Help me figure out - Am I a COLD SLEEPER ??

[MississipVol]

Even though I have been hammock camping for a little over a year, I still consider myself a newb. This weekend I went out in the woods to try out my new UGQ 20* underquilt. Temps were going to get down in the mid-40's so I thought I would be very comfortable in my hammock with my underquilt paired with my UGQ 40* topquilt. (Both have about 3 oz of overfill.)

I attached the underquilt, making sure it didn't have any gaps and was tight against the hammock. However, in the middle of the night I started getting cold. Not shaking cold but mildly uncomfortable cold so that it was hard to go back to sleep. I did not feel any cold spots underneath and mainly felt like the top quilt was not keeping me warm enough. I checked the temp history and it only reached 46* as a low. Am I a cold sleeper?? I have never thought I would be but I thought I would be nice and toasty with that setup.

My son actually got in the hammock with me later in the night. Although I was now uncomfortable, his body heat made things a lot more comfortable temp wise. Only my feet got cold when I got them too far to the right in my WBBB, thereby not feeling the warmth of the underquilt.

Just a few other factors about the night:

- I had my tarp in porch mode on one side. It wasn't very windy at all but I know that could have made a slight difference.

- I was wearing wool socks, jeans, cotton t-shirt, lightweight North Face fleece pull-over, and a really inexpensive off brand very lightweight down vest. I also had a fleece UGQ beanie on.

Thanks for any advice. I was hoping the top quilt would get me down in the 40's so that I could use it for most of my hammock camping.

[raiffnuke]

Have someone check the fit of the quilt with you in the hammock. A nicely fitting quilt on an empty hammock is one things, but the geometry changes when you get in.

[MississipVol]

Have someone check the fit of the quilt with you in the hammock. A nicely fitting quilt on an empty hammock is one things, but the geometry changes when you get in.

I had my 11-year-old check that for me. Granted, he is only 11, but I told him what to look for as far as it being snug against the hammock, etc.

[mudsocks]

What length was the UQ and how was it positioned on your body? Is your UQ long enough to provide warm for your feet? I found that with brand new UQs the shock cord has a tendency to "relax" (creating gaps) the first few times it's used and minor adjustments are needed during the night to re-snug it against my body. Next make sure the clothes you are wearing are not restrictive. Restrictive clothing (especially socks) will restrict blood flow and your extremities will get cold easily. Try loose fitting socks.

I overheat easily. Given the temp ratings on your gear and what you were wearing I wonder if you were sweating and as the night grew colder you got chilled from your own perspiration.

[MississipVol]

What length was the UQ and how was it positioned on your body? Is your UQ long enough to provide warm for your feet? I found that with brand new UQs the shock cord has a tendency to "relax" (creating gaps) the first few times it's used and minor adjustments are needed during the night to re-snug it against my body. Next make sure the clothes you are wearing are not restrictive. Restrictive clothing (especially socks) will restrict blood flow and your extremities will get cold easily. Try loose fitting socks.

I overheat easily. Given the temp ratings on your gear and what you were wearing I wonder if you were sweating and as the night grew colder you got chilled from your own perspiration.

It is a full length UQ (and I'm only 5'10") so it should have been fine length-wise. Here is a picture:

102724

I HATE tight fitting clothes so everything was pretty loose. My socks would be the tightest 'garment' I had on but I wouldn't have thought they were restrictive.

I don't think I was sweating and actually got warmer with my son in the hammock with me. But the UQ definitely could have developed gaps with my movement. That is something I will check next time. Although, it SEEMED like TQ that was mostly lacking...

[Passinthru]

That UQ & TQ combination should easily get you to those temps and wind conditions wearing only light underwear. I would suspect waaaayyyy too many clothes.
Wearing lots of extra clothing seems to be common but I think the manufacturers temp ratings are probably based on more 'normal' sleep attire.
If I think I will be cold wearing just skivvies and a T shirt I will use more UQ or TQ.

