View Full Version : Who doesn't use an underblanket?
I've seen quite a few threads about underblankets, I'd read a bit of hammock forum (can't believe there's a devoted forum) and I've seen the group buy
I'm tempted by the group buy but frankly the cost of the underblanket is more than my sleeping bag, and seeing as the hammock has only just been acquired i don't really want to start buying loadsa extra kit. I'm reckon they're great, they certainly look it.
I have a Hennessy Explorer Deluxe and slept in it for the first time on Sunday night. I was really comfy and nice and warm. I used a Decathlon S0 Ultralight bag, basically a 3 season bag, and a self inflating mat.
Now I assume that when it gets cold, windy and rainy I'm going to get cold. I'm going to try teaming it up with a army issue reflective blanket thing when its cold to try and help but am wondering what other people who don't use the underblanket do when it gets cold.
I'm trying to avoid acquiring so much kit, I have a foam mat I could team up with it just in case. What do you do?
I've just realised I posted this in completely the wrong section!
Please could a mod move it?
gregorach
30-08-2007, 16:11
I used a self-inflating mat before I got an underblanket. In terms of performance, there's absolutely nothing wrong with that solution - it's just that the underblanket is more comfortable, and you don't end up sliding off it in the middle of the night.
Chainsaw
30-08-2007, 16:16
I don't use one either and for much the same reasons. I have put my bivvy bag underneath me and found it OK as an insulator but I've not yet hammocked out in coldish weather yet. I've got a DD hammock and it has 2 layers that you lie on top of and I think if I put my mat and/or bivvy in between them, then leap on top of it I should be OK. If not, look out for me in the next group buy! :o
Cheers,
Alan
I used a Thermarest Prolite 4 in my sleeping bag,
Then got the underblanket.
Didnt like the hammock without the platform the mat created so flogged the underblanket.
Personally didnt like it, and saw no difference in insulation even during the winter, and have gone back to the selfinflating mat option.
I am just back from a few nights in hammock, i use the DD travel hammock which has a seperate part underneat to place a mat or underblanket and it stops it from moving around underneath you. I have a 3 season nanok sleeping bag which i have used in january in -6 with snow on the ground in the hammock and found it to still be warm enough to get a decent night sleep. I find a camping mat is perfect for the job and doesnt weigh much to hinder you either. My girlfriend uses a camping mat in her hammock and ties it in the middle to stop the mat sliding about.
http://i3.uploadem.com/08302007/th/S7002922.JPG (http://i3.uploadem.com/view/146845)
http://i3.uploadem.com/08302007/th/S7002929.JPG (http://i3.uploadem.com/view/146844)
John Fenna
30-08-2007, 16:56
Never felt the need for much underlay in a hammock.
I the tropics/hot weather I welcome the coolth of a midnight breeze, in cooler weather a MultiMat self inflating mat does the biz pretty well - a slightly under-inflated coffin shaped one does not "wander" too much in the night - and on my next trip I will be trying out two Reindeer skins sewn together...should be interesting!
Some Scandi military occasionally use these hides as kipmats - first shoot your Reindeer - and the hairs are hollow making them good insulators. Early Antarctic explorers used Reindeerskin sleeping bags (I prefer to give Shackelton, not Scott as the example as Scott never came back...) to good effect.
If it came to getting an underblanket I think I would make my own - coz I like making and do not have much cash to buy things with!
I just use a foam rollmat in my hammock with my army sleeping bag & bivvi bag I haven't had a cold night yet!
I almost became an underblanket groupie but had to save up for another project. I am glad I didn't buy one because for what they are the are expensive.
But from what I have gathered about the underblanket is that the guys who have got one aim not to use a sleeping bag but a blanket / quilt of some kind hence the new Quilt for the underblanket group buy!
The way I look at it (and this is only my opinion!) is that if halfway through an outing your hammock becomes unuseable for one reason or another you can still use your rollmat / self inflating mat and sleeping bag to sleep on the ground. Whereas you can't do the same with your underblanket. This of course is only a worst case scenario which would probably never happen but who knows!
Ditto the comments about the thermarest. I think the trick is not to overinflate them or they tend to wander about. The new DD Travel hammock has a zip between the layers which helps as well. I've used a reindeer skin, which was fine apart from the odd shape and difficulty in carrying.
I've been fine in all conditions and temps down to -4C (in a Nanock -10) but if you're really worried, try a wool blanket underneath with or without the foam mat.
Pablo.
PABLO, glad you bought up the reindeer hide, thought about getting one for my next trip but thought it maybe a bit heavy, do you know how much yours weight's? and compared to a normal foam kipmat how big it comes up?
