Ergodyne N-Ferno 6970 Balaclava with Detachable Heat Exchanger Face Mask Winter Ski Mask Black

I bought this to wear while riding my bike in the winter. If the temperature is 20 F or above I wear a regular balaclava but when the temperature drops below 20 F, I wanted something warmer. The heat exchanger works wonders. I used this today when the air temperature was -9 F (-28 F with the wind chill index). I wore ski goggles over the top of the N-Ferno 6970 and I tucked the neck of the balaclava into my ski jacket. With this combination of gear, I did not have any exposed skin and I could both see and breath just fine. While riding my bike I was exerting a lot of energy and breathing heavy at times (going up inclines). The heat exchanger warmed and humidified the air so my lungs never felt like they were getting blasted with cold air (the weather advisory on the radio was warning people to not breath deeply and to minimize talking if they had to be outside today). The ONLY thing I didn't like was that some of the moisture from my breath was condensing and dripping from the mask. That is a really minor problem and I don't think there is any way to avoid it. I would HIGHLY recommend this mask to anyone who rides or works outside in extreme cold. Read more

Fine with my glasses. you can bend the nose area for a better seal. I found that the key is to pull the balaclava portion over my nose, not leave it under the chin, then attach the exchanger, which by the way, can attach to other balaclavas. My glasses did not fog up. I also tried it with my Over-The-Glasses ski goggles and it worked fine. Typically, my regular glasses fog up before the OTG goggles do, but they never did with the N-Ferno.. I tested the N-Ferno 6970 Extreme Balaclava in 23 degree weather with 40-45 mph winds with no hat. In those conditions, my head got a bit cold, but my face and ears were toasty. I would wear it with a ski hat or helmet in the future. Overall, it is the best "heat-moisture" exchanger balaclava I have used, and I have a couple other types in my outdoor clothing arsenal. Read more

It fits well and is very warm. I'm not a big fan of velcro through. It's starting to give. Maybe put an adjustable strap on it to go around your head? I would also like to easily add some kind of N95 to keep out viruses in the cold. Read more

This is an awesome product, and would recommend this to anyone In cold weather I have trouble breathing, my lungs and chest hurt like pins and needles, I am unable to stay outside for more than 30 min. with this product I can stay outside all day, do work outside, feed and check cattle drive tractor ect all day long I wish I would have got this product a long time ago I wear glasses with this product and have no trouble with fogging The only issue I had with this product was pulling it over my head, it is tight, what I did so I don't have to pull it over my head I had my wife cut the part that goes around your neck in half, put on a seam on both sides and put Velcro on each side that way it is easy to put on and take off without pulling it over my head Believe me this product has changed my life in cold weather great product Read more

The balaclava is good and warm. The mask (detachable) works well to prevent inhaling cold air, but it is uncomfortable. It works fine for walking and working with sunglasses on, but I cannot get it to seal around the bridge of my nose. It doesn't work with goggles for me. The goggles cannot lay over the masks or it is very uncomfortable. The mask is best used when walking, not riding an ATV or snowmobile because of the goggle issue. Read more

Gave it a two star as it is warm but the whole reason I bought the mask was worthless for. The mask did NOT prevent my Eyewear from fogging up. The nose piece didn't form to my nose properly at all. Very sad as I wanted to like it. Maybe my head and face were to big? Idk ether way it wasn't worth it for me. Read more

I work outdoors for electrical utilities during MN winters (commonly -20* or worse + windchill for those who don’t know). As I’m writing this, it’s mid-November 2025 in central MN, and I’ve been on the hunt for a solid balaclava that does its best to prevent my prescription glasses from fogging before the bitter cold hits. This is NOT it. The stitching on the balaclava was coming undone straight out of the package (had barely used it at all except to test its functionality), there were finger-size holes forming at either corner of the face attachment (where the face attachment meets velcro to secure it to sides of balaclava). The fitment was terrible (specifically on the bridge of my nose), and in my 68*-70* home, my glasses were fogging up with each breath (didn’t even bother going outside with this on - was already annoyed). I tried to use nose clamp but it didn’t help & made it even more uncomfortable. The only place I could pinch it enough to not let air out was at the tip of my nose, which made breathing hard and uncomfortable too. Another issue I had was the small fleece flap just above the heat exchanger pushing up under my eyes, or pushing against my lower eyelashes into my eyes when adjusting it to find the best fitment. Another point is that it was hard to find the fleece flap (that normally gets tucked under your jacket to keep the wind out) due to the heat exchanger flap, but that was easily remedied by taking the flap off until you were ready for it. For this to work properly, I think there’d need to be either: A. A longer/stronger nose clip that can cover more area to really cinch the flap to your nose without adding so much pressure to one small spot/area. B. You need an obscenely long nose for this to work alright; my nose is maybe slightly smaller, but it isn’t dwarfed by any means & is pretty straight with maybe a tiny baby downwards curve towards the end. You’d need a beak so it would comfortably sit lower without blocking your nasal passages. The only positive thing I have to say is that the balaclava fleece was very soft, comfy & toasty. I’d wear the base balaclava (before the face flap) for warmth in milder/less severe conditions, and (obviously) not relying on the balaclava for eyewear fog mitigation or full-face protection from snow/sleet/windchill/cold. That’s about it. The concept behind this balaclava is pretty sweet ~ in practice, it flops, and until some revisions are made, I would advise you to look elsewhere (especially if foggy eyewear is a problem for you, and especially for the price this retails at). Read more

This is my go to balaclava. I sent one to my son and got myself a second one to keep in the truck. Works great even with glasses (I put a tiny slit in each side) Read more