What temperature sleeping bag do I need?

cjt55 · Senior Member

What temperature sleeping bag do I need?

Greystone · Senior Member

I have the Coleman Pilbara C-5 sleeping bag and it's comfortable in all climate zones between May and September. I also use a cotton liner for bed sheets.

KJB · Guru

Diesel heater overcomes all those problems.... cosy at the flick of a switch..

Dougwe · Chief one feather

"what temperature do you recommend?"

2 on my fitted Truma gas heater, Col. Works a treat. Cosy as.

Even then I have to turn it down or off sometimes as I am hot in bed confuse smile

Keep Safe out there.

cjt55 · Senior Member

Hey Doug, I have the roof mounted and also gas heating but don't want to run them all night.

Whenarewethere · Guru

We sleep in the car. Last year I drove from Sydney to Perth to pick up other half from her own Europe holiday. Near Orange overnight it was -2°C outside with ice on the car. Another night I had -1°C east of Norseman also with ice on the car.

I have a sleeping bag but always use it as a cover. We use a doona with wool or feathers so plenty of room to move. The two layers are good enough. Put some socks on if you get cold feet.

Also we use a Thermarest Luxury Map mattress (photo is old Thermarest), keeps you warm from below & very comfortable.

Tip. Stick a 1L Sigg aluminium water bottle in a large thick woolen sock & use as a hot water bottle. It never leaks. Two bottles for extra luxury!

dogbox · Guru

could try thermal long johns (underwear?)

-- Edited by dogbox on Thursday 30th of April 2020 08:46:32 PM

Craig1 · Guru

Try and get cotton ones, much better than synthetic imho

cjt55 · Senior Member

Thanks for the replies. As for the thermal underwear ...... I will be wearing that out in the vineyards.

iana · Guru

I lived just up the road from there for 26 or so years, worked at Wynns for 22 of them. I don't remember it being that cold. Bit of frost on the vines etc. Whats the difference between a doona on a bed and a sleeping bag. Incidentally in NZ when hiking in the bush, I had a 20 below explorer sleeping bag, still froze though.

villatranquilla · Guru

The -5 sleeping bag is a good option and doesn't take up much room when rolled up or how about an electric blanket (or both)

Whenarewethere · Guru

If you want more thetmat quality you need a sleeping bag with feather/down. They are more expensive & are a tighter fit.

A cheaper sleeping will be more boxy & give you more room & open up fully but are nowhere near as thermally good.

A wool or feather/down doona is the best option, & you aren't sticking it in a backpack. Chuck a blanket on top of you need extra warmth.

Cut windscreen sunshades to fit every window. Also a cheap foam mat from say Macpac to put along the side between you & the car will stop thermal losses.

Mike Harding · Guru

If you were cold with blankets and a doona then either their quality is poor or the cold is coming through the mattress and you don't have enough insulation underneath you. Blankets should be wool and doona duck down or similar. I use just a doona in the caravan (good quality feather, $400) and I am quite warm down to below 0C outside.

I have spent a lot of time tent/swag camping in the Vic High Country in temperatures down to around -8C, some years past I discovered Darche sleeping bags and their -12C bag has served me well, below -5C I use to chuck a single blanket (or large towel) on top to creating a bit of layering:

https://darche.com.au/sleeping-gear/sleeping-gear/_item/cold-mountain-12-degree-c

If the bag is too hot it can be cooled by partial/full opening of the zip at the foot.

It'll be the last sleeping bag you buy.

dogbox · Guru

Whenarewethere wrote:

We sleep in the car. Last year I drove from Sydney to Perth to pick up other half from her own Europe holiday. Near Orange overnight it was -2°C outside with ice on the car. Another night I had -1°C east of Norseman also with ice on the car.
I have a sleeping bag but always use it as a cover. We use a doona with wool or feathers so plenty of room to move. The two layers are good enough. Put some socks on if you get cold feet.
Also we use a Thermarest Luxury Map mattress (photo is old Thermarest), keeps you warm from below & very comfortable.
Tip. Stick a 1L Sigg aluminium water bottle in a large thick woolen sock & use as a hot water bottle. It never leaks. Two bottles for extra luxury!

i have spent some time sleeping in automobiles an i find the biggest problem is condensation when it is cold how do you deal with it?

Whenarewethere · Guru

Condensation isn't a problem any more as I stuffed the car full of acoustic insulation. Most of it is foam which also acts as thermal insulation as it is trapping air. The ceiling I also added very thin polyester batts (made thinner pulling them apart) probably about R 0.8 by themselves.

https://thegreynomads.activeboard.com/t65443581/car-acoustic-insulation/

The windscreen had the most condensation of all the windows so I have used a piece of heavy duty packing foam from probably a sofa found in the rubbish, cut to the size of the windscreen to exactly fit inside the window as a second layer to the sunscreen.

The car was pretty good with condensation originally, except the tailgate which had no insulation but now condensation is not an issue at all. Out of all the modifications I have done to the car, the insulation was the most worthwhile thing done acoustically & thermally.

