DIY Resuable Sodium Acetate Handwarmer

Instructions on how to make a Reusable Sodium Acetate hand warmer

There are lots of instructions on how to make sodium acetate from baking soda and vinegar, but none of these instructions went all the way and showed how to actually make a worthwhile reusable hand warmer.

This video shows how to make the activator (clicker), the bag, and the proper solution consistency.

One of my motivations for making this video is to get some new ideas for making these hand warmers better.

1st idea. Right now I am using vinyl for the bag which works fairly well. The biggest problem with vinyl is that at super low temperatures it becomes brittle. I have thought that the plastic used in hydration bladders might work well but I don't know where to get that plastic.

2nd Idea - I want a better way to warm up the bags. Larger/Thicker bags take forever to recharge via boiling. One idea I played around with for a while was putting metal in the bag and trying to heat the metal using an induction cooktop. I think that has some promise except my induction cooktop is cheap and keeps turning off if there isn't enough metal on it. Also, the cooktop's controls were very rudimentary and I would often burn through bags. (Note I had to use 420 Stainless Steel or else the metal would rust).

3rd Idea -- I have starting making isolated bags to put the hand warmer in to make the heat dissipate slower.

Hopefully you find this video useful and maybe can provide some feedback on how to make it better.

Category:

Howto & Style

Tags:

• Hand Warmer
• Sodium Acetate
• Activator
• Clicker
• Reusable
• Do It Yourself

[lboogie875]

Thanks. I was talking about the bucket of sodium acetate. Just wondering if it would be cost effective to make a bunch for friends or buy some.

[nivekmic]

I have only made my own sodium acetate once. It took a very long time, mostly because vinegar is mostly water and I had to boil most of the water off. I don't know how cheaply you could make it but it is a ton easier to buy it. I think I bought 5 pounds and that will make quite a few depending on the size you make your bags.

[lboogie875]

Great tutorial! Where did you buy your sodium acetate from? How large is your bottle?

[nivekmic]

@lboogie875 I bought my sodium acetate at hvchemical

[nivekmic]

@lboogie875, I assume your talking about the bag, not the bottle? The bag is about 10" x 7" and easily holds 4 1/2 cups of solution. When I buy sodium acetate I buy it in a 5 pound bucket, and 5 pounds should make a few hand warmers this size.

[walusz73]

This is an awsome instructable. I go primitive camping and a couple of these in my pack to slide in my sleeping bag to warm it before climbing in would be gr8. Thanks

[chillinator]

You might think about picking up a flour sifter to help with those lumps ;)