[dakotaross]

Your clothing wasn't so much, but it might have been enough to effect the TQ more so than the UQ. The down traps warm air, and that warm air slows down your rate of heat loss. The UQ was probably thick enough to retain more heat during the night and make you feel more insulated there, but the 40 being somewhat close to its technical limit might have not been able to trap as much heat as it otherwise could because it couldn't get heat from you fast enough from you to make up for the rate that it was losing it to the environment.

When your son came in, he not only provided heat to you, but to the quilts as well, helping them to reach their potential.

p.s. I find that I don't get much from my quilts in terms of keeping my feet warm; the quilts insulate, but in general, my feet don't generate much warmth down there and the quilts, therefore, are not as efficient. I've taken to resting them on a down pillow which was originally used to alleviate heel pressure, but I found that it really helped keep my feet warmer - so much so that I don't need my down booties in the 40s any more, LOL.

[dkurfiss]

My guess would be the cotton is giving you issues. Most folks, myself included, tend to sweat at least a bit when they sleep. The cotton will grab that sweat and then hold it next to your body not allowing it to evaporate thereby creating a cooling layer next to you. Next time try it with no cotton involved and see if that does not reduce the chill.

[NM_Leo]

I agree with the cotton input for sure. Especially if you sweat at night at all. Cotton traps that moisture, and doesn't let it escape. More than once, I have been cold wearing a t-shirt with a fleece top. The t-shirt keeps your chest cold...assuming you sweat. Good luck.

[MississipVol]

The advice about cotton is definitely something I need to check out. I am definitely short on synthetic "cold gear". But just something moisture-wicking may make a difference.

[slugbait]

Temperature is not the only thing to consider. I feel that humidity is also a factor- the damper it is out, the chillier I feel at a given temperature.

[cataraftgirl]

I personally would have been a sweaty mess in that much clothes at 46 degrees. I always thought I was a cold sleeper, until I figured out that I was just warm enough at bedtime to generate just enough sweat to make me cold about an hour after I fell asleep. All that cotton would haven frozen me in no time. Get yourself some synthetic, layer lightly, and see how that goes. A wool beanie or a Black Rock down hat will also help if you truly are a cold sleeper.

[SnrMoment]

Keep the TQ cinched fairly tight around your neck & shoulders. I've found that if it's open even a bit, the heat vents out rapidly. I also add a fleece scarf along the top edge between my chin/shoulders. I'm also a very cold sleeper and doing that helps a lot.
Another trick to seeing how your UQ fits your hammock when you're in it is to set up a light outside so that you can see the shadow line of the quilt through the hammock. If you see a bright hole, you have a gap.

[njsurfer]

I agree you need to try again with more appropriate synthetic clothing. In mid 40s air temps I'm usually in shorts and long sleeve synthetic base layer shirt. Id be willing to bet you were sweating at least a little bit at first.

[pkupmn98]

Cotton kills! Lose it and upgrade. Especially if you wore it at all before turning in for the night. It may have "felt" dry, but it likely was not completely dry.

[njsurfer]

Speaking of wearing clothing you've already been wearing. Fresh socks to sleep in always at the least. I personally always bring a dedicated set of clothes to sleep in for two reasons. 1) I know they are dry 2) keep my down cleaner longer.

[ranger671]

I would suggest some good wool base layers. Will definitely keep you drier and warmer than cotton and I've found a good merino wool base layer to be more comfortable than synthetics.

[peterhase]

+1 on ditching cotton and a fresh pair of socks. I also agree with Slugbait regarding humidity. It's currently 25F/-4C outside but it's feeling much, much colder than that with ~80% humidity!

[hothedgehog]

I'm a cold sleeper and I try to do the following things when I camp to make sure I have a warm night's sleep.

