Reviews of Ski Boot Heaters

Female snowboarder preparing ski boots, snowboarding with friends at ski resort

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According to Surefoot Northeast regional manager, Ray Rice, a popular theory among cold weather scientists is that warm feet make for warm blood. This warm blood is sensed by the brain, which then tells the heart it is okay to keep pumping blood to the extremities. As a result, we won’t get numb fingers and toes. With the introduction of smaller and longer life batteries and a larger comfort range of settings, electronic foot warmers are the most convenient way to heat ski boots and keep the feet warm.

The newer model ski boot heaters have small battery packs that are easily and quickly rechargeable. Most can be recharged without being completely drained and will be ready for a full day of skiing well before morning. These heaters can be adapted to boots used for other winter activities, such as hiking, snowshoeing, hunting, and for use in work boots.

Cozy Feet, Hotronics, and Therm-ic are some of the companies that make the most popular selling foot warmers available today.

Most brands have brackets that allow the battery packs to be mounted on the back of the ski boot or secured to the power strap on the side of the boot. Ray Rice suggests that even though the boot-mounted bracket seems more secure, there can be issues with low chairlifts and stairs banging the boot-mounted pack, so he recommends the side strap mounting.

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Hotronic Foot Warmer Power Plus m4 Ski Boot Heater

Hotronic Foot Warmer Power Plus m4 Ski Boot Heater

Mike Doyle

The Hotronic FootWarmer Power Plus m4 model, shown here uses 4 cell NiMH in each battery pack for the maximum 21-hour charge on low power. The four temperature settings are adjusted by push button control on the battery pack with LED lights indicating the power setting.

Hotronic foot warmer chargers offer global charging technology with overcharge protection and input range of 100V-240V. Hotronic boot heaters come with North American and European charging adaptors.

Hotronic foot warmers elements can be placed either in generic liners or on custom orthotic footbeds.

Expect to pay in the $200-plus range for the Hotronic m4 boot heaters.

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Therm-ic Li-on Remote Foot Warmers

Therm-ic Li-on Remote Foot Warmers

Mike Doyle

The Therm-ic Li-on Remote model uses Lithium-ion batteries. These Therm-ic boot heaters can provide an 18-hour charge at low power. This Therm-ic model comes with a remote control that can increase or decrease the battery power and has 10 levels available. The remote and the battery units flash an LED light to indicate standby, power on, and level setting.

The remote control can be worn around the neck or attached to the jacket. Because it transmits up to 10 meters, there is no need to physically touch the battery pack while out in the cold - a feature you will be thankful for on a cold day when you don't want to remove your gloves.

The Therm-ic Li-on Remote model offers global charging technology with overcharge protection and input range of 100V-230V. It comes with North American, European, UK, and Australian charging adaptors.

The Therm-ic Li-on Remote foot warmer costs $300+.

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Placement of the Foot Warmer Element (Therm-ic model)

Placement of the Foot Warmer Element

Mike Doyle

Both the Hotronics and Therm-ic boot heater elements can be placed on custom orthotic footbeds or on the insole supplied with the individual units, which is cut to fit any boot size. The element is then covered with a protective material to make it virtually undetectable in the boot.

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Placement of the Element Power Cord

Placement of the Element Power Cord

Mike Doyle

Both the Hotronics and Therm-ic ski boot foot warmer elements have heavy duty power cords that exit through the lower heel of the boot liner. Many liners are provided with a power cord exit hole by the liner manufacturer, as shown here. However, if need be, installers can easily and discreetly make in shop provisions for the exit holes.

Once the footbed or insole is fitted into the liner, the power cord is then adjusted to the proper length relative to the battery pack attachment and the liner is reinstalled in the boot.

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Finished Installation with Power Strap Mounting (Therm-ic Li-on Remote)

Copyright Mike Doyle

The battery pack can be covered with snow pants’ gaiters and is virtually indiscernible in weight and appearance.