Have been using a 3/4 length thermerest in mine and the only reason i've been cold is because i've gone a little light on the sleeping bag (1 season mtn marathon bag), but i like the idea of using a hide in the winter for a little luxury :D
combatblade1
30-08-2007, 19:42
I used my sleeping bag and a 4mm foam mat inside my bivi bag as a bed roll before i got a hammock i now use the same inside the hammock and am as warm as toast i have never used and under blanket but they do appear expensive.
I have the same HH Explorer Deluxe. The main point to note about this hammock is that the wind whips through the hammock material (try blowing through it).
I think a large part of the benefit felt by an underquilt is that it stops the wind getting through. This "wind chill" is what makes a hammock so effective in a tropical climate. A thermarest or even a bivi bag will help stop this wind.
I seem to be a bit strange here, and don't bother with anything.
Occasionally I've had a slightly cold bum, but that's about it (far perferable to the weight/hassle/bulk of a blanket or mat IMHO). Not done "snow" in it, but have definitely had frosts in March/November in it. On the other hand, I've got a good 4 season down bag.
I have to say that I've never felt the need to buy one either.
Thermarest/ Bivi bag has always been good for forecasted conditions and if it gets really cold - I go to ground.
I can safely say that in the last 10 years, I have never woken up cold.
Thermarest and occasionally bivi bag aswell for me.
Haven`t lost the mat yet during the night but I`ve dropped plenty of other things from the hammock, headtorch lighter etc. :censored: I`ve never tried a blanket though to be honest so it`ll be interesting to see what you think if you try one.
I still prefer to sleep on the floor in the old bivi bag most nights though, weather permitting of course :umbrella:
not entirely sure about using a bivvi bag, i don't really want to carry too much extra kit, and can't see how that helps with keeping your back warm as it will be in contact with the bottom with no air gaps
Scanker - when you say that the wind comes through the material i assume you mean the hammock material (cos the fly net is WAY too obvious :D). I'm hoping that the reflective mat might help with that, i've never seen one before, its green on one side and reflective material on the other. its got eyelets on the corners and is fairly large and much more hard wearing than the normal mylar (i think that's the name) blankets
I'm just thinking about it because it was a lovely night but to be fair a bit chilly (no clouds in the sky and a touch of breeze) so i'm wondering what happens with it really does get cold. I assume that the biggest heat lost will be through the bottom so am just wondering what I can do to stop it
I have to say that knowing so many people don't have an underblanket is somewhat comforting, I've read so many posts about it and there have been so many group buys that i thought everyone had one!
MagiKelly
31-08-2007, 11:03
I have used the theremarest and it is an adequate solution. The problems in proper cold weather are that outside your sleeping bag it can move from under you and also it can get condensation on it, wetting your bag.
Inside it creates more air space round you and I found you had to seal the bag round your face well to stop the cold air getting in and the warm air getting out. If you underinflate the thermarest so it shapes round you better i found I got cold spots at my shoulder blades as these points compressed the thermarest enough to reduce the insulation qualities.
These issues are only really noticeable at cold temperatures. At normal temperatures the main benefit of the underblanket is comfort. you have far more options open to you with no danger of you getting cold because of them. I have two group buy underblankets I use for my daughters as it means they can sleep out in hammocks even in the coldest weather and I do not have to worry that they will get cold due to mats moving etc.
I am so much of a convert to underbankets that I have gone the whole hog and got the largest, thickest down one I could get from Jacks r Better..
Expensive, perhaps but I do not do cold wet or uncomfortable ;)
I use a thermarest if its going to be cool or just a sleeping bag on warm nights
but i use a tent in winter.
I use a wool blanket. I have never slept out in proper cold weather in hammock though. The first time I have slept out in a hammock at all was this june, and because I was worried about cold I put a reflective blanket under the wool and I cooked. I woke up sweating and had to remove the reflective blanket and then rearrange the wool.
I use the wool blanket for ground sleeping as I have arthritis in my hips, and the blanket prevents any cold from hitting the bad joints. I have tried various other methods and this provides the comfy nights sleep by far. Yes it is heavy but it gives me the best nights sleep. We (2 kids + 2 adults) are moving over hammocks from a family size tent so this is still less bulky than what we are used to.
I've seen quite a few threads about underblankets, I'd read a bit of hammock forum (can't believe there's a devoted forum) and I've seen the group buy
I'm tempted by the group buy but frankly the cost of the underblanket is more than my sleeping bag, and seeing as the hammock has only just been acquired i don't really want to start buying loadsa extra kit. I'm reckon they're great, they certainly look it.
I have a Hennessy Explorer Deluxe and slept in it for the first time on Sunday night. I was really comfy and nice and warm. I used a Decathlon S0 Ultralight bag, basically a 3 season bag, and a self inflating mat.
