Sleeping Pad Preparedness

[Desk Jockey]

This guy is as basic as it gets but better than nothing. 8oz full size and can replace a ground cloth. It’s usually a toss up between this one and the zrest. Neither is going to be a comfortable as an inflator but they are better than the cold ground.

Matty McMat Face

Extra Large EVA foam sleeping pad that is very multipurpose.

seekoutside.com

 

[thinhorn_AK]

Man, that is a good technique. I can see how that would work. Imma have to give that a try. Very primitive technique, which I like.

Sent from my moto g(7) optimo maxx(XT1955DL) using Tapatalk

I was surprised nobody mentioned it before me, I thought everybody did that. MAybe now.

 

[*zap*]

Something like a ridgerest to put on top of the pad to protect the part you might put stuff on or sit on until you go to sleep and then put it under the pad. The few leaks I have had were on the top of the pad.

 

[NJDiverDan]

As for leak detector. I find saliva to work pretty well. The surface tension in your saliva is lower than water (like soapy water) which allows you to make spit bubbles.

-dan

 

[Bbrinks]

My buddy had a slow leak in his pad last fall and we couldn’t find the leak using wind checker powder. We ended up dunking it in a creek and finally found a small leak by the valve. It was an REI flash pad as well which have had a lot of issues with leaks in the last couple of years.

 

[805Bowhunter]

Being the nature of sleeping pads, if you're backpacking a lot, this sort of thing is simply going to happen unfortunately. I carry tenacious tape and its been great 99% of the time. There have been a couple of times where, like you, I just couldnt find the leak. Both times it was an old pad that had just "worn out" in a couple areas and was not fixable. I now carry my wife's sleeping pad in the truck as a backup just in case. Sucks when the pad goes out.

 

[accumax]

I've been using a Sea to Summit comfort plus sleep pad. First of all, it's the most comfortable pad I've ever had and secondly, it has 2 separate air chambers, and upper and a lower. If bottom (ground side) chamber fails, the upper chamber will still have air. Neither chamber has failed yet on me...but its great piece of mind when its cold out and you're miles away from anywhere.

The only negative is its 35 ounces for a large pad. For me it's worth the extra weight for the comfort and piece of mind.

 

[Where's Bruce?]

I run EXPEDS, they don't leak. If it was bitten or stabbed and unrepairable, I would place it on a bed of pine boughs (or equivalent) with hot rocks (if it's cold enough) buried beneath em.