4 pound $150 setup I've taken to -1 fahrenheit

[notchent]

I've got a system that weighs a total of 4 pounds and costs less than $150, which I've taken down to -1 degree fahrenheit (-16 with wind chill) in total comfort, and I sleep extremely cold in any typical setup. It's absolutely unlike most mainstream solutions. I even took a sponge bath in sub-zero weather in it. Several years back, I wrote a full explanation and made a bunch of videos to show how it works: http://gui-tar.com/hammockforums-post-about-tubes.txt . I never published the link because I didn't feel like arguing with others about how it couldn't possibly work, but the videos are there to demonstrate my experience. I've spent more than 700 nights in everything from tents to bivies to hammocks, etc., so I have some experiences to compare. I'm getting older and have since built a camper van which my fiance enjoys traveling in with me, so I don't hammock camp much now, but the setup I linked above is far better than all the other thousands of dollars of hammock equipment I spent years collecting and testing (still own a garage full of hammock and traditional camp gear). It's quicker to set up, much lighter, much more comfortable, easier to clean and maintain, cheaper, etc.

A video posted by one of my favorite Youtubers made me think about it and want to share. Perhaps someone will find it useful.

[OneClick]

[notchent]

I have no idea why .txt would make anyone nervous, but here's a more nicely formatted HTML version, if you prefer it

http://gui-tar.com/hammockforums-post-about-tubes.html

[OneClick]

I have no idea why .txt would make anyone nervous

1000's of files lost in the past. Live and learn.

[Crazytown3]

I have no idea why .txt would make anyone nervous, but here's a more nicely formatted HTML version, if you prefer it

http://gui-tar.com/hammockforums-post-about-tubes.html

Why not just post your description here? Blindly clicking on links is generally not well regarded in this day and age.

[notchent]

Ok, here's a repost:



The BEST winter warmth solution I've found. Pick any 3 options: inexpensive, ultralight, warm.

(skip to the bottom for video links)


I know this topic has been covered in previous forum posts, but the results I've experienced are opposite the general sentiment and conjecture expressed in those threads. So I'd like to toss in my own 2 cents. I've been using Blizzard Survival Tubes (Reflexcell material) as my sole warmth and weather protection this winter, and they have performed far better than any other solution I've ever tried. So far, I've taken the tubes down to -1 Fahrenheit (-17F with wind chill), in absolutely cozy comfort (and I am normally a very COLD sleeper). I own many under quilts, and multiple brands and versions of all the standard equipment typically used by the hammock community, and none of those mainstream solutions come close to providing the warmth, comfort, light weight, and convenience of the Survival Tubes in the winter. I've included links to videos of various tests I've performed in weather down to -1F (I even took a sponge bath in the tubes at that temperature). Extreme cold temperatures, rain, wind, etc. - along with some comparison videos of me using normal top/under quilt insulation in the same conditions. The tubes perform dramatically better in the cold, they are much warmer and more comfortable, and are they're much simpler to use, setup, clean up, pack away and store at home, etc.

For very cold weather, I use 3 tubes: 2 closed around the foot end of the hammock, covering all of my body up to my neck, and 1 closed at the head end of the hammock, loosely overlapping the bottom tubes. I create a large ventilation opening at the overlap so that I don't suffocate. (See the video links below)

This setup weighs just over 3 pounds, costs ~$100, and takes approximately 7 minutes to set up, from opening the pack and setting up the hammock, to securing the tubes, to climbing in for the night. It's fast and easy to do with gloves on, and requires no tarp setup (no tent stakes, snow anchors, time consuming tie-downs, etc.), and no figity quilt or equipment adjustments of any sort.

I've tested various configurations using the tubes in warmer weather, heavy rain, windy conditions, and ridiculous cold. The tube setup does especially well in wind. There are no large flat surfaces as on a tarp, so the air goes right around (even without anchoring anything to the ground - see the windy videos below). In rainy warmer weather I use 1 core tube, and replace the top cover tube with a tarp or poncho over the head portion of the setup. I've logged more than 40 nights with the tubes, and they are holding up perfectly. I've made dozens of videos during various tests, to demonstrate the tubes' effectiveness, including all my surprized reactions at how well they actually performed in every new case. They're straightforward to use, comfortable, and ridiculously practical.