Now I assume that when it gets cold, windy and rainy I'm going to get cold. I'm going to try teaming it up with a army issue reflective blanket thing when its cold to try and help but am wondering what other people who don't use the underblanket do when it gets cold.
I'm trying to avoid acquiring so much kit, I have a foam mat I could team up with it just in case. What do you do?I am working on a simple and warm solution. Make a hole at the foot and head of your sleeping bag and slide the hammock through. Then you have the lofting all round.
MagiKelly
31-08-2007, 14:54
I am working on a simple and warm solution. Make a hole at the foot and head of your sleeping bag and slide the hammock through. Then you have the lofting all round.
Your going to need a very wide sleeping bag to lie at a comfortable angle ;)
gregorach
31-08-2007, 15:11
And you're going to end up with loads of dead space inside it...
PABLO, glad you bought up the reindeer hide, thought about getting one for my next trip but thought it maybe a bit heavy, do you know how much yours weight's? and compared to a normal foam kipmat how big it comes up?
Have been using a 3/4 length thermerest in mine and the only reason i've been cold is because i've gone a little light on the sleeping bag (1 season mtn marathon bag), but i like the idea of using a hide in the winter for a little luxury :D
Sorry, I can't weigh it at the moment as my scales are knackered. I suppose it's about the same again as the Nanok, about 3-4lbs. It's not really the weight though. It just very difficult to fold up and stash. No way will it go in any rucksack without leaving everything else out and it's difficult to fold or roll up to lash to the outside.
The length (depending on the skin of course) is on average the size of a 3/4 length mat but a little wider.
Nice and warm though.
http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c269/prmaklpboo/DSC00332.jpg
Pablo.
Scots_Charles_River
31-08-2007, 19:44
DD hammock, put a thermarest or car windscreen sun screen inside the layers. Nanok -10 sleeping bag, bag inside a goretex bivvy bag, -9 cairngorms fine. Wet n windy the bivvy bag is essential. Wearing a dbl fleece hat with the brim folded done works well.
Nick
MagiKelly
31-08-2007, 22:17
I have never yet used a bivi bag in my hammock. If you have an adequate size tarp and it is set right you will not need it. In fact I have stopped even bringing a bivi bag with me now.
At the bushmoot this year i reailised that i had forgotten my thermarest so i picked up a fleece blanket in the motorway services for a fiver. Worked really well at first and weighed almost nothing. Badly pitched hammock let a little puddle of water in and soaked the blanket on the saturday night so had to do without and got cold feet. Dried the next day and was comfy.
Cheers
Nick
Hey, I slept 3 months in a hammock on a ship and we just hung the hammocks as tight as possible so that we could lie quite flat and had matrasses made of small pieces of crushed cork, then just a woolen blanket on top.. Worked very well and slept good, 3 months and a half without a night on a bed. The matrasses were only big enough to be under the body, not under the legs, where it wasnt really needed.
Then later I tried camping in a MK hammock, with the sleeping bag all around it. Worked ok, I have a rectangular sleeping bag, quite big, I just put a sweater at my feet to stop air, and at my chest..
I tried the reflective mat, was warm in it, but it doesn last long, and sometimes it was just sliding around, didn like it much..
Never tried bivi with matress..
Ie now used the underblanket a lot, I think itś really comfortable and love it. I have quite many times slept in it with my girlfriend. We only needed to take one hammock and one blanket (sleeping bag) for on top of us, one tarp, one mosquitonet... So it saves a lot of space n weight to do like this. And we sleep good. Sleeping with two in a hammock can only be done when using an underblanket I think.. But then again not many people do that.. Well, I definately get the point that the underblanket is expensive.. and if sleeping on a reindeer hide or on a normal camping mat works for you itś probably much better as you can opt to sleep on the ground if you want to. The underblanket is just real luxuoury. And I actually like that when Ive been out all day :)
I have never yet used a bivi bag in my hammock. If you have an adequate size tarp and it is set right you will not need it. In fact I have stopped even bringing a bivi bag with me now.
I respect your experience MK - the only reason I would use my bivi in the hammock would be to keep the thermarest (or equivalent) in place - i.e. under my body. Having said that, I don't have a double skin hammock and if conditions are getting there - then it's almost time to go to ground IMO.
MagiKelly
02-09-2007, 00:12
I respect your experience MK - the only reason I would use my bivi in the hammock would be to keep the thermarest (or equivalent) in place - i.e. under my body. Having said that, I don't have a double skin hammock and if conditions are getting there - then it's almost time to go to ground IMO.
I always put the thermarest inside my sleeping bag ;) I only use single skin hammocks to.