If I get another car it will be the first thing I do. It took me about 2 weeks but I have gone completely overboard sticking it everywhere.

The acoustic foam isn't that expensive & is very light, & while at it fill the remainder of the spaces with polyester batts.

A good lockdown down project!

-- Edited by Whenarewethere on Friday 1st of May 2020 02:13:18 PM

Bicyclecamper · Guru

As a tent camper mainly, I tour in the winter all the time normally, and use an -5 synthetic mummy bag, but do have to use long johns as well, as I am a cold sleeper. it sounds like you are a cold sleeper as well. As you will be in c.vann and not a tent. A reasonable -5 to -10 C synthetic should do you, if you wear the long johns as well. But if you have another quilt, put it over the top. I really need a -10, but as I am going to build a bicycle camper which is insulated, I can't see the need for it at this stage.

Whenarewethere · Guru

We have a 1990s Macpac 3 man tent (actually only room for 2). It's not waterproof anymore so we chuck a ground sheet over it. With 2 inside it is surprising comfortable. It's the tiny space which helps keep you warm. We get condensation around the base but a few unused clothes or thin sheet packing foam as a thermal barrier helps reduce condensation.

Over the decades we have been perfectly ok where others in large tents are frozen solid.

The more barriers of air, the better the insulation, that's why down works so well.

cjt55 · Senior Member

Thank you again everyone. As we all know everyone gets something out of all these answers. That is what is so great about this forum.

jab160 · Senior Member

Get a down filled bag, not cheap, 3...400$, worth every cent. Light as,pack small as. Go to a hiking/climbing store, not Bcf etc. winter use shake them up to puff up the down, cozy as. Summer use throw on a light blanket to flatten the down, less performance. As I said go to a specialty outdoor adventure retailer.....google sleeping bags/mats/air beds etc. Good gear is not cheap, but worth every cent. I have done a lot of m/cycle touring in all conditions over the yrs, and have learnt a shyte load

2trout · Senior Member

good advice jab160

ERI LI · Veteran Member

I use MINKE blankets with a quilt cover,to keep it clean.The extra layer of that quilt cover seems to keep warmth in..2 if gets colder..I double the blanket over so gets 2 layersthinks some sleeping bags overrated,so doesn't buy them

Dougwe · Chief one feather

cjt55 wrote:
Thank you again everyone. As we all know everyone gets something out of all these answers. That is what is so great about this forum.

Have you thought about getting an 18 year old blond mate?

Sorry couldn't help myself.

Kantiki · Senior Member

From my days as a Scout Leader, always wear a beanie to bed.
Change your clothes before climbing in to your bag as the moisture you have sweated will keep you cold.
Buy a sleeping bag that does not have the quilting stitches sewn through both layers. Outside shell should not be stiched to liner. You will see what I mean when you go shopping.
Sew a single sheet in half to use as a liner. The air pocket will help with warmth and is much easier to wash than a bag. Also good for summer camping.
It's worth paying a little bit extra for a good bag. Mine is nearly 30 yrs old. Haven't had much use since the van came along but had many camping trips and planning some more with our new 4x4 on the beach.

patrol03 · Senior Member

Got to agree with Doug. Type of sleeping bag depends on how hot the your partner is.

Can't help myself either Doug!

Dicko1 · Senior Member

Dougwe wrote:
cjt55 wrote:
Thank you again everyone. As we all know everyone gets something out of all these answers. That is what is so great about this forum.

Have you thought about getting an 18 year old blond mate?

Sorry couldn't help myself.

That will fix the warnth issue but lack of sleep will see no vine trimming...

Bicyclecamper · Guru

I have a quality minus 5 synthetic bag, and it is no good below 0 deg. I would look at a decent DWR down filled sleeping bag, with a rating of at least minus 5. Go to Wildearth online and you will get a good one at a reasonable price, but expect to pay at least $350. As a bicycle tourer, I camp in the cold weather all the time in a tent, and am awaiting a new sleeping bag from Sea to Summit, from Wildearth at the moment. Wildearth are an Australian company online, but also have a shop front. Make sure you check sizes, to get one long enough for you. Sea to Summit, formally an Australian made product, now made in the US. Wildearth is a speciallity hiking store, not Anaconda style expensive useless stuff. I am Not affiliated with Wildearth or Sea to Summit.

--

-- Edited by Bicyclecamper on Thursday 13th of May 2021 01:52:48 PM

Buzz Lightbulb · Guru

I bought two of these for the caravan :

https://www.tentworld.com.au/buy-sale/coleman-pilbara-c-5-sleeping-bag

One for my wife and one for myself. We zip them together. They are rated at -5. I thoroughly recommend them.

The insert is great when it gets too hot and the insert combined with the outer is very warm in winter for the Southern Highlands. There are multiple zip positions so one can stock out one's feet if it get too hot.

Possum3 · Guru

Duvalay are hard to beat for comfort - UK review www.ukcampsite.co.uk/articles/view.asp