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Frogg Togg: Sometimes Little Things Give The Most Relief

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All of this talk about the summer heat and the danger’s related to it have reminded me of all of the time I spent working with my dad.

My dad was a painter and handyman for a good 25 years before he changed his career path.

He taught me some very valuable lessons about work ethic.

He also dragged me, kicking and screaming, to work with him every day of the summer from the time I was 8 until I was 14 and got my first job.

Any (and I mean ANY) time that I would complain about the hard work or the heat, he would laugh and tell me that I had better make damn sure that I did something with my life to make sure that this was a skill that I knew how to do, not one that I needed to do.

Along with all of the work ethic and training he showed me a few tips and tricks to help get through the day as comfortably as possible…

If any of you have ever worked as painters, you know that 9 times out of 10 the client cuts the power to the air conditioner.

This can make for some very nasty working conditions… and on more than one occasion landed my father in the hospital for heat exhaustion.

A friend of his showed him a trick to keep cool, that he then passed on to me.

He kept a cooler filled with ice water and at the beginning of every shift, he would soak several bandana’s in the cooler.  Once the heat got to an uncomfortable temperature he would take two of them out and wrap one around his neck, and one on top of his head.

This trick would instantly cool us off and make the day that much more bearable.

Unfortunately, those bandana’s would dry out and need to be soaked again about every 15-20 minutes.

I really wish that we had invented these back then:

frogg togg The “Frogg Togg”

This nifty little tool is great for cooling off in the hot sun.

It takes the same tip of using a soaked bandana but makes the cooling effects last up to a couple of hours, instead of having to stop and re-wet the it ever 20 minutes or so.

These things are small, lightweight, and machine washable.

The only real problem that I have seen with the Frogg Togg is that it can be a little awkward to keep around your neck, especially in high winds.

I have actually seen a different brand that tries to correct that problem by adding a draw string that allows you to tie it around your neck.

(Though I haven’t tried this one out as I have an innate fear of it getting caught on a tree and strangling me. 🙂 )

Have any of you used the Frogg Togg or a similar cooling towel?

Keeping cool and hydrated in the heat is a necessity in any situation.  I have had friends pass out from heat exhaustion while doing something as simple as mowing the lawn..

Stay safe this summer and most of all, stay cool!

Read more with these related articles from our site:

10 Summer Survival Tips: Beat the Heat Without AC

17 Ways to Keep Your House Cool and Save Money This Summer

If You Cant Stand the Heat Get Out of the Garden

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12 Comments

12 Comments

  1. Pam

    July 18, 2013 at 6:57 AM

    I found a similar one… Polar Basics….we lose our power quite often and thought they would be good for my husband to keep cool. Brought one to work….manufacturing factory in south Florida with no a/c…ended up buying one for all the employees – they are great!

  2. Chris

    July 18, 2013 at 9:09 AM

    These homemade neck coolers work great in all sorts of situations and you can leave as much of a tag end as you like to tie or loop. Make it a quick release loop that will hold it in place but that will easily come free if needed.

  3. Susan

    July 18, 2013 at 9:24 AM

    As an older person, hot days are a problem….the one thing that always works for me is to wear wet clothing. I put clothing in hot water and wring it out, to avoid the shock of cold water. I am a stay at home person, so I don’t know how this will work for others out on a job, but it is very effective. If you don’t have the strength (or are just looking for the easy way) put clothing in washing machine. Run water just until clothing is wet and spin it out.

  4. Denny

    July 18, 2013 at 9:30 AM

    I’ve come across a product made by “blu bandoo”. It’s a hat,with a wide brim, mesh around the top, and a tail that keeps the sun off your neck. Best of all it has gel pellets in the head band that soak up cold water when soaked and holds the cool against your head as you wear it.
    Check it out at http://www.blubandoo.com

  5. Michael

    July 18, 2013 at 11:12 AM

    I bought a similar product for my painters 25 years ago in a factory. They do the job and allow the painters to work near an oven. In a crisis down situation, getting ice may be an issue, but even if just wet they help the body cool down. jmh

  6. Chuck

    July 18, 2013 at 11:24 AM

    There is also a bright yellow safety vest on the market which one soaks in water. The interior of the yellow vest slowly dries out cooling the outdoor worker off as he works in the sun in a location that requires the wearing of safety colors.

  7. Dave B

    July 18, 2013 at 6:29 PM

    Lowes has been selling a towel called “endura cool”. They come in two sizes (a long rectangle and a kerchief sized triangle).

    These things work great and are cheap. Soak, squeeze, and snap then just wear them over your head, around your neck, any way you want, for hours of cool relief.

    To “recharge” just wet it, squeeze it, and snap it and the cool starts all over again.

    The water doesn’t even have to be cool for the towel to work…

  8. john

    July 22, 2013 at 10:33 AM

    Welding supply stores sell a head band that when is wet expands with a cooling gel inside that lasts up to 12 hrs.I do not remember the brand name,but I am sure they can be bought on line with a little research.I am a retired welder who worked in a forge shop for 30 yrs.so I can attest that these do work well they can also be pulled down and worn around the neck. John D.

  9. Dave N

    July 22, 2013 at 7:27 PM

    For the last 15 summers here on the Florida Golf courses i have been using the “Sammy cool & dry” personal cooling towel. Comes in it’s own container in which you can add water or ice. At 33 1/4 ” by 13″ it can be worn over the head or around the neck……Don’t know if they are still in business but they list wwwcooldry.com on the container…bought it at a golf show many years ago….works great.

  10. cindy

    July 27, 2013 at 5:19 PM

    I’ve seen cooling vests worn by mascot performers to stay cool under loads of foam and fake fur. Don’t recall which sites I saw, but you freeze them and they keep the wearer cool for several hours; they suggest you get two and keep the alternate in the freezer, then switch them out. They can be found on mascot costume sites.

  11. mrw55

    June 24, 2015 at 5:35 PM

    I used one of these towels yesterday while cutting grass. It works well.

    Yesterdays temp, where I live, was 88 degrees and sunny. (I am also hot natured. I prefer cooler climates).

    I wore an old polo-style shirt and wrapped it, inside the collar of my shirt as if it was a scarf or an ascot.

    NOTE: I didn’t “knot” the towel, but used it unfolded, as if laid flat on a table, wrapped high on the back of my neck- to my hairline, and placed one end over the other inside my shirt front. Probably couldn’t do this with a T-shirt.

    It takes approximately 2 to 2.5 hours to cut the grass using a riding mower. I could have stopped to refresh towel after 1.5 hours. I believe this will depend on the user and the outside temp.

    Care instructions are pending, as I have emailed company. Will revise comment if I receive an answer.

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