Vapor Barrier Clothing Questions

[Leo L.]

Western Mountaineering sells a vapor barrier sleeping bag liner...

I use an old nylon sleeping bag liner, that looks like a bivvy but is not waterproof, but works a bit like a VBL.
The main purpose is to Keep the bag clean and add a few degrees to the bag in cold nights.
When I use it outside the bag, the bag will be damp in the morning.
When I use it inside the bag, I will feel damp, but the bag will be dry in the morning.

[Dogwood]

Lot to digest Pinnah. Some good stuff.

[sethd513]

Seth, have you considered a high end UL/light synthetic bag for some of those long duration cold or wet trips? After it's all hashed out you may find such a synthetic to be a less complex system being lighter wt.

I figured that my weight savings was from not needing a sleeping layer or extra clothing. I use to bring a very heavyweight layer to sleep in, also i was always under the impression I needed an extra layer in winter. Extra fleece extra socks. Now I wear a thin baselayer layer that drys almost instantly during the day with softshell pants and top. It fits over the vbs so everything can be worn together. I have my down pants and coat and hardshell pants and coat. The only way for me to save weight on my trips at this point is to go out when it’s warmer. I’m thinking about dumping my spare socks actually because I don’t know where else to save weight.

If it’s going to be 10-15 degrees out I could bring my 40* quilt, eVENT bivy and vbs with all my winter load out (down pants coat beanie) I haven’t weighed my vb suit and probably should. But I’d assume it’s around a pound. Right there that is probably 3 lbs and I won’t be comfortable. I’ll get through the night but might get pretty cold a few hours before I wake up. Could use my 20* and it only adds about 10 oz and should be able to remove the vb suit but I’m sure the bag will be very wet In the morning. Who knows it might be fine. I haven’t tried that in the new bivy which breaths very well.

My last trip was 0,-1. I brought my -20 col vb suit and winter load out. Extremely warm. Over heating warm. Vbl, base layer and soft shell pants coat to sleep in. Very comfortable. My wife used the eVENT bivy with her 10+30* quilt. Xtherm with zlite sol on top. It was her first night trying a vb suit. She sleeps very cold so we dropped the temp ratings when we got her stuff. 40 for me 30 for her. Comfortable at 40 sort of thing. The Cuban bottom was all frost. The event literally had no frost on it and her quilts looked great. She said she was so warm she couldn’t believe it as her eye lids were all ice.

Our first winter camping trip I had a 30* down mummy bag with a 50* synthetic over bag. It was -6. I literally froze the synthetic bag. Vb suit for me has done a few things. It’s given me a better grasp on how far i can push my gear. It helps me keep my gear dry so if I needed to be out for weeks on end if something bad happened my insulation would be sufficient? On paper so far. Sure for a single overnight you don’t need the suit. But for me I like where it’s going for me.


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[sethd513]

I could use my 20+40 quilt with a bivy and vb suit down to probably the same as my -20 col. The quilts and bivy are 15,26 and15 being a total of 56 oz. the col weighs 73oz and I still bring the bivy Incase I got stuck on a ridge. I could layer my quilts and save pounds. I don’t feel like it though. Could I layer my quilts with the bivy without the vb and use my -20 col without the vb to the same temperature. I don’t know. The quilts look loftier when they are layered then the col but that’s a whole other thing


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[Highland Goat]

I have an RBH Deigns jacket, but I only wear it in extreme cold (-20° F or below). Your layers underneath will get wet, but if you wear down on top you it will stay dry. I would not wear down for a multi-day winter trek without it.
However, I don’t like that sort of thing for sleeping.