Any ideas on insulating the backside of my hammock?

I have an parachute material hammock by ENO that I absolutely love. However will cooler weather approaching in a few months, I'm trying to figure out the best way to make sure I stay warm through the night. My experience has been that the underside of my hammock where my back rests tends to get very chilly, I've considered putting my thermarest pad in the hammock to see if this helps. I've only slept in my hammock while completely wrapped in my mummy bag, but again the back side is waaay to cold for comfort......Anybody have any ideas?

There is a link on the top of the forum every now and then that has exactly what you are looking for.

jacks r better

or something along those lines.

I use a Hammock Gear (hammockgear.com) down under quilt. Specifically the 3-Season Burrow. It is great, comfortable, light weight and stuffs small. Can't beat a top quilt/under quilt combo.

Woops! The Crows Nest is the UQ. The Burrow is the TQ.

I suggest that you check out whiteblaze's sister site www.hammockforums.net. You will find info on many different ways to insulate a hammock.

A ccf pad will work. I used one in my hammock for years. Still do in the sub-zero temps. Can't beat it for the warmth/weight ratio. Many have begun to use UnderQuilts (UQ's). these can be pricey especially the down ones. I suggest trying out your pad, and reading up on some of the mods/DIY people have done with pad sleeves, etc... You will likely end up with (at least one) UQ before the end of this decade.

Only problem with a pad is that it tends to slip and slide in single layer hammock like and ENO ( I own a ENO DN ). Pads work best in a double layer hammock.

I have used a retangular syntheitc sleeping bag (opened up) as a pad and another sleeping bag as a top quilt. Kind of heavy and best for car camping.

Best solution is a dedicated UQ. Arrowhead has a sale on one of theirs right now at about 1/2 price.

I'd say there are a couple of options.

1) Pick up a Jacks R Better Weathershield. It's just a simply nylon shell that attaches to the underside. Put an emergency blanket and/or your CCF pad in it and you should fair pretty well.

2) Purchase or DIY an underquilt. I have a Summer Phoenix which is very nice. I added an ounce of down to get me down to freezing. I also recently ordered a Jarbridge UQ which is a 3/4 instead of a full-length quilt. I love down so we'll see how the Jarbridge is since it's synthetic.

Your bag alone won't (as you discovered) because it's still getting compressed under you. If you don't do something about it you'll experience a lot of convection loss in a hammock.

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Originally Posted by Currahee D

I have an parachute material hammock by ENO that I absolutely love. However will cooler weather approaching in a few months, I'm trying to figure out the best way to make sure I stay warm through the night. My experience has been that the underside of my hammock where my back rests tends to get very chilly, I've considered putting my thermarest pad in the hammock to see if this helps. I've only slept in my hammock while completely wrapped in my mummy bag, but again the back side is waaay to cold for comfort......Anybody have any ideas?

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The hammock forums will be the best advice for serious insulation ideas. If you just want to add some lightweight versatility...here is my set up: cut a diamond shape piece of space blanket(I like the copper colored one best), attach light elastic(the round kind from sewing supply places) to each corner, tie this to the underside of your hammock. The elastic lets the material stay snug and move when you do. This also helps with mosquito protection.

UQs must be one good option, as many default directly to that answer. But if you don't have those big bucks to spend, you can be very comfortable (at least I can) with a normal sleeping pad, a good space blanket under your hammock, and a good sleeping bag. I've slept in 5-degree weather just fine like that. Oh, I used an over-sized pack cover as an over-shield too. Shouldn't omit mentioning that. Nor the hot water Nalgene I put in my sleeping bag. I used an Exped foam-filled self-inflating sleeping pad. Very comfy.

Plus, if you do have to sleep on the ground or in a shelter, you've got a multi-function sleeping pad. Can't say that for an UQ.

In warmer weather, I sometimes simply take one or two small pieces of CCF pad, which I used for a sitting pad until bedtime. Then I put it (or them) under my back in the hammock. My rain gear and clothes can go under my legs and feet. Works well for me to fight off that chill you mentioned, at no additional weight in my pack.

Rain:sunMan

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I have a DIY project in progress that attaches a bugnet pouch underneath the hammock for a mat (custom fit to my profile) or an inflatable mat. I will publish pics when done. PM me for details. I designed this before I had a sewing machine and am planning to attach the pouch with C23 basting tape.

Rick