FarmerChef
06-27-2012, 13:53
So I have some general advantages traveling with 5 at a time that I leverage to our advantage to keep our pack weight and $$ down. Still, I'm always looking to find better ways to shave ounces, increase our comfort and not break the bank. Here is our current sleep system and very rough calculations based on actual experience for temps and comfort:
We all have a Texsport flannel sleeping bag - weight 19.2 ounces (good down to around 60 degrees $17)
Silk mummy liner (ebay) - Weight 7 ounces (gives us another 5 to 10 degrees $10)
Plus
Zipping the bags together but still with liners inside gives us another 5 to 10 degrees, especially when we pull the bag over our heads (free)
Parents spooning and/or zipping all the kids together inside two bags gets us all another 10 degrees (free)
Plus
Tarptenting gets us another 10 degree bump over ambient temperature (free minus cost of the tarp tent)
That is our 2.5 season configuration and keeps us comfy down to around 40 degrees as long as the air is still. We wouldn't be comfy but would probably be ok down to around 30 with this setup. Before I go to the winter config and my question, let me state that if it was just my wife and I only inside a smaller tarp, I'd raise that temperature rating at least another 10 degrees up. Having all those bodies inside the tarp makes a big difference, as much as 20 degrees (as measured) in several cases.
Our late-fall to early spring configuration is as follows:
Kids = zip 2 bags together using the 3rd as an extra blanket which covers all the kids (though they comically fight over it at night...in their sleep...lol)
Mom and Dad = zip our 2 bags together as above but add an extra flannel sleeping bag that we stopped using due to its weight (1.6 pounds, ouch)
Everyone wears base layer, long johns, fleece cap, wool socks and lightweight fleece jacket to bed.
We have been good down to around 25 in this configuration in a shelter. I'll bet we could have done 20 before we started feeling cold. In a tarp, I know we're good in the 20s as tested.
BUT...I still want to get that weight down. It seems silly to carry a 1.2 pound bag plus .8 pounds (as divided) for a total of a 2 pound bag when I could just get a 0 degree rated bag at a lighter weight. The problem is the cost. So I've researched some MYOG quilts and I'd like to hear from any quilters out there what their experience has been. I figure, at a minimum, we could carry two quilts instead of two extra flannel bags but be much warmer and slightly lighter in the process.
Thoughts?
We all have a Texsport flannel sleeping bag - weight 19.2 ounces (good down to around 60 degrees $17)
Silk mummy liner (ebay) - Weight 7 ounces (gives us another 5 to 10 degrees $10)
Plus
Zipping the bags together but still with liners inside gives us another 5 to 10 degrees, especially when we pull the bag over our heads (free)
Parents spooning and/or zipping all the kids together inside two bags gets us all another 10 degrees (free)
Plus
Tarptenting gets us another 10 degree bump over ambient temperature (free minus cost of the tarp tent)
That is our 2.5 season configuration and keeps us comfy down to around 40 degrees as long as the air is still. We wouldn't be comfy but would probably be ok down to around 30 with this setup. Before I go to the winter config and my question, let me state that if it was just my wife and I only inside a smaller tarp, I'd raise that temperature rating at least another 10 degrees up. Having all those bodies inside the tarp makes a big difference, as much as 20 degrees (as measured) in several cases.
Our late-fall to early spring configuration is as follows:
Kids = zip 2 bags together using the 3rd as an extra blanket which covers all the kids (though they comically fight over it at night...in their sleep...lol)
Mom and Dad = zip our 2 bags together as above but add an extra flannel sleeping bag that we stopped using due to its weight (1.6 pounds, ouch)
Everyone wears base layer, long johns, fleece cap, wool socks and lightweight fleece jacket to bed.
We have been good down to around 25 in this configuration in a shelter. I'll bet we could have done 20 before we started feeling cold. In a tarp, I know we're good in the 20s as tested.
BUT...I still want to get that weight down. It seems silly to carry a 1.2 pound bag plus .8 pounds (as divided) for a total of a 2 pound bag when I could just get a 0 degree rated bag at a lighter weight. The problem is the cost. So I've researched some MYOG quilts and I'd like to hear from any quilters out there what their experience has been. I figure, at a minimum, we could carry two quilts instead of two extra flannel bags but be much warmer and slightly lighter in the process.
Thoughts?