Cold Weather Clothing and Equipment Prepared for CAP ESSE - M. Bennett

Topics Cold Weather Clothing Getting Some Sleep Why do you stay warm What do you need to stay warm Fabric Structures Common Materials The Layer Principle Getting Some Sleep Adequate Shelter Clothing and Gear Sleeping Bag and Ground Pads

Cold Wx Clothing – Why Do You Need to Stay Warm? Positive Mental Attitude Being cold sucks. Prevent Hypothermia Maintain core body heat (98.6!) Stay dry Prevent Frostbite Frozen fingers can’t start fires Frozen feet hurt to walk

Cold Wx Clothing – What Do You Need to Stay Warm? Head and Neck How much body heat is lost from the head and neck? Knit caps Ear muffs Scarves Face Masks Hands Gloves Mittens Core Body Thermal layers to trap body heat Barriers against water and wind Feet Socks Sock Liners Proper Boots

Cold Wx Clothing – Fabric Structures Two primary structures for cold weather fabrics Woven Fabrics Tight structure using parallel yarns to increase density Good for resisting wind; bad as a thermal insulator Knit Fabrics Loose structure utilizing loops for stretch Good as a thermal insulator; bad at resisting wind

Cold Wx Clothing – Fabric Structures Woven Fabrics Repetitive over/under pattern Yarns are pulled tight during weaving, so finished fabric has little stretch Very little space between yarns = good protection against the elements

Cold Wx Clothing – Fabric Structures Knit Fabrics Rows of intersecting loops going across a fabric horizontally Yarns are loose, and finished fabric can stretch easily Millions of small air pockets in loops = good thermal insulator

Cold Wx Clothing – Common Materials Synthetic Fabrics Polypropylene Fleece Gortex Nylon/Polyester/Elastane Blends (Under Armor®) Natural Fabrics Silk Cotton Wool Down Hydrophilic or Hydrophobic? Primary Use?

Cold Wx Clothing – The Layer Principle Many light layers are better than one heavy layer Use only as many layers as needed to stay warm Prevents sweating under one heavy layer Each layer traps pockets of warm air to insulate you against the cold

Cold Wx Clothing – The Layer Principle Black vertical lines represent an individual layer of cold wx clothing. 1: Base Layer (Thermal) 2: Polypropylene Fleece (Thermal) 3: BDU’s (Protective) 4: Heavy Jacket/Pants (Protective) 4 3 2 1

Getting Some Sleep – Adequate Shelter The level of shelter necessary to allow for adequate sleep will vary with changing weather conditions. Tarp/Poncho Shelters Natural Shelters Snow Caves/Igloos

Getting Some Sleep – Clothing and Gear How should you prepare your gear and excess clothing for the night? Take off your boots Remove belts and small items from pockets Wet or icy clothing/equipment should be left outside to freeze Unworn shirts or socks should be in the sleeping bag with you. Circulation is good. Freeze articles overnight to break up the ice in the morning.

Getting Some Sleep – Sleeping Bags and Ground Pads Most sleeping bags work by trapping heat in small air pockets Compressing the sleeping bag material reduces heat conservation Ground pads provide an extra layer of insulation between your body heat and the frozen ground

Questions?