Need ideas for cold air mattress bed

[MacGyver]

Re: Need ideas for cold air mattress bed

A cot alone won't provide any appreciable R value, if any at all. If you're topping it with a thick closed cell pad and a Thermarest, you should be fine. If you do try the sleeping bag under the cot, let us know how it worked out. Sounds plausible to me.

[spinyeel]

Re: Need ideas for cold air mattress bed

Even down here in Australia,air beds are useless in winter. Self inflating mat and stretcher,is the only way to go.

[toedtoes]

Re: Need ideas for cold air mattress bed

Even down here in Australia,air beds are useless in winter. Self inflating mat and stretcher,is the only way to go.

I've seen your spiders - I wouldn't be sleeping on the ground at all.

[MacGyver]

Re: Need ideas for cold air mattress bed

I've seen your spiders - I wouldn't be sleeping on the ground at all.

[toedtoes]

Re: Need ideas for cold air mattress bed

Yuck! I'll take my chances with the dingos any day.

[tplife]

Re: Need ideas for cold air mattress bed

tplife,
You're saying that a cot topped with a 5/8" closed cell pad and then topped with a 1.5" Therm-a-Rest mattress only has an R value of 0.75? With that combination I have slept fine down to about freezing. However, I may do some winter camping where temps might reach mid 20s which is cold here in the south. If I do that I am considering hanging a sleeping bag just under the cot much like I have seen hammock campers do.

I'll grant you those pads are going to help with some of the heat loss, but IMHO you need to get that ThermaRest pad on the ground to eliminate the heat-sink from the cold air under the cot. The air transfers heat away from your pad at an incredible rate compared to the solid ground, a poor conductor. You'd need to pile dozens of sleeping bags or foam under the cot to stop the heat transfer. It's your night's sleep, but as a deer hunter who tents in the mid 20's, I wouldn't trade with your setup.

[OnTheHill]

Re: Need ideas for cold air mattress bed

CampinLady,

I continue to get "Holiday" discount offers from all over the place. If you haven't purchased yet I'd take advantage as I can't remember a deeper discount season. I did purchase a synmat7 under $100...if I remember correctly an R-factor of 4.9. It's plenty warm and I've got to admit to not enjoying the cold even a little bit.

Eventually you end up with more gear and end up leaving things behind due to lack of space....the "air mattress" and all the individual "wraps" etc all take up space forcing you to leave Mr. Heater behind when the temps drop well below expectation. Accumulating wisely, albeit slowly will actually pay off in the long run. There is a saying on this forum that every trip is practice for the next time....I like it a lot (well, both for camping and life). Sleep warm!

On The Hill

[wiiawiwb]

Re: Need ideas for cold air mattress bed

People who use a hammock understand that you need to insulate below you. Many hammockers are out in sub-zero weather.

There are companies that make what's known as an underquilt. It goes below the hammock. I wonder if an underquilt such as the Revolt from Enlightened Equipment would work nicely with your cot. The owner is very customer friendly and you could send him a question to see if it would work or could be adjusted at the company's end to fit.

You could also make your own if you're handy (I'm not).

http://www.enlightenedequipment.co m/revolt/

[noelectricplease]

Re: Need ideas for cold air mattress bed

I ended up with Walmart or Kmart purchase of closed cell foam pads. So far has blocked the cold from the ground. At home cannot warm up a bed by myself most of the year, so have an old coleman sleeping bag, broken zipper, not gonna replace, opened up under fitted sheet. Warm in one minute flat! And if you use a camping cabin such as the ones of KOAs, do take your closed cell foam pad for on top of the bed - as it gets unbelievably cold - the mattress, that is, especially if it is early in the spring - ground under cabin still frozen, heater does little.

[Irate Mormon]

Re: Need ideas for cold air mattress bed

I was gonna mention the underquilt thing, as it would surely apply to cots as well. Since you aren't lying on top of the insulating layer, you aren't compressing it, and therefore not reducing the insulating quality. Just clarifying. Anybody who owns a SMD tent (wiiawiwb) surely has a reliable opinion :-)

[nancyjoshua]

Re: Need ideas for cold air mattress bed

Air mattress are always cool, I take my foam small mattress while on camping, it's much comfortable with air mattress, last time I had taken my wool blanket also on camping trip, which I bought through ChappyWrap coupon codes, and it was really help me to warm.

[CampinLady]

Re: Need ideas for cold air mattress bed

Air mattress are always cool, I take my foam small mattress while on camping, it's much comfortable with air mattress, last time I had taken my wool blanket also on camping trip, which I bought through ChappyWrap coupon codes, and it was really help me to warm.

Thank you so much for your reply. I really appreciate it.