Bed warmer pockets?

[LittleFish]

This may be a totally misguided thought, but I'm trying to think of things, and that counts for something, right?

I'm not a fabrics/sewing expert. I was given a sewing machine and a nice cabinet for it as a Christmas gift last year, and I have not used it yet. Does that give you a clue? I know how to use it, used to sew when my children were little (and even made a few things they weren't ashamed to wear outside of the house) but there is always something else to do these days ... anyway ...

Thinking about keeping all of us warm at night if the stuff hits the fan, I remember the old stories/movies about warming a bed before you get in. As a variation on that, I am wondering about heating cast iron trivets on the cookstove/over a fire, depending on our circumstances at the time, and making quilted pouches that seal with heavy velcro to put them in, putting one in each bed or sleeping bag. I guess we could do it like a bed warmer, running it over the sheets/bag, and then poke it down at the feet to continue adding warmth until it expires and hopefully some heat would remain until morning? I have a few trivets already, and Amazon has 8" cast iron rounds for $9.99, not a bad investment if something like this would be worthwhile. I was looking at things online today, saw those, and then thought of this, so it isn't something well thought-out :)

My question: What kind of fabric/fill would be used to allow the warmth out but keep the feet from getting burned? Or would it just be a matter of letting the covered trivet sit in the sleeping bag a certain period of time before you get in? Or is this just a stupid idea?

Any info, even criticism saying 'what a stupid idea!', is welcome! Thanks!

[Brosia]

not a stupid idea at all. People needed those during the days before indoor heating, and goodness knows you might need it again soon.

couldn't you use flat river rocks (free) or bricks as the heated source? and I have a heating pad mom made me for my sinuses, I throw it in the microwave when needed- she used heavy terry cloth fabric.

Personally, I use my dog as my bed warmer.

[hunybee]

no, this is a very good idea, we just need to help ya iron out the details so you don't burn down your house or anything else.

the one thing i would make sure of, is that the bed warmer is NEVER IN CONTACT WITH A SYNTHETIC FABRIC! natural is best. synthetics will either catch fire like you sprayed them with rubbing alcohol, or they will melt. that means the the little pouch you put it in, blanket, sheets, clothes, anything that might touch them. they other thing to do is just do the trial and error and experiment with the hotness of the trivets to get the temp just right.

i am trying to get over this nasty junk, and i am not totally clear headed, so bear with me. i will come back if i forgot anything. we do this sort of thing here as well, but i have it already set up for it, so i might be forgetting to tell you something in the initial set up

good thinking!

[dilligaf]

what we use is a old blue jean leg..we do a lot of camping in temps well into the 20's so shortly before bed we will take a few rocks from around he camp fire and put them in a old jean leg with the ends tied off. we put it at our feet and it generally keeps us toasty till the wee hours of the morning..

[Geo-Raider]

Your Idea sounds good to try. Just be carefull not to burn something with the hot iron. I know in days of old, they would take cast iron skilets with hot coals from the fire and basicly iron the sheets on the bed to warm them. ME for a little extra kick of heat in the bed, i use a hot water bottle. Take care of it and it will not leak

[Little RedRidingHood]

young married woman.
Her family worked the farms and ranches in the high, cold mountains of Colorado in the 30's and on up.
They did not keep the fires going overnight and had only wood for heat and cooking. She told me they slept in flannel longjohns, gowns, and wool caps every single night during the winter under goosedown comforters. This was MEN and women on that huge ranch! The kids slept two or more to a bed for body warmth.
All the married couples felt bad for the single men who lived in the bunkhouses cause they didn't have another body for heat during the -30's and -40's!
She also told me that they'd get snow inside the cabins or ranch houses due to the frost buildup on the inside of the roof.
She and her hubby retired and put a mobile next to our little farm in the early 70's. She was a walking book about life on the ranches of Colorado!

[Limner]

Hot water bottles are your friend....

