Top quilt or under quilt which is more important to keeping warm

[TrailSlug]

Guys,
If you were going to purchase a 0° quilt and only had cash for one quilt would you go for an under quilt or top quilt for staying warm. I had a friend ask me about this and I wasn't sure what to suggest.

[Big Flounder]

I'm a rookie, but based on my very limited experience sleeping in my hammock, I'm going to say the under quilt. I don't own one (yet) and waking up in the middle of the night to an ice cold backside sucks. A sleeping bag or blanket can help with your top insulation if need be.

[biggy]

I would say an underquilt. You can always wear more clothes or double up on a sleeping bag etc for the topside.

Sent from my SM-N900W8 using Tapatalk

[dkurfiss]

A few past threads for your viewing pleasure. Just FYI there is a google search box on the main page

https://hammockforums.net/forum/show...ngs-variations
https://www.hammockforums.net/forum/...p/t-25313.html
https://www.hammockforums.net/forum/...ht=quilt+quilt

[Speedogomer]

I think it depends on a few things.

If you have a good pad, and don't mind using it in a hammock, I'd say a TQ would be your first purchase, since you already have under insulation.

If you already had a good sleeping bag, then you could buy the UQ first, and use the sleeping bag as a TQ.

All things equal, I'd probably get the UQ first, since top insulation is easier to improvise.

[kitsapcowboy]

UQ FTW!

[Secondmouse]

which is more important to keeping warm - If I were going to purchase a 0° quilt and only had cash for one?..

I say UQ. of the two, the UQ is more "engineered" with the shape/size/cut, suspension system, water/wind resistant fabrics, etc., etc., so it's important to get it right. especially at 0*...

a top quilt, by any other name, is basically a blanket and can be effectively substituted by common items such as those or sleeping bags or even a pile of leaves in an emergency...

[SilvrSurfr]

An underquilt is going to make the most difference in staying warm. However, that doesn't mean you don't need a top quilt. One Thanksgiving we had a group hang in the Pine Barrens, and the overnight low was around 18* F. I woke up around 4:30 am to water the bushes, and found a guy shivering by a little campfire.

"What's up?" I asked him. "I'm freezing to death," he said.

"Freezing to death? How could you be freezing to death? You just bought a 0* Incubator underquilt!" I said.

Well, that's all he brought! He didn't bring a top quilt or any top insulation. He figured that he didn't need it, that he could just wrap the UQ around himself and he'd be toasty warm. Needless to say, that didn't work out very well.

In the words of Captain Obvious, "Underquilts are great, but you need a top quilt too!"

[johnspenn]

UQ- this opinion has been formed by very recent personal experience.

Our last trip along the AT, both nights I went to sleep without any insulation. I got up around 10-11 pm both nights and strung up my UQ. The temps were probably in the upper 60s. After I strung up my UQ all I needed on top was a sheer (practically see-through) silk sheet that I got off Amazon. I never even took my TQ out of my pack.

[dakotaross]

I'm presuming that, like me, the zero is to get you into the 20s and beyond if needed? I've had my zero down to 13, but as you know, its rare for us to get that kind of weather, even in our higher elevations.

Given that presumption, you have more reasonable options up top than you do on bottom. If you get the TQ, you're talking about stacking pads or stacking 3season/summer quilts or using a heavy-heavy downmat to keep you warm on bottom. If you get the UQ, then normally a 3-season sleeping bag will suffice, especially if you use it unzipped like a quilt and all the folds in the extra bag material act as multiple layers of insulation. As SS said, you still need commensurate top insulation for the system to work, but because heat rises, top insulation is a little more efficient and you can probably get away with what you already have, just supplement the feet, hands and head.

If you were truly doing winter camping in zero temps, then get the TQ and either sleep on the ground or use a downmat (or both), or just bite the bullet and get the quilt set.