View Full Version : Stuff/Compression Sacks?
I've been looking through a lot of different stuff/compression/dry sacks (sizes & types), and I'm wondering what did you all choose to use on the AT? I live in the Rockies (pretty dry climate), but I've read a lot of thru-hiker blogs that bring up how wet all of your stuff tends to get. Would a dry sac help with that? And did you use a compression or regular stuff sack? I'd like to save on weight where I can, but I'd like to know what you all found most practical. Thanks!
fantomhockey
09-23-2011, 23:24
I really prefer the compression sacks for their ability to be squished into the smallest possible shape. I keep my clothing/sleeping essentials layered inside my compression sack in this order, bottom to top: sleeping bag, sleeping bag liner, non-essential clothes and sleep wear, socks, balaclava and glove liners. I'm not really sure if the dry sacs are worth the extra weight, since my clothes/bag have never gotten wet, but then again, my thru hike doesn't start until next year and I dont have much experience hiking in wetter climates.
I prefer dry sacks to compression sacks. I have found that I don't like the way the compression sacks make everything into hard balls and then I felt like there was wasted space because of this. Not only this, then my pack looked slightly deformed because of the way everything fit clumsily together inside with the compression straps outside the pack cinched down trying to hold it all together. Plus, compression sacks, if compressed hard, can over time ruin some items, such as those high dollar down sleeping bags and jackets. I say if you are going to use them, don't get carried away with making items as small as you can. And if you absolutely have to make them into tiny balls just to make everything just fit inside a pack, then a slightly larger pack may be in order...
I use a ZPacks cuben dry sack pack liner (http://sticksblog.com/gear/storage-stuff-sacks/zpacks-cuben-fiber-18-x-36-dry-sack-pack-liner/) that lines my packs. Inside that I put my quilt or sleeping bag inside a very large DIY stuff sack at the bottom. At this point, the bag/quilt will easily fill half of my pack. Then I start layering my food, clothing, kitchen set and whatever else I need inside my pack on top of the bag/quilt. This way, it all compresses the bag/quilt only as much as needed, but I also end up with a full, even pack so I don't have to worry about trying to cinch all the compression straps down on the pack to make it fit right. Then I just roll the top down and everything is waterproof. I keep my shelter system, water system and rain gear in the outside pockets of my pack because these are things I need during the day or when I first get to camp. Other items I may need get put in the pack, but not inside the pack liner. This way if I need to access them and it is raining, then even when I open my pack, the stuff inside my pack liner stays dry.
fantomhockey
09-24-2011, 22:58
This may be a good topic for another thread but... I have never had any problems stuffing my sleeping bag as small as I can get it and it re-lofting at the end of the day. Granted, I will never EVER leave it compressed for more than my travel time, and I do make sure to lay it out as soon as I have my tent and pad ready. After reading the previous post about how compression sacks can "...over time ruin some items, such as those high dollar down sleeping bags and jackets." I did quite a bit of research.
The general consensus (after reading interviews from companies like Western Mountaineering and enLightened Equiqment, as well as an email to GoLite) is that all the products can be compressed like rocks with no long term damage. I am talking about down here, my bag is 800 fill, synthetic is a completely different story. There may be some lofting/insulation issues if you're hoping to get the bag right out of compression and jump in it, but a little time will cure that. I also read a case where a bag was accidentally left compressed for a long period of time, but after being thrown into a dryer with a couple tennis balls it was good as new. I generally let my bag set up for at least an hour before I get into it.
Everything else aside, it really comes down to how you want to organize your gear insider your pack. I prefer to compress my clothing and sleeping bag as much as possible to further separate it from items I may need to access quickly or often (rain gear, water filter, stove etc.) and keep them dry. Still I don't have a lot of experience hiking in humidity and may change over to a compression dry sac, wont lose the compression feature though.
