Morozko is equipped for outdoor use.
Summary
Outdoor ice baths during the winter can be exhilarating and safe.
Every Morozko has a heating element that warms the filter when the surrounding air temperature drops below 38F.
Keep your filtration running 24/7 during winter when your Morozko ice bath is installed outdoors. The flowing water will prevent the plumbing from freezing, even at temperatures as low at 10F.
When outdoor plunging in the winter, be sure to dry off as soon as you exit your ice bath. Do not allow your wet skin to contact the cold air for more than just a second or two.
Is it OK to ice bath outdoors during winter?
Last winter, during a cold snap in Texas, Joe Rogan caused a social media stir when he posted his morning cold plunge from his backyard, where his Morozko was dusted with snow.
Rogan explained "It's 21 degrees here in Austin, Texas. That means this water at 34 degrees is actually going to warm me up!" (Rogan 2024).
It turns out that's not how it works. Because the thermal conductivity of water is more than 20x that of air, when Joe plunged into his Morozko that morning, he got colder because the water is more effective for extracting heat from his body than the air -- even though it's warmer.
There are a few precautions to take when plunging outdoors in your Morozko during the winter months. In particular, you must take care to protect both your Morozko and your body for the cold air.
Prepare your ice bath for winter plunging
Every Morozko comes with a heating coil wrapped around the water filter to add warmth to the water when the outside air drops below 40F. That little bit of extra heat helps guard against the filter freezing outside in the cold, which may cause it to crack.
Nonetheless, you can take additional precautions to avoid damage from ice forming in your filter or plumbing lines. The most important of these is to:
Run your filter pump 24/7 when your Morozko is installed outside during the winter months.
To change your filter pump timer, follow the instructions in the video at the top of this article:
open the electrical box cover,
press the blue MANUAL button three times, or until your see "ON" in the LCD screen that shows the controller settings,
the "ON" setting will be saved automatically, so you can close the cover and lock the clasps,
when the weather warms up, press the MANUAL button again to restore the settings to "AUTO."
With the water moving constantly thru the heated filter, it will stay liquid inside your filter and plumbing lines at temperature as low at 10F without causing damage.
Prepare your body for winter plunging
In Don't Cold Overdose I told the story of my friend Micah Lowe, founder of SimplyO3, who stayed too long in his Morozko outside in the Michigan winter. I explained how he rewarmed with a blanket, sauna lamps, and a nap.
When he woke up, he felt great.
What I never explained was how to avoid cold overdosing in the first place. For Micah, it wasn't that he stayed in his ice bath for too long, it was that he failed to dry off as soon as he got out.
You might think that, because the cold winter air has a lowering thermal conductivity than the water, he would have been OK as soon as he got out of the ice bath. However, there's a huge difference between dry skin in the cold air and wet skin.
During the winter months, the air is often dry, so water will evaporate off your skin fast. When the water evaporates, it takes with it heat from your body, which is the way that sweat cools your body in the heat. If you don't towel dry as soon as you emerge from your ice bath, you run the risk of rapid heat extraction from the water evaporating off your skin.
When outdoor plunging during winter, follow these simple precautionary steps:
Do not prolong your ice bath past the point at which you feel the urge to shiver,
Towel off immediately upon emerging from the water,
Use some light exercise to restore circulation to your extremities. Some of the exercises that work well for me include:
squats & lunges
jumping jacks
pushups & pullups
kettlebell swings & steel mace
a brisk walk
Get dressed in warm clothes and use a red light and/or sauna if you feel the need to rewarm rapidly.
About the Author
Thomas P Seager, PhD is an Associate Professor in the School of Sustainable Engineering at Arizona State University. Seager co-founded the Morozko Forge ice bath company and is an expert in the use of ice baths for building metabolic and psychological resilience.
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