Extremely Cold Weather (-40) Clothing

Tuco

Tuco

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I'm going to be spending some time working in very cold (-40 is the intersection point of C and F!) weather. What are people's recommendations for clothes to get? Note that I will need to walk around in tundra/snowy conditions and will likely need to operate machinery and a computer in those conditions.
 
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Tenks

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I have a Canada Goose bomber I wear when it dips below 0 around here and my other jackets don't cut the mustard. Even in 0 degree weather I can wear just a tshirt under it and be fine. Though you'd probably want a full parka not a bomber for what you're asking. They're also expensive. And they're only getting more expensive since they've grown into a status symbol coat. But it is lightweight and I don't feel like I'm the kid from XMas Story wearing it because it is so huge. When it was super fuck as balls cold out I also wore my Canada Goose vest under it as well. But honestly I was sweating balls and it was like -20 out. I'm sure a wool under sweater would work for -40.
 
Lejina

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Get some polypropylene underwear, like long sleeves/long johns underarmor kind of deal.They keep you warm and dry. Stay away from cotton for the layer touching your skin directly, or for any layer really. You need the moisture to wick away from your body.

If you're going to be typing on a computer, get some thin stretchy gloves that go for like 99c. Reason being, you can wear them easy inside whatever mitts/gloves you will end up using and if you need to take those off to use the keyboard or something similar, you will at least have the cheap stuff on, which is an order of magnitude better than going bare skin.

Neck gaiters beats scarves when it comes to being functional. Get a tight one that will go straight on your neck and under your tuque, plus another much looser one that will go over face and tuque if you need the extra warmth.

Whatever coat you get, don't get something too form fitting. Key to being warm in the cold is to wear multiple layers. Plus, that gives you the ability to throttle how much insulation you wear if you move a lot. You can take off some layers as you activity increase so you don't get drenched in sweat and put them back on as you slow down so you don't get cold. If all you have is a giant fucking coat and a tshirt underneath, you're pretty much boned if you break a sweat.

So, picture underarmor tight fitting long sleeves/long johns.
Looser PT kind of long sleeves tshirt with sweat pants.
A Fleece jacket like this
rrr_img_89074.jpg

Then a parka with the matching pants.

Stay away from steel toe caps for your winter boots. Just don't.

Get a tuque with a blend of around 30-40% whool (more get scratchy and less isn't as warm). Neck gaiters should be acrylic.

Get some big fucking mitts.

Then you're gtg.
 
Mist

Mist

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Bring lots of peanut butter M&Ms.

Seriously, that's what they pack in army cold weather rations. You need to eat 5-6k calories a day at those temperatures.
 
McCheese

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Mist_sl said:
Bring lots of peanut butter M&Ms.

Seriously, that's what they pack in army cold weather rations. You need to eat 5-6k calories a day at those temperatures.
Click to expand...
Lol, maybe if you are doing tons of physical stuff you need to eat that amount. But I assure you there are tons of people who live in -40 temps for large parts of the year without eating much more than you or I would.

Anyway, as said already, layers are your friend. This is especially true if you will be going inside at different points during the day, as it is nice to be able to shed layers of clothes when needed so you arent either super warm or super cold.
 
Khane

Khane

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If you are bundled up well and your body isn't cold you can eat normally but if you are cold.... drastically cold for extended periods throughout the day your body will burn a shitload of calories just trying to keep itself warm.
 
Adebisi

Adebisi

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Even though I haven't snowboarded in 10 years, I still use my snowboarding pants in the winter when it gets nasty.

Nice and warm.
 
BrutulTM

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One thing I have discovered in recent years is fleece/flannel lined jeans. They are great. It's like wearing long underwear without wearing long underwear, and you can still wear long underwear.

As others have said, it's all about layers. In fact I don't wear a parka type coat even in really severe cold. It's just too much in one piece and it makes it impossible to adjust for the temperature and your activity level. If you are really going to be standing around outdoors not moving for hours then it might make sense but if you're going to be doing things and getting in and out of a vehicle then I wouldn't wear it. Also don't buy under armor. That shit is seriously overpriced. I wear duofold long underwear and it's the same shit for 1/3 the price.

My "everything" setup is as follows: Long underwear+flannel lined jeans on the bottom. You could wear insulated bib coveralls over that if you wanted to but I never find that necessary personally. On top I wear a cotton undershirt and a long sleeved cotton t-shirt. Sometimes I will even add a short sleeved cotton t-shirt in between just for good measure. Then I wear a thin microfleece windbreaker, an insulated canvas vest (carhartt), and a lined canvas shirt over all of that. That's 6 layers, none of which are a heavy coat and that's how I like it. Very easy to drop or add layers to adjust for the temperature and what you're doing and you are still fairly mobile.

My boots for cold weather are Arctic Sport Muck Boots. You won't do much better for warmth and water proof than that without going to crazy expensive stuff. I can't wear those boots if it's warmer than 30 degrees though or my feet sweat like crazy and jungle rot sets in within a few days. I just wear a knit beanie hat on my head or sometimes a baseball cap with the beanie over it if I want the sun out of my eyes. The fleece lined ones are nice.

