Keeping cool when you are hot is a difficult task. You can only remove so much clothing before you are “naked,” and sometimes, even then, you are still too hot. Dressing conservatively and modestly is important, too, depending on your travel destination – you don’t want to cause an international incident!
We recently reviewed the Columbia Omni-Freeze Zero Rules T-shirt for Men and Women, and although we love the shirt, I thought I’d try another “cooling” product — the Frogg Toggs Chilly Pad Cooling Towel to see how it compares. This cooling towel comes in different colours and sizes. Mine is about 13×33 inches and weighs about 6.5 oz outside the box.
How to store Frogg Toggs Cooling Towel
The original chilly towel comes rolled up and sealed in a plastic bag within a plastic tube. I store the cooling towel in the storage tube at home, but when travelling, I store the towel in a ziplock bag since it’s lighter.
How to clean Frogg Toggs chilly pad cooling towel
It is recommended to wash it before use and store it slightly damp. I had to wash it a few times before use because it had a plastic chemical smell. The chemical smell could be from the material itself or from the mildew-resistant properties of the item, which is kind of a good thing because storing something damp is nasty.
Tip: if you should let the towel dry out, it will harden like cardboard; just wet it down, and it will go soft again
Looking for a travel towel to dry yourself off with? Click here for a buying guide.
How to use Frogg Togg towel
- Thoroughly wet the towel with water. The water can be any temperature; it doesn’t have to be cold.
- Wring the towel out.
- Drape the towel over your body, and as the water evaporates, it cools you down.
What I like about the Frogg Toggs Chilly Pad Cooling Towel
- It can be draped onto any part of your body to cool you down.
- It comes in a multitude of colours and sizes.
- Reasonably priced.
- Machine washable.
- Constructed from Frogg Toggs' exclusive, hyper-evaporative material that retains water while remaining dry to the touch.
- 33 x 13 towel provides reusable cooling relief and sun protection
- Wetting the towel in water allows it to activate quickly and cool up to 30 degrees.
- The Chilly Pad materials can absorb up to 8 times its weight in water.
- Perfect for travel, working in the yard, sporting events, fitness, golfing, fishing, camping, theme parks, hot flashes, headaches and more.
- Storage container included
What I don’t like about this instant cooling towel
- It needs to be wet to activate.
- Once the water evaporates or the towel starts to feel warm – it no longer works until you wet it again.
- I had to wash it a few times to eliminate the plastic chemical smell.
- It feels weird against your skin and has a rubbery feeling to it. You have to get used to the feeling because, obviously, it has to touch your skin to work.
- It’s awkward because you have to carry an extra item with you, and it is a one-trick pony. You can’t use the Cooling Towel for any other purpose.
- The package says it will keep you cool for up to 3 hours. I have never been able to keep it cool for more than 1 hour.
- I did get some stares from people wondering why I was walking with a towel around my neck.
Frogg Toggs Chilly Pad Cooling Towel is the original cooling relief towel, but you can also check out these other cooling towel brands on Amazon.
A final comment about chilly towels
I didn’t compare the Frogg Toggs Chilly Pad Cooling Towel to a plain old regular wet bath towel or a wet shammy, but in theory, I think it would have – the same result – as the water evaporates, it would make you feel cooler.
Given the cons I listed above, I prefer the Columbia Omni-Freeze Zero Rules Clothing line because it requires nothing added to make the fabric work to cool you down, plus it is much more travel-friendly and portable.
Check out some COOL Clothing reviews:
– Omni Freeze Zero Rules Gets Top Score
– Staying Cool in Arizona with Columbia Omni Freeze Zero
