Psolar.BX Balaclava, Long Term Report

PERSONAL INFORMATION

Name: Carol Crooker

Age: 45

Gender: Female

Height: 5 ft 10 in (178 cm)

Weight: 160 lbs (73 kg)

Hat size: 7 ¼

Head circumference: 22 ¾” (57.8 cm)

I wear glasses.

Email: cmcrooker (AT) att (DOT) net

City, State: Phoenix, Arizona

Date: May 29, 2004

Backpacking background: For the past 7 years, I've backpacked about 30 days each year. Most of my trips were three to six days long, and were in Arizona, the High Sierras, Idaho, Oregon, Utah, Pennsylvania and New York. My three-season base pack weight varies from 12 lbs (5 kg) to 8 lbs (4 kg). I use a tarp for shelter in all four seasons.

PRODUCT SYNOPSIS

The Psolar.BX balaclava is a stretch fleece hood and facemask containing a heat exchange module that warms inhaled air with heat captured from exhaled air. See my Initial Report for a more detailed description.

Manufacturer: Psolar

URL: www.psolar.com

Year of manufacture: 2003

MSRP: $40 USD

Listed weight: none

Weight as delivered: 2.4 oz (68 g)

Weight of thermal conversion module alone: 0.7 oz (20 g)

OBSERVATIONS SUMMARY

I tested the Psolar Balaclava on four backpacking trips and on three, day hikes while on a cold weather vacation. Used under the right conditions, it is a fantastic tool in cold weather.

When I breathed through the heat exchange module in cold weather, I felt warmer and was able to sleep comfortably with less insulation than I would normally need. At times, I experienced slightly more resistance when I breathed through the heat exchange module than when I breathed freely. I also felt like I was getting less oxygen at times. I did not detect these effects when at a higher elevation (10,000’ (3050 m)) in colder temperatures (20 - 10 F (-7 to -12 C)). It makes sense that breathing through any obstruction would make breathing more difficult, however slight. I don’t know why this effect was minimized at higher elevations and colder temperatures.

I was initially frustrated with the Balaclava because it fogged my glasses up. Since then, I learned that folding under the nose section or wearing goggles helped prevent my glasses from fogging. Towards the end of the test period I received and attached the Psolar Vapor Shield and that kept my glasses fog free most of the time.

The Balaclava was warm and soft. It was a little too tight on my head, and I found myself not wearing it for that reason. The Balaclava survived being machine-washed several times with no apparent ill effects. I don’t know how many washings the Vapor Shield will survive though. The tips of both ends had come unglued after the first washing.

The Balaclava had the bonus benefit of keeping the hood opening of my sleeping bag much drier than usual and it kept me from getting a dry mouth while sleeping. There are no signs of wear other than the fleece fabric now being fuzzier.

If I had a Balaclava a bit larger than the one-size–fits-all one I tested, I’d take it along on most of my winter trips. I’d wear it as a simple balaclava to keep my head, face, and neck warm, and then use the module when it got below about 20 F (-7 C). Since my test Balaclava is a bit tight on me, I plan to only take it on trips where I expect temperatures below 10 F (-12 C). Then the benefits offered by the heat exchange module, outweigh the slight discomfort to my head.

What I like:

- Breathing through the heat exchange module makes me feel warmer.

- The Balaclava keeps my head and face warm.

- My sleeping bag is much dryer around the hood opening when I wear the Balaclava to sleep in.

- It’s lightweight.

- I can throw it in the washing machine or my pack and not worry about the heat exchange module being damaged.

What I don’t like:

- It takes some attention to keep my glasses from fogging up.

- The Balaclava is too tight on my head.

- Extra effort to breathe and a feeling of less oxygen at times.

- The Vapor Shield started to come unglued after one machine washing.

OBSERVATIONS

See the Field Information section for more data on the trips listed below and the Field Report for more in-depth information on the first two trips listed.

Northern Arizona

My first chance to test the Psolar Balaclava came on an unseasonably warm backpack trip near Flagstaff, Arizona in early December. The first evening the temperature was 40 F (4 C). I used the Psolar Balaclava with the heat exchange module tucked below my chin to keep my head warm. I was surprised to find that this was comfortable for me.

The material of the Balaclava was warm and felt soft against my skin. The Balaclava is available in one size only. It pressed my ears a little too tightly against my glasses stems.

