Sleeping Bag insulation

[pickle]

I am newest to backpacking and that is why I am asking for your thought's and opinions on different pieces of equipment.
I would like to know which would be better:synthetic or down insulation?

[Slo-go'en]

It depends on your definition of "better".

Assume two bags of the same temperature rating:

Synthetic : Pros - it can keep you warm when damp or wet. It's much less expensive then down. Cons: it's relatively bulky and heavy compared to down.

Down : Pros. It's much lighter and can compresses much smaller then synthetic. Cons: Looses insulation effectiveness if wet or very damp and takes a long time to dry if it get wet. A lot more expensive then synthetic.

[Hosh]

I would think down dominates the sleeping bag/quilt arena. It's so much lighter, and less volume for a given temperature rating. It also last much longer, several decades if kept clean, dried, and stored properly.

If you're in an environment with heavy dew, condensation spread over many days/weeks, a synthetic will lose less loft. If you have opportunity for drying periods, down will respond and maintain it's loft.

If you fall into an icy creek and soak your pack, you're in deep puckey no matter what kind of material is used on your sleeping gear.

I have down quilts for the obvious reasons of weight and volume, but I also hike in the semi arid Rockies and Utah high plateau areas

[MuddyWaters]

If you have to ask, synthetic is the best for you.

Its not that simple. Down isnt suitable for a some circumstances. Synthetic is more idiot proof. Cold and wet with condensation, extended use without ability to dry, etc.

[saltysack]

If you have to ask, synthetic is the best for you.

Its not that simple. Down isnt suitable for a some circumstances. Synthetic is more idiot proof. Cold and wet with condensation, extended use without ability to dry, etc.

Haaa....to the point....


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[bigcranky]

This is a long standing debate without any real answer -- if one were "best" the other one would go out of production.

I prefer down, for several reasons. It's lighter and packs smaller for the same warmth. It's more comfortable over a wider range of temperatures, in my experience. A good down bag will last pretty much forever if well cared for. A synthetic bag might last a couple of seasons before showing significant reductions in loft. I work pretty hard to keep my down bag dry, which really isn't that hard, but even then, a totally soaking wet synthetic bag isn't exactly "warm when wet" either.

Yes, a good down bag can be expensive, but if you're going to do this for a lifetime, it's much cheaper per year in the long run.

[Slo-go'en]

I own several down bags and long term they tend to loose feathers out the seams. I seem to loose a few each time I unstuff the bag. Some of by baffles are getting pretty empty of feathers.

Synthetic insulation will eventually loose it's loft, but if stored unstuffed it will last a long time. With everything, how long it lasts depends on how much you use it and how you store it.

I once had to put a synthetic "warm when wet" to the test. One night during a heavy rain, I crawled into my bivy sack / synthetic bag soaking wet. It took a little while to warm it up and was pretty clammy, but I did get warm and slept surprisingly well considering. I could have never done that with a down bag.

[turtle fast]

I have to go with a synthetic bag on this one. It's not a knock on down bags ( I own down too).....it's just that a down bag requires more care in cleaning, more awareness of keeping it dry, and the initial investment is a few hundred dollars. Yes you get more bulk, but it's easier to wash the hiker funk out of it, drys faster, and if wetish/damp will still insulate your body which could spell the difference of hypothermia or not. ... Down has its limitations.

[HooKooDooKu]

If you're going to be in a very wet or humid environment, you need to think about synthetic.

An example of how down can go wrong, my brother told me he once took a 3lb down bag into the Great Smoky Mountains and came out with a 5lb down bag. The GSMNP is just so humid that the bag absorbed moisture out of the air. (Keep in mind that GSMNP is a place where once something gets wet, it stays wet until it is dried via body heat, heat of a camp fire, or radiant energy from the sun. Leave something out over night to dry out and it's just as likely to be wetter the next morning.)

Otherwise, down seems to generally out perform synthetic.
A quality down bag should be much lighter than a comparable quality synthetic bag.
A down bag will retain its loft longer from repeated stuffing than a synthetic bag.
A down bag will usually stuff much smaller as well.
(The one minor exception to the stuff size "rule" is that I have found my $250 Mountain Hardware UltraLamina series of synthetic bags to pack down smaller than comparable $500+ down bags... however those $500+ bags bet the Mountain Hardware UltraLamina in weight by about a pound).