Has this "hammock skirt" idea been done?

[vladpack]

I have an inclination to make something that I can only describe as a "hammock skirt" - and wanted to see if anyone's made something similar. I'm bad at drawing this out, but imagine a piece of lightweight breathable DWR fabric that attaches around the perimeter of the hammock, and then hangs down to the ground, or almost to the ground, kind of like a tablecloth. It can then be staked down to the ground, probably with shock cord to make it have some give.

Here are the advantages I see, but they are 100% theoretical:

1) Create an enclosed space under hammock with little to no air movement, maybe even allowing for less insulation
2) Act as the underquilt protector as well
3) Creates a weather-safe space for your gear
4) Allows to pitch the tarp higher, or get away with a smaller tarp

I go back and forth on whether this would work or be worthwhile, wanted to get the advice of the community!

[SilvrSurfr]

Sounds like a tent to me - may as well put a floor on it. The weight alone would make me shy away; it would probably outweigh the hammock.

[doogie]

I don't understand why this would be any better than an underquilt protector. It accomplishes all of your points without need for staking out or any ground sheet.

[Wanderlost]

It's an interesting concept, but I'm not sure it goes beyond the concept phase. Essential, it makes it a tent with a suspended cot. A UQP protector accomplishes the same basic thing. +2 points for thinking outside the box!

[heycorb]

DWR might not be enough if you are looking a smaller tarp. If you made it out of cuben, it probably would work well. Only thing that I see might be an issue is getting in and out of your hammock might be harder and could you stake it out where it would stay taught and allow for movement when your hammock swings a little or you are moving during the night.

[hipbone]

almost like a gear closet under your hammock (also might be a really good place for a dog)...i was trying to figure out something similar with my pack cover...almost like a gear hammock/underquilt protector made out of my pack cover (i'm an ultralight/long distance geek so i like dual use). our ideas are not exactly the same but they kinda serve the same purpose


edit: i'm assuming the skirt doesn't go OVER the hammock, it just kinda hangs up underneath correct?

[Pipsissewa]

Like an underquilt protector that's big enough to lay on the ground? Sounds good to me. It couldn't be attached all around the perimeter of the hammock though---you wouldn't be able to get into it. Also, once you lay something in it---even just your boots, you won't have to stake it out.

Give it a go! and let us know how it turns out!

[hipbone]

yeah maybe no staking, but incorporate rock pockets to keep the wind from flapping it?

[vladpack]

Responses definitely mirror and inform my internal debate. Thanks for the points so far. I would say that weight and complexity are the biggest negative factor. Here's some napkin math:

I'm doing this on a bridge hammock that's 78x36x24 inches, so I would need a length of 216 x height of say 29 (half of most fabric rolls). That's just shy of 5 square yards of material. If I'm using something like m50 that comes out to 3.4 oz or 96 grams of fabric, which isn't too bad.

Now, I'm thinking no ground sheet of any kind under this - basically like a little under-bed storage box with the ground there. With a normal UQP you still have a lot of air movement under the uqp - so cutting air movement between the ground and the quilt is really the main reason to try this at all.

I definitely like the rock pockets idea hipbone! That may work way better than staking.

[Wanderlost]

Some other points of thought:

That height won't give you a lot of wiggle room for uneven ground (e.g. on a hill or over a root hole). However, giving yourself extra wiggle room for varying height inevitablly puts some of the cloth in the dirt which means it'll wear quicker.

Were you going to permanently attach is to the hamock or do something along the line of quilt hooks? Permanently attaching it will make clipping on an UQ difficult since you'll need to duck underneath the skirt. If it's under a skirt, is the UQ considered hammock underwear?

..and I prefer the term "Hammock Kilt".