That night in my sleeping bag, I pulled the Balaclava up over my face so that my nose was covered and the module was over my mouth. The air temperature was 29 F (-2 C). I left the Balaclava that way for about an hour, sleeping most of that time. My face, and nose especially, were nice and warm under the Balaclava. When I put my glasses on, they immediately fogged up.

I didn’t feel like I was getting quite enough oxygen. It felt a little harder to exhale, but felt more normal with a slow exhale. I noticed on later trips that I didn’t experience increased breathing resistance when I was at 10,000’ (3050 m) and 20 – 10 F (-7 to -12 C), although I did at 7000’ (2130 m) and 18 F (-8 C).

The Balaclava spent most of the four days in my pack, stuffed into my clothing stuff sack. There was no damage to the Balaclava after the trip. The module still has only one plate with a slight “s” curve, which is how it arrived at my house

Northern Arizona, winter, day hikes

After Christmas, I went north to Flagstaff, Arizona for three days of rest, relaxation, and gear testing! The evening I arrived, I went for a 45-minute walk at 28 F (-2 C). I used the Psolar Balaclava on the return half of my walk. When I pulled the Balaclava on, my glasses fogged up instantly. The module didn’t feel centered over my mouth, but with mittens on, and the tight fit of the balaclava, I wasn’t able to straighten it out. When I returned to my hotel room and looked in the mirror, a third to a half of the right side of my mouth was not covered by module. During the walk, the right lens of my glasses had fogged up more than my left lens.

My nose felt a little squished by the Balaclava but I was very glad to have it on. My nose had gotten quite cold during the first half of my walk, and the Balaclava really warmed it up. My nose ran beneath the Balaclava but I just let it. The area around my mouth got very wet.

I put goggles on over my glasses with the bottom edge resting on the Psolar Balaclava. After I used an anti-fog cloth on my glasses, they did not fog again under the goggles. The combination of Balaclava, glasses, and goggles worked well. My face felt nice and warm.

The next morning, I got up early and went for a hike in the dark to take advantage of the colder temperatures. I walked for an hour and three quarters, wearing the Balaclava for 45 minutes of that. The temperature was 18 F (-8 C). I put goggles over my glasses, and I wore my jacket hood up, over the Balaclava. My glasses fogged up instantly. I found it very frustrating attempting to pull off my jacket hood, put my goggles on my head, pull my glasses off to clean them with an anti-fog cloth, fit the glasses back under the tight Balaclava, put the goggles back on, and pull the hood back up. All with my bare fingers getting cold. And then my glasses partially fogged up again. I never did get my glasses to stay fog free. I was frustrated enough at that point, to skip wearing the heat exchange module over my mouth on my walk the next morning. On my next snow camping trip the following month (see below), I didn’t bother with goggles and just wore the Balaclava with the nose section turned under to expose my nose. Much better results!

I noticed a very slight increase in breathing resistance with the Psolar Balaclava on at 18 F (- 8 C) and 7000’ (2130 m) elevation. My nose was dripping, but it didn’t bother me. I felt nice and warm, although moist.

Northern Arizona, winter

I took a three-day snowshoe trip in January where evening and nighttime temperatures varied from 20 F down to nearly 0 F (-7 to –16 C). I really appreciated having the Psolar Balaclava along!

After I ate dinner the first night, it was 10 F (-12 C). I pulled the heat exchange module up to cover my mouth and folded under the top edge of the facemask so that my nose was exposed. I immediately felt warmer and my glasses did not fog up.

The Balaclava was very nice to sleep in. I was able to sleep in a bag rated 30 F (-1 C) down to a temperature of 20 F (-7 C) wearing a synthetic insulated parka, knickers, and socks over my hiking clothing. Based on my experiences sleeping in a similar bag with thicker down clothing at the same temperature, I believe the Psolar Balaclava helped keep me warm with less insulation.

In the morning, I had the tiniest bit of moisture on the hood opening of my bag near where my mouth had been. I normally wake up with the bag dripping with moisture.

I kept my glasses on all night. They were completely soaked as expected. My eyes were also very moist. I usually wake up with dry sand in the corners of my eyes.

After wearing the Balaclava all night and halfway through breakfast, I did not get sore ears from the Balaclava pressing my ears against my glasses stem, like I felt during my first trip wearing the Balaclava.

The next evening, after some hiking, I put the Balaclava back on at 10,000’ (3050 m) elevation and 22 F (-6 C) air temperature. Once again, I folded the nose material under to leave my nose exposed. My glasses did not fog up. I snowshoed the last half mile into camp and continued to wear the Balaclava while I set up camp. It really warmed me up. At this temperature and altitude, the Balaclava did not add any extra resistance to my breathing. My glasses fogged up a couple of times throughout the evening when I put my head down with my chin near my chest. They cleared up on their own when I brought my head back up.

