# So what temperature do your lungs freeze at?



## endurowanker (Mar 22, 2004)

I'm curious... breathing in sub-zero temperatures kinda makes me cough... at what point does it become a real serious problem.... 

I read some book about dogsledding or something in high school and they were saying that if you got the dogs running to hard and they started to pant their lungs could freeze.... any risk for us cyclists?


----------



## lidarman (Jan 12, 2004)

I think if you will suffer frost bite of nose, ears, hands and feet before you have to worry about your lungs freezing.


----------



## TheSherpa (Jan 15, 2004)

Wow, it's hard for me to ride in sub 40* weather but that's just because I'm a big puss and live in AR. But, tomorrow the new bike will be ridden and hopefully my lungs won't freeze.

Wouldn't one most likely have to be dead and have a body temp. around 32* for their lungs to freeze?

-TS


----------



## grumpstumper (Dec 22, 2004)

*Watch out around -40.*

I lived in Central/Northern Sweden for a year, just south of the Arctic Circle. In the winter it was dark 24/7. The temperature would drop to -40C. (I think that's the same as -40F) When it was like that, you had to walk slowly and breath slowly.

There was a kid in town who died sprinting for a bus. Lungs froze.

I think it depends on how fast you are breathing. If you're walking slow, you're ok. In that weather, you could spit and it would freeze before it hit the ground. If you sucked in air really fast through your nose, it would crackle and freeze up in there. I think it's important to breath through your nose because it warms the air before it gets to your lungs. It must depend on humidity too. I don't know, just some thoughts. No expert here.

Ask a moose.


----------



## grumpstumper (Dec 22, 2004)

*sub 40 and -40...*

-40F is 72 degrees Fahrenheit below freezing. Freezing is 32 degrees Fahrenheit.
-40C is 40 degrees Celsius below freezing. Freezing is 0 degrees Celsius.


----------



## AK Ken (Jan 10, 2004)

*-40C and -40F are the same temp.*



grumpstumper said:


> -40F is 72 degrees Fahrenheit below freezing. Freezing is 32 degrees Fahrenheit.
> -40C is 40 degrees Celsius below freezing. Freezing is 0 degrees Celsius.


And moose have long snouts in part to prewarm the air to their lungs.

Ken


----------



## drewwski123 (Apr 15, 2004)

*-40 c*

He was correct in his original post, -40C is equal to -40F, i believe the only time they are the same...doesn't really matter damn cold anyway.


----------



## AK Ken (Jan 10, 2004)

*Not Necesserarilly.......*



lidarman said:


> I think if you will suffer frost bite of nose, ears, hands and feet before you have to worry about your lungs freezing.


In my limited personal experience one can be severely overheated when overdressed and working hard at cold temps with extremities nice and toasty, while simultaneously gasping through one's wide open pie hole causes major discomfort deep into one's chest. Breathing through the nose helps, but as pointed out elsewhere you can sometimes feel your nose hairs freezing together.

-52 F here last week.

Ken


----------



## grumpstumper (Dec 22, 2004)

*-52f...*

Do you ride your bike in that weather?
Denali Park. Always wanted to go there.


----------



## pimpbot (Dec 31, 2003)

*My Sinus starts to hurt....*



TheSherpa said:


> Wow, it's hard for me to ride in sub 40* weather but that's just because I'm a big puss and live in AR. But, tomorrow the new bike will be ridden and hopefully my lungs won't freeze.
> 
> Wouldn't one most likely have to be dead and have a body temp. around 32* for their lungs to freeze?
> 
> -TS


 when it gets down in the mid 20s. I thought that may be why, but it's more likely that it's because I too am a big fat puss.


----------



## bulC (Mar 12, 2004)

*Marines are tough*

I once ran 3 miles with a Marine platoon when it was minus 62 degrees fahrenheit. So cold, the army pukes on Ft. Wainwright, AK were not allowed out of their barracks, so we, of course, chanted loudly the whole way just to rub there pampered noses in it. To my knowledge, none of us had any lung, or other, issues, though I for one wouldn't have wanted to hang out outside for too long afterwards.


----------



## grumpstumper (Dec 22, 2004)

*Uh...*

I think to run in that temperature you have to inhale that stuff they use to seal tire tubes... Damn. Marines ARE tough.


----------



## AK Ken (Jan 10, 2004)

*Absolutely not........*



grumpstumper said:


> Do you ride your bike in that weather?
> Denali Park. Always wanted to go there.