[hunybee]

young married woman.
Her family worked the farms and ranches in the high, cold mountains of Colorado in the 30's and on up.
They did not keep the fires going overnight and had only wood for heat and cooking. She told me they slept in flannel longjohns, gowns, and wool caps every single night during the winter under goosedown comforters. This was MEN and women on that huge ranch! The kids slept two or more to a bed for body warmth.
All the married couples felt bad for the single men who lived in the bunkhouses cause they didn't have another body for heat during the -30's and -40's!
She also told me that they'd get snow inside the cabins or ranch houses due to the frost buildup on the inside of the roof.
She and her hubby retired and put a mobile next to our little farm in the early 70's. She was a walking book about life on the ranches of Colorado!


hehehehe....that reminds me of growing up. same deal. my sister and i shared a room, and winter was/is COLD. cold as you said, and colder. our room would get like you describe: frost all on the inside windows and walls, you could see your breath.....we just didn't get the snow onthe inside.

[Summerthyme]

The trivet idea might work. What I know does work is rice bags, or cherry pit bags (whole field corn also holds heat well). And they sort of do "double duty" because you can use them like a heat pack- put them on a sore back or neck, or wrap them around chilly toes (sort of difficult with an iron trivet!)

If you're going to be using an oven or stovetop to heat them, you definitely need to use wool (cotton flannel would be second best). For rice bags which we heat in the microwave, I use PolarFleece, as it "wicks" some moisture from the rice and actually creates a moist heat pack... really good for pain and sore muscles.

If you insist on trying the trivet idea, I think wool or linen fabric is a must... they both have a high heat tolerance, and aren't likely to catch fire or scorch.

Oh, and for stovetop heating of the rice or corn bags, simply put a trivet or rack on the woodstove top, and put the bag on the trivet (not directly on the heat). The oven works better, but where there's a will, there's a way...

Summerthyme

[LittleFish]

Wow, a lot of great feedback and new ideas! Thanks so much!

Summerthyme, the rice bags give me another idea. Never thought of that, lack the knowledge base to consider it, actually. My hands hurt so much sometimes, and it's hard to find something to put on them that stays. I've tried to wrap various head pads and such, but doesn't work, and I don't want to pay for the 'thermoheat' things at $9 a pair. Maybe I could fashion something that wraps around my hand (over the thumb) with rice filling and velcro to fasten it, and wear those when it gets bad, heating it in the microwave.

If using an open fire, however, and that's what I'm planning for with the 'bed warmers', if we have no power due to a utility malfunction or worse, I'd be afraid of burning down the house with anything that could even remotely catch fire. I didn't think about residual heat, though, so will be sure to go with non-synthetic fabrics. Blue jeans would fit that description, as would wool or flannel.

As for the dog, well, my little smooth-haired dachshund uses me for heat, but he would be in the bed/bag with me if we're in this sort of situation. Hot water bottles would be great for us grown-ups, so I will get a couple of those. I'm afraid there would be leaks with grandkids. Going to try to cover the bases a couple of ways. It's what we have to do.

[SheWoff]

what we use is a old blue jean leg..we do a lot of camping in temps well into the 20's so shortly before bed we will take a few rocks from around he camp fire and put them in a old jean leg with the ends tied off. we put it at our feet and it generally keeps us toasty till the wee hours of the morning..

I like that idea! Worn parts of blue jeans sewn up like a pocket with a flap over top. Fasten with velcro and big enough to slip a warm brick inside! That would work all night long. Same thing my mom used to use was the warmed brick. I don't know why it wouldn't work inside a jeans pouch?

She

[dilligaf]

i would be leery of heating brick, unless it was fire brick, they are really brittle,river rock would be better..

you really dont want anything super hot anyway,too hot and they can explode.

i have found a good rule of thumb is if you cant hold the rock with just the cloth your putting it in for more than a few seconds,its too hot.

they dont have to be super hot to be effective ,river rock will slowly release its heat over many hours.

the problem i have with water bottles is once they cool off they get down right cold..

[hunybee]

i would be leery of heating brick, unless it was fire brick, they are really brittle,river rock would be better..

you really dont want anything super hot anyway,too hot and they can explode.

i have found a good rule of thumb is if you cant hold the rock with just the cloth your putting it in for more than a few seconds,its too hot.

they dont have to be super hot to be effective ,river rock will slowly release its heat over many hours.

the problem i have with water bottles is once they cool off they get down right cold..

yes. to all of that. we have used regular brick, but we have not done it to super hot, so i didn't think of that

[SheWoff]

This girl shows how to make a cover for a bean bag warmer she is making. I don't know why you couldn't use the same idea to make a cover for a brick?

