Personal Biographical Information

Background

Long since I was young, I've always been an outdoor enthusiast: sea or white river kayaking, rock climbing, long and short distance hiking, classic and backcountry skiing, mountain biking.

I can describe myself as being a hiker with a paradoxical style. On one side I tend toward fast tracking while on the other I halt frequently, gazing at various points of interest, fauna and flora. I'm also geared toward lightweight backpacking but wouldn't let my solo percolator home.

Product Information

Introduction

At first, I must say that I was particularly enchanted at being selected for such test. My hydration system is composed of either a Platypus Bigzips 2 L (70 oz) or Camelbak Omega 3 L (100 oz) which I use in conjunction with either my Platypus Roadrunner daypack or Gregory G-Pack. Most of the time, I favor such system over traditional water bottles. However, as one may know, during the cold winter season, a hydration system of such sort is pretty much inefficient: the bite-valve gets clogged while the tube freezes rock hard.

The idea behind Granite Gear's Winterizer hydration system insulator seems pretty straightforward yet ingenious: an insulated fabric covering the hose part, along with a thermal pocket containing the byte-valve. This test series will attempt to figure out how such principle is efficient.

General Information

The Granite Gear Winterizer is packaged in a small mesh pouch equipped with a drawcord and a mini cord lock, all just perfect for carrying around. No information or instructions are provided besides the paperboard stapled to the stuff bag exhibiting a general description of the product, the manufacturer's information, along with a few colorful pictures.

Despite the fact that no specific warranty information was part of the product shipment, the Granite Gear's website is rather clear in regard to such matter:

The actual product looks like what was expected while initially inspecting the manufacturer's website.

Product Description

The Winterizer is 85 cm (33.5 in) long and comes in one piece of insulation material covered by a black nylon fabric. On the lower end of the insulator comes a 22 cm (8.5 in) cord loop stitched to the insulator itself. On the other end comes a small pocket of 8 cm x 8 cm (3 in x 3 in). A small logo is present on the envelope itself.

The small pocket is equipped with a black water-resistant urethane-coated zipper and a nylon strap of 2.5 cm (1 in) surrounding the pocket itself. A small removable clip is attached to the strap: now known as the sternum strap clip. Inside the pocket lays a tiny inner mesh compartment made of extensible fabric.

Initial Impressions & Considerations

At first sight, the construction seems very solid with nicely sewn seam, strong fabric, and a bullet proof zipper. The zipper itself, although stiff, shows an interesting characteristic in the ergonomic shape of the zipper pull, which follows the curves between the thumb and the finger while holding it, adding more grip to the process. For the time being, I currently have no idea what would be the nature of the bottom cord loop.

Despite the fact that it seemed pretty effortless to figure out how to install the insulator over my Platypus hose, which has, according to my millimetric ruler, a diameter of 1 cm (0.5 in) , it turns out to be not quite so. The first 15 cm (6 in) always come in nicely and smoothly. However, it happens not to be the case for the remainder of the hose. Indeed, after several trial and errors, which lasted several minutes, I managed to get my hose all the way through. The trick is to insert the first 15 cm (6 in) starting from the bottom then, with two hands distanced by 5 cm (2 in), I gradually moved the hose up by firmly squeezing the right hand, then I squeezed the hose with the left hand while pushing the insulation envelope downward with the other hand, repeatedly until the tip of the hose gets out of the pocket.

For now and until I find something better, I really consider that some minimal instructions on how to insert or remove the tube should be included with the product.

Test Plan

I'll be testing mostly in Western Quebec with peregrinations into my near-by National Parks and Reserves. However, I plan to take a weeklong trip to the Laurentian Trail as well as several day hikes into the White Mountains or Adirondacks' High Peaks Region. During winter trips, the expected temperature will be ranging from -20 C (-4 F) to 0 C (32 F) with lots of snow while during spring outings the temperature gets milder but lots of snow remains.

Being from the Great White North (Canada) where temperature gets as low as -40 C (-40F) including the wind chill factor, I'll have plenty of situations where I could face up with Granite Gear's claim: "Getting a drink is quick and easy […]". In the next few months, I'll be looking for the following criteria,

Insulation

Most importantly, does the Winterizer keep the bite-valve and hose unfrozen? What is the lower temperature boundary? What is the impact of snow accumulating on the insulation fabric? What is the effect of adding a mini hand-warmer? What happens if the insulation fabric gets damped or lightly wet?

Construction

Does the fact that the Winterizer comes in "one size fits all" actually really fit all (hose sizes may vary)? How does a mini hand-warmer fit into the provided pocket? According to the manufacturer's website, the zipper is fully waterproof. If true, does this feature prevent small water droplets coming from the bite-valve to freeze out?

Ergonomic Details

How easy is it to open the waterproof zipper on the bite-valve pocket with mitts or gloves on? How well does the clip remain on the sternum strap?

Maintenance

Can this product be easily washed? Can it be straightforwardly removed while unused?

I would like to thank Granite Gear and BackpackGearTest for the opportunity to participate in this test.