Life does a lot, normally figures out how doggy works, but sorry for the language. If anyone here has worked in a cooler before, not just walk in fridges for restaurants or such I am looking for advice. They inquired about boots. I assume I need gloves, but what am I forgetting? ChapStick? Unknown? Please share and if you know what is cheap to acquire maybe recommend what you know. Thanks.
I’ve not worked in a cooler, but I know for cold weather military surplus “mickey mouse” boots used to be cheap and warm.
Layers! My legs don’t.get.cold but i do keep my core body warm. Tshirt, flannel, vest, light jacket. Each layer is thin but every one adds something.
Boots. Ariat, wolverine, even the cheapest of rubber boots. They all feel a lot better with an insole and some nic e thock socks.
Gloves wise i wear cotton work gloves with rubber gloves over it. Hands sweat and get cold so i replace my gloves every 2 hours to make sure i can stay comfortable while working
Ariat boots + Spenco insoles + wool socks have kept my feet happy working on concrete for years, in both hot and cold conditions.
they expect you to work in a hazardous environment but don’t provide protective equipment? seems like a dangerous place to work.
Yeah seconding this. If your work is putting you somewhere you need protective equipment they should provide it or a budget for you to get your own. That’s how it works in the UK at least, it might be worth asking if they provide a budget or anything.
Otherwise for boots your first step is to get some decent socks, I’d recommend wool outer layer and something absorbent as a base layer. Then you want to go try on some leather boots with a rubber sole wearing your socks, you might want to get a slightly bigger size so you can put an insole insert in as well. Make sure the boots aren’t too tight with your extra socks on as you need space to trap the heat but they shouldn’t slide around.
Check out Columbia boots. IIRC, they have pretty good cold/weather resistance while also being priced well.
They also make gloves.
Also, this is some amazing lip balm:
Thanks, I know my lips chap every year when it gets cold so I figured I’d need to try to find something for that. I usually do well in cold weather. But having grown up in Florida, I never really had elongated spans of being out in it now. Where I live now we get snow on the ground for a few days, but I haven’t spent 8 hour chunks outside in it, so I figured getting advice would be better than going in blind.
Make sure you know if you need steel toe boots…
So you’re going to work in a cooler and your workplace does neither provide you with appropriate work clothes, nor do they even give you any advice on what you’d need?!
Composite toe and shank boots instead of steel. The steel will conduct cold to your feet. They might not even be needed, soft toes might be fine. Might need to be a half size bigger than normal because:
Layered socks. Thick polypropylene from WalMart work fine. Thin inner socks, polypro if you can stand the feeling, cotton otherwise. Change inner socks at break.
Long underwear bottoms and your work pants should be OK.
Layers for the torso. I always use a vest for one of my layers at work because it keeps my core warm and lets my arms move better.
Hat. A thin beanie, called a “watch cap”. You might need to wear a hardhat and the thin cap that doesn’t cuff will fit under it.
The guy I saw back there had a beanie and his hood up on his hoodie, anything there would be a good idea for me. At 35 I’ve got that bald pattern starting to form in the back of my head (like the circle) and thinness on top. Mostly genetic, but a shitty diet and life habits I’m sure accelerated it to occur earlier in life.
Either way, no insulation up there haha.
