Why hang an UQ?

[sydneywizard]

Would it not work if I placed 1/2 a synthetic sleeping bag (cut down the middle) as a base in my hammock and then layed my sleeping bag on top of it. I understand about loft and its effect on heat retention, but with two layers between me and the hammock, would this not be enough to maintain a reasonable level of insulation?

It would save weight (suspension system) and make redundant the need for engaging and disengaging the UQ to the hammock suspension. To stop the UQ from moving in the hammock, I could fix it to the bottom of the sleeping bag with velcro.

[Southpaw]

I don't know how cold it gets where you hike, but that setup would not be warm enough for me to even sleep at 65 degrees. And tons of people can sleep at 65 with nothing on them at all. So it's all a matter of what feels good to you.

[Shug]

It may work for you....you'll have to just give it a go.
My UQ only takes a moment to put on and take off. Some leave theirs on. The suspension is pretty light on mine....velcro will add a bit of weight as well.
Have fun testing and let us know the results...always up for a report.
Shug

Here is a UQ video I did....may answer some stuff.

[Joey]

Hangin' them beats shooting them!

Do you have a good backyard or close by spot to test this? Curious to hear how this works for you. I'm a bit of a restless sleeper, so I probably end up wrapped up in everything and don't think this would work for me. Just sayin'...

[Bubba]

Something underneath you is better than nothing underneath you, Synthetic might retain more insulating value than down when compressed. Only way to know is to give it a shot. Tell how it works for you.

[backpackingZombie]

Grab a yoga mat and put that under you and test that a couple of times

[BillyBob58]

Just depends on how cold it is and how cold natured you are, as well as how thick your other synthetic bag and clothing are. But regardless of all those variables, hanging that 1/2 synthetic bag under the hammock will probably be be much warmer than just laying on it and compressing the loft. A suspension won't weigh all that much, and once it is set up you can just leave it on the hammock. But, you might can make it work well enough for you. Give it a test!

[sydneywizard]

Ok, I gave it a go last night in the backyard and it was very comfortable with no cold spots. It was so comfortable that I initially planned on sleeping in the HH for a couple of hours to test it out, but woke up at 6AM!

The temp was 14C (57F) and breezy. I was warm enough initially that I had to open the sleeping bag fully, as I was starting to sweat like a pig. However, I can see that without attaching the UQ to the base of the sleeping bag (velcro or otherwise), it was going to be a bit of a nuisance to get it properly positioned under me. Nylon on nylon proved a little slippery, but once I got the UQ in position it didn't move all night.

I'll try and get the channels for the shock cords sewed on this weekend and try it again hanging and see the difference, but at least I know that in moderate temps, it can work.

[ljcsov]

Grab a yoga mat and put that under you and test that a couple of times

Yoga mats work?

[default]

my thought is:

the suspension on a UQ is very light, compared to how much more insulation youd need to compensate for the compression of the sleeping bag. with the UQ hung under, you can use less material because what is under you is doing its job to the best of its abilities, where as the sleeping bag in the hammock cant perform as designed because it needs to loft and is being compressed.

so even if you could get the sleeping bag to keep you warm, youd be carrying a lot more weight & bulk comparing to a UQ with its suspension (which really is just some shock cord, for the most part).
and UQ's dont move that much, once youre done fidgeting youre good.
but, HYOH, you may get it to work down there