Zippo Hand Warmer (094/365)

I received this Zippo brand hand warmer a few days ago.  This will be part of my EDC for the season.  The package came with the warmer unit + catalyst piece, a warming pouch, and the filler cup.  :)  As I'd mentioned in the Charcoal Hand Warmer post, I'm putting the charcoal one on hold for "emergency" use and using the Zippo on a more regular basis.

So far, the Zippo has worked well for the few days that I've owned it.  It's extremely easy to use, though I do need to get newer lighter fluid.  My lighter fluid was so old that it had degraded a little and wasn't very flammable.  The hand warmer gets nice and toasty (though so far, not as toasty as my charcoal one) and there is no scent that I can detect.  I hope that the "lack" of warmth was due to the old lighter fluid.  :(

The other day, I went all around town looking for lighter fluid, but to no avail.  I was only able to find butane canisters around.  :(  What's going on?

The first time I'd tried to fill it using the little filler, I didn't press the tip into the cotton and I'd made a mess.  I learned that I needed to kind of "tap" the tip of the filler into the cotton, allowing the fluid to wick into the cotton and into the filling chamber.  :)

Would I recommend it?  Most definitely.

Cheers!

Charcoal Hand Warmer (086/365)

It's that time of year again!  :)  The cold season is finally upon us and it's time to pull out the hand warmers.

I've had my share of different types of hand warmers over the years - disposable, reusable sodium acetate ones, homemade ones (that you microwave), and these charcoal ones.  These charcoal ones are pretty bomb.  They get nice and toasty and for the amount of heat you get from it, is relatively inexpensive ($0.25 = 6 hours of "intense" heat).  I think people have problems lighting it because they don't let it smolder long enough before closing the case.

I've had this charcoal one (seen above) since the 8th grade (I'm now a senior in college).  It has served me well over the years.  But I think I will save it for the future as a backup.  Why?  Zippo's finally made their platinum catalyst type ones more readily available and much more affordable than back when I was in the 8th grade.

In 8th grade, if I wanted a catalyst type hand warmer, it would have cost me upwards of $40.00 + the cost of fuel (whereas the charcoal ones were $5.00 + fuel cost).  I couldn't afford that and were extremely hard to come by.  Back then, it was even hard to come by the disposables and I think the sodium acetate ones were only found in chemistry labs.  The Jon-E and peacock brand catalyst ones were hard to find as well.

Fast forward to the present, the Zippos can be easily had for $12.00 shipped and it runs off of lighter fluid.  I'll keep the charcoal one in safe keeping for those days when lighter fluid is scarce around the house.  And if camping, I'll bring it as a backup, especially if I don't want to waste precious lighter fluid.  :D  The charcoal one will still have its place, but I want to keep it around for backup reasons.

I had thought about using up all of the charcoal fuel sticks before using the Zippo, but I think it has its place as a backup warmer.  :)