I have a Danish acquaintance who is a keen cycler tourist, often touring for several weeks with cycle, trailer and tent. However, due to a chronic health condition, he has to have with him medication that must be stored at about 8 degrees C. That factor alone has until now restricted his touring to Denmark, where he can be sure of being able, at Denmark’s campsites, to re-freeze "ice" blocks that he uses to keep cool an insulated soft case that holds his medication. He would love now to tour beyond Denmark, but he would be confident to do that only if he had a way of keeping his medication cool that was not dependent upon the availability of freezes and the kindnesses of their owners.
I have investigated with him self-sufficient means of keeping his medication cool. For example, small, soft, refrigerator bags that could be battery or solar-panel powered, but that does not appear to be an option as the power requirements for standard forms of fan-based refrigeration are relatively high.
Does anyone know of, or have an idea for a way of maintaining a small (e.g. 20 x 10 x10 cm) bag or box/flask cool while cycle touring? Solutions for this might well come from any of several quarters, e.g. leisure activities, cycle / canoe touring & backpacking, adventure sports and exploration, or humanitarian work (e.g. taking medicines / vaccines into remote places where there are only limited power options). One possibility might be some form of well insulated container that uses phase-change coolants such as liquid nitrogen – but we have not yet come across any such, easily transportable equipment.
Thanking you for your kind considerations of this enquiry,
Geoff Groom
(member of the Danish Cyclists Association, DCF)
cycle touring & keeping medication cool
Re: cycle touring & keeping medication cool
Hmmm.
Does the 8C requirement mean 8C or is there some tolerance around that?
I don't think he will find something to make him totally self-reliant. On occasion he will need to charge his system using somebodies freezer or a cold stream. But he may get down to only doing iot once every several days..
As a Type I diabetic I keep my insulin in the fridge at 5C, but it is tolerant of being at room temperature for several weeks. The usual thing that outdoor Diabetics use is a wallet thing called a Frio, but the temperature range it maintains (for 45 hours) may be too high.
Have you considered a high end thermos flask, such as a Thermos Ultimate, which maintains water at tea temperature for up to 24 hours, and does similar for cold water?
One could carry the medication in a flask of cold water. Or could have a Frio or alternative, then use a flask of freezing water which heats up to 8C in say 24-36 hours to recharge the cool bag after 1-2 days so you get 2 sessions without a need to recharge from a freezer.
There is a long thread about Thermos flasks here:
viewtopic.php?f=5&t=92154
Another strategy would be to use B&Bs or Cyclists Welcome places (or perhaps every third day) where he can be guaranteed a fridge/freezer, and he can book and check in advance. Do Warmshowers' bods do the same if asked nicely?
Is it any different to asking the owner of a cafe to top up your water bottle when you stop for lunch? (Please can I put this brick in your freezer?)
Ferdinand
Does the 8C requirement mean 8C or is there some tolerance around that?
I don't think he will find something to make him totally self-reliant. On occasion he will need to charge his system using somebodies freezer or a cold stream. But he may get down to only doing iot once every several days..
As a Type I diabetic I keep my insulin in the fridge at 5C, but it is tolerant of being at room temperature for several weeks. The usual thing that outdoor Diabetics use is a wallet thing called a Frio, but the temperature range it maintains (for 45 hours) may be too high.
Have you considered a high end thermos flask, such as a Thermos Ultimate, which maintains water at tea temperature for up to 24 hours, and does similar for cold water?
One could carry the medication in a flask of cold water. Or could have a Frio or alternative, then use a flask of freezing water which heats up to 8C in say 24-36 hours to recharge the cool bag after 1-2 days so you get 2 sessions without a need to recharge from a freezer.
There is a long thread about Thermos flasks here:
viewtopic.php?f=5&t=92154
Another strategy would be to use B&Bs or Cyclists Welcome places (or perhaps every third day) where he can be guaranteed a fridge/freezer, and he can book and check in advance. Do Warmshowers' bods do the same if asked nicely?
Is it any different to asking the owner of a cafe to top up your water bottle when you stop for lunch? (Please can I put this brick in your freezer?)
Ferdinand
Re: cycle touring & keeping medication cool
Maybe off the wall.
Just reading the other thread, would a CO2 cartridge output bubbled through water cool it enough to then cool the cooling bricks down as a backup in extremis?
I haven't calculated pressures volumes temperatures etc.
Would surely be impressive for passers by.
