Printable View
What are the pros and cons of closed cell foam pads for underside insulation. Primarily using a pad inbetween a double layer or on top of a single layer. For those that use CCF pads or reflectix, what are your preferences?
The reason I ask is I'm a big guy. I'm torn between a double layer hexon 1.6 or a single layer hexon 2.4.
This video from Spiguyver Backpacking is very good about the pros and cons of various insulation options.
https://youtu.be/RFnXGPTbq58?list=PL...5g39hV0aaMEt7_
Hmmm....I've only tried pads a few times in a gathered end and I thought they were an epic failure. If you have ones big enough to wrap up around your shoulders they bunch up and get weird folds and are uncomfortable. Condensation can/will be an issue depending on the temperature.
The only near success I had was using 2 pieces of foam cut to about 20"x30". One went under my torso from about my thighs to just below my shoulder blades lengthwise. The other spanned my shoulders so I ended up with basically a "T" shape. That worked OK once I had everything in position. A full length CCF foam pad I think would be misery but some folks have good luck.
I do use a pad occasionally in my double layer bridge (RidgeRunner). It works well for mild weather but the bridge lays much flatter and is straight rather than on the diagonal.
Overall....don't base your hammock choice on the use of pads. If you stick with hammocks you will likely "graduate" past them very quickly. Pads are how you survive until you save up for an underquilt.
I can offer some pad insight in this video.
CCF pads work but are a bit clammy.
Shug
https://youtu.be/mekhYiSaNz4
I did two years of clammy - as did my three kids. After a particularly wet night with an overnight low of 22* F, I switched to quilts. Most people are prone to such condensation with pads, but there are some who say they don't get condensation. I hope you're in the latter group!
A double-layer hammock is the way to go with a pad. I even put my ccf pad inside a sleeping bag and stuffed that between layers!
The only pro to a pad I can come up with is if you backpack, you already have one. And maybe that they're cheaper than an underquilt. But they're hard to stay on top of if you move in your sleep at all. They're clammy. I don't think anyone who says they don't have an issue with condensation knows what condensation is, or perhaps they're just severely dehydrated. I used an inflatable pad for a while for to save my pennies for underquilts. I have been out in below freezing with a pad and while it kept me alive, it wasn't comfortable. Now that I have experienced an underquilt there is positively no going back and no comfort comparison.
FireInMyBones suggested a shortened 1/8" pad to add insulation to his Bonefire Whisper. I got some from Gossamer Gear to try that.
The Whisper is a double layer.
Ken in NC