Sadly the only thing that really keeps your hands warm are big ass mittens which you can't do a god damn thing while you're wearing. I generally find them impractical so I wear thinsulate lined leather gloves with knit glove liners underneath. They don't keep your hands warm but you can do some things and they will keep frostbite from setting in. The fancy ski gloves are NOT worth the money in my experience. If it's below zero your fingers will freeze in $150 ski gloves just as quick as they do in $15 gloves. I heard that the local ski patrol guys wear $8 leather/canvas lined gloves and put mink oil on them to make them waterproof. Haven't tried this myself but it's an interesting idea. Cold hands are the worst part about working outdoors to me. There's just not a good solution to it and your hands wind up hurting all day from being cold.

The main thing is to keep moving. You can be pretty comfortable in sub-zero temps if you keep moving, and if you're doing hard physical labor you will start shedding layers even when it's below zero. It's when you have to stand still that you really get cold.
 
Mist

Mist

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McCheese_sl said:
Lol, maybe if you are doing tons of physical stuff you need to eat that amount. But I assure you there are tons of people who live in -40 temps for large parts of the year without eating much more than you or I would.

Anyway, as said already, layers are your friend. This is especially true if you will be going inside at different points during the day, as it is nice to be able to shed layers of clothes when needed so you arent either super warm or super cold.
Click to expand...
He said he was working outdoors.
 
Lejina

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This is Tuco we're talking about. He's not going to play Canadian Ranger or pretend to be a lumberjack.

He's going to stand around a lot, walk for 15min every other hour and maybe run after a crazed robot for a mile or two.
 
Mist

Mist

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I dunno, my friend who did cold weather training for the army said he had to eat 5-6k calories a day just sitting in place looking around with his goggles, with the occasional hike to some other place to sit around looking with his goggles.
 
Lejina

Lejina

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I've been out in the snow for weeks on end, pulling a sled during the day and sleeping in a bivy bag right in the snow bank at night. Yeah, in such situation you drink oil, snack almost hourly on cheese, spoonfuls of peanut butter and mars bars.

Tuco isn't doing that. He's going to be out maybe 8 hours a day, he's going to have a warm bed with heavy breakfasts and dinners. Don't be dramatic.
If he was headed to do a handstand on the south pole or do advanced winter warfare in Alert, he would have worded his post very differently and would have gotten different answers.
 
chthonic-anemos

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Waterproof insulated coveralls that you can fit in while fully clothed. Take it off and climb into another if the first gets messed.

If there will be drunk drivers and poor visibility wear something reflective that stands out so they can find your body after the accident.
 
Tuco

Tuco

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Lejina_sl said:
This is Tuco we're talking about. He's not going to play Canadian Ranger or pretend to be a lumberjack.

He's going to stand around a lot, walk for 15min every other hour and maybe run after a crazed robot for a mile or two.
Click to expand...
This is basically true.

I'm mostly concerned with having to sit outside for hours at a time and operating a computer without getting frostbite. I have an assortment of fingerless gloves I wear, but even then it can get brutal using them at 15 degree temperature, much less -40.


I'm not worried about food at all, though from what I hear the meals they provide at the base I'll be at are extremely calorie dense.
 
Lejina

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Bring pencils. If push comes to shove, you hold them with your big warm mits and type with the eraser. Slow as balls and look silly, but beats calling it a day because your lost three fingers.

As I said in my first post, don't ever go bare skin with your hands. At worst you should have something like this covering your hands.
rrr_img_89097.jpg

They are shit, but still beat wearing nothing and you can wear them inside whatever else you plan to wear as your primary gloves/mitts. If you don't do well with the cold, consider some glove warmer packets, but careful with that shit, they can actually cause some damage if they touch the skin directly.

If you're just going to sit there for a long time, your feet might be the big issue. Look for thin polypro socks to wear on the skin to wick moisture and get 100% wool socks. Make sure there's still room in your boots to be able to wiggle your toes.
 
Abefroman

Abefroman

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I worked in a Deep Freeze Warehouse for IceCream where it was always at least 40 below. Use a mask with a filter like this.Amazon.com: ColdAvenger Classic Fleece Half-Mask: Clothing
Get some freezer boots that are pretty much rubber galoshes that you put your feet in after you put a thinsulate booty over your sock. They act like mittens for your feet. Also get a two peice winter snow suit with a pocket to keep your hands warm. Nothing besides mittens are gonna keep your hands warm at that temp for very long. If you need to use your hands in that temp, surpisingly the best thing you can use are rubber coated cloth gardening gloves that you can buy cheap at Home Depot. They will keep your hands warm just as good as anything else, but you can actually use your hands to type and other things with them.
 
Xevy

Xevy

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Vaseline. Put it on anything that doesn't have at least 2 layers. I was clearing trees for a drop zone last year in -20 degree weather (non wind chill) and I just had under armor or the walmart equivalent, Columbia fleece, Jeans (I'd recommend long johns under neath), hiking socks, steel toed workboots, a hat, goggles, a bandana or facemask, and two pairs of gloves. The gloves were key and the other guy with me had to borrow another pair. If you're typing I'd honestly say mix some bengay or tiger balm with vaseline and smear it on your hands and wear some thin, cheap gloves when typing and two pairs elsewise. Vaseline helps protect it from the wind and the tiger balm or bengay will light you up with that delightful burning feeling.

Really the key is just under armor covering everything you can, then another layer on top. Anything exposed to the open air/wind should be vaseline'd completely. Own the shine!
 
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