Top quilt warmth issue

[TallPaul]

I’ve had 2 issues with a 20* top quilt.
First was warmth in the torso area. I didn’t get overstuff and am regretting that a bit. I’m usually a warm sleeper but this bag I’ve felt cold at temps 15* above the bags rating.
Second issue is I had poison ivy on my foot last year and got it inside the quilt footbox. I recently washed the bag gently (washed in the tub; lifted it out on a container lid; un-clumped the down every 20 minutes while it was in the dryer). After it dried, I see that the feathers nicely fill the baffles toward the head, and below the knees but are thin in the torso area. I wish I had looked before I washed it to know if the down migrated or it was this way before.
Ok if you are still with me....
I’m considering buying 3 oz of down and adding that to the torso section. Or possibly pull down out of another piece of gear. Any reason adding the extra down wouldn’t solve some of my warmth issues?

Any way to tell if the baffles were damaged while cleaning the bag?

FWIW I also have an email into the vendor to get their advice... it’s one of the good ones on here.

Top 3 baffles have enough down the light doesn’t shine thru. You can see the difference in the torso area.
850 fill if that matters.

[TallPaul]

I’ll also note I made sure the down wasn’t stuck on the outside edges of the quilt. I manually moved it and gave the whole bag a few good shakes. The pic makes it look like the down is on the outside but that is due to the lighting from the door blocking the sunshine.

[Otter1]

1) Adding down will definitely help alleviate your problem. Way too little down in the problem areas right now.

2) The only way I know of to check the soundness of the baffles is to pull back and forth all along the baffle, with a hand on each side of it. I have no idea if that makes sense, but it is only partially effective, in my opinion. It can be tough to tell.

3) I personally would buy good quality down vs transferring from another item - for weight and quality purposes. But either way will work.

Let us know how it goes, and good luck.

[TallPaul]

1) Adding down will definitely help alleviate your problem. Way too little down in the problem areas right now.

2) The only way I know of to check the soundness of the baffles is to pull back and forth all along the baffle, with a hand on each side of it. I have no idea if that makes sense, but it is only partially effective, in my opinion. It can be tough to tell.

3) I personally would buy good quality down vs transferring from another item - for weight and quality purposes. But either way will work.

Let us know how it goes, and good luck.

Thanks. I’ve priced 3 ounces from a few vendors of good 850 fill and that seems like it would be a good option.

[Phantom Grappler]

TallPaul, get goose to land on your topquilt.
Might be time consuming, add down and close with potato chip clip—hold in sunlight window, checking to see if have added enough.
If not enough, add more down.
Maybe your down “migrated” for warmer climes


I took a quilt set, or was it an underquilt back to Marty and he added more down. It was one of many others that were just fine.
Same thing Cold and you could see too much daylight through underquilt.
I miss Marty...

[County_mountie]

I wouldn't pay for one single feather until you spoke to your vendor first. Unless there is something seriously wrong with your baffles it appears like the vendor didn't put enough if any down in the bag in the first place. If they are indeed a reputable vendor they should fix your problem without any hassle as I'm sure mentioning it on here won't do them any good should they decide not to help you. You shouldn't have to pay a penny for something that may be the fault of the vendor. Good luck and I hope they help you fully.

[gavainm]

How was the insulation prior to washing it?

If it used to be fine and the current issue resulted from washing it, you may have a stitching issue in the internal baffles (assuming you have offset baffles to layer the down for warmth). It may be a product defect. If that's the case, adding more down may only solve the problem temporarily. Hopefully this isn't the case, but may be something to consider if the distribution of down used to be good.

[dakotaross]

That looks like the 50 degree quilt I used to have from EE, not a 20 quilt. Hoping your vendor can explain or improve the situation without much for you to do. I would think that would be the case for anyone still in business.

[TallPaul]

TallPaul, get goose to land on your topquilt.
Might be time consuming, add down and close with potato chip clip—hold in sunlight window, checking to see if have added enough.
If not enough, add more down.
Maybe your down “migrated” for warmer climes


I took a quilt set, or was it an underquilt back to Marty and he added more down. It was one of many others that were just fine.
Same thing Cold and you could see too much daylight through underquilt.
I miss Marty...

Ha yea my down migrated for warmer climates . And yes I wish Marty was around. I’m sure he could hook me up.

I wouldn't pay for one single feather until you spoke to your vendor first. Unless there is something seriously wrong with your baffles it appears like the vendor didn't put enough if any down in the bag in the first place. If they are indeed a reputable vendor they should fix your problem without any hassle as I'm sure mentioning it on here won't do them any good should they decide not to help you. You shouldn't have to pay a penny for something that may be the fault of the vendor. Good luck and I hope they help you fully.

Thanks - and I’m waiting to hear back from the vendor. I did look up what the bag weight was supposed to be and reweighed it. It looks pretty much right on. So maybe it is an issue with how the down was distributed we’ll see what they say.

How was the insulation prior to washing it?

If it used to be fine and the current issue resulted from washing it, you may have a stitching issue in the internal baffles (assuming you have offset baffles to layer the down for warmth). It may be a product defect. If that's the case, adding more down may only solve the problem temporarily. Hopefully this isn't the case, but may be something to consider if the distribution of down used to be good.

I’m with you that adding more down may only temporarily solve the problem if there are integrity issues with the baffles. And unfortunately I can’t say how the insulation was prior to washing it - I really wish I had looked more closely. I can say I had the warmth issues before washing so I don’t think that was the cause.

That looks like the 50 degree quilt I used to have from EE, not a 20 quilt. Hoping your vendor can explain or improve the situation without much for you to do. I would think that would be the case for anyone still in business.

Yea I looks like my summer underquilt. And that’s about how warm I stay when I gets in the 30s.

———

Thanks to all who replied. I’ll see what the vendor says and then decide my next course of action.

[OutandBack]

Wow sun light thru the window trick. What a great idea. I never thought of that. Sorry Paul I am not a DIYer so I can't offer any advice.
It sure does look like you got cheated in the down department.