vol

Do any of you use those heat packs to warm your hands in winter? Just curious as I've never used them. Some people put them in their gloves/mitts. I wonder how long they can keep your hand warm, and how warm. Would one be good for, say, a half hour ride?

PaulRivers

Probably, but the problem is that you'd have to keep buying more and more heat packs because they're disposable.

So I just bought more expensive winter gloves instead.

vol

Maybe just for the few coldest days, 2 or 3 times. What I wonder is whether they are very hot and must not touch your skin directly, because I read somewhere it gets to 130F.

Damien09

If you plan to ride alot in realy cold,id say get some heated gloves off ebay or something. as buying those heating packs would add up. Luckly for me even in the coldest winter days gloves are enough for me

JAG410

Heat packs are oxygen activated, so if you cut off the oxygen supply, they become reusable! Baby food jars or ziplock bags work well. Most will last for a few hours, so for short trips, you could easily get a few uses out of them before they become garbage. I use them occasionally in the winter, but that's usually only when it's below zero.

TriDanny47

Heated gloves are awesome - kinda pricey, I paid about $200 for my Columbia, but so worth it - just spring for an extra set of batteries as you only get a couple of hours out of them on high heat setting, so I found it necessary for longer rides.

I have a blood disorder so am always cold anyway - I liked the gloves so much I ultimately ended up buying 3 pair of gloves, 3 pair of boots, 3 full coats, a vest, and a base layer set with lithium ion battery heat and I can say all of that was a godsend the last two winters here, both of which were truly brutal cold and snow.

The gloves are a bit bulky above the wrist where the battery packs sit, but overall no worse than other heavy winter sports gloves, but surprisingly nimble in the fingers and great for winter rides.

Dave Cutter

I carry the heat packets.... I've never used one. I've always considered the packaged heat and the mini ponchos as emergency supplies. Good for preventing frostbite [in an emergency] or staying well. Not really as a consumable.

chefisaac

Link?

TriDanny47

Unfortunately, Columbia had problems with some of their lithium ion batteries and for the most part aren't making or selling any of this stuff anymore. But other companies are, there are at least 3-4 brands on Amazon of heated gloves.

Here's a link I found with Google - this place has a lot of brands:


Heating Gloves, Warming Gloves - My Cooling Store

YogaKat

I used to use them when I played Disc Golf tournaments in the winter since it was important to keep my throwing hand warm. I had not thought about using them when cycling, but I would have to agree that I would go through way too many in this case.

It's been too long ago, but It seems like I would go through two or three per day during tournaments.

Jimbob68

Yes, I've used heat packs and like them. Always carry some in case of emergency. You can pick them up quite reasonably at the end of winter at Home Depot, Lowe's etc. The more they are exposed to air the hotter they are so I'll open them and leave them out for a few minutes before putting my shoes over them. Also have heard of putting them on top of the shoes and putting shoe covers over them. They should be hotter that way but I've not tried that method yet.

Yendor72

Costco has/had them this year, 40 pairs for $13ish. They also had the Head ski gloves that have a pocket that the warmer goes in. Can't wait to use them this winter.

dh024

I bought both a couple of years ago. Those Head gloves are really warm -- so much so, that I have rarely needed the heat packs in them (but the system works well, based on the few occassions I have used them).

digibud

I've not used heated gloves but might consider them. I use heat packs regularly and if you are only gone for an hour you can indeed put them in a good zip lock baggie and they will revive for a second use. I find the "toe" packs to be too small to help. If you use overbooties you may find they won't work if you put them between the over booty and your shoe because not enough O2 will get in but put inside the shoe there may be enough air. In gloves they work fine. When it gets really cold I'll put one or even two inside my pogies because I prefer to use as thin/small a pair of gloves as I can. The cost does add up but I buy them by the box, not individually. There are resusable versions of them that you boil to heat up but they would not fit in a pair of gloves.

Mr Pink57

I use pogies in the winter and I have one of the zippo hand warmers. I do not use it much for my commute but when I do winter fat bike riding I use it quite often.

jamesdak 

I too use the heat packs. One on top of my toes and one on the back of the hands if needed. I get them in bulk and will reuse the ones from my roughly 1 hour daily rides. I also carry spared, just in case, on my long weekend ride. I found my old Brooks B17 with the cutoff could really freeze the "boys" and had to break one out on a particularly cold day to save them too. I've never had much luck with battery operated heated devices. For me layers of wool and some heat packs get me through ok.

Damien09

https://vi.raptor.ebaydesc.com/ws/eBa...=1446997587618
these Heated gloves dont look to bad for 39.99

TriDanny47

Actually for $40 they look really nice. I see they use a 9 volt battery - which gives you the option to use rechargeable or alkaline disposables. I'm almost tempted myself ...

imhuskertko

I use BarMitts, not the most aerodynamic but they are warm. Rode a couple weeks ago with wind chills in the 20s with no gloves and never had cold hands. I know that isn't extremely cold but none the less with no gloves.

GravelMN

I carry a few chemical heat packs with me on longer winter rides for those times when the weather changes or I have misjudged just how warm my gloves will be. It's miserable to get out into the boonies only to find that your fingers are going numb and you have many miles to get back home. I'll crack a medium size pocket heat pack and keep it in a pocket for quick warm ups, and a couple of glove sized ones for inside the gloves or the Bar Mitts. They last plenty long for an hour or two to get you home with all digits still functional.

Bar Mitts are still the best investment I ever made for comfortable winter riding. I sewed an elastic loop inside to hold a heat pack near my finger tips if needed, but the mitts alone make a huge difference.

noglider 

Here in NYC, a great many deliveries are made by bicycle. A lot of the delivery guys put several plastic grocery bags around their handlebar grips as cheapie bar mitts. I plan to try this at some point.

erig007

Used a chemical heat pack once about 4 years ago but haven't feel the need to use any since. My mitten are all i need between 25F and -40F (or below).

shelbyfv

I use the heat packs. They are cheap and add some versatility. Usually it's colder at the start of my ride. I can take the packs out of my gloves as it warms up, as opposed to having too hot gloves for the remainder. The toe warmers pretty much stay in for the duration.

vol

How do this and that differ? Which type are those of you using them referring to?

digibud

I recall seeing a test done using various brands of heat packs. Grabber came out on top and probably by no small coincidence it is the most popular brand up here in Fairbanks. The Heat Wave type is reusable by putting it in boiling water for something like 10min. Inside the plastic pack is a small disc with an activator you flex a bit and it starts the exothermic reaction. They get quite warm but don't last nearly as long as the Grabber. They don't need outside oxygen like grabber products. If you put a grabber into a shoe that is air tight it will stop being warm but the Heat Wave are not easily put inside shoes. The other downside to the Heat Wave is that it can go off on it's own if the tab inside is hit in any way. I've opened my pack more than once to find the Heat Wave type heater already used up. The Grabber suffers from the possibility of the package getting punctured and you can then open the package and get no heat. The Grabber type get hard when they are used up so if you feel a Grabber heater pack and it's not flexible and the stuff inside is more like a rock than sand, it's no good. In winter I always have a couple of Grabber with me in case of emergency. They make huge packs and small packs too.