She

http://suefrelick.blogspot.com/2008/10/foot-warmer-tutorial.html

btw...for those who sew, I got that from this link that has a gazillion free patterns for everything you can think of to sew! http://www.angelfire.com/planet/mcshelpsite/sewingstuff/freepatterns.html/

[LittleFish]

SheWoff -- here's my handwarmer: http://web.archive.org/web/20030409214804/http://www.teengirlclothing.com/hand-warmers.html

Maybe could layer two socks, sew together except for the leg/wrist opening, fill with rice around the hand then seal the rice where it belongs ... I'm sure it would come together, just have to think it through.

Thanks for those links!

[MsPaulRevere]

I use rice in nylon tube socks and just tie a knot in the end of the sock. Works like a charm and the cats and dogs seek them out.

I heat them in the microwave and they stay warm all nite. They continue to hold your body heat so it is like having another's feet on yours. I started using these to try and stop having foot cramps in the instep of my feet. This has stopped that problem and I cannot sleep without that little rice bag wrapped around my feet.

Also, freeze them in the summer and they are a nice cool treat hung around your neck or even in the bed for your feet on a hot summer day.

[SheWoff]

SheWoff -- here's my handwarmer: http://web.archive.org/web/20030409214804/http://www.teengirlclothing.com/hand-warmers.html

Maybe could layer two socks, sew together except for the leg/wrist opening, fill with rice around the hand then seal the rice where it belongs ... I'm sure it would come together, just have to think it through.

Thanks for those links!

I like those! Neat idea for all the colorful socks that I have that no longer fit lol. Was trying to come up with something that wont rely on electricity...I'll keep looking around.

She

[Liberty]

Add some whole cloves to your rice and each time the warmer is heated up it emits a wonderful clove scent which is very relaxing.

[Summerthyme]

Add some whole cloves to your rice and each time the warmer is heated up it emits a wonderful clove scent which is very relaxing.

Yep... or cinnamon chips. Or lavender buds.

Summerthyme

[carol b]

I use a water bottle and hat all winter. I put the water bottle in a flannel pillowcase.:-D

[Kayla]

Thanks for the idea of how to heat rice bags on a wood stove! I use them all the time in the winter, in fact, I can barely move in the morning before a hot rice bag session. I heat mine in the MW now, but have wondered how I'd heat them on the woodstove.

I have a dilemma that maybe some of you ladies could help me with. I dried up all my milk goats a few years ago because of the terrible pain in my hands caused by winter milking. My hands (mostly finger joints) hurt so bad for several hours after coming in from chores, it just wasn't worth it.

Now I really need to put my goats back in production again but I'm dreading the milking. The cold weather itself is bad enough (I have other winter livestock chores) but having to milk barehanded, and getting my hands wet while washing the goats before milking, is sheer torture. Any ideas how to keep my hands protected somewhat?

Regular rubber gloves (like dishwashing gloves) have no warmth at all. I've used those farm gloves that are material on the back but have rubber palms and fingers. They help some, but not alot, and still tend to get wet. Anything else that keeps my hands warm is too bulky and not waterproof.

I'm not much of a seamstress, but am working on making some gloves with rice bag pockets for the back of my hands to use for other chores. What to do for milking has me at a loss. I'd appreciate any suggestions!

ETA: My apologies for the thread drift! Didn't realize I was getting way off topic.

[Summerthyme]

Kayla... first line of defense is any good glove which keeps your hands dry... we use the nitrile gloves (hubby has Reynauds, and had a long-term infection in a thumb due to the cuticle separating from the nail; something which is usually due to constant exposure to water and chemicals- endemic problems for a dairy farmer).

Then, something like a small heat pack *around your wrist* may help... it will heat the blood as it comes from your heart, and keep the small blood vessels from going into spasm- the usual cause of pain in cold weather.

