Little Hotties

[RaccoonFace]

Preface:
I think that my feet have pressed the liner too thin in the toe and I get cold feet on most days, and blocks of ice on cold days. I am considering some of the super thin socks, but I only need a bit of heat at the toe.

I searched and most of what I got was pr0n so I'm asking the questions that matter:

Do Little Hotties toe warmers work to actually keep your toes comfortably warm?

If you have really tight boots does it effect your fit much?

Here is a link to what I'm talking about:
http://www.littlehottieswarmers.com/..._p/lhw4-30.htm

Thanks for your thoughts.

okbye

[Rossta]

i thought the title to this was "liftie hotties"

although im disappointed; i have to mention that those things (little hotties) are stupid, and you should invest in hotronics.

www.hotronic.com

[tsproul]

They work for maybe 10-15 minutes. As soon as you shove your foot in, there is (or at least ideally if you have well-fitting boots) little room for air. Those things and the other brand heater pads require oxygen (air) to generate heat. No oxygen, no heat.

[Jim S]

I used to use the generic Toe Warmers they sell at all the ski shops. They worked pretty good in my old boots; just stick to the footbed under your PIP/DIP joints or onto you sock under your toes.

My new boots are warmer with Intuition liners.

[XXX-er]

I use a thinner sock and heater packs ,they do work

[RaccoonFace]

i thought the title to this was "liftie hotties"

although im disappointed; i have to mention that those things (little hotties) are stupid, and you should invest in hotronics.

www.hotronic.com

Dude! Have you seen how much those cost?! And, if it was about lift hotties it would be NSFW and in the padded room .

They work for maybe 10-15 minutes. As soon as you shove your foot in, there is (or at least ideally if you have well-fitting boots) little room for air. Those things and the other brand heater pads require oxygen (air) to generate heat. No oxygen, no heat.

Good point.

I used to use the generic Toe Warmers they sell at all the ski shops. They worked pretty good in my old boots; just stick to the footbed under your PIP/DIP joints or onto you sock under your toes.

My new boots are warmer with Intuition liners.

Well maybe I'll try it just once...

XXX: What heater packs? Hotroinc heaters?

I just went poking through my ski box and found a pair of Boot Gloves that I got as a gift. I googled and found the website, and a little about them here. I think I'll give them a try first. I thought they were some gimmick thingie, and maybe they are. I'll know more tomorrow. Something tells me that there is potential to spend much more than $200 trying to avoid paying $200.

okbye

[kona12]

I have always had problems with cold toes on cold days so last year I tried out the hotties on a whim and they did the trick. Not hot but not cold. I was most concerned about toe space as I felt like I didn't have any spare but they fit with no problem. Not sure about the oxygen comment but I do unbuckle my boots about every other lift ride though.

[sfotex]

I've never been a fan of heat packs until I was ice climbing and it was -10F and I seriously thought my toes were going to freeze.
A buddy had some heat packs I threw in my boots and it was enough to keep the blood flowing.

Start cheap and see what works.

[Choucas]

On cold days (single digits F) I use them. Stick 'em to the footbed before you throw the boots in the car. Wear extra thin socks. Make sure you don't mess them up when you put your boots on. They work great. Skied in VT on New Year's Day with warm toes.
PS -- I used to have Hotronics when I was coaching. They work well (as long as you remember to charge them) but I'm not out in the cold as much for long periods of mandatory time anymore so these are an easier solution. You can buy them in bulk and save $.

[XXX-er]

whatever they are selling at the local store I buy 10 packs ,the latest brand I got here are called GRABBER distributed out of calgary so you likely wouldnt see them BUT they are TOE WARMERS formulated to work with the amount of air in a boot ,I put some handwarmer type in there last time and they didnt feel as warm maybe cuz they need more oxygen to work ?

I shaved off a little of my SOLE foot bed to have more room for heater packs

I know a shop owner who molds his intuition liners with heater packs ontop and under his toes but he is such a cold soul he can sleep in a down bag in summer in his front room


I hear good things about those Boot gloves ,some patroler types from the midwest (COLD SKIING?)I met last season told me they really work ,I got some but havent tried them yet cuz the heater packs are doing it for me so far ,they look goofy ,they would probably need alot of maintenance with shoe goo

OK from the website,toe warmers,as I suspected made to work with less oxy
http://www.sunandsnow.ca/toewarmer.htm

hand warmers use anywhere
http://www.sunandsnow.ca/handwarmer.htm

IMO the good thing about heater packs is they always work ,don't need batteries or maintenance

[bklyn]

Hottronics are for the most part expensive crap because people tend to lose the battery packs when they fall off while skiing. It also requires constant fiddling and is either too hot (making you sweat) or not warm enough. Bootgloves are ok, but also require a bunch of fiddling if you need to adjust the buckles underneath it. Also there's a high probability you will lose one of them.

After your next ski day, pull out the liner and any foot boards underneath it and take a look at how much water is sloshing around in the shell. This is the primary reason why you are cold, no amount of insulation will protect you from a big ice cube inside your boot.

The super secret method for warm boots...
.
.
.
.
.
... is to make sure they are dry before you use them. This ~ 25.00 investment, plus a chemical heat pack on those days below -5 will make a huge difference in comfort.

http://www.amazon.com/DryGuy-DG3-Dry...dp/B0000TSIL4/
http://www.amazon.com/Seirus-Boot-To...dp/B0000AS6JX/

Or you can set up a forced air drying system if you ski mostly from home or a ski house, then you can also put gloves or other gear out to dry on it. Useful if your hands sweat.

Dry gear is much warmer than wet gear.

Edit to add - place the chemical foot warmers on the top of your foot, where all those blood vessels are close to the skin. This way will not interfere with your feel of the ski/boot and any work you have in there (footbeds, canting, etc) and also is more efficient for keeping you warm. Handwarmers should also go on the back of the hands - vs in the palm.

[cl1953]

Top of the toes seconded. I have used the heater pads for years and they really work. Really poor circulation has made them a necessity. On really cold days I will use a new pair midday.

Just got new intuitions and had them fit with no room for heaters. Yes, they are warmer, but not warm enough. Need to carve out a batcave in each toebox.

I always use powder to dry my toes and dry does make a difference.

[Yukonrider]

Thing i have noticed is that they go out due to lakc of oxygen.

[XtrPickels]

Yup. Seem to get cold.
Stop for lunch. boots off, packs feel cold. By the end of lunch they've heated back up now that they can breath.
Looks like you have to try them to see if they'll work for you.

[XXX-er]

So its better on top ? I will try that tomorrw