Sleep pads

[Grldtnr]

In conclusion, I'd agree with you, perhaps my expectations are too much, or there is something wrong with the way I am using these inflatable mats...
[/quote
Well. I wish mine did, I am done faffing around with these inflatable mats, a complete waste of time and money.
I am considering getting some cheap beach inflatable ones, if they fail , then it doesn't
matter, why spend £££'s on things that don't do the job.
I will give the T- rest one more chance after a repair, but that involves sending it away, at my expense.
You can imagine my despondancy, and to be perfectly frank, all these comments, mine is fine do not help, no offence meant to you personally.

Just a point of huge frustration.
I might add I do check my pitch before I raise tents, and only ever use for the intended purpose of sleeping on it in the tent, so please where am I going wrong?

Something's wrong, but I don't know what. Maybe you're just unlucky?
My T-rest self inflator is over 30 years old and aside from when a spark landed on it it's never leaked (and the fix, just Seam Grip with no patch, has never leaked). My wife's is a comparative youngster at a little under 20 years and never had a problem. We've had the Neo-Airs from when there was only one model, but I suppose a good decade. Again, no problems.
The mats don't leak, the valves do their job, they don't go down overnight. So it's not like we're putting up with rubbish because there's nothing better: our experience is they work very well.

Pete.

[pjclinch]

You can imagine my despondancy, and to be perfectly frank, all these comments, mine is fine do not help, no offence meant to you personally.

A lot of the point of such comments is to add info for others so they can see that these products aren't fundamentally broken or snake oil. And I appreciate that doesn't help you, and I wish I could, but sadly I have no idea why you can't get a working one. The doyenne of outdoor equipment testing is Chris Townsend, here's his very heavy experience of mats on very long trips, https://www.christownsendoutdoors.com/2 ... g.html?m=1 and it's not perfect, but it's pretty good.

If yours are demonstrably not fit for purpose you should be able to get your money back through consumer protection law. Which isn't as good as a working mat, but is better than nothing.

Pete.

[Grldtnr]

Thanks Pete, it looks an interesting article, glad I am not the only one who has problems.

[horizon]

I’m on my third Thermarest ProLite Apex in 12 months. My first one quickly developed a valve fault. It took a lot of holding it in the bath to detect a small stream of bubbles. The replacement inexplicably delaminated internally; it looked like a balloon at one end and normal at the other. My third is performing ok although I’m careful not to inflate too much.
In terms of warmth, inflation, deflation and packability it’s good. Would I buy another? Probably not. I’d look at a non-inflating sponge type pad with perhaps a foil like underside.

The sleeping mat that I mentioned on another post was indeed also a Thermarest ProLite Apex (R). I've just used it for eleven nights backpacking (on foot/buses) in southern Spain on campsites. As with most Spanish campsites, the ground was rock hard/gravel. I used two closed-cell mats side-to-side under the groundsheet to protect both the groundsheet and the Thermarest. The foamies were a breeze to carry on the rucksack and of course provided a wonderful foundation for the Thermarest. And did it last? Yes, eleven nights without a problem and supreme comfort. At approx £9.50 per night (it cost £105 discounted), I would say that it has paid for itself already and anything more is a bonus. Yes, that makes the camping expensive but it also made it possible. Of course I am expecting more out of it but the light weight, small packed size and amazing comfort mean that it has already delivered. I was very doubtful about getting another mat but I am pleased I did.

[slowster]

Wiggle is currently offering a summer (1R) ultralight Exped pad for £34, with a further 10% discount for the code Outlet10. However, it seems they will not deliver it to some locations in the UK. I don't know how much of the UK that applies to (maybe it's everywhere and the address restriction is simply a stop on all sales of that item).

https://www.wiggle.com/p/exped-ultra-1r-lw

[Richard D]

My Trekology UL80 failed after about 10-15 nights, and now slowly deflates. Leaving the bolts in my hip to play merry hell for the next day or two whenever I try to use the darned thing. I'll be buying a different pad next time (just waiting for the one I have my eye on to come back in stock, and to hell with the expense).

Inflation-wise, I use a tiny rechargeable pump that also doubles as a lantern. Takes up less space and weight than a pump sack, and a pump sack won't light up the tent at night.

[horizon]

I'm just wondering how quickly Thermarest would get a replacement out to anyone stranded with a delamination (you can probably fix a puncture). They are in Ireland although the distribution is from the Netherlands. Has anyone experienced a Thermarest replacement or did you have to shop again? (I thought someone had mentioned one on here.)

[Psamathe]

I'm just wondering how quickly Thermarest would get a replacement out to anyone stranded with a delamination (you can probably fix a puncture). They are in Ireland although the distribution is from the Netherlands. Has anyone experienced a Thermarest replacement or did you have to shop again? (I thought someone had mentioned one on here.)

