keeping down quilt dry

[nascarmikeb]

Hello All,

I just purchased an Enlightment Equipment 20F 850 FP duck down quilt and will be using it first time on trail in a couple weeks. I have a single wall Gossamer tent. I work hard at mitigating condensation. Given that, if there is slight condensation in the tent that happens to get on the quilt, near toe box, as I am tall, 1. how harmful will this be to the quilt for warming properties? Also, can I take it out during the day to dry, will this restore the loft? Just trying to make sure I do all I can to keep it functioning properly. I use a pack liner as well. I have a microfiber cloth to wipe inside my tent each am to absorb condensation

Mike

[Kittyslayer]

Not exactly an answer to your question. My 20f quilt fits nicely in this Osprey 12L Ultralight Dry Sack. Keeps it away from any other moist/dirty items in my pack. Keep in mind you will not want to put the quilt away wet (vs. moist) as it won't dry while in the sack but it won't get any additional moisture. Pull out later in the day to dry while having lunch as well as airing out in the morning while having breakfast and breaking camp and in the afternoon when you get to camp before going to sleep. While puffed out in the picture it compresses to less than half this size when stuffing into my pack.

Quilt Stuffed.jpg

[Tipi Walter]

Having a slight sheen of moisture on a sleeping bag/quilt is normal esp in the winter when condensation happens. Part of morning discipline in packing up is to hang the bag outside for an hour while you're brewing up morning tea/breakfast. This does alot to dry the shell if it's not raining.

[Deadeye]

What Tipi said. If the sun is shining at lunch time, I'll take a long lunch and unpack things for some air time while I ponder.

[cmoulder]

When you're out in the woods for multiple days in a row things are going to get damp when the relative humidity is high. Dense fog is the worst... moisture permeates everything. Sometimes you won't get a chance to dry things out for 3-4 days, but as long as some loft remains you'll still retain some insulating value in the quilt.

Some people claim they can keep everything bone dry in such conditions with proper gear management, dry bags etc. I've never seen this. Ever.

This is why I question the whole dry bag idea. What good does it do to stuff a damp quilt into a hermetically sealed bag? Nobody can 'splain that one to me. I just stuff the quilt straight into the bottom of the pack. Good enuf.

[DougWise]

If your foot box gets wet through the night while you are sleeping (From condensation on the inside of your tent), I would think that using your dry bag from your pack over the end of the sleeping bag/quilt would help that. I use garbage compactor bags inside the pack to keep things dry - seems like that would be a good option while sleeping as long as it doesn't compress the insulation of your quilt.

Anyone use this method? Any drawbacks?

[nascarmikeb]

If your foot box gets wet through the night while you are sleeping (From condensation on the inside of your tent), I would think that using your dry bag from your pack over the end of the sleeping bag/quilt would help that. I use garbage compactor bags inside the pack to keep things dry - seems like that would be a good option while sleeping as long as it doesn't compress the insulation of your quilt.

Anyone use this method? Any drawbacks?

This is exactly what I was planning on doing. Placing my pack liner over my foot box. I believe this will be my best option, as I am 6'5" and size 13 foot.

[Leo L.]

If your foot box gets wet through the night while you are sleeping (From condensation on the inside of your tent), I would think that using your dry bag from your pack over the end of the sleeping bag/quilt would help that. I use garbage compactor bags inside the pack to keep things dry - seems like that would be a good option while sleeping as long as it doesn't compress the insulation of your quilt.

Anyone use this method? Any drawbacks?

In the earliest part of my hiking carrer we tried out exactly this: Pulling a huge plastic bag over the foot end of the sleeping bag.
The result was sobering: Exactly the part that had been covered by plastic was completely wet in the following morning, while the rest of the sleeping bag was just a bit damp.

I did some recent research (or test runs, resp.) on this very topic during the past winter by using a new high-tech (and very expensive) bivy bag.
It kind of works: I could sleep out in the open, without a tent, just me and the down bag inside the bivy bag, during a whole night of sleet and rain and was neighter cold nor wet, it was just a slight feeling of dampness inside.

[garlic08]

When you're out in the woods for multiple days in a row things are going to get damp when the relative humidity is high. Dense fog is the worst... moisture permeates everything. Sometimes you won't get a chance to dry things out for 3-4 days, but as long as some loft remains you'll still retain some insulating value in the quilt....

Relative humidity (RH) is key. It makes no sense to try to dry wet gear on a foggy morning, or overnight for that matter. RH on most mornings in the East is just too high for drying to occur. Pack up early, hike for a few hours, then take your break later in the day, taking any chance the sun comes out, with lower RH. As cmoulder says, with good camping technique you can get down gear to keep some loft for 3-4 days of constant rain and fog, but then you need heat--either a big fire, a laundromat dryer, or a warm dry room.

Plastic over the bag is not a good idea. For the same reason, ventilating your shelter is very important. Your body heat will evaporate some moisture from your insulation, and you need to get that humid air out.

[cmoulder]

In the earliest part of my hiking carrer we tried out exactly this: Pulling a huge plastic bag over the foot end of the sleeping bag.
The result was sobering: Exactly the part that had been covered by plastic was completely wet in the following morning, while the rest of the sleeping bag was just a bit damp.

I did some recent research (or test runs, resp.) on this very topic during the past winter by using a new high-tech (and very expensive) bivy bag.
It kind of works: I could sleep out in the open, without a tent, just me and the down bag inside the bivy bag, during a whole night of sleet and rain and was neighter cold nor wet, it was just a slight feeling of dampness inside.

This is true. Your feet and legs produce a lot of moisture and it will collect inside the impermeable bag. Big time.

However, if you wore VB socks and pants, this would not happen because the moisture is not escaping. And by VB I mean something that is truly moisture impermeable, not GTX, eVent etc. I have some LightHeart Gear rain pants (and rain jacket w/hood) that are truly VB (Vapor Barrier) and wearing these while sleeping, along with VB socks or plastic grocery bags, will prevent all body moisture from escaping into the down... unless you also cover your head with your puffies, which is always a no-no.

I know that Malto has mentioned using VB layers over thin synthetic shirt and longjohns, and this does indeed work very well. I've done it, and while it feels rather clammy at first it seems the body stops producing more moisture at some point. It's definitely a PITA from the whole clothing adjustment standpoint, but sometimes worth it in extreme conditions when taking extraordinary measures to keep down dry.

[Slo-go'en]

I put my down bag in the drier for a few minutes every chance I get during damp, spring weather.