View Full Version : Does Silicone stripes on tent floor help reducing the sleeping pad slide?
Wondering about the pros and cons of applying Silicone stripes ( and how to apply) to prevent my sleeping pad( Neoair Xtherm) from slipping on uneven campsites on my Solong 6 tent floor.
It is very common for me to find my sleeping pad and sleeping bag pressing the side of the tent when I have been camping on an uneven surface which wakes me up and if there is condensation makes my sleeping bag absorb some of the condensation . How do you prevent it?
daddytwosticks
02-25-2017, 14:40
I know this has been discussed before. In fact, I believe quite recently.
I use a small section of an old Gossamer Gear 1/8 inch foam pad. Maybe 20" by 30" between my pad and tent floor. The pad is extremely grippy and prevents the type of sliding you are experiencing. The GG pad also acts as a great sit pad too.
Picking better campsites is not a solution, at least in my experience on the AT. :)
Seam Grip works pretty well, get the kind for sill-nylon. Apply in sine-wave type lines, not parallel stripes. It helps, but won't stick you to the floor on slopes.
Cosmo
TexasBob
02-25-2017, 15:19
I find it helpful. The silicone will sometimes peel off but seems to do no harm to the tent floor.
DuneElliot
02-25-2017, 15:48
I've used it but I applied it to the bottom of my pad vs the tent floor. I used bathroom silicone in a tube, drew a line of silicone on the bumps of the pad and flattened it with my finger and let it dry. Works great.
MuddyWaters
02-25-2017, 16:29
Pick better campsites
+
I spend quite a bit of time usually selecting my campsite. When there is no choice, and I have to pitch on slight incline, I sleep perpendicular to the fall line, and shove items under the downhill side of my pad to cradle me. I might push against inner, but its part that cant contact tarp. Vestibule area is in front.
saltysack
02-25-2017, 16:44
Other thing I do is put my quilt/bag foot box inside my empty pack liner to keep dry if hits tent wall...
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saltysack
02-25-2017, 17:12
Wondering about the pros and cons of applying Silicone stripes ( and how to apply) to prevent my sleeping pad( Neoair Xtherm) from slipping on uneven campsites on my Solong 6 tent floor.
It is very common for me to find my sleeping pad and sleeping bag pressing the side of the tent when I have been camping on an uneven surface which wakes me up and if there is condensation makes my sleeping bag absorb some of the condensation . How do you prevent it?
I've got same set up and the silicone strips help...I had outdoor 76 apply it before I bought it as went out to start a night section hike with it...
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garlic08
02-25-2017, 18:52
Someone once suggested to paint dots, not stripes, to help in sweeping the tent floor if you ever do that.
DuneElliot and Garlic are what I've done applying some dots to the underside of the inflatable pad for the reasons mentioned. The wave pattern of silicon works too but after doing that once very lightly it added 7/8 oz to the tent. Too much for my UL tastes. Applying shallow dots, just 6-8, is more wt conscious with Seam Grip and has worked even for some restless sleepers. Depending how wt conscious one is you might consider polyurethane 3M hexagonal door bumpers. Just 6-8 do it and weigh in total low single digit grams...to the pad. http://www.wwhardware.com/3m-clear-door-bumpers-3msj I'm fairly sure there are sprays that can be applied to the underside of an inflatable pad that offer tackiness.
jj dont play
02-25-2017, 19:54
I have a Solong 6. I got them to seal the seams and they put stripes on the bottom. When I got stuck with poor campsites my neoair slid. They did not help. The only real solution is to shim your pad with clothes
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cmoulder
02-25-2017, 20:38
If your air mat has horizontal baffles (i.e. Thermarest) put a few stripes of Seam Grip on some bottom baffles of the air mat in the torso area, and put some stripes of SilNet (for silnylon floors) on the floor where the sleep mat will be placed, perpendicular to the air mat stripes. Obviously, reverse the striping strategy for Exped, or adjust accordingly for others.
If you're a side a side to side or thrasher type sleeper the inflatable pads that have surfaces or baffles that are waffle like, parallel to the length, are of fabric rather than the slippery 30 D HT Nylon of the Neo Air's might change your situation.
Expel Syn Cell, Big Agnes(several), Sea to Summit UL, Cascade Designs Evolite or ProLite, Klymit Static V2, Static V Junior, Klymit Ozone , Klymit Inertia Series, stay under me better, etc
Try placing you're empty pack or maps or even socks under your Neo Air or place your full length NeoAir and sleeping bag foot end into your empty pack. Pack materials and construction in itself may add more friction than the Neo Air material with teh silny tent floor. I have much less sliding around that way when the tent floor is silny or groundsheet is new Tyvek or polycro. Dyneema Composite (Cuben Fiber) is less slippery than the typical silny of tent floors.
TexasBob
02-26-2017, 00:06
...............I'm fairly sure there are sprays that can be applied to the underside of an inflatable pad that offer tackiness.
The Thermarest pads in the 80's were pretty slick and your sleeping bag would slide right off. Thermarest made a spray that would make the surface of the pad tacky to prevent your bag from sliding off but as they improved the surface of their pads over the years they quit making the spray. Then you had to put silicone stripes on your old Thermarest or spend the night slip sliding around your tent.
Get a hammock! 😂
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Get a hammock!
How the $#@#@$$#@ is this supposed to be helpful to the OP or anyone wandering into this thread in the future?
The Thermarest pads in the 80's were pretty slick and your sleeping bag would slide right off. Thermarest made a spray that would make the surface of the pad tacky to prevent your bag from sliding off but as they improved the surface of their pads over the years they quit making the spray. Then you had to put silicone stripes on your old Thermarest or spend the night slip sliding around your tent.
What's that spray? Do you know much about it? This is what I was looking for. Is there something similar? I've heard that tackiness can be achieved by hair spray. :-?
How the $#@#@$$#@ is this supposed to be helpful to the OP or anyone wandering into this thread in the future?
While I got great answers from many members(special thank to Dogwood), after 5 years being a member in WB it seems I am semi immune to responses like these: Get a hammock or find a better campsite.I call them little funny distractions. I switched to EE quilt a few years ago and found it practical, light and warm but it does not mean that from now on everybody that is using a traditional sleeping bag should switch to quilt because I found them more practical for me.
TexasBob
02-27-2017, 16:41
What's that spray? Do you know much about it? This is what I was looking for. Is there something similar? I've heard that tackiness can be achieved by hair spray. :-?
Thermarest quit selling it a long time ago and I haven't seen a similar product since. It didn't make the mattress tacky or sticky but made it made the surface feel slightly rough so the slipping stopped. You had to reapply the spray periodically because the roughness wore off with use. Hair spray might work in the same way but I don't know.
Anyone try or know of using a spray like this?
https://m.lowes.com/pd/Rust-Oleum-Stops-Rust-Leakseal-Clear-Water-Resistant-Spray-Paint-Actual-Net-Contents-12-oz/4165049
I used seam sealer today, was a very messy job for my tastes. I hope it helps, but I may be the owner of a GG pad very soon. Very reasonable price, with double use as a sit pad.