Down bag compression?

[WeiserBucks]

How compressed is to much? I've got a FF zero degree bag and just got a Kifaru large 5 string stuff sack. It's fairly difficult to get the bag in the stuff sack to begin with, but once it's in there I can smash it down considerably to reduce packed size. If I don't really compress it, it's going to take up alot of room in the pack.

My question is how much is to much compression? I don't want to reduce the life of the bag by compressing it to much.

 

[Turkeygetpwnd38]

It’s not how much you compress it, but how long it stays compressed. I make mine as small as possible, but when not needed keep uncompressed.

 

[WeiserBucks]

It’s not how much you compress it, but how long it stays compressed. I make mine as small as possible, but when not needed keep uncompressed.

I guess the question is how long is to long? If I pack for a trip the night before and hike in the next day, it'll be compressed for up to 24 hours. If I have to drive to another state it'll likely be 48 hours +/- in the stuff sack.

This is my first quality bag and don't want to screw it up, it was money well spent and I want it to last as long as possible. Maybe I'm just paranoid.

 

[Smokeslider]

You'll be fine. We compress our down bags for work into stuff sacks for extended periods of time. Often for weeks with little uncompressed time in between. We do this all summer. While our bags may not last as long as keeping them uncompressed, we're still able to get 3-4 seasons out of them until any noticeable compromise. Our Feathered Friends bags get compressed into the size if a 6" diameter ball so pretty tight.

 

[zacattack]

I have a FF 0 (puffin) and it’s a tight fit in the large 5 string but it’ll go. Couple of days compressed here and there shouldn’t hurt anything.

 

[BRTreedogs]

I think you'll find your pack rides better if you store the bag loose inside. Unless your worried about keeping it dry. Then I just stuff if loose in a garbage bag.
It allows it to conform around all your other gear.

 

[WeiserBucks]

I think you'll find your pack rides better if you store the bag loose inside. Unless your worried about keeping it dry. Then I just stuff if loose in a garbage bag.
It allows it to conform around all your other gear.

Just want to get it small enough to get the rest of my stuff in the pack. My sleeping bag would easily take up the whole pack if I let it. The bag is super lofty and the shell material makes compression a little bit of a pain.

 

[Scrappy]

I'm in the camp of stuffing it in the bag loosely then stuffing everything else in there with.

 

[WeiserBucks]

I may try that at some point, but for now I'm going with the stuff sack. If it proves to be to much hassle then I'll explore other options. Scouting season is almost here so I'll have time to mess around and fine tune things.

 

[Jim Lahey]

Just don't leave it compressed in storage and you'll be fine