Just Plain Bill
Member
There's nothing like a catchy title to lure folks into a really boring presentation. But as long as you're here, grab an energy drink (or No-Doz for my generation) and see how it works.
Because the heating area of the cheap grip heaters I’m going to install on my NC measure 85 x 90 mm and would cover the ball of a foot and a little of the instep, I thought they might be put to use as boot heaters. I only did a trial fitting and temperature check but it looks like they’ll work great so I’m making this post before finalizing the project to be of help to others who ride in colder weather.
Materials consist of grip heaters found on eBay priced between $5 and $7 and foam insoles from Wal-Mart that cost $3 for two pair. If you notice in the photo below, there are 14 dark (conductive) bars on the heaters. You can find heaters with wider and narrower bars (between 5 and 22 bars) which I’m sure will affect the evenness of the heat distribution but it might not be an important factor. Using a infrared non-contact thermometer, I found hot spots and cold spots but when I had the shoes on (I tested the heaters with running shoes not boots), I couldn’t feel any differences. Also, you will notice that the two heaters are still wired together, as they would be for use as hand grips.That’s because I am going to use them for hand grip heaters – I’ve ordered another set to adapt for use as boot heaters. (More on adapting the heaters later.)
In the photo below, I have the heaters taped to the bottom of the insoles. For a permanent installation, I’ll use a spray adhesive to insure they stay where they’re put. You can also see that I’ve trimmed the heels so the insoles fit into my boots and that I have the heaters connected to a car battery to do temperature testing.
This photo shows the thermometer after taking temperature of the back side of the grip warmer. In the course of testing, I got spot readings as high as 139 degrees Fahrenheit, which is why I opted for the insoles to both insulate and store heat instead of risking a burn. If they end up not being warm enough, I can remove the insoles and wear heavier socks.
This photo was taken of the top of the insole (were the foot rests) and shows the temperature of the insole, immediately after taking the photo of the grip warmer. At this point, the insoles are providing a 15* F temperature difference. With the insoles in the boots, I got readings up to 101* F of the tops of the insoles but that was not uniform; most spots were under 90*. Since I spent 10 minutes wearing shoes with the heaters on and didn’t experience any burning sensations, my guess is that the insoles are sufficient for the job.
This last photo isn’t very instructive but the insoles and warmer are in the boots and with a little re-wiring, they’d be ready to roll. As supplied, each grip heater has about 14 inches of wire before they join, which is plenty for clearing even the tallest boots. I’ll probably use duct tape to route the wires to the top of the boots and hold the wires in place. I’ll cut out the switch, separate the wires at the joint, put connectors on the ends and make a harness with wires down each leg (to the boots) joined to a length of wire connecting to the bike’s power system when I have the other warmers. Having used a heated vest in the past, the hardest thing is remembering to disconnect from the bike when you stop.
Because the heating area of the cheap grip heaters I’m going to install on my NC measure 85 x 90 mm and would cover the ball of a foot and a little of the instep, I thought they might be put to use as boot heaters. I only did a trial fitting and temperature check but it looks like they’ll work great so I’m making this post before finalizing the project to be of help to others who ride in colder weather.
Materials consist of grip heaters found on eBay priced between $5 and $7 and foam insoles from Wal-Mart that cost $3 for two pair. If you notice in the photo below, there are 14 dark (conductive) bars on the heaters. You can find heaters with wider and narrower bars (between 5 and 22 bars) which I’m sure will affect the evenness of the heat distribution but it might not be an important factor. Using a infrared non-contact thermometer, I found hot spots and cold spots but when I had the shoes on (I tested the heaters with running shoes not boots), I couldn’t feel any differences. Also, you will notice that the two heaters are still wired together, as they would be for use as hand grips.That’s because I am going to use them for hand grip heaters – I’ve ordered another set to adapt for use as boot heaters. (More on adapting the heaters later.)
In the photo below, I have the heaters taped to the bottom of the insoles. For a permanent installation, I’ll use a spray adhesive to insure they stay where they’re put. You can also see that I’ve trimmed the heels so the insoles fit into my boots and that I have the heaters connected to a car battery to do temperature testing.
This photo shows the thermometer after taking temperature of the back side of the grip warmer. In the course of testing, I got spot readings as high as 139 degrees Fahrenheit, which is why I opted for the insoles to both insulate and store heat instead of risking a burn. If they end up not being warm enough, I can remove the insoles and wear heavier socks.
This photo was taken of the top of the insole (were the foot rests) and shows the temperature of the insole, immediately after taking the photo of the grip warmer. At this point, the insoles are providing a 15* F temperature difference. With the insoles in the boots, I got readings up to 101* F of the tops of the insoles but that was not uniform; most spots were under 90*. Since I spent 10 minutes wearing shoes with the heaters on and didn’t experience any burning sensations, my guess is that the insoles are sufficient for the job.
This last photo isn’t very instructive but the insoles and warmer are in the boots and with a little re-wiring, they’d be ready to roll. As supplied, each grip heater has about 14 inches of wire before they join, which is plenty for clearing even the tallest boots. I’ll probably use duct tape to route the wires to the top of the boots and hold the wires in place. I’ll cut out the switch, separate the wires at the joint, put connectors on the ends and make a harness with wires down each leg (to the boots) joined to a length of wire connecting to the bike’s power system when I have the other warmers. Having used a heated vest in the past, the hardest thing is remembering to disconnect from the bike when you stop.
