Adventures in LB Warming: Hot Water Bottle

[lb_lee]

 Mori: OMG GUYS HOT WATER BOTTLES ARE AMAZING.

Okay, so apartment heat is still in progress. And we are forbidden from using space heaters, ever, on account of this house being wired by gremlins. It was time to bust out the old-school hot water bottle we inherited from a previous tenant three housings ago. We always knew one day its time would come!

Low-Tech Magazine had nothing but praise for the humble hot water bottle, but we were dubious that the water that came out of the hot water tap was enough. It seemed so mild. GREATER FOOL WE! We deprived ourselves of most excellent thermal comfort, and for what? LEARN FROM OUR IGNORANCE, DEAR READER!

If we want to work at our sitting desk, we can achieve MAXIMUM THERMAL COMFORT like so:

1. Fill hot water bottle after washing dishes, so the tap is nice and hot. (Do not pour boiling water into your bottle. It will damage the rubber and also risk hurting you if it leaks or spills.)
2. Sit at desk.
3. Put hot water bottle on lap. (Warms it AND easy reach for your hands!)
4. Drap body with towel, blanket, poncho, Snuggie, etc.
5. MAXIMUM COMFORT!!!

Seriously, this is the best. The seemingly mild heat sticks around, warming your body directly. It is super comforting to hold and doesn't fuck with our shoulder or back. Sticking this in our bed as a foot warmer will be magical. So far, it is way better than just layering up, and it keeps our hands warm, which is equally difficult and important while we're working.

SOOOOO worth lugging for three moves! A+!

Comments

[starfallhaven]

Wishing you many warm cups of your beverage of choice and cozy things to wear. Also, I hope things get fixed soon. Dealing with the cold can't be fun. At least there is hot water.

Can confirm that heat on your feet on cold nights is the best...although we had it in dog form. Still though. -Homura (she/her)

[lb_lee]

THE HEAT IS BACK ON! And yes, dogs are the ORIGINAL hot water bottle. (There's a camp stove brand nowadays that's called something like Four Dog Stoves, on account of them being as good for heating as four dogs.)

[wolffyluna]

Wahey, excellent! Keeping your feet warm is surprisingly difficult, but once you've done it, it kind of makes the rest of you warm.

I am a Wheat Pack Partisan, but it appears they have a worthy opponent in the competition of Warms! Hail the Hot Water Bottle!

[lb_lee]

I've never heard of a wheat bag before; they seem to be mostly an Australian thing? Are they just... wheat flour that gets heated instead? Doesn't that run the risk of exploding???

[wolffyluna]

They're made with whole grains of wheat (or sometimes uncooked rice.) They don't explode... but they can catch fire. The way you stop that is getting a corner wet before you heat them.

[manglefox]

Bless the wheat bags. Or corn bags, same principle. So toasty.
We have a couple heatable plush animals filled with small ceramic beads.

[sinistmer]

Glad you have found some good warming measures and I hope everything gets fixed soon!

[lb_lee]

THE HEAT IS BACK ON! HUZZAH!

[manglefox]

We used to do that with water babies as a child. It was so nice.

[lb_lee]

What are water babies? We looked it up but all we're getting is like an old book/movie and swimming baby photos.

[manglefox]

OH, they're this doll type from the nineties. Their bodies are rubber. You fill them with water using this weird funnel thing and then dress them up in outfits, but they're toasty warm and great to put on your lap at night. You can still find them in stores, I think.

Found them

[lb_lee]

Mori: Huh. Today I done learned!

Rogan: The hot water bottle definitely makes me weirdly happy. I think the weight, heat, and feel of it mimics a living being? It's odd!

Thoughts

[ysabetwordsmith]

I like a hot sock. It is lightweight and microwaveable. Mine are filled with crushed walnut shells. (There are many options.) Tucked under my cardigan, it adds warmth to my core for about half an hour.

Re: Thoughts

[lb_lee]

We did indeed use a tube sock full of dry lentils for years, but the microwave was starting to melt the elastic, so we upgraded to a machine-washable cloth thing full of cherry pits that handles the microwave better. It works similarly!

Re: Thoughts

[ysabetwordsmith]

Yeah, cherry pits are real popular. The best analysis of fillings that I've found is here:

https://alittlecrispy.com/2016/12/hot-pack-fillings/