Hi all - I have a nephew who's serving in Iraq right now. He's definitely got it better than a lot of guys - he's a mechanic, and on a base with some basic amenities and at night their tent's got AC (don't know how good it is).
But that said, it's 117 degrees or so daily, 105 in the shade (if you can get it), and he said he spends the majority of his "down time" trying to cool off enough to go to sleep.
So, I know we have members who live in comparable weather conditions (Arizona comes to mind) - or have done so in the past. Any suggestions for adapting to the heat (he's only been there a couple weeks), or tricks/tips for keeping cool when you can't hang out in the AC?
Any/all suggestions are welcomed.
And as a side note/question, anyone know anything about this item?
Camper's Ice Cream Maker
I've found links to where it's sold, but not a single review or any mention of anyone who's actually used it. I'm considering it as a novelty present for him, but I still don't know if he regularly has access to enough ice to make this usable (and assuming I/other family members would send him some of the ingredients he'd need)...for those who've done stints of long, hot work, would you then feel like futzing around with the ingredients on this thing, then spending 20 minutes or so rolling it around to make a pint of ice cream or slushy? Or does it just seem like a car camper's luxury item?
Thanks folks
Dave

I use to work almost daily in those and higher temps in an industrial setting. We always had to keep an eye on the new guys until they learned to deal with the heat. We always sent them to drink lots of water and sports drinks if they started to falter. In a low humidity setting getting wet on the outside helps too depending on circumstances of course.
As I sit here looking out on a cool rainy day I don’t really miss it much but know I could survive it again if I had to. Give him our best wishes and tell him to watch the guys who have been there a while they will have learned a few tricks.
Temps like that you will never “beat” but you can learn to keep them from killing you!

Tell your nephew we thank him for his service. Without men like him we would not be free.

Here in Arizona we also have very hot dry weather, it was 110 yesterday. I do a lot of hiking in the heat. One of the best things I have found is to take a neckerchief and get it wet. Tie it around your neck. The evaporating water will cool you off. Also getting your hat wet helps. There is a product called cool bandanas. There are several brands. http://www.coolbandanas.com/ The crystals get cool when wet and stay that way for a long time. They have camouflage.

Dave,

IMHO having an AC sleeping facility is a mistake; it keeps him from climatizing. I'm saying that based on my experiences in Somalia in 92 - 93, where it got even hotter than that. (And FWIW, my experiences living here in the humid and hot Midwest summers). For a brief time I had the use of an AC trailer and working outside became miserable. When I moved back outside 100% of the time, I functioned great, slept great, etc. Sure, you sweat a lot (and have to drink a lot of water), but it was not that hard to get used to.

Spending time in and out of AC space is the problem.

HTH,

Tom

One trick is to soak a T-shirt in water, wring it out a little bit so you don't drip everywhere, then put it on next to the skin. The cooling effect of the evaporating water is significant, and this works really well in low-humidity climes. When I used this technique in the Grand Canyon it was like wearable air conditioning. Also, the cooler the water is, the better.

Unfortunately I think it just takes time more than anything else. <img src="/images/graemlins/frown.gif" alt="" />

Hi all - thanks for the recommendations so far. More ideas would be welcomed.
Craig - yep, I saw those and added a couple in the package I sent him - hopefully they'll help, too.

Ayers - I suspect you're right about that, but it's probably a tough sell to tell the guys they're better off without it...I imagine if it was available, I'd want it, too.
On another board, I got recommended to try this item:
Misty Mate

Has anyone tried these? Are they effective/worthwhile?
Thanks again guys.
Dave

I know that many of the major theme parks have them at various locations to “cool” down the guests and yes they do work.

However, a clean source of water or the ability to treat the water is absolutely necessary. Contaminated (biologically or chemically) water dispersed in this ultra-fine mist is asking for respiratory infections and deep ones at that. As the fine water mist could be deeply inhaled.

Pete

There is no way to skip the "aclimatization" (spl) period.
I served in extremely hot and dry places. First week is hell burt once the body gets "tuned" then you know how to behave, how much you can push yourself and how much to drink : in some places we were asked to drink some 20+ liters a day- NEVER EVER skip on this. Economize in sweat but never on drinking.

We never did all those tricks with a wet shirt or a wet whatever. In dry conditions the body cools by itself provided the liquids intake is appropiate, and being too busy with tending that wet shirt, will distract you from the job you are doing.

I live in a somewhat warmish and humid place- not hell, but close.

Try this, they work! <img src="/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />
http://www.friendshipcorners.com/coolnecktie.htm