Sort of and no. My Thermarest started going "bang" 06:00 am from the bottom up, next baffle breaking every 5/10 mins. Trouble is I was mid tour in France and I tour without a plan.

I phoned the store (Ultralight Outdoor) and they were totally unhelpful (even after "escalating" - that was a surprise). So I called Cascade who were very helpful. But without a plan I couldn't tell them where to send a replacement so all I could do is sort out procedure so I didn't have to carry broken one for rest of tour and head to Decathlon for as cheap a replacement as possible.

If the store you purchased from are in the same country as you are when problem arises and they are helpful and you can give them an address then I guess it's just a carriage delay.

If you have to go to Cascade they are in Ireland so any replacement would come from there so timescales will depend on you having an address for them to deliver to and carriage from Ireland. At least I thought my replacement came from Ireland but I didn't check carrier labels carefully.

Contacting Cascade: I first telephoned the direct number for Thermarest Customer Services, got voicemail and left a message. They called back a few hours later. We then switched to e-mail exchange (which I was glad about as they are expensive and didn't want to throw my broken one away and for them to later demand I return it to get a replacement). Generally e-mails were replied to next day.

In my case, I agreed "procedure" to avoid me having to carry/return broken one and they said to let them know an address once I'm home and they'll send a replacement. I did, they did but I made it clear time was not critical at that point so not fair to comment on their dispatch timescales.

Ian

[horizon]

So I called Cascade who were very helpful. But without a plan I couldn't tell them where to send a replacement so all I could do is sort out procedure so I didn't have to carry broken one for rest of tour and head to Decathlon for as cheap a replacement as possible.

If you have to go to Cascade they are in Ireland so any replacement would come from there so timescales will depend on you having an address for them to deliver to and carriage from Ireland.

Contacting Cascade: I first telephoned the direct number for Thermarest Customer Services, got voicemail and left a message. They called back a few hours later. We then switched to e-mail exchange (which I was glad about as they are expensive and didn't want to throw my broken one away and for them to later demand I return it to get a replacement). Generally e-mails were replied to next day.

Thank you Ian, that is really helpful. I think my plan would be to carry the required contact details and then arrange a replacement to be sent (to wherever seemed appropriate at the time). In the meantime I would do what you did and buy a cheapie or just sit (or lie) it out. I feel much more confident about Thermarest after watching this video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DC_1Q33c2DQ&t=2s

At least you feel there are real people to help you and it isn't too far away. BTW, for those who don't know, Cascade is the name of the company that makes Thermarest.

[Psamathe]

So I called Cascade who were very helpful. But without a plan I couldn't tell them where to send a replacement so all I could do is sort out procedure so I didn't have to carry broken one for rest of tour and head to Decathlon for as cheap a replacement as possible.

If you have to go to Cascade they are in Ireland so any replacement would come from there so timescales will depend on you having an address for them to deliver to and carriage from Ireland.

Contacting Cascade: I first telephoned the direct number for Thermarest Customer Services, got voicemail and left a message. They called back a few hours later. We then switched to e-mail exchange (which I was glad about as they are expensive and didn't want to throw my broken one away and for them to later demand I return it to get a replacement). Generally e-mails were replied to next day.

Thank you Ian, that is really helpful. I think my plan would be to carry the required contact details and then arrange a replacement to be sent (to wherever seemed appropriate at the time). In the meantime I would do what you did and buy a cheapie or just sit (or lie) it out. ...

My problem was when at 06:00 am your sleeping mat becomes useless you need a replacement before the evening (I really didn't want to sleep on the ground as even though France in summer, it was quite cold and wet at the time). So I had to buy whatever the nearest Decathlon had in stock. And what they had it stock was both useless and rather expensive!. But I finished another 6 week of tour on it so "that's life". Things go wrong but it didn't bankrupt me and tour not really disrupted so just a shrug re the costs.

Ian

[horizon]

Thermarest were great - just take a photo of damage and serial number then bin it - which was really good as it saved him lugging a useless mat for another 2000 miles - very understanding of them. In each case, the mats had done sterling service over many years.

They're an incredibly helpful company to deal with. It would take an awful lot to make me change. Their customer service is fantastic, as are their products.

This is really good to hear.

[Psamathe]

Thermarest were great - just take a photo of damage and serial number then bin it - which was really good as it saved him lugging a useless mat for another 2000 miles - very understanding of them. In each case, the mats had done sterling service over many years.

They're an incredibly helpful company to deal with. It would take an awful lot to make me change. Their customer service is fantastic, as are their products.

This is really good to hear.

They required somewhat different procedure from me before I could throw it away. As they are fairly expensive, suggest checking what they want when the situation arrises.

My issue happened this summer (2023).

Ian