Handwarmer-ever use?

[Satanta]

Might be a nifty item for cold weather. I'm researching an idea-anyone ever use one of these?

Questions-

How hot do they get?

Enought to melt polymer-type materials with contact over a period of time?

Do they need exposure to air to heat? Let's say you had it in a leather or vinyl pouch?

Anyway-might be a good prep item.

 

[Satanta]

Also-info on solid fuel and things like electric socks?

They are not going to be used exactly as you might think but experience with them is info I need.

 

[fruit loop]

Use handwarmers all the time.

They get REAL hot. Great to keep in your pockets when it's cold. Always keep a few in the glove box of your car in case you break down and have to walk someplace.

Never tried electric socks. Dad had some for hunting, though, and loved them.

 

[Nuthatch]

I stock handwarmers and they have come in handy. I keep some in the car and in my pack when I am hiking/kayaking, etc. I have slipped them (different sizes) in pockets and they are wonderful for taking the chill off. Once when I was soaked from a dump in the Bay, they literally calmed me down.

Had some electric socks. What I hated about them kept me from really using them. They take heavy batteries around your calf. There are wires that run through the socks to send the heat--I could feel them constantly. The heat was uneven. I would recommend a pair of polar fleece socks, good wool socks and/or a silk liner or even a vapor barrier sock liner depending on the extremes. Cheaper in the long run and require no batteries.

JMHO. YMMV.

 

[Rastech]

I've got on ok with some of the 12v heated gear on the motorbike, but really found the thermal stuff these people do makes it all a bit unnecessary.

http://www.damart.co.uk/portal/page..._dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL&action=AboutDamart

I've used their stuff quite a bit, and the only warning I would say, is don't wash in hot water or tumble dry (my first set of thermal gear ended up small enough to fit a doll, hehe, but I suppose that's a 'bloke thing' with washing machines ).

The top grade thermal underwear they do has been used successfully on Polar Expeditions, etc

Edit: also tried the solid fuel (i.e. sticks of charcoal) hand warmers, but some sticks just seem to refuse to stay alight. When they do, they are ok as well. The gel ones definitely seem handy.

 

[WalknTrot]

I use them all the time in winter. The plastic packet ones are nice for in the mitts or in the socks. Also keep a bunch in the truck for emergencies. They don't get hot enough to burn and last 6-8 hours depending upon how much oxygen is available. If you're talking the metal charcoal burner-type...those babies do get hot. I've used them many times. They take some fiddling to keep burning, give off a smell (not so good when deer hunting) and ...ahem...if ya stick them in your back (butt) pocket and forget them on a cold day, you can end up with a big "sunburned" red spot.

The socks work OK, but the heating wires don't hold up to hard use, laundering and much walking.

 

[Jeanne51]

My husband goes hunting, and used these little packets called "toastie toes" in his boots. He says they really do work.

 

[Satanta]

Well the reason I'm asking is for hard Winter use and my camera. Last time I was in -20 and below the batteries didn't like it and now with a better camera and gear I thought I'd step it up. I read on the battery sox and for the price I think I can do better.

Plain wool/fleece doesn't emit heat so would be not any better than just a towel or something.

I guess I'm looking at either one of the reusable chem heaters-those worry me because of leakage.

A solid fuel heater-those worry me beacause of too much heat and smell.

Or the Ronson fluid ones-again-too much heat and smell.

 

[WalknTrot]

I guess you're wise to be careful if you are thinking of using the little disposable heaters to keep a camera warm...they tend to leak fine grey-black carbon/charcoal powder. I think there is also iron powder in the mix to make the chemical reaction. Not so good for the camera bag.

 

[Rastech]

Hmmmm something for a camera heater, held in the camera case.

Video recorders have a very small heating element in them to fight condensation (2 watt 'ish if I remember right). You could maybe make an ideal camera case heater out of one. Not sure of the voltage these things run at either (max 12v I would think), maybe worth asking a video engineer about them (may be able to get a secondhand one out of an old broken unit?). They seem to last for years and years too.

Heat output wouldn't be huge, but could be plenty for what is needed. Once you know the voltage you need, you could then look out for a suitable battery to power it (a mobile phone battery/whatever might do it). Wouldn't be too difficult to wire up in the base of the camera case, include an on/off switch, and if you can use mobile phone batteries, plugging them into a phone and charging them from a 12v vehicle power source would be easy.

With the weight and size of mobile phone batteries now, a little case to hold one onto the camera strap would be quick to run up? Edit: though with -20 deg temps, you may want a little battery holder you can keep in a pocket to keep the battery warm.

Edit: a DC lightbulb of a few watts would do the same job, but be a bit vulnerable to breakage and probably a bit difficult to make a neat and safe holder for. OR, what about these LED brakelight bulbs? They give off any heat?

 

[Satanta]

Rastech-

I have two older VHS ewxoeswe xameras. One really only needs a new belt to work but I'm not sure if the cost of repair is worth it so that might have the part you speak of and it has three good batteries plus the charging unit that all work as well.

The other is garbage and I might have tossed it a few weeks ago.

What I'm wanting to do is build an exterior case-like an underwater housing the camera fits into and keeps it warm and dry but allows instant use. I almost never carry the camera actually IN a case-too slow when you need it for a shot.