To provide some perspective about what I think is cold, I usually give up on typical UQ+TQ+tarp setups around 40F. For weather colder than that, the weight and bulk (and/or maintenance+cost) of equipment required to keep me comfortable is generally prohibitive in some way, or simply not enjoyable to use. I really like to be WARM, and to move freely in my sleep setup, without having to fidget or pay much attention to equipment settings. In my bivy days, I typically used a 15F bag and 2 pads in 40F temps. And even then, I often chose to wear a hoodie and extra layers to stay cozy. In contrast using the tubes, for example, I spent a 19F night in only shorts, t-shirt and liner socks, and slept warmer than I ever have in any other conventional setup (I've spent 700+ nights sleeping in everything from bivy+pad+bag, to tents, to well known hammock+UQorPad+TQ setups, so I do have some experiences to compare).

I have no vested interest in, or connection to the Blizzard company, in any way. Their product has just added a tremendous amount of freedom, enjoyment, and capability to my year round hammocking possibilities.

I'd like to clarify what Blizzard's Reflexcell material is. I've seen others assume it's a thin and fragile material like cheap single surface 'emergency' mylar blankets. Reflexcell is something much more sturdy, and far and away more insulative - not even in the same ballpark as familiar mylar sheets. It's a multi-layer material with a honycomb-like internal structure which traps air, similar in concept to designs like the Thermarest Neo-Air Xtherm Sleeping Pad, which has proven to be a extremely effective, industry leading product, for its weight. If you're familiar with that product, it may help the Reflexcell idea make more sense. There's some technical information about Reflexcell here: http://www.blizzardsurvival.com/page...cell-faqs.html , including a study which shows that Reflexcell is more than twice as effective as down, per weight, and more than 5x as effective as typical synthetic insulation (so carrying 1 pound of Reflexcell provides the same warmth as 5 pounds of synthetic insulation!).

Like most people, my first reaction to all the web site technical info was "bah, whatever, that sounds nice on paper". The fact is, the stuff works in the real world - it provides truly incredible sustained warmth for the weight, in real conditions. Take a look at this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K_xZlQSOP5U . If the tech specs don't resonate with you, that video might. They (3rd party people - not Blizzard) douse a guy with buckets of water in 23F weather, and then put him in a Blizzard bag for 1/2 hour, recording the bag's internal temperature, which stays between 68 and 71F the whole time (he's soaking wet, outdoors in 23F temps, video running continuously with no breaks). My results using TWO core bags, plus a third top cover bag have provided a kind of sustained warmth in cold weather which I've never experienced before. They are incredibly warm in very cold conditions.

I'm hoping to not get blasted for bringing up this topic - it seems to have always been an unpopular idea. I know to expect warnings about condensation and other explanations about why this setup will not work well. The fact is, in my tests, the overall performance and the total benefit of the tube setup simply beats every other setup I've ever tried, hands down, far and away, without reservation, by a long shot. The overall result is something that's warmer, more comfortable, lighter, cheaper, faster to set up, simpler to use, easier to clean up, maintain, etc. I'd love to be able to say that there are numerous trade-offs and reasons I'd prefer to use the thousands of dollars of other hammock equipment which I own, in some situations, but as far as I can see now, that's just not gonna happen. Yes, there is condensation in the tube setup I use, but it *doesn't pose the kind of problem that it does in other setups*. First, in the core bags, the condensation doesn't ever seem to collect around my body - only down past my feet. Second, the Blizzard tubes are BIG. They're meant to accomodate 2 people (about 4' wide and 8' long - large enough to allow a wide diagonal lay without tightening around you at all). The inside walls form a spacious cocoon, with plenty of room between you and the surface where water could condense. And the surfaces of the Reflexcell are a 100% waterproof plastic material. It's not like cloth. You can just wipe it off with a towel, and then it's *totally dry*. Or while you're sleeping, just let any condensation roll down the sides and collect beneath you - it doesn't hurt anything. So the overall effect of condensation was just never a problem for me. It's just a completely different issue than dealing with cloth in the cold. The familiar problem with any all-cloth setup, used for extended periods, is that some of the cloth eventually gets wet and is an uncomfortable mess. In the tubes, that moisture problem simply ends without requiring any more resolution. You just wipe it up, and there's no mess.

