

I’d love having a 6.5’x12′ toy hauler too for solo or buddy early/late trips, but just can’t justify owning, maintaining, insuring and storing two hardsided shacks. So a wheeler and a portable it is (hauled in the big shack’s toy hauler)

B-man wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>usmarine0352 wrote:</div>
Update:

Ordered a Legend 8×17 toyhauler.

Can’t wait for next year!

Thanks for the advice.

Sweet! Curious what that set you back?

About $36k.

Actually similar pricing to a Yetti.

We think that Yetti went the commercial route and kept their high prices but lowered the quality of their products to maximize profits. If you look at the wood in the new Yetti’s it’s just not to the quality that it used to be, sadly.