Quote Originally Posted by Just Bill View Post
If you're in a gathered end- keep in mind the UQ is doing most of the work.

When stacking quilts- my philosophy is there are three seasons- exactly what temp range they are is up to you.

High summer- for me lows around 60 or so- typically I use a 45* synthetic in the humid midwest or a sheet.
Three season- For me lowest temp around freezing- I always take down.
Winter- I like to be covered to about zero- now it's stacking time.

As you have been advised: a 20* (or maybe 30* for a hot sleeper who says 55* is their average need) is a good place to start.

Point being- that's what you would want to start with if you were building a stacking system regardless.
The second piece to buy would be that summer piece.

The formula for quilt stacking is 70*- the outer quilt's rating is what you ADD to the base quilt.
So 70*-50* (for an average summer quilt) means 20* gets added to your base quilt.

If 30* is more versatile for you... adding a summer quilt to your gear closet would mean you could hit about 10*.

Choose the base quilt based upon what you will use 80% of the time.
Summer or three season. Then when budget allows add the other; and you get the third quilt free.

Keep in mind; if you plan to stack quilts put some thought into building that system.
You may need to consider a vendor who sells a few options so the quilts stack well.
You may want a sewn footbox in the three season and an adjustable footbox (opens up) for your summer quilt. That way you are not fighting with it.
You may want to pick a quilt with tabs or pad attachments so you have handy points to join the quilts when stacked.

Nobody can say exactly what you would want but the basic systems are usually

40/20= zero stacked
50/30= 10 stacked

Most of us are not really out in the winter as much as we might think... so doing summer/three season makes sense and a dedicated winter set isn't in the budget.

Some of us hate the summer and do camp more in winter (or live further north) so you may consider an early three season/late season setup like a 30/10 combo which would put you closer to -20 when stacked.

Wait you say, should that be -30? yes... but that 70-outer quilt formula (like all insulation formulas) starts to break down a bit as you pass zero degrees F. Once you pass zero- take 10* off the stacked system. Good plan to knock about 5* off as you approach zero, and another 5* if the fit is sloppy. The quilt stacking system is very versatile, but not perfect, so add more grains of salt as you drop lower and try to find a safe place to practice with it (where you can bail to warm up) until you establish trust in your combo.

FWIW- like others mentioned- I like having a sewn footbox and simply putting one foot out.
This makes it very easy to regulate your sleeping temp- though as I said above- the UQ is doing lots of work so in some GE hammocks you may not be able to regulate as much as you hope. On the ground or in a bridge; you've got plenty of air moving around you and you can afford to go a little overboard on the TQ rating vs a GE TQ.
This is an old thread but I just wanted to say I really appreciated this explanation of stacking TQs.