Best system for keeping water warm in winter?

I realize that this is the wrong season for this question, but it's on my mind. First, I'll give some background:

Some of you may have read my thread on atrial fibrillation. After 2 cardiology visits and a lot of internet research, I have discovered that my type of a-fib can indeed be triggered by drinking or eating cold foods and liquids too fast (as I have been suspicious of from my own past experience). So, I am trying to drink slowly, and to not drink cold things. This becomes a problem not only when drinking a freshly-filtered bottle out of a cold stream in the summer, but especially when drinking in the winter. I have to take little sips, warm them in my mouth, and then swallow, to be safe. I can't stop hiking long enough to do this and still sufficiently hydrate myself in winter or I will obviously run into other problems with the cold. Nor can I safely get water out of an open stream in winter (too cold), or allow a bottle of water to get too cold after a long day if it has been sitting in my pack. Until now, I've always just filled my Lexan bottles with semi-hot water (not too hot because of leachates from the plastic), and wrapped them in a towel and buried them deep in my pack. I never purchased a water bottle parka or any other contraption. And yes, I have fibrillated on winter hikes (now that I know what it was), but thankfully the episodes have been of short duration. So now I need to know:

A) what is the safest water bottle available for holding super hot liquid without worrying about bisphenol-A or other leachates (do they make some metal ones now)?:
B) what is the best water bottle parka or other contraption for keeping said liquid warm for the longest period of time, or any combination of parka plus other techniques that you have discovered to accomplish this?

A thermos in your pack is the best way of keeping water warm. But thermoses are heavy, and some are made with glass liners.

The bottle parkas do work, but do not perform miracles. Again, in your pack with additional insulation will be best.

Larger bottles and thermoses will stay warm longer.

If it is cold enough that you must wear extra insulation, you may be able to warm a small water bottle with body heat.

You could also put handwarmer next to a bottle. (The handwarmer will need some ventilation to work.)


All-in-all, the thermos is probably the most practical method--a search at REI brings up an all metal one: http://www.rei.com/product/752887?cm_re=pageContent*productsNo4*thermos REI Bullet Bottle 1 Liter. Seems to me that there have been past threads on the topic of thermoses.

Doug

Keeping it close to your body. As I mentioned once before, I do it with my camelback. I shove it down my pants to keep it from freezing.

I keep 3 liters with me, one in a bottle parka on my side for easy acces, another in a bottle parka in my pack, and one without a bottle parka in my pack (just have not gotten around to buying a third parka yet .) I kep the 2 in my pack as close to the back, and I find that even on rather chilly days my radiated body heat manages to keep the liquids about room temperature. But I am a flamethrower and give off body heat profusely even at stand still, so that may be part of the reason. Whatever the reason I find that as long as temps do not go sub zero for the majority of the day my liquids in the pack stay rather pleasantly warm or at the very least cool, but not icy cold.

Brian

I wear bibs with a belt and tuck a bottle in the top.

I usually heat the water in the morning, put a thick sock over the bottle, and depending upon conditions, it's usually stays at least luke-warm throughout a good part of the day. I keep a second one in my pack, close to my body, and swap bottles when needed. I also carry a thermos of soup for lunchtime, and the soup is hot as if it just came off the stove.

You could also do a staged approach. For instance, if you bring a bottle in a bottle parka and a thermos, you could consume the bottle water first and then the thermos water. (This, of course, assumes that the thermos will keep the water warm longer than the bottle+parka will.)

Doug

You could also bring something to heat the water with. There are even self heating coffees and teas. See http://vftt.org/forums/showthread.php?t=15230&highlight=coffee for examples...

I agree with Doug.

DougPaul said:

A thermos in your pack is the best way of keeping water warm. But thermoses are heavy, and some are made with glass liners.

The bottle parkas do work, but do not perform miracles. Again, in your pack with additional insulation will be best.

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I agree. I use a small, all stainless-steel thermos (holds two cups and weighs 300 grams). It is by Nissan stainless. I also use an outdoor research "parka" for my Nalgene and I thumb my nose at whatever leaches out of the plastic (maybe that's why I have a thumb growing out of my nose!!!).

Both Nalgene and Camelback now have water bottles that are BPA-free. I became hypothermic once when I drank ice-cold water after returning to my car following a hike in November. Since then, I never drink cold water in the winter.

For long winter hikes, I always fill three 1-quart Nalgene bottles with boiling water, and immediately put 2 of the bottles into insulated cozies, or parkas. All 3 bottles go inside my pack close to my back. My fleece or extra gloves/mitts provide extra insulation at the top of the pack. The non-insulated bottle goes toward the outside, so it cools faster and is available to drink sooner. I sometimes wrap the center insulated bottle with additional foam, in order to keep it from becoming too cold before I need it late in the day. Still, the 3rd bottle is usually quite cool by the time I drink it many hours later, but the other 2 bottles provide comforting warmth for most of the day on the trail. I have seen hikers carry water bottles in external pack pockets in winter, but I prefer at least warm water in cold conditions.

I have a two liter insulated camelbak with insulated hose. I wrap the camelbak in a plastic bag, in case it should leak, and place it in my pack. I have to remember to blow back the water in the hose when I finish drinking or the hose and drinking nipple can freeze, but as long as I do that the system works fine. I use cold tap water and have not noticed a significant change in water temp during any hike. When I used nalgene bottles I would start with hot tap water which would cool nicely to drinking temp by the time I needed a drink but I like my current system. I also usually carry a thermos of hot chocolate. Walmart sells a one liter, tall and skinny, all stainless thermos that keeps my hot chocolate warm all day. It costs under $10, weighs only ounces and slip easily into the inside side of my pack. You could carry hot water in that to mix with your nalgene water if you wish to carry water bottles.

Pete_Hickey said:

Keeping it close to your body. As I mentioned once before, I do it with my camelback. I shove it down my pants to keep it from freezing.

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So Pete, how often do you share your water?

marty said:

So Pete, how often do you share your water?

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Here is a related image!

marty said:

So Pete, how often do you share your water?

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Tom Rankin said:

Here is a related image!

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Tom beat me to it. That's exactly the expression on Timmus' face when I offered her a drink. I won't tell you what she said to me though. It's not printable.

Border Patrol

"Anything to declare?"
"Yes, I have a Camelback in my pants...."

I have a metal insulated bottle from Liquid Solutions (generic made in China stuff), but, it works great. These guys sell them-
http://www.active-gear.com/category_s/5.htm

Mine is the 24 oz. model. I actually have 2-Southwest managed to crunch one up a bit, but it still works okay. It will keep hot tea hot all day in freezing cold weather. A bit heavy.

I also have an insulated Camelbak bladder, but I've never tried it in cold weather, so not sure how effective it is. I have an OR cozy for a Nalgene that works okay, but not as good as the bottles. Lots lighter though. I don't use the Nalgenes that much to worry about BpA or whatever it is leaching out of them.