Sleep pads

[Jdsk]

Decathlon do an inflatable sleeping mat for about
£50 , I have had mine 5 years and it’s still going strong and it packs down small not much bigger than a can of beer

https://www.decathlon.co.uk/sports/camp ... eping-mats

Which one, please?

Jonathan

[Astrobike]

Hi Jonathan
This one

[Jdsk]

Thankyou

Jonathan

[Psamathe]

My last Thermarest NeoAifr (purchased early this summer) came with one of those open sack things to inflate it (attach to matress valve, some bag, fold over and and push air into mattress, etc.). I left it at home (being a weight/volume weenie). Got a replacement sitting on the floor but not yet even opened the courier outer bag but expect it'll have one as well (as it should be the same product).

Ian

[pjclinch]

Hi Jonathan
This one

That has a very low R value, so I suspect a simple air-bed. Not a criticism as that's fine in the warm, but if you want insulation from your mat that's where paying more can get you more.

Pete.

[Astrobike]

I Agree, but I use mine with a foam mat which ups the r value
Which is fine for me as I do not camp in the winter months

[TimeTraveller]

Ive been using mats made by multimat (also make military mats) I have at the moment 4 mat made for them. In the past have tried many mats of varying quality from most of the big brands . thermarest ect.

1. short self inflating ( mil multimat)
2. 6mm closed cell mil foam mat cut down and folded to fit my pannier bag (multimat mil) thinks it call an adventure mat
3. standard current issue 10mm (polyfin foam) this is for when the weather is super cold.

4. klymit static V both insulated and non insulated.. These are my mats that are most used when in tents others are for when I'm using a bivi.

[Cyclewala]

When researching mats a couple of years ago, I was put off by the deflation stories and opted for stuff aimed at harsh conditions. I ended up with Thermarest Ridgerest which is just foam and can’t pop. This is fine for flat ground and a good layer of grass. It was slightly uncomfortable on rocky ground.

I then ended up with Multimat self inflating expedition mat. Which they say is 5 season and aimed at Artic/Himalayas expeditions where equipment failure is not an option. There is a risk of popping, but it contains some foam so you’re not sleeping on the ground. It’s bulkier and heavier than many other
optons, but gives me better peace of mind.

Lifetime warranty (Thermarest) is not much use when you’re in a field with a flat pad.

[foxyrider]

following this thread suggests i'm either very lucky or you lot abuse your sleep mats much more than me!

Yes i replaced my self inflating Thermarest with a NeoAir but that was ten (?) years ago and only because the Neo was half the pack size and weight, the self inflator is now almost 20 years old and still going and the Neo has (touch wood) defied the P fairy and despite being breath inflated shows no sign of lurgy inside.

[pjclinch]

following this thread suggests i'm either very lucky or you lot abuse your sleep mats much more than me!

Yes i replaced my self inflating Thermarest with a NeoAir but that was ten (?) years ago and only because the Neo was half the pack size and weight, the self inflator is now almost 20 years old and still going and the Neo has (touch wood) defied the P fairy and despite being breath inflated shows no sign of lurgy inside.

We are of course setting ourselves up for "commentators curse" here, but my experience is much like yours, aside from my original T-Rest being over 30 years old. It's only puncture was a hot spark from a fire landing on it, which had I not been using it as a chair by a large camp fire wouldn't have happened.

Pete.

[Rob D]

We've used NeoAirs for ages. My first was bought 10 years ago. Started to balloon a year ago, replaced by Thermarest. My wife's did same after 7 - 8 years, just the beginnings of a balloon. That was replaced recently. My son's ancient self-inflater was replaced after many, many years. My other son's mat self-inflater ballooned on ride to the pyramids. 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.

[irc]

For inflatable mats I have found the Flextailgear tiny pump to be great. Used it on my last tour. Inflated and deflated my Alpkit Cloudbase for 2 weeks without needing charged. As well as avoiding condensation in the mat it is faster packing it up with the air sucked out rather than rolling it up and needing to keep releasing air from the valve.

https://www.adventuregeek.co.uk/product/airpump/

Cost me a bit less on Amazon.

[in4time]

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.

[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, I don't find these self inflating 'closed' foam ones any better ,they also leak, when inflated, and the stopper closed, they are flat in the morning, and yet I can't 'deflate' them to roll away because they leak, by that I mean I can't roll them tightly enough,if you can understand what I mean.
My latest one seems so far , to hold air, but it has little 'R' rating it's just an sleep pad.
The old 'skool' foam roll mat, doesn't malfunction, it doesn't self inflate/deflate, but they are difficult and bulky to carry on the bike , rolling the tent in the mat then strapping to the rear rack seems the way to go, but you can't really do that Bike packing,when you want to take minimal gear.

[pjclinch]

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...

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.