While I do have a few down bags, quilts and jackets which range from 750 to 900 down fill, I have not had any of these products for a lifetime, so I cannot speak from experience as to the actual effect that compressing a down bag verses not compressing a down bag really has. Although, this is a hot topic, and there is a good chance that there will be people from both camps chime in here too. Fact is, who really knows. Every down item is used in a different way than the next anyway, and lots of things affect how a down item will fare. Cleanliness and use are 2 main factors, as well as storage (both at home and on the trail). So who really knows.
This is the way I see it though. I do not compress my down for 2 reasons:
1. I spent a fair amount of $$$ on most of the down pieces, so why treat them worse than I need too.
2. I find that packing a pack is easier to do and more efficient when I do not use a compression sack, or for that matter, even those tiny stuff sacks that most bags are shipped with.
I am obviously in the camp that doesn't compress. While I completely understand that down and synthetics are 2 entirely different beast, I have a hard time believing that down is perfect and that it can be smushed down as hard as can be with no lasting effect what-so-ever. Everything has it's limits. Although, I do feel like long term compression is much more detrimental to the life of even a high quality down piece than short term compression. Saying this, I can see how that for those that only get out a handful of times a year and compress it in there pack a day or so here and there will probably not have any noticeable problem with it over their lifetime. But, I just can't help but think that the less a down item is compressed, the longer it will last and probably even preform even better during that time.
Also, though, I am not a fan of compression sacks themselves, or for that matter, the small stuff sacks which are used with huge sleeping bags. Typically compression sacks are heavier than either stuff sacks, or dry sacks. Not to mention, I feel like it would be quite possible/more likely to tear/rip a baffle inside the sleeping bag while trying to get all that bag into a tiny stuff/compression sack.
Like I said in my first post, I find it much easier (and lighter) to just throw my pack liner in my pack and then throw my sleeping bag in the bottom of it. Also, just so ya know, I do use a DIY large stuff sack that I pack the bag/quilt in before throwing it into the bottom of the pack liner. This just helps to keep it cleaner and a little extra insurance it will stay dry. Then, everything else is piled on top (other than my rain gear, water system and shelter which goes outside my pack for obvious reasons). I end up with an evenly packed pack with no wasted/unused space and this also makes the pack feel better on my back. Plus I don't have to struggle with all those compression straps on the outside of the pack because the pack is filled.
Most thru's use a trash compactor bag as a liner. I did and never had any issues with my clothes/down bag getting wet.
Compression sacks don't save pack space they waste it. Hard to pack a brick. Instead stuff your gear inside your liner and allow it to fill every void. You'll be amazed how much more room you'll glean inside your pack this way.
Cheers!
I like the colored compression sacks to group like items, rain stuff, camp stuff, nasty stuff, etc. After a few days, the "nasty stuff" is the biggest.
RWheeler
09-25-2011, 12:22
Push things into your pack, and a sleeping bag or jacket outside of a compression sack will be compressed enough to fit whatever you're trying to put in. And it's a much more even distribution of... stuff...
mirabela
09-25-2011, 17:00
The only thing I like compression sacks for is extraordinarily bulky items, i.e. the -20F synthetic bag I use for winter trips.
garlic08
09-25-2011, 18:30
I like to pack as lightly and as minimally as possible, so I only use one stuff sack for food, one trash compactor bag as a liner, and nothing else. The sleeping bag and clothing go as loosely as possible into the compactor bag (depending on food and water bulk), and the food sack goes on top of that. That works very well for my pack and my load. It might not for others.
Enough stuff sacks and compression sacks can start adding their own weight and bulk. I once helped a hiker minimize his pack, and we found he had over two dozen stuff sacks, sometimes nested three deep. His tent stakes were in a stuff sack inside the stuff sack for the tent poles inside the stuff sack for the tent, none of which is needed, for example. The camera kit and first aid kit had the same layering. He was an organization freak. We eliminated bulk equal to a large stuff sack full of stuff sacks, and probably a couple of pounds. That was an extreme, but you get the idea.