Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Joe Guzzardo on November 20, 2014 at 4:49pm

I'm looking for hand warmers that I can fit inside my mittens. I want something that I can heat up in a microwave and re-use indefinitely. Rice seems to work pretty, I've read. I could try making a set of  rice warmers myself but I was curious if anyone has any recommendations for any commercial solutions. Something that can fit easily into the finger section of the mitten.

I can just feel the warmth sucked away whenever I apply my hand brakes. It's not fun.

Permalink Reply by Lisa Curcio on November 21, 2014 at 1:23am

Joe,

I tried the rice warmers.  They don't last long.  Sorry I have not found another reusable solution.

I use the ones that you throw away.  I do get more than one use out of them because when I get to my destination I immediately put them in a sealed plastic bag with the air pushed out.  The hand warmers deactivate without air and can be reactivated by taking them out again.  They seem to last 3 to 4 days for me.

Permalink Reply by Tristan on November 21, 2014 at 6:05am

Which warmers do you use Lisa? I've been doing the ghetto "shopping bags inside the socks" option for the past 2 weeks on my commute, and wouldn't mind trying these warmers.

Permalink Reply by Lisa Curcio on November 21, 2014 at 10:35am

I have used the "Little Hotties".  There is another brand called "Grabbers".  I have not seen them yet this year, but the last couple of years Costco has had them in 40 package boxes.  I had a box for two years and maybe went through 10 packages.  I will be checking to see if they have them again because I gave most of them away at the Slow Roll ride on November 15.  In the big box, they are pretty cheap.  Individually, a bit more expensive.

Permalink Reply by Anne Alt on November 21, 2014 at 11:07am

For putting inside gloves or shoes, I like Grabbers. I agree with Lisa's tip about buying a big box (if you can find them in quantity) if you're going to use very many.  Her tip about storing them in a plastic bag with the air squished out is a good one.

If you make a larger set of rice warmers (using socks as casings), they can be helpful for warming hands and feet when you arrive at your destination.  A sock-sized one nuked for 1 minute is very nice for that purpose.

Joe Guzzardo said:

I'm looking for hand warmers that I can fit inside my mittens. I want something that I can heat up in a microwave and re-use indefinitely. Rice seems to work pretty, I've read. I could try making a set of  rice warmers myself but I was curious if anyone has any recommendations for any commercial solutions. Something that can fit easily into the finger section of the mitten.

I can just feel the warmth sucked away whenever I apply my hand brakes. It's not fun.

Permalink Reply by Lisa Curcio on November 21, 2014 at 11:14am

The thing about buying a big box--even if you are not going to use a lot of them--is that they don't spoil.  As far as I can tell, so long as they are in their sealed packages, they don't "expire" either.

Another idea:  I actually wear two pairs of mittens.  The inside pair is wool knit with a fleece lining and the outside pair is polartec.  They are both soft, so although they are bulky they are flexible and I can grab my brakes without difficulty.  When it gets below 20, sometimes I put those hand warmers between the mittens on the top of my fingers.  They don't get in the way but they keep the fingers warm.

Permalink Reply by Mike Zumwalt on November 21, 2014 at 7:13pm

I've got everything I need to stay warm, I wear Converse all year so my feet get cold but I can't ride in anything else it's just my thing.

What i'm looking for is an upper body base layer, non cotton and not wool that will "wick" the back sweat away. I've looked at the  clothing stores thermal wear,mostly cotton or polyester blends. Asked around at bike shops and found one that would be suitable, $50 for a top isn't bad but I can't wear that everyday without washing and can't see myself spend $150 for 3 so anything out there? It can even be short sleeved. 

Permalink Reply by Skip Montanaro 0mi on November 22, 2014 at 2:25am

Many years ago (when I still ran) I saw some reusable hand warmers at little vendor exhibit at the packet pickup. They contained some sort of super-saturated salt and had a little clickable doohickey in the bag to start the reaction which released the heat. Once they had cooled, you could boil them to reset.

Here's an example I just found by searching for "reusable hand warmers" which looks about like I remember:

http://www.rewci.com/ez-heat-reusable-hand-warmer.html

Might be worth a try.

Permalink Reply by Mollie on December 1, 2014 at 3:28pm

I'm going to try handwarmers for the first time, and now I'm excited to try Lisa's trick of sealing them in a bag in between uses.  That's really smart!  A friend also suggested moving my hands/fingers sort of in rhythm (to make it habit) as I pedal, and that's helped my hands quite significantly.   

A while back, I was looking for the result of the rice experiment, so now it's good to know they didn't last too long.  If anyone finds good reusable hand warmers, please report back!

Permalink Reply by Tom A.K. on December 1, 2014 at 4:38pm

http://www.rewci.com/ez-heat-reusable-hand-warmer.html

Mollie, reusable hand warmers. $4.95 per unit. Boil for six minutes to recharge. Click on the link above.

Permalink Reply by Tim Heckman on December 1, 2014 at 6:00pm

Mike, this is one of my warmest base layer uppers, and it is 100% polyester. Picked it up at Sears two years ago, pretty reasonably ~$20. I took a picture, because I could only find it again by sight.

Attachments:

• image.jpg, 1.7 MB

Permalink Reply by Jamais716 on December 2, 2014 at 6:24am

I hate polyester, it gets too stinky for me.  I swear by silk and wool long johns.  Silk is surprisingly warm, feels great on your skin and can go a week between washing if you wear it only for riding and then air it out.

Mike Zumwalt said:

I've got everything I need to stay warm, I wear Converse all year so my feet get cold but I can't ride in anything else it's just my thing.

What i'm looking for is an upper body base layer, non cotton and not wool that will "wick" the back sweat away. I've looked at the  clothing stores thermal wear,mostly cotton or polyester blends. Asked around at bike shops and found one that would be suitable, $50 for a top isn't bad but I can't wear that everyday without washing and can't see myself spend $150 for 3 so anything out there? It can even be short sleeved. 

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