The coldest temp I've biked in is about 40 below, and that was just so I could say I did. Nothing about it was remotely fun. We bike regularly down to minus 20; beyond that the machinery just isn't reliable and it's not worth breaking stuff.

Pat Irwin (owner of Pat's Bikes in Anchorage) has some major long distance adventures at super cold temps (minus 65 as I recall), including a dozen or so flat tires because the tubes would split at the seams at those temps. Page him on the AK board and I'm sure he can link you to some interesting reading.

Ken


----------



## Chad-WL (Apr 15, 2004)

*-50s*

There have been a few Nordic XC Ski races held in -50º's and even at those exertion levels no one ever had their lungs freeze up.. Personally in Southern Ontario the coldest I can remember being out was -32ºC so personal experience doesn't apply.

I did discover that at -32 if you cook pasta outside it will be cold by the time you get to eat it no matter how hard you try and keep it warm.


----------



## Wherewolf (Jan 17, 2004)

*Has to be really cold*



endurowanker said:


> I'm curious... breathing in sub-zero temperatures kinda makes me cough... :


I ran in the winter time in Edmonton, Alberta for many years and routinely at -20 F, and sometimes much lower. That was when the running boom started and people worried about those things. But studies done by the Army showed it is not a problem until it gets *much * colder. However, many people, including myself can get exercise induced asthma from cold dry air. That may be the problem.


----------



## BudhaGoodha (Aug 2, 2004)

My sister experienced the Alaskan deep freeze of 1984 (I think that's the year). Her place in fairbanks reached -80 F!!!!!!!! WOW! She said at that temp, everything crystalizes even the air, and makes for a surreal environment. She also said you could litteraly throw a cup of water out the window and it would freeze before hitting the ground. 

there;s a reason Eskimos wear the tunnel hoods. That 6 inches of fuzzy tube in front of their face prevents the lungs from inhaling cold air. I experimented with on of those hoods at -5 F and it worked like a charm. Felt like Iwas breathing 45 degree air.


----------



## MTP (Mar 31, 2004)

I don't know, but I do know it's NOT 68 degrees. I may have to wear a short sleeve jersey on my night ride this evening. Bummer.


----------



## KRob (Jan 13, 2004)

My dad "burnt" his lungs once riding in 10-15 degree weather so he always drew the line at 20. I'm not exactly sure what he means by that, IIRC he had a bad cough and such for the rest of the winter and gets flare ups whenever he goes out below 15degF. Maybe it's the cold induced asthma someone referred to. I've never noticed any problems with my lungs down to 0 F. My toes and face freeze before that.


----------



## endurowanker (Mar 22, 2004)

well.. it's been just about 0* F here lately. A little warmer in the day. I'll go out and take it easy sometime I guess. no excuses.


----------



## BigLarry (Jul 30, 2004)

*I got the same thing*



KRob said:


> My dad "burnt" his lungs once riding in 10-15 degree weather so he always drew the line at 20. I'm not exactly sure what he means by that, IIRC he had a bad cough and such for the rest of the winter and gets flare ups whenever he goes out below 15degF. Maybe it's the cold induced asthma someone referred to. I've never noticed any problems with my lungs down to 0 F. My toes and face freeze before that.


Riding much below 20-30F in NJ I got bad bronchitis from very heavy breathing with my mouth wide open. Once I got it, I'd hack badly all night for a couple months. I'm prone to asthma, but this was much worse and deeper cough. But sometimes I'd ride in much lower temperature and not get hit. I guess it just depends on the person.


----------



## Chad-WL (Apr 15, 2004)

BudhaGoodha said:


> My sister experienced the Alaskan deep freeze of 1984 (I think that's the year). Her place in fairbanks reached -80 F!!!!!!!! WOW! She said at that temp, everything crystalizes even the air, and makes for a surreal environment. She also said you could litteraly throw a cup of water out the window and it would freeze before hitting the ground.


Just a quick fact for all you outdoors people:
You don't need -80º for this, anything below -30ºC will work.. You may have to bring it up to a boil to get better effects.

Cheers!


----------



## firefox (Sep 28, 2004)

I lived in MN for 12+ years... We (me and my buddies) would run and ride throughout the year. Usually in mid- to late January, the temps would dip to betweeen -50 and -80 degrees (F) with even colder windchill factors. No lung freezing that I remember. Just keep moving... 

(ff)


----------

