Completed Hammock Sock

**headchange4u** · 03-22-2008, 10:54

nigelp,

What is your sock made out of? Is it DWR material or untreated?

**Coffee** · 03-22-2008, 11:03

Originally Posted by Lost

Are you doing a DIY closed tarp? Or going with Speer or JRB?

I am a ways off from having the time and money, plus my machine is in the shop. But I am thinking that a standard rectangular tarp is all I need. I am going to make a 12x8 foot tarp. I am going to put 4 tieouts per side. I am thinking I can close it the same way the speer winter tarp does. I am going to hang it so the bottom is off the ground a ways. That will acccount for the ends being longer when closed. I have to give Slowhike credit for this after talking with him at Mt Rogers.

Originally Posted by nigelp

I had quite bad condensation issues with my sock a few weeks ago with my peapod; although to fair I had it cinched right up and it was still strung across the ridge line it very cold also so one would expect a wide temperature variation between the inside of the sock and the outside=condensation!!

Is condensation reduced when laying the sock directly over the top of the peapod?

Should I have left the end open so my breathe escapes more?

Or is it best to use the sock in windy/cold weather rather than still/cold weather?

Nigel

I have had problems off and on with this. I think a lot of it has to do with the temp and dewpoints. Under a certain temp, I seem to always get it. The benifits to me still outweigh the condensation issues.

**nigelp** · 03-22-2008, 14:42

Originally Posted by headchange4u

nigelp,

What is your sock made out of? Is it DWR material or untreated?

It's a treated fabric. I think it was a second quality treated nylon. I reakon the conditions I used it in were certainly a factor; quite cold and although windy the tarp blocked most of it, I will try it again and experiment some more!
I have never tried the bandana idea but I do have some ideas about vapour barriers inside the quilt or peapod to see how that affects warmth and condesation issues.

Nigel

**Doctari** · 03-22-2008, 15:54

Originally Posted by headchange4u

nigelp,

What is your sock made out of? Is it DWR material or untreated?

I actually have the original hammock sock in question.
HE made the majority of the body with DWR, there is a strip that runs the length of the sock, & about 1.5' wide, that is untreated. IF I put the untreated where it's supposed to go, (On top) I get minimal condensation. If I let it slide around, I get wet. Naturally, if I leave the head end open the condensation is much less.

I will likely never camp without the sock. It easily adds 10 to 20 degrees to the temp of my set up.

A story about "My" sock: I was hanging rather close to a trail in RRG, Paralllel to the trail. I had the sock pulled up & the draw cord snugged close, no tarp. It was still daylight (about 6:00 PM) I heard some day hikers comming up the trail, about 30' from me one said "Oh, someone is camping up ahead" (they could only see a little of my set up.) l o n g p a u s e: "OH WOW, COOOOLLL!!!" just as they got in sight of my cocoon. This is what I looked like laying there

**nigelp** · 03-22-2008, 16:10

Originally Posted by Doctari

I actually have the original hammock sock in question.
HE made the majority of the body with DWR, there is a strip that runs the length of the sock, & about 1.5' wide, that is untreated. IF I put the untreated where it's supposed to go, (On top) I get minimal condensation. If I let it slide around, I get wet. Naturally, if I leave the head end open the condensation is much less.

I will likely never camp without the sock. It easily adds 10 to 20 degrees to the temp of my set up.

Would there be some benfit from putting say a strip of insect mesh on top that could in certain conditions be turned towards the top to reduce condensation?
I also wonder how much this would reduce the 'temperature raised' but still give the benefit of a warmer setup with out having to resort to a thicker quilt etc.?

Nigel

**warbonnetguy** · 03-22-2008, 17:27

hey everyone, this has raised an interesting question for me recently. i always thought dwr did not effect the breathability of the fabric it was on, but doctari's sock seems to show otherwise.

i recieved some samples of epic malibu from owf the other day. the epic is supposed to be high quality dwr, but looks slightly coated and is very hard to blow through although some air does pass. it doesn't seem like it would be nearly breathable enough for something like this. i also tested some dwr 1.1 from owf as well and it was supprisingly hard to blow through as well, but not nearly as bad as the epic.

i thought some of the cheaper probably less effective dwr treatments like the spray on or wash in might not effect breathability, seems like the silicone ones probably would.

i wonder if it might be good to make one out of untreated 1.1 and then get some spray on silicone like ed uses and spray everything but the top foot or two of the sock, or maybe just leave an untreated area above your head. i wonder how much weight it would add?

**headchange4u** · 03-22-2008, 17:50

The socks and top covers that I have made in the past are made from untreated material for maximum breathability. I do have a sock with silnylon ends, a DWR bottom, and a large untreated section on the top. I do think that DWR material going to cause more problems with condensation because it's less breathable. You can tell that by simply blowing through treated and untreated material; DWR is harder to blow through.

**warbonnetguy** · 03-22-2008, 19:14

Originally Posted by headchange4u

condensation because it's less breathable. You can tell that by simply blowing through treated and untreated material; DWR is harder to blow through.

yeah, i wondered that when i was doing the blow tests, but i didn't have any fabric i knew was untreated as lots of breathables have dwr dreatment, especially from owf and quest, i'll have to pay closer attention when ordering breathable fabrics now, would you say regular dwr is only a problem when it's something you are breathing into, like a sock, and not really a problem for uq's and such?

**headchange4u** · 03-22-2008, 20:32

Originally Posted by warbonnetguy

would you say regular dwr is only a problem when it's something you are breathing into, like a sock, and not really a problem for uq's and such?

That's a great way to put it. The DWR on a UQ is there to keep the moisture out and keep the insulation dry but in an enclosed hammock sock, the DWR works against you to keep the moisture trapped inside and makes it hard for the humid air to escape. I think untreated material will better absorb the moisture and wick it way.

IMHO, condensation is more dangerous when it comes to a hammock sock. The material is in very close proximity and is almost always in contact with the hammock at some point.

Some people use DWR socks with success so it might take the right conditions for condensation to become a real problem. Having an option for venting should solve most condensation problems with DWR I would think.

**Coffee** · 03-23-2008, 00:09

One thing to think about in reference to dwr on a quilt, is it is warmer. The dwr helps keep the air you warmed up inside the quilt from leaving and cold air from blowing in and cooling things.

I think it is a trade off. I can't say how much warmer dwr is, but I think it is warmer.