I'm trying to find a link someone posted to some really good warm, but workable winter gloves... I think it may have been on TB2k, because I can't find it here now, anyway.

I suspect if you find a good, flexible Thinsulate type glove to put OVER the nitrile gloves, it will work.

Summerthyme

[Kayla]

Thank you, Summerthyme! I can undoubtedly manage to fumble my way through making some rice bag type wrist warmers. :mrgreen:

I had no idea that my hand pain could be caused by something like that, I just assumed it was arthritis. It would be wonderful to be able to milk again without being in tears for hours afterward.

[Summerthyme]

Kayla... well, it COULD be arthritis, too... do you have problems at other times?

Even if you have mild arthritis, it would be well worth getting on glucosamine (and chondroitin, if money isn't a major issue... they work a little better together, but glucosamine alone DOES work, and is a lot cheaper). It's not a painkiller, and it doesn't work instantly, but it will rebuild the cartilage in damaged joints over a period of months. As I've posted before, my husband was told he'd "need a hip replacement within 5 years"... 14 years ago. I put him on glucosamine and chondroitin (horse powder, because they didn't sell it for humans back then! LOL!)... and here it is, 9 years past the "absolute longest" they thought he'd be able to stand it.. and we're still dairy farming. The heat and pain in the hip pretty well vanished within 3 months, and while he still limps on occasion- well, he is 56 and beats himself up almost daily with the hard labor of farming. We had x-rays taken a couple years ago, and they show NO signs of arthritis, the joint surfaces are smooth and healthy, and the joint spacing is now back to normal (it was nearly "bone on bone" the first time).

(the only contraindication for glucosamine is shellfish allergies- that's what it's made of)

Also, if you don't take a good B complex, you may want to consider taking extra Vitamin B6... around 100 mgs a day has cured many cases of carpal tunnel syndrome (including in people who were scheduled for surgery). No idea why or how it works... but every few months, I'll start having all the symptoms- numb hands at night, pain on use, etc... and a couple weeks of supplementing extra B6 works every time.

Summerthyme

[Disastercat]

If you have a shell fish allergy (I do) aloe also works when taken over time. Not as well as glucosamine, but it does help, a lot.

[mcfay]

My mother use to heat up an electric iron and wrap it in a towel to put at our feet to keep them warm.

[Kayla]

Thanks a bunch for that info, Summerthyme. I don't have carpal tunnel but my DH has problems with it. I will get him started on the B6. He is really plagued by the numbness at night.

I really don't know much about arthritis. I don't think I have it, not in my hands at least. Never had any swelling of joints ever, and no stiffness from spring through fall. The pain (and some stiffness) is just in the winter, and since I quit getting my hands so cold and wet in the winter, it hasn't bothered me too often. I dread having to deal with it again.

I do have a lot of pain in my feet that could be arthritis related. It's odd as the pain's in the TOP of my feet mostly. That started up about a year ago. I've been through 5 car wrecks and a number of horse wrecks, including one where a horse fell on me and pretty well mashed both my feet & ankles. So that problem might be arthritis. I'll give the glucosamine/chondroitin a try to see if that helps.

[Saul Mine]

Flannel sheets work better than any sort of warming gizmo.

[momof23goats]

heavy natural wool, I wouldthink, but the bed warmers them selves were made of copper, and filled with hot coals out of the fireplace or stove.

[RockyMountainHoosier]

1. I'm one who has broken multiple bones and if I'm in Indiana at all during the winter I am SORE. (Arthritis in my neck minimally at the moment) I moved West and the dry air up here helped 100%

2. My personal bedwarmer is my pug. LOL Of course he probably thinks I'm in the bed JUST to keep him warm. Such is a pug for that.

3. Wool would be my answer to the question.

4. As a kid I lived in the coldest corner of the house -- to this day I can't have a very warm bedroom -- but anyway, I would often tack up a heavy blanket to make a "bed tent" over my bed and find out it was MUCH warmer. :) There's a reason for those old school bed curtains beyond decoration. Of course that wasn't my intention with the tent. There were other times when I shared a room with my little sister and I wanted privacy from her hence the tent. LOL

Nai

[Limner]

heavy natural wool, I wouldthink, but the bed warmers them selves were made of copper, and filled with hot coals out of the fireplace or stove.