I use 1 tube as a top cover because I hate breathing subfreezing air. Even with plenty of ventilation, the top cover generally keeps my breathing air (and my head's 'living space') much warmer than the outside air. If I want to read, play with a digital device, or do anything else which requires taking my hands out of the 2 core lower bags, I can do it completely comfortably, without my hands freezing, devices freezing, etc. I can keep bottles of water warm or even melt snow without any energy source. The whole space is warm. The top cover also eliminates the need for a tarp.

I can take a sponge bath inside the whole setup without ever freezing (!!!), even in super cold weather. For me, that one little detail solves a huge problem. I hate getting smelly, and that's always been a problem in the cold. Not any more.

Obviously, the top cover, where I breath, gets wet with condensation, but it never freezes (even in my 6F test). I just wipe it off as needed. Not a problem. If you really need to avoid any possibility of contact with moisture, get one of the SOL Escape breathable bivies, to use as a barrier around you. They add some warmth, and weigh only ~1/2 pound. I used a single, partially open ended tube, along with the SOL breathable bivy in one of my earliest below-freezing tests, and that minimal setup (~1.5 pounds) worked well for the short period I tested it. To me, however, that solution is more constricting, and only adds unnecessary complexity. I prefer to use the tubes, with nothing else.

Other complaints may include the noisiness of the material. It is loud when getting in and out - which may be a problem for companion campers. For me, once inside, the tubes are big enough that you don't need to disturb them much. You can move around freely inside the cocoon, if you keep it loose. If you wrap up tighly, you will have to deal with the crinkling sound. (Note that the crinkling sounds are exagerated MUCH louder on the camera mic than they are in person). In fact, I expect that the look, sound, and aesthetics of Mylar and plastic pieces of gear may be off-putting enough for many people to never try them in the first place. It's just not as sexy as other gear which is meant to make people drool at your stuff. The tubes are not status symbol equipment. They're something you choose to use purely for effectiveness, comfort, light weight, etc.

Also, I realize that the Blizzard bags don't look strong enough for any real use. I think Blizzard has a bit of a marketing challenge selling a "survival" product, because people generally assume that such products are flimsy - meant to last perhaps a few hours. The Blizzard material was designed to keep people alive for at least a week in the wild - and that's with the bag placed directly on the ground. Suspended around a hammock there is virtually no wear and tear. I've used the same tubes for more than 40 uses, compressed them as tightly as possible after every recent use, and they are still in perfectly functional condition. I do carry some tape to patch the outer layers of mylar, which is the weakest part. It repairs instantly with tape.

Because the tubes are so inexpensive, I'm just not worried about their longevity. Already, they've cost less than a dollar per use, and that's still decreasing. Although I trust their resilience, in the dead of winter I do just carry a 4th tube in the vacuum packaging (the size of a video cassette). An entire tube weighs only 1 pound, so carrying an extra 1 is worth it to me. If temperatures dip far below expected, or if an accident damages 1 tube beyond repair, I'm completely prepared. It's impossible to achieve that sort of redundancy as easily with any traditional equipment. And they're cheap. $33 for a tube. I don't have to worry about maintenance, and if one gets destroyed, smelly, or even just too messy to want to repair or clean, I won't sweat retiring it and bringing in a nice fresh replacement. I prefer doing that, to treating ultra-expensive gear with kid gloves. I like to use my stuff, get things dirty, and not have to spend more time at home than outside cleaning and maintaining everything. To me, this benefit is huge.

The cocoon the tubes create makes sitting in your hammock in winter feel a lot like laying around in your hammock on a warm summer day. You don't have to carefully position yourself and your UQ-TQ, and hunker down into a locked down position, hoping not to disrupt a warm coverage position. You can move freely in complete comfort, just like you do in warm weather. The tubes wrap completely around you, and are anchored at each end (you pull a chord with a toggle, and then tie a knot if you want). It takes literally 1 minute, and there's no way for it to become 'unseated'. You can move completely freely, lay diagonally, switch positions without reservation or care. It's like hanging your hammock inside a warm room - you can move and hang freely, without feeling tied down by a bunch of rigged up gear - it allows you to enjoy the hammock in the cold, with the same relaxing feeling that attracted us all to hammocking in the first place. If the temperature really dips down, you can pull the bags tigher around you to feel cozy. I've never experienced comfort in the winter like I have hammocking with the tubes. I've done side by side tests using standard UQ-TQ-Tarp setups, and there is absolutely no comparison. It's not even the same experience (see the videos). I WAS happy with my expensive mainstream equipment until recently, but I can't go back now. I don't need to worry about water or snow, rain splashing, wind, or any of the elements, from any direction, or any time consuming setup or frustrating reconfiguration effort. The comfort, warmth, light weight, freedom, simplicity, etc. of the tube setup is not matched by any of the typical solutions.

