Clean Sheet Underquilt

[chezrad]

Ok, so I have made several hammocks. I really like them and my latest, an Asym clone is super comfortable but I had a problem...

I tried using a Big Agnes bag and inflatable pad. However I found that I sweat a good bit at night and I found that I was always clammy due to condensation on the bottom (pad side). I wanted an underquilt! I didn't want to spend a bunch of money and then find out that the end result is not what I want. Then I noticed someone mentioning a "Neat Sheet" here on the forums.

SO off I went to hunt a "Neat Sheet". No luck but I did find a similar product at Babys R Us. It's a "Clean Sheet". Same double layer construction, two colors.. Lime green and Bright blue, price of $9.99. So with material in hand...

I laid out the KAQ pattern on the Clean sheet and ran a stitch along the layout lines. If I was to do it over again, I would have pinned the ripstop to the clean sheet and then run the stitch along the layout lines I the covered the material with ripstop and put a rolled hem along the edge. Then I created the channels for the shock cord.

Since I had never played with an underquilt, I may not have the suspension correct but it seems to work ok. So here are some pics of the finished product..

http://www.hammockforums.net/gallery...a_original.jpg

http://www.hammockforums.net/gallery...a_original.jpg

Here is proof that I really used the ugly blue clean sheet.

http://www.hammockforums.net/gallery...8_original.jpg

One of the reasons that I waited to write this is that I needed a chance to try it out. So I went "hanging" Friday night. End result is that it turned out great. I originally wanted this for summer use. I think it will work well keeping mosquitoes off the bottom as well. So how did it sleep? Great.. no condensation! What a deal, I knew I needed an underquilt. A light blanket was all I needed. Soft comfort of hammock fabric next to me. No high center of gravity that makes things "tippy". None of that miserable condensation that makes me damp and miserable. I am really happy with how this turned out.

Total cost?
Clean Sheet about $10
Shock Cord about $5 (30' per KAQ instructions)
1.9 Ripstop about $3 (Old $1/yd Wally World stuff)

So for less than $20, I have an underquilt that I can play with that seems to work well for my needs. Cheers.

[SmokeHouse]

Great job,,, defiantly something to consider.

[photomankc]

Neat idea.

[fin]

Good job. I still have to make my Neat Sheet quilt. Did you add tabs on the corners, or any kind of attachment points on the corners?

[vitamaltz]

I'm not the OP, but I would add nylon corner reinforcement patches and tabs on neat sheet UQs; the material will eventually tear otherwise.

[poker88]

Very cool!

[chezrad]

Good job. I still have to make my Neat Sheet quilt. Did you add tabs on the corners, or any kind of attachment points on the corners?

Fishin Finn,

No tabs on the corners. I have channels on the ends and 2 channels on each side that go to the tie out points. This is my first underquilt so I probably screwed up the shock cord but what I have seems to work. I have a continuous loop running through the side channels. The two ends are the attached to a prussic on the hammock suspension. The ends have a short piece of shock cord attached to the side shock cords with a bowline. Probably wrong from a underquilt pro point of view but like I said, it seems to work and it's dirt simple.

The channels are sewn through the Clean sheet and the 1.9 ripstop cover. There really doesn't seem to be much if any tension on the channels so I'm not to worried about rip outs. We'll see how it holds up. Cheers.

[chezrad]

Update: Slept out in the hammock last night. temps were down in the low 50s. Got mildly chilly. I believe that this is around the low end for this underquilt. Suspension seemed to work fine as I never had a problem with it moving. Only potential issue is maybe pulling it a little tighter to eliminate any air gap. Cheers.