Go to bed warm: either warm yourself up by going for a little walk or jog on the spot or make sure you're warmed by a fire etc.
Fresh socks for bed: have a pair of bed only socks, fairly light fitting, and change into them each night. I personally like ones like these: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Ladies-Fluffy-Evening-Socks-Stripe/dp/B004A14N94
Tucking clothing in: the trick to keeping warm is keeping your heat inside your clothing. I tuck my trousers into my socks, my base layer into my trousers and then layer the jumper over the top. Then if I'm wearing a scarf etc then that gets tucked into the jumper too.
Take off your outer layer: as tempting as it can be to wear a coat or outer layers in bed, take them off. They just introduce cold into your bedding. Remember that bedding is designed to keep hot (or cold) in so if you get in cold it's just going to stay there.
Cover your head: I usually sleep in a hooded jumper which keeps the heat in from my neckline and warms up my head as that's where you lose lots of heat.
Find a sleeping position that keeps you warm: I find that if I sleep with my hands tucked under my armpits they stay warm so this is how I sleep. If I have my hands by my side or around my middle they get cold and it wakes me up. Different positions will change how warm you are.

Hope that helps!

[NickR]

A hot water bottle between your legs will do wonders...

[Boston]

Sounds like you may be slightly cold natured, but you also may have been pushing the limits of your top insulation. Since you say it was the top of you that felt cold, I'd look there first before really futzing with the UQ.

Were you checking temp with a thermometer right with you, or from a weather station? Keep in mind local temperature can fluctuate a lot based on elevation. If you happen to be at a low point, the temperature can be significantly colder than reported.

Wind can also be a factor. What was the wind chill? Even a slight breeze can have a big impact, especially if you're near your insulation limit.

You also may have started sweating, which the cotton would absorb and hold that moisture next to your skin - cooling you more. If you were warm when you went to bed, this could be part of the reason.

Metabolic rate also plays a role. When you are awake your metabolic rate is higher than when sleeping - so your body produces more heat. This means you may go to bed warm, but cool as you sleep and eventually wake up cold. This is an important factor to consider - too much insulation when you go to bed may have caused you to started sweating, and coupled with the absorbent clothing caused your body to cool more than it normally would have.

How snug does your top quilt fit? If there is space between you and your top quilt that air will develop convection current's. The rate of heat transfer from your body to the air between your body and the quilt, the through the quilt and to the outside air will be greater then just from your body, to the quilt, and then to the outside air. This is why it's important to really snug the quilt up to you in colder weather, and is the same reason mummy bags are more effective than rectangular bags at keeping you warm - they have less air space.

[MississipVol]

Thanks so much for all the feedback. You all have definitely given me some things to try on my next outing. I do think (as Boston mentioned) that the temp was probably lower than the 46* in the area (which I got off wunderground.com). I was in a lower area surrounded by streams so I am sure that made a difference. I will try some of these things and report back. Thanks again!

[gmcttr]

Be sure to eat just before turning in so your body has fuel to make heat in the early morning hours.

Assuming no one is in the hammock in your photo, I suggest tightening the UQ suspension. It should lift the empty hammock. If it is not fully doing it's job, you may feel cold in general rather than feeling cold spots and interpret this as being cold from the top.

[BillyBob58]

Even though I have been hammock camping for a little over a year, I still consider myself a newb. This weekend I went out in the woods to try out my new UGQ 20* underquilt. Temps were going to get down in the mid-40's so I thought I would be very comfortable in my hammock with my underquilt paired with my UGQ 40* topquilt. (Both have about 3 oz of overfill.)

I attached the underquilt, making sure it didn't have any gaps and was tight against the hammock. However, in the middle of the night I started getting cold. Not shaking cold but mildly uncomfortable cold so that it was hard to go back to sleep. I did not feel any cold spots underneath and mainly felt like the top quilt was not keeping me warm enough. I checked the temp history and it only reached 46* as a low. Am I a cold sleeper?? I have never thought I would be but I thought I would be nice and toasty with that setup.

My son actually got in the hammock with me later in the night. Although I was now uncomfortable, his body heat made things a lot more comfortable temp wise. Only my feet got cold when I got them too far to the right in my WBBB, thereby not feeling the warmth of the underquilt.

Just a few other factors about the night:

- I had my tarp in porch mode on one side. It wasn't very windy at all but I know that could have made a slight difference.

- I was wearing wool socks, jeans, cotton t-shirt, lightweight North Face fleece pull-over, and a really inexpensive off brand very lightweight down vest. I also had a fleece UGQ beanie on.