 

[Scoutt888]

Hand warmers are great. They can get really hot sometimes. Just keep them in your pockets. My daughter uses them during ice skating practice in the early mornings and I then use them for the arthritis in my hands. they are good for 8-10 hours.

Scoutt

 

[Rastech]

I don't know if the video cameras had/have those heating elements in them, but the normal domestic sized ones did.

Could run up a case out of something like ballistic nylon, and sandwich some of that thin closed cell foam insulation between two layers, to help keep the cold out and the heat in? The old style camera cases with the flap that went over the lens and had a popper on the back, if you copied that, would allow quick access to the camera to take piccys.

I think the heating elements are quite small, so no trouble to add a little pocket to hold one in the base (or even tape one in where you want).

A few watts consumption should allow a pretty good period for camera warming imo. Just hopefully it's enough heat to do the job.

 

[Rastech]

Hand warmers are great. They can get really hot sometimes. Just keep them in your pockets. My daughter uses them during ice skating practice in the early mornings and I then use them for the arthritis in my hands. they are good for 8-10 hours.

Scoutt

Wow that's pretty good duration! I didn't realise their heat output had got to be for so long now.

 

[Satanta]

It was brough up about condensation either in the camera or lens so I'm thinking a silicon pack as well in the case. I hate it when someone tells me it can't be done-i immediatly start looking for workarounds to DO it.

I don't want to heat the batts too much-quicker discharge but the chem reaction slows down in extreme cold so need a middle ground somewhere.

 

[Nuthatch]

Sat-
changing the thread title to reflect your true intent might help you get a better answer to your real question, which is, "how do I keep batteries warm in sub-zero temps?"

Any chance of storing them next to your body or near it?

A hot water bottle? A hot pack that is microwaved/boiled then clicked when needed? Do you remember those? A stick on 'thermo-wrap' meant for a bcak or sore area?

 

[Satanta]

Nithatch-yeah, to an extent but I thought they would be great cold-weather preps for folks too. Kind of-six one/half-dozen of other so I just put 'handwarmers' in the thread to get folks to consider them. I've already done the "Carry in pocket" and such but it doesn't resolve the camera/battery issue for me.

Getting info on how others have used them and their results gives me the info I need to make decisions on my own personal use.

 

['plain o joe']

What about that particular salt in a freezer baggie, where one adds about 2 tablespoons of water and it heats up...




http://www.timebomb2000.com/vb/showpost.php?p=1810057&postcount=13

but I believe it's the Calcium Chloride you want, without magnesium...

 

[Coleslilwitch]

I always keep a couple of the little handwarmers in my pack. They're perfect for keeping the kids' hands warm at football games. My daughter is in the band, so we spent too many Friday nights freezing in the stands to cheer her on.

 

[Satanta]

What about that particular salt in a freezer baggie, where one adds about 2 tablespoons of water and it heats up...




http://www.timebomb2000.com/vb/showpost.php?p=1810057&postcount=13

but I believe it's the Calcium Chloride you want, without magnesium...

Yeah-have some and for a handwarmer it should do fine. On the other hand using it around my photo gear makes me nwervous-all it takes it a small, unoticed leak when in the boonies.

 

[FireDance]

I vote for the handwarmers also. However, I would isolate them from my camera because of chems and other weird stuff that might happen. The GOOD ones (there are knock-offs that are not so good) last many hours. Again, I would just be leary of chem reactions. Heh, an aside, that's kind of off topic, bought a cell phone this weekend and the guy goes, "And by the way, do NOT take this into the bathroom as it'll become impregnated with water vapor and then won't work." So that raised my level of "hmmm" about what we do every day with our electronics and then expect them to work. Things we do not think about. (I think these phones would be more likely to stop operating that the older style because they're the thin "blade" phones. Who knows?)

 

[Nuthatch]

What a stupid cellphone trait.....humidity is 90% + here in the summer, and that won't damage a cellphone, but going in a steamy restroom will?? Sometimes they do not consider real-life uses for items.

 

[SmartAZ]

When I was young and stupid I tried to use two hand warmers to keep my car battery warm so it would start the car in the morning. Don't you be young and stupid too, only use them where you can FEEL how hot they are getting.

 

[Guy_Incognito]

Perhaps these would suit the job - Silicon heating mats

From their datasheet, the power usage to keep a 10x10cm plate 20 degrees above ambient in free air is 5 watts. A plate that size in your camera bag with a 12V 6Ah lead acid battery would keep it going for about 12-14 hours at least.

Dunno about how much they cost though. I've seen other similar heat pads on the market, but I can't seem to locate them. Any good electronics supplier should be able to locate them though.

You'd probably find that 3 or 4 suitable 5W wire-wound resistors - sized to dissipate about 5W in total - would do the trick if spaced around your camera bag.

 

[Scoutt888]

My son shoots professional video in ice rinks. He suggest you get a small insulated bag like you use to keep food warm or cold. Get a two or three handwarmers and wrap a hand towel around them and then put your batteries and/or camera inside and put another hand towel around the camera or batteries. It will keep everything snug and warm with out worrying about things getting too hot next to your camera or actual batteries. Anything that might sift out would go onto the towels. Hope that helps.

Scoutt888