So, whether some here disagree or feel the need to criticize my experience and outlook about the tubes, I hope someone will benefit from the experiments I've done, and experience some of the suprizing comfort and ease of use I've enjoyed with them. Take it or leave it. Try it if you think the benefits look appealing. I've watched others get lambasted in threads, just trying to tell people about their positive experiences with these tubes, which is really unfortunate, because they are an incredible solution. I'd certainly like to hear about any dangers or discomforts experienced by others who have used the tubes, as well as any other positive or negative experiences people have had with extended or extreme use. It's made a world of positive difference to me, and opened up all sorts of possibilities that wouldn't have been conceivable in the past. My minimalist deep winter 1-2 night pack is now 7.5 pounds (before food and water), and a fully decked out week pack with all sorts of extras is 14.5 pounds. And I'm confident using that setup in any temperature which I may encounter, any place where I'd ever want to be outside.

The most important warning about this setup is to ensure that your ventilation opening works perfectly. Use PVC tubes, weights, or some other structure/mechanism which you've tested to ensure that suffocation or other breathing dangers don't occur. Of course, don't use fire or heaters inside the things.

Here are a few rough videos of tests at my house (sorry, camera quality is that of a low resolution potato):

6-8 degrees F (-17F with wind chill):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nHod4ammVJE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GiRmpXPLo6o

19 degrees F, with only shorts, t-shirt, and liner socks.
I actually fell asleep for 3 additional hours unintentionally,
because I was so warm and cozy:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uvJjGFSz-cg (this one has some of the best images and descriptions)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wWYJm7z8OYc

25 F, heavy wind:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2hEo4f2PlMM

How well the shape of the tube cocoon sheds wind:
(25-40 mph gusts - a basketball hoop was dragged across our front yard by the wind that morning)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w-t8WRCvHs8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9l88Rnt8rOU

As a comparison, the same day (43F), in an UQ+sleeping bag
(much heavier than the tubes, even without a tarp, and not even close to as warm or comfortable):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JDkhn7e5zU0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-kG4uqu9gYM

Setup in the rain, with a tarp and a poncho. Stayed bone dry after 1.5 days:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=88hAZ8Y4lG4

Taking a sponge bath in -1F weather! (warning: exposed male nipples):

http://youtu.be/Wbch8iWedco
http://youtu.be/4CtBib0eIxA
http://youtu.be/GEO_3gGcxwY
http://youtu.be/BsSDC-lxw8g

An early sub-freezing test, with a single core tube:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7e5P7xcDgQI

An earlier configuration in 39F temps, with just one survival tube and only shorts, t-shirt, liner socks:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1HAbmZH0CMM


My complete ultra-light pack setup - 7.5 lbs, and costs less than $200:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wDA2xxQY6cw


My 14.5 luxury setup:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WGPV...ature=youtu.be

Packing tubes into a stuff sac:

http://youtu.be/m1Z8qaJEPso


DISCLAIMER: Every bit of information in my hammock videos and/or this text may be entirely wrong, dangerous, and/or deadly. You could be injured or killed or suffer other damages by trying any activity or configuration suggested in these videos or text. Do so entirely at your own risk. I am not an engineer or a qualified hammock professional. It's recommended that you seek professional instruction before setting up any gear demonstrated in these videos or explained in this text.

[Crazytown3]

Cool, thanks for posting it here.

[scrope]

Interesting idea. The video answered my questions about how you don't have CBS because you aren't laying on it but wrapped around the hammock (you said it but it didn't click). Also when you mentioned the condensation could just drip behind you I now understand that it would be below your hammock and not touching you.

The current price appears to be around $40 and is only available in Europe, or at least I didn't see anybody selling this in the U.S so somewhat inexpensive but not exactly cheap when shipping added.

I'm intrigued but not ready to be the second guinea pig yet. If anybody else gives this a try, please give us feeback.

[Spartacus19]

I always love looking at a new approach to something. I have a million questions and critiques, but think you are on to something. I think I'll be ordering a few to play around with for myself!

[jdy98p]

To buy online: https://www.botach.com/blizzard-survival-tube/