Friday, April 22, 2011

Make Cold Compresses

You can make you own compresses at home to keep in your freezer or carry in a cooler on any outing. A cold compress is a good thing to have at hand for sporting events and any activities that involve physical exertion in case of an accident or injury. Portable homemade cold compresses are good to make and take for an outing or for an emergency. The added bonus is that they are made by recycling plastic bottles.


Instructions


1. Save a few empty single serving water bottles after you drink the water. Make sure you keep the caps too. You will need them to reseal the bottle.


2. Fill the bottle ¾ full with plain tap water. You leave a quarter of the bottle empty to allow for expansion of the water as it freezes. Otherwise it may crack or explode the bottle as it freezes.


3. Put the caps on the bottle tightly so they don’t leak and make a mess in your freezer or stick to the freezer racks.


4. Put the bottle in the freezer until it freezes solid. Leave it there until you need one or are planning an outting or sporting event. Put one or more in a cooler where they can be accessed easily in an accident while playing outdoors..


5. Take the bottle or bottle from the freezer or cooler when one is needed. Take an old adult sized sock and insert the frozen bottle into it. Then tie the top or use a twist tie to keep the sock closed. With the sock covering the bottle the ice won’t burn the skin but will still provide relief to an injury.

Tags: your freezer