Is it just me....or...

[mybackpackingblog]

I purchased a Kelty Light Year XP 20 Sythetic Male sleeping bag...I love Kelty and have a LOT of their gear...But every time I have used this bag, I froze to death.

For instance:

Cherokee, NC (Beside a creek)
Kelty Yellowstone 6 man
Queen Air Mattress
Fleece on top of the mattress
Temp Low was 26
Result=Way to cold to sleep...had to start a fire...

Pilot Mt. In the trees
REI Kingdom 6 man
Large Queen Air Mattress
Fleece on top of the mattress
Temp Low was 34
Result=Very cold inside the bag

Kimesville Lake
Kelty Grand Mesa 2
Stansport Backpacking Air Mattress
1/8" Closed Cell Cosslink on top of mattress
Temp Low was 32ish
Result=Froze

What the? It's not like I'm a sissy or nothing. I'm 6' and 200lbs...(Im personally well insulated :)...

Anyone have this problem and would the Down vs. Synthetic be better?
Tire of being cold....

[RedneckRye]

The problem is probably the air mattress.
They provide zero insulation. A fleece or an 1/8" thick foam pad on top of the mattress won't help much either.

[leaftye]

Get an air mattress with insulation in it.

[Toolshed]

Like others said....Lose the air mattress.
it is a no win situation. you cannot heat up 3-4 inches of air that is constantly being cooled by the ground beneath you. Your bag compresses under you and all you feel is cold air. You need either a closed cell pad (blue wally worlld, Ridge Rest....) or a self inflating open cell foam pad (like the thermarest, neo-air...)

[mybackpackingblog]

thanks for the tips everyone...I understand now...thankfully, I only spent like $20 on the Stansport backpackers air mattress....:)

[bigcranky]

+1 on the mattress. You need a lot more insulation under you to be warm in those conditions. Get a Thermarest Prolite Plus, or an insulated Big Agnes pad. Or put a thick closed cell foam pad under your air mattress.

[buz]

Or the bag is optimistically rated. IMO, Kelty makes really good tents, bags not so much, rating wise. Try it with good pad, and then see where you are. If still cold, well then maybe the bag isn't what you need it to be.

[Rocket Jones]

Or put a thick closed cell foam pad under your air mattress.

I sleep-tested my cold weather setup last month, and I was notably warmer with the blue foam pad on top of the air matress.

[Sickmont]

I sleep-tested my cold weather setup last month, and I was notably warmer with the blue foam pad on top of the air matress.

Because the foam is a much better insulator than the air mattress.

[Buffalo Skipper]

Or the bag is optimistically rated. IMO, Kelty makes really good tents, bags not so much, rating wise. Try it with good pad, and then see where you are. If still cold, well then maybe the bag isn't what you need it to be.

I disagree that Kelty makes less than good bags. I have a Kelty Light Year 25° bag (got it on clearance at REI 4 years ago for $69). The first real night I needed it the forecast as for 22°, but it got down to about 10°. I was very cold (understandably!). But I have used this bag down to 20°-25° on at least 6 other occasions, both on a sleeping pad and in a hammock with no problems at all. At 20° I was slighly cooler than I would have liked, but not so much that I suffered. I am quite warm and cozy at 25°, and I am a very cold sleeper (read: native Floridian).

If my bag is any indicator of Kelty's quality, I am very impressed. YMMV.

[skinewmexico]

You might try a POE Ether Thermo 6, mine has been great into the upper 20s, if the ground isn't frozen. And how old is your Kelty? Compression is very hard on synthetic bags; they'll lose temp rating, sometimes within months.

[BJStuart]

I agree, it's the mattress. When I'm car camping I use an AeroBed & even in a nice down bag you can end up a little chilly if the temp drops. We now bring a comforter to put on top, which helps, but anything below 50 & I'd want more. I might try it with a blue foam pad on top sometime if it gets chilly.