Hot pack recommendations?

[keith10247]

Good Evening all! I attended a firefighter rescue class this weekend that has made muscles that I did not know existed hurt like crazy! I grabbed a few hot packs from the back of our ambulance (3 to be exact) and popped the little bladder inside of the pack to activate the heat. The first one I broke open, it became cold. The second one I broke open, it became cold as well. The third one thankfully became hot. The next day, on my way to part 2 of the class, I grabbed 3 hot packs from the back of our EMS utility vehicle that I was driving with the intension of using one on my back en route to class. Again, I broke the first, it became cold...broke the second, it became hot but started to leak. I broke the 3rd and it became cold.

I am officially done with this brand of packs! I am looking for a replacement brand. The current brand that we use is called "Sol-R Heat". Does anybody have any other brands of packs that they use and haven't had issues with?

 

[MMiz]

I don't know of any of the "pop-and-use" heat or cold packs that actually work. I had this question a few years ago and ordered quite a few, but none stayed hot or cold for more than a few seconds.

 

[KEVD18]

they're all useless. although you should at the very least be getting heat from your hot packs. maybe not enough to actually do anything medicinal, but some.

 

[mycrofft]

Throw em out.

Put on a vest or wrap a towel around it.
And turn on the light next time, someone mixed your hot and cold packs up, like the idiot who keeps putting small gloves into the "large" box at my work.

(Did you know you can make ampho with unruptured cold packs? Beads are ammonium nitrate).

 

[keith10247]

The 2 that did heat up actually stayed warm for quite a while. I passed out with one on my back and woke up 45ish minutes later and it was still a little warm...The rest stayed cool infinitely!

I read the storage directions and they said "Store at room temperature". I wonder if parking the units in the heat can cause these to not work so well. The EMS Utility sits in the sun quite frequently so the jump bag gets heated up a lot. The storage compartment is in the back of the ambulance, near the back doors...so I guess it could technically become higher than room temperature. Perhaps I will maybe have to do an experiment some day... Could be fun I guess...