Last week, I said I’d do Part II of the salmon fishing series, but I’m cold and thought I’d slip in this one on some neat rechargeable hand warmers. Then I’ll wrap up the salmon article next week.
ThermaCELL has to be the most creative company in the world. I love dealing with them. As you know, they make a unique mosquito unit that is super popular with outdoorsmen. Then they came out with a variety of lanterns that incorporated their mosquito unit capabilities and a heated rechargeable insole that fits into your boots and are popular for a variety of applications.
Now they’ve come out with some heat packs. These are fresh on my mind because it’s 7 degrees this morning and has been for a day or two. Weather like this will make you find creative ways to stay warm.
ThermaCELL has come out with some cool heat packs that you can stick in your pockets for hand warmers. They even have bigger packs that can be stuck in your pocket to keep your core warm. I don’t know why all the cool stuff comes out after I’m grown up.
When I was a kid, there weren’t any good hunting clothes for kids. I wore my dad’s old hand-me-down cammies, which hung a foot past the tips of my fingers. To keep my feet warm, I’d wear three pairs of socks and stuff them into an already tight pair of cowboy boots. I don’t know if I ever had a warm hat as a kid.
Now there are all kinds of cool accessories for kids. There were electric socks when I was a kid, but they never worked. Same with the hand warmers that supposedly worked on lighter fluid. They always worked fine in camp until you crawled into your blind. But, back to the handwarmers that actually do work.
ThermaCELL sent me a set of handwarmers to test. They are actually a protocol set. The ones on the market have more features. But regardless, here’s the scoop. They make two sizes. The smaller one is 1 5/8x3 inches and the larger one is 2 7/8x4 inches.
They are water resistant and rechargeable and come with chargers.
To charge:
- Plug the charger into the wall, about like charging your cellphone.
- You can also use a USB connector to charge.
- A red light will indicate that they are charging and it will turn green when they’re fully charged.
- For those who have a Bushnell Solar Panel, you’re in luck. As stated above, they have a USB connector that sticks into the wall plug. Of course you can also use it to charge off of your solar panel.
To operate:
- There are three settings that are activated by a button on the end. High (122 F), Medium (113 F) and Low (101 F). The lower the setting, the longer the battery will last. You can stick them in your pockets or in the back of your glove.
Once fully charged, it will give four hours of heat on high, five hours on medium and six hours on the low setting.
These are a great alternative to freezing or using expensive “one-time use” heat packs. I will be using them for hunting, 4-wheeling, ice fishing or when I’ve been hunting too much and Katy locks the door and I’m stuck sleeping on the porch.
Well, take care and have a Merry Christmas!
Tom Claycomb lives in Idaho and has outdoors columns in newspapers in Alaska, Idaho, Utah, Nevada, Colorado and Louisiana. He also writes for various outdoors magazines and teaches outdoors seminars at stores like Cabela’s, Sportsman’s Warehouse and Bass Pro Shop.