Thanks for any advice. I was hoping the top quilt would get me down in the 40's so that I could use it for most of my hammock camping.


The advice about cotton is definitely something I need to check out. I am definitely short on synthetic "cold gear". But just something moisture-wicking may make a difference.


Cotton kills! Lose it and upgrade. Especially if you wore it at all before turning in for the night. It may have "felt" dry, but it likely was not completely dry.

There are a couple of guys in Memphis area who are probably still laughing at me from when I told them cotton kills about 15 years ago right before a trip to the Wind River Mountains in WY. But it is a true statement.

Still, there is no reason all of those layers you had on, even with a cotton T shirt and jeans under it, should not have kept you toasty warm. It did not help, mind you, and you would have been warmer with fleece or something non-cotton, but I don't think it should have caused you to be hat cold unless it was a bit damp. Was it?

I often use TQs or PeaPods or sleeping bags to way lower than their rated temps by simply layering. It should not matter if you are stacking(layering) quilts or clothing, layering works, or at least it works for me, every time so far. That cotton T shirt, buried under those other layers, should not have been a significant factor. I would never take cotton on a backpacking trip, unless I was willing to sacrifice the weight of a T shirt for hot day hiking which can happen, but never counting it as part of my insulation. Having said that, I have spent many a warm nap or overnight with cotton layers- PJs or blue jeans and T shirt- next to my skin- when they were nice and dry and I was surrounded by adequate insulation layers. In fact, that one camp out when I did mid 40s right next to the lake at Trace State Park between Pontotoc and Tupelo with a measly 2.5 oz of CS XP under me in a synthetic Yeti and an old 40-50F synthetic liner bag over me, I was wearing nothing but cotton and plenty warm. The cotton should only be a real problem once it is damp, holding in the moisture and then causing that evil slow, steady evaporative cooling. It can be a real problem on the trail, but I doubt it was your problem under all of those down and synthetic layers. But I could be wrong, and it is possible- but I don't think so.

Nope, sounds like your back was warm enough so may I suggest you have the TQ draft blues? (BTW, did you notice the cotton did not make your back cold, where most folks are cold in a hammock? Even though your down vest was smashed flat under you?) Are you a pretty big guy? If so, how wide is your TQ? Even if you are not, adding all of those layers under a TQ has the same effect as making you like tie Michelin tire man, way big around. Which might make it tougher to keep a TQ well sealed around you. They are prone to drafts anyway. All you have to do is move wrong in your sleep and 1st thing you know an edge has lifted up or the neck area has lifted. Bam, a cold leak allowing all of your warmed up air to get out of dodge.

So, that is my bet: since your back was warm - it was, wasn't it? - I bet you have a TQ leak somewhere, which is even more likely if you are a big boy and/or have on thick puffy clothing. This is why someone invented PeaPods. ;) But also look out for the opposite cause: while trying to tuck a non-dif cut TQ around you to avoid leaks and drafts, you can pull it too tight and flatten the loft.

Of course, it is possible that it is just you, that you are real cold natured. But again, your back was warm, right? That is the most common problem, and you didn't have it, so it probably is not you. One thing final: Did you have head warmth equivalent to a 40F mummy bags hood? If not, a little bit of draft and a lack of thick loft around your head and neck and you can be real cold at 40F in a 40F rated TQ.

Drafts: top or bottom, they can ruin many a night in quilts.

[whmoller]

I think the comments are spot on, but I also wonder about the overall temperature. If you were in a valley next to a stream then colder air than you might have had colder temps than you might otherwise have expected.

[MississipVol]

Humidity was pretty high that night. In the 70's and 80's. Plus, it was probably colder where I was camping.

BillyBob - I can see draft being an issue with the top quilt. I was pretty warm when I settled in so I don't think I paid all that much attention to making sure the TQ was tucked in well around me. I did order my TQ extra-wide in case I need to use it as a sleeping bag so it's plenty wide enough. Next time I will probably attach it around my neck and shoulders and then make sure it is tucked in. I just normally like to sleep with a lot of room to move around but that is probably causing some drafts.