!!??blister preventor that actually stays stuck in place??!!

[adirobdack46r]

I been through 3 or 4 pairs of hiking boots and I always get blisters on the back of my heels unless I put something there to prevent it. I try to get the boots to fit the best I can, and it has been all of them not just one pair, so I guess I'm just prone to blisters there. I think I have tried just about everything on Walmarts bandaid/bandage shelf (bandaids, moleskin, molefoam, blister bolckers). Have not found anything that stays stuck to my heel through an entire day of sweating. Has anyone found anything that will stay in place? I want something that is almost impossible to remove untill the adhesive starts wearing away days after I have put in on.

 

[twigeater]

have you tried duck/duct tape?

 

[adirobdack46r]

have you tried duck/duct tape?

Yup, comes right off. I know Duct tape is an amazing product that it came off my heel faster than some other products.

 

[sli74]

If you know a vet or anyone who works in an animal hospital, you can get some extra sticky "surgical tape" that they use for animals after procedures and that suff will stay stuck on for weeks until you use oil to get it off. The best stuff I have seen yet.

sli74

 

[MadRiver]

I second the duct tap.

 

[tonycc]

I have the same problem. Mine is due to large bone protrusions on the back of my heels. To deal with it:
- I have constructed some custom boot stretchers. This is a couple of shaped 2x4's, a golf ball and clamp that allows me to form a hollow in the heel of the footwear. I mark my heel, without socks, with a pen and then walk around in the footwear for a few minutes to find out where to apply the customization. This helps greatly, but not completely.
- I have found a good bandaid (stretch fabric type) covered by a piece of duct tape works very well at staying on given my feet are completely dry at application. Nothing works well if I have to deal with this after I start my hike.
- I also wear knee high stockings under my merino wool socks. This significantly reduces the friction on the heel which forms the blister and tries to remove the tape. It does cause a bit of harassment from the immature b'strds in my group.

Tony

 

[TCD]

Consider trail runners.

 

[el-bagr]

I don't usually have an issue with sweaty feet, but for me medical tape (or what we used to call "hockey tape" or athletic tape) stays on if I'm breaking in new boots. The trick is to always make a complete loop of it: to tape your heel, you have to spool out enough tape to stick to itself on the front of your ankle. Tear carefully for best results.

If you aren't skiing and have strong ankles, consider sandals. Free the toes!

 

[twigeater]

I second what stinkyfeet said about the benzoin. We had to perform some minor surgery on a trip once, and one of our group who is a nurse had some. I haven't been able to find it though.

 

[John S]

The adhesive sheets (about 3x4 inches, look like thin moleskin) that come with Spenco blister kits work well for me. I use a 1x3 piece on my heels and it usually remains in place for at least a day, sometimes more. The problem is finding it. The kits are readily available but expensive and only include one or two sheets. I’ve only seen the adhesive sheets sold separately at a few EMS stores, never in a drug store.

 

[sapblatt]

Tincture

Tincture of benzoin is available in many pre packed first aid kits. Mine has it and it was a pretty low priced model from REI.

 

[Jeebus]

why not try er... ladies' hose as the base layer under your socks. You may also want to wrap duct tape around the ankle back to the heel to keep it in place.

 

[DougPaul]

I've had poor luck with duct tape--it comes off and then the gummy adhesive gets stuck in my socks.

I've had good luck using tincture of benzoin to "glue" moleskin in place--was able to get it at a drug store and at REI.

Doug

 

[Remix]

I have had no problem with the thinner moleskin- Zeeland hut and back barebooting in Koflachs creates issues where my toes attach. I have never tried duct tape, but is it adviseable to apply it to the skin in a non-emergency like this? Whats in the adhesives? Does it let the skin breathe?

Finally, there is some spray to make bandages stick to the skin better--its probably available at any sport shop that sells football and baseball gear. Used it during football practice too many years ago- its other purpose is to make your hands sticky so you can catch a football more easily.

 

[dug]

Benzoine Tincture!!

While it makes everything around it stickier (more sticky?), it also is used to toughen up the skin. I put it on my dogs' paws to toughen them up, and I've also put it on areas that were sensitive to blisters and it seemed to help stop the issue before it starts.

 

[professor]

I've had similar blistering problems. I can keep the molefoam on my heels for a few miles, but then it comes off, or worse still, scrunches up and induces blistering even faster. I have dealt with this best in the last few years by wearing trail runners, and putting my boots in my backpack at the start. Seems like a lot of extra weight, but hey, it works for me. I tend to keep my running shoes on for the long approaches, and the ascents when they are dry, and put on the hiking boots on particularly wet trail sections and descents. I did Allen two summers ago under relatively dry conditions (everything was dry but the slide) entirely in my trail runners. It was kind of nice running the flat sections of the trail on the way out.

 

[Mr. X]

I've had a terrible time with my feet blistering also. The moleskin and duct tape seem to work. I put so much duct tape on my feet, they look like robotic prosthesis. The best part about duct tape is taking it off!

 

[adirobdack46r]

Sounds like that Benzoin stuff might do the trick. I called around and found it at a local pharmacy. I work in a medical center and I got my hands on a sample of "dermabond", from what I can find out it is basicaly a proffesional/medical grade of new skin type stuff. It is used in operating rooms to hold incisions back together instead of stitches. It's got to be some pretty tuff stuff for that I would think. Maybe a bead around the edge of the moleskin before sticking it on would do the trick. The problem is that it is not a product I can go buy, I just got a little sample to try.

About the trail runners.......
Might be an idea for summer but not going to work real well for me in the winter. I'm going on a winter outing in the Dacks Saturday and already know my winter boots are going to cause a problem for my heels. Yea I know everyone will say I need a pair of boots that fit, as I said at the start of this thread, I've had a few pairs of hikers plus now these winter boots and they all give me a hot spot on my heel so for me the answer might be to just protect the area. I know it is just a bandaid (no pun intended) to the problem but I know that when I get something to stick on my heels all day that my heels feal great. So for me it is a viable solution, just experimenting to find somehting that actually sticks in place for more than a couple hours. I think some of the before mentioned ideas might work.

 

[DougPaul]

I got my hands on a sample of "dermabond", from what I can find out it is basicaly a proffesional/medical grade of new skin type stuff. It is used in operating rooms to hold incisions back together instead of stitches.

Surgical glue might be overkill--remember you want to be able to remove the molefoam/moleskin/tape at the end of the day.

IIRC, "super glue" was originally developed as a surgical glue. It carries warnings about gluing skin-to-skin, eyelids, etc.

The tincture of benzoin was just right for me--strong enough to hold molefoam on for several days, but weak enough that I could remove it at any time without skin damage.

Doug

 

[sbear]

my solutions

I have the same terrible problem, blisters occur on the bac of my ankle just above the heal. The fix I use is 2 padded bandaids per ankle and then use two strands of athletic tape, but I make the strips long enough to secure them, not too tight, towards the front of my ankle. Haven't had problems with it sliding and I am a big sweater