The coals were placed in the bedwarmer pan, and the lid closed. Then the pan was slid between the sheets and moved back and forth between them, warming the area. That's why they had long handles! It was never allowed to rest for more than a second or two, because it would scorch the sheets and possibly set the thing on fire. A few quick passes and the person crawled in....and the person with the pan went to the next bed.....and repeated. Coals were dumped bck in the fireplace when
the beds were warmed up.

[juststartn]

I think that the wool would be the best. Especially felted wool. Go to the thrift store, and find some old holey men's large sweaters. Sometimes, you can find already felted sweaters there, since someone just didn't have the heart to throw them away...

I'd think if you carefully cut the sweater, and then laid a cold brick (a fireplace brick would have the heat holding capabilities, I would think, instead of a regular veneer brick) on top of it...then fiddle with it until you find the best way of positioning/pinning/folding, with as little cutting/sewing to be done...

Then, if you need to wash the wool, it's already shrunk, with it being felted, it is VERY dense.

Another option would be a very moth-eaten wool coat. Slice the biggest panels from it and use those to wrap them bricks in.

But I'd definitely look into fireplace bricks, as opposed to the other kind. They are manufactured to handle high heat, and would be less likely to explode, split, or otherwise disintegrate.

Another option would be some quilted cotton--but you'd need to have a cotton batting, as well. So maybe a 'cutter quilt'--an old quilt that had been well used, and just needed to be repurposed? Use a chunk of it to make brick wraps...

HTH

Rachel

[MaureenO]

I think that the wool would be the best. Especially felted wool. Go to the thrift store, and find some old holey men's large sweaters. Sometimes, you can find already felted sweaters there, since someone just didn't have the heart to throw them away...

I'd think if you carefully cut the sweater, and then laid a cold brick (a fireplace brick would have the heat holding capabilities, I would think, instead of a regular veneer brick) on top of it...then fiddle with it until you find the best way of positioning/pinning/folding, with as little cutting/sewing to be done...

Then, if you need to wash the wool, it's already shrunk, with it being felted, it is VERY dense.

Another option would be a very moth-eaten wool coat. Slice the biggest panels from it and use those to wrap them bricks in.

But I'd definitely look into fireplace bricks, as opposed to the other kind. They are manufactured to handle high heat, and would be less likely to explode, split, or otherwise disintegrate.

Another option would be some quilted cotton--but you'd need to have a cotton batting, as well. So maybe a 'cutter quilt'--an old quilt that had been well used, and just needed to be repurposed? Use a chunk of it to make brick wraps...

HTH

Rachel

That's a great idea that would work! Would bricks reheat in the microwave, do you think?

Maureen

[juststartn]

I don't think the microwave would be the best place for them, even for fireplace bricks, simply because of the uneven heating, the pockets of air in the bricks, etc. I'd consider trying one, outside, maybe as a science experiment for the children (kind of like trying to microwave an egg in the shell, a grape, etc. LOL). But I think by the time you got the entirety of the brick hot enough, it'd be too dangerous to handle, iykwim?

I'd suggest the oven, slow and steady heat. Just put them in at dinner time on a low temp, and then pop them out of the oven with some oven mitts, into their wrappers, and then cart them off the beds on a cookie sheet. LOL.

But that's just me.

Of course, I snuggle the dc into bed two at a time, so that's what works for us--body heat. :-D I always told DH when I was pregnant, that he was a furnace, and they (the children) were our "MiniModels A-D" (we have three girls, and then a set of twin boys--the boys are models D1 & D2).

Seriously though, you need steady even heat applied over time, as opposed to something 'shocking', like a microwave.

If you are using your oven for dinner, just put the bricks in there when you are preheating, and leave them there, when dinner is over--just crank the oven back to 200 or something low, but heat-retaining.

Rachel

[mommy magic]

what i do is sew 3 sides of a sqare peice of flannal, put rice in it and sew the last side up, it makes great heaters, the kids use them in there socks after being outside in the cold, i make them in lots of sizes and you can heat them up in tin foil, great for cool packs too