Ferdinand
Just reading the other thread, would a CO2 cartridge output bubbled through water cool it enough to then cool the cooling bricks down as a backup in extremis?
I haven't calculated pressures volumes temperatures etc.
Would surely be impressive for passers by.
Ferdinand
Re: cycle touring & keeping medication cool
I'd be inclined to use a thermos, probably wide top. There will mostly be somewhere where you can recharge the coolness (as it were), like refilling it with Guinness Extra Cold in a bar at lunchtime (to be drunk at the campsite 
), or just asking for a handful of ice cubes at the same.
Given a DIY bent and time to experiment, you could also look at building a peltier cooler into a thermos top, in conjunction with internal thick copper or aluminium wire, an external PC heatsink, and a caravan electric hookup lead and/or eWerk & dynamo. You would have to keep the thermos in a bottle cage rather than a pannier.
), or just asking for a handful of ice cubes at the same.Given a DIY bent and time to experiment, you could also look at building a peltier cooler into a thermos top, in conjunction with internal thick copper or aluminium wire, an external PC heatsink, and a caravan electric hookup lead and/or eWerk & dynamo. You would have to keep the thermos in a bottle cage rather than a pannier.
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Elizabeth_S
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Re: cycle touring & keeping medication cool
Do these sorts of cooling pack get cold enough
http://www.physioroom.com/product/Physi ... 37790.html
I guess they will have a salt that undergoes an endothermic reaction in water so until you activate the pack it will be at room temperature and it is a convenient way to carry it. As a chemist that was my first thought.
http://www.physioroom.com/product/Physi ... 37790.html
I guess they will have a salt that undergoes an endothermic reaction in water so until you activate the pack it will be at room temperature and it is a convenient way to carry it. As a chemist that was my first thought.
Re: cycle touring & keeping medication cool
I bought one of these http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B005 ... ge_o03_s00 last year to keep my insulin cool on tour.
Haven't used it for that purpose yet but it has done what it said it would on a few summer non-air-conditioned weekend car trips to Wales with my partner. It uses evaporating water to chill and once soaked, the gel crystals do their job for maybe 3-4 days at least before they need a re-soak. Very simple but reliable and effective.
Haven't used it for that purpose yet but it has done what it said it would on a few summer non-air-conditioned weekend car trips to Wales with my partner. It uses evaporating water to chill and once soaked, the gel crystals do their job for maybe 3-4 days at least before they need a re-soak. Very simple but reliable and effective.
Bill
“Ride as much or as little, or as long or as short as you feel. But ride.” ~ Eddy Merckx
It's a rich man whos children run to him when his pockets are empty.
“Ride as much or as little, or as long or as short as you feel. But ride.” ~ Eddy Merckx
It's a rich man whos children run to him when his pockets are empty.
Re: cycle touring & keeping medication cool
I would check with pharmacist. It depends on the medication, but you may well find that the temperature requirement is not absolutely critical such that keeping them as cool as practical, in an insulated bag inside pannier for example, they will degenerate a little and loose a small amount of their efficacy rather than becoming totally ineffective.
Re: cycle touring & keeping medication cool
When I was working as a community pharmacist these were what we suggested (same as the amazon link above):
http://www.friouk.com/1119
They just need soaking in water and evaporation keeps the item cool. People who used them seemed very pleased with them.
I second the suggestion that you check with a pharmacist about the requirements for each specific medicine as they could well have an 'out of refrigeration' shelf life of days or weeks. In fact if you wish to PM me a list of specific names I can check out or refrigerated medicines database at work (I'm now a hospital pharmacist) but a Danish pharmacist may be more familiar with your specific drug/trade names.
Alternatively could he join an organisation like https://www.warmshowers.org/ so he can go from one host to the next and make use of their facilities to re-freeze his ice packs.
http://www.friouk.com/1119
They just need soaking in water and evaporation keeps the item cool. People who used them seemed very pleased with them.
I second the suggestion that you check with a pharmacist about the requirements for each specific medicine as they could well have an 'out of refrigeration' shelf life of days or weeks. In fact if you wish to PM me a list of specific names I can check out or refrigerated medicines database at work (I'm now a hospital pharmacist) but a Danish pharmacist may be more familiar with your specific drug/trade names.
Alternatively could he join an organisation like https://www.warmshowers.org/ so he can go from one host to the next and make use of their facilities to re-freeze his ice packs.