I slept most of the night wearing the Balaclava with the heat exchange module over my mouth. The night was colder than the previous night; temperatures were about 10 F (-12 C). Once again, the Balaclava helped me keep warm, although I finally had to add a down liner to my 30 F (-1 C) sleep system at 6:00 a.m. because my feet were too cold.

Midway through the night, I tried breathing through thin microfiber stretch fabric to see how it compared to breathing through the Psolar module. I noticed that the heat exchange module warmed the air more than the microfiber.

At one point during the night, I noticed that my breathing felt a little difficult. I pushed the module below my mouth and there was no difference in breathing resistance. Could be my body adjusting to the 8800’ (2680 m) increase in elevation compared to my home.

My nose did not feel uncomfortably squished on either night.

After I returned from this trip, I washed the balaclava with module inserted in my home washing machine. I used cold water and the delicate cycle and line dried it as per the manufacture’s instructions. There was no damage to the module or Balaclava from washing.

Eastern Arizona, winter

This was a three-day backpacking trip on snowshoes in January. Evening temperatures got down to the low 20’s F (-5 C).

I pulled on the Balaclava when it was 32 – 40 F (0 - 4 C) and windy in order to warm up my neck and lips. It did just that. My glasses fogged up a bit if I wore the front up over my nose, instead of folded under it. It felt tight on my ears.

I pulled on the Balaclava in the middle of the night when I got chilly. It was 22 F (-6 C), and I did soon feel warmer.

The second night, I put on the Balaclava because my mouth really felt dry. I slept the next four hours with the Balaclava on. My mouth felt nice and moist. I also felt too warm! I was eager to take it off in the morning.

I tried to see if I could wear the Balaclava as a neck gaiter. I put it on around my neck, but not over my head. It didn’t work very well. I could only pull the front up over my chin, and it wouldn’t stay in place.

Montana, spring

On this snowshoeing trip in the Beartooths, temperatures reached the low 20’s F (-5 C) in the evenings when I was wearing the Balaclava. I didn’t wear the Balaclava to sleep in: it was feeling tight on my head, and the lowest temperature inside my tarp was 20 F (-7 C). I found that I chose not to wear the Balaclava in marginally cold temperatures because of its tight fit.

This was the first chance I got to test the Balaclava with the Vapor Shield. The Vapor Shield is a triangular shaped piece of foam with a notch at the peak to fit over the bridge of the nose. It attaches to the inside of the Balaclava just above the module with a peel and stick strip.

The Vapor Shield really helped reduce my glasses fogging! I wore the Balaclava in camp while we were standing around talking. I could hear through the Balaclava and be heard speaking through the heat exchange module. My glasses did not fog.

I took a walk, breathing through the module and my glasses fogged at first. I found I needed to hold my breath until the Balaclava and Vapor Shield were properly adjusted. Once I did that, my glasses did not fog.

The Vapor Shield is staying in place OK. The tips have lifted slightly from the Balaclava fabric. I did not want to chance putting it in the washing machine, fearing it would get knocked off. After six months of use, the only sign of wear is that the fleece fabric is fuzzier.

FIELD INFORMATION

Since my Initial Report, I’ve tested the Psolar Balaclava on four backpacking trips and during three, day hikes while on a three-day vacation. See below for more detail on those trips.

Northern Arizona

Four-day backpack trip in early December in the Sycamore Canyon Wilderness in northern Arizona. Elevations from 6600’ (2000 m) to 4,600’ (1400 m). Temperatures were unseasonably warm, with highs into the low 70’s F (low 20’s C) and lows to just below freezing.

Northern Arizona, winter, day hikes

Three-day vacation in Flagstaff, Arizona in late December. Elevation was 7000’ (2130 m). I tested the Balaclava on an evening walk at 28 F (-2 C), and an early morning walk at 18 F (-8 C).

Northern Arizona, winter

Three-day snowshoe backpack trip in late January on San Francisco Mountain in the Kachina Peaks Wilderness near Flagstaff. Starting elevation was 8000’ (2400 m) and turn around point elevation at Doyle Saddle was 10,800’ (3300 m). The terrain was snow covered with day time temperatures up to the 60’s F (16 C) and night time temperatures down to near 0 F (-18 C).