View Full Version : My $5 underquilt
I saw an ad for "poly-fil" polyester fiberfill at Walmart that reminded of something I read on wiggy's website about random fiber arrangement versus fibers running in the same direction. The "poly-fill" can be seen online at http://www.poly-fil.com/fiberfill.asp
So I'm thinking, what if I buy a bag of this stuff for $3.00 and fill 12 zip lock bags (cost for box of zip locks was $2)with it and stuff two each into each of the 6 pockets on the Clark Jungle hammock? Will this stuff provide any insulation? Well, I'm going to find out tonight if the temperature drops, but right now is warmer than it was last night. We had a good breeze blowing this afternoon but it has died out so I might not get a good test tonight.
But if it does offer insulation, then the next question will be whether it will bounce back after a day of being compressed. I can almost flatten the bags by opening just a half inch of the top and squeezing the air out. And if I then reopen the bag, the material fluffs right back up. I'll test it tomorrow to see if it will do so after a day of being compressed.
Take-a-knee
10-13-2007, 21:49
I'd bet it will work, it might be problematic to pack and hike with but I think it will insulate fine. You'll loose some heat if you can't figure out how to keep those bags adjacent to each other but it will beat the heck out of nothing.
I was thinking of duct taping them bottom to bottom. As I said, they compress pretty flat. but 12 would still take up a lot of space. that's why I'm thinking of having containers made that can be compressed and rolled up. then I would only have 6 to deal with and could probably stugg them inside my blue pad when it is rolled up.
Take-a-knee
10-13-2007, 22:04
I've been thinking of something along similar lines, a "foot-quilt". When you lay on the diagonal in an assymetric Hennessy, your feet are on the right side of the entry slit. Having a small quilt on the outside of the hammock might work with the short (60in.) Oware pads I'm using. A pad pocket for a sit pad in the same place is also an idea.
alex30808
10-14-2007, 01:16
Keep us informed...This may be something I need to look into for making a DIY quilt.
It never got below 47 so I didn't get a good test of whether or not the bags are good insulators, but at 47 they definitely kept the sides from getting cold (I had a wally pad on the bottom which was plenty warm)
The bags did start to slip toward the bottom of the storage compartments. But I then realized that each storage compartment has velcro closures. Thus, I could put velcro on both sides of the bags near the top and press the velcro on the storage compartments against the velcro on the bags. This would keep the bags in place. It would also mean that I only needed 6 bags because I only need to insulate the top half of each compartment as my pad will take care of the rest.
Although I can compress the bags down to the size of a ziplock back with small t-shirt in it, squeezing the air out is a pain. However, I just tried the hefty bags with the zipper type closing and it was much easier to "roll out" the air and close the bag than the ziplock channel type bags.
6 breathable enclosures that can be rolled up would really be much better.
Well, you can buy this polyfill in sheets for making quilts.
It comes in different lofts.
The best prices I've seen are at Joanne's fabrics.
I don't see why a person could not make an underquilt with ripstop and fill it with poly.
You could then either sew baffles lengthwise (or crosswise) to hold it or you could just tie it like we used to tie off old quilts. Basically, that just entails using polyester yarn, and a big ole needle, taking a stitch and tying the ends in a knot. You do this about every 8 to 10 inches and keeps everything together. Easy.. cheap.. and I can't see (yet) why this wouldn't work.
YOu could probably make an underquilt for under $20.
I'm going to try it as soon as my new Hennessy arrives!
Well, you can buy this polyfill in sheets for making quilts.
It comes in different lofts.
The best prices I've seen are at Joanne's fabrics.
I don't see why a person could not make an underquilt with ripstop and fill it with poly.
I recently made a ray way and had strips of climashield left over... picked up some ripstop and shock cord, and downloaded the potomac pattern. I'm working on an underquilt incorporating the climashield strips, some of the Joann's poly batting, and some lightweight sew-in-place D rings instead of making the long cord channels on the sides. The poly batting was about 10 bucks for the roll... it's not nearly so soft or lofty as the climashield but I figured two layers of it with the climashield positioned so it covered the butt/torso area would make the underquilt warm enough to get by in spring and fall.
Once I get it together, I'm going to see if it fits in the ray way stuff sack I made for the RW quilt and then use the remainders of the ripstop for another stuff sack of whatever size needed. I couldn't just let the climashield go to waste - I have the alpine upgrade, and it's nice and lofty, better than the sleeping bag I have.
Youngblood
03-19-2008, 07:38
But if it does offer insulation, then the next question will be whether it will bounce back after a day of being compressed. I can almost flatten the bags by opening just a half inch of the top and squeezing the air out. And if I then reopen the bag, the material fluffs right back up. I'll test it tomorrow to see if it will do so after a day of being compressed.
I don't know how all that is going to work out for you but I do I have a thought about how to bag it. Why not use some rip stop nylon bags that are a little larger than the pockets where the bags are closed off such that you won't get leakage. Since these bags won't be airtight they should expand when you put them in the pockets and compress when you pack them. Just keep them dry.
You could also put a lot of pin holes in your zip lock bags but if water ever gets in there you probably will have a mess on your hands. With the RSN bags you could try squeezing out the moisture and then letting it air dry if it got wet.
I used wally world $1 fabric and sheet quilt batting to make a peapod. It works well down to about 45/50 degrees. Compresse pretty well. The batting was not as cheap as fabric and for maybe $30/40 more I could have gotten climashield from thru-hiker. All in all it was a good practice for better quality sewing projects.
What about using climashield or thinsulate for an underquilt?
Anybody have experience with either of those?