Alternative for campsite mattress

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Paul_B

Bushcrafter through and through
Jul 14, 2008
6,154
1,546
Cumbria
Basically I have tried a few things over the years to sleep on. From the old rubber backed fabric lilos of my youth through closed cell foam mats of various sizes (right down to torso shaped custom CCF mat to reduce weight) and the ubiquitous thermarest types used by backpackers and DofE groups. We have been using simple air mattresses of late purely for the increased comfort (with CCF on top in colder weather).

This is all not very satisfactory so I am looking for alternatives. I would really love to get a nice 9cm exped down mat and live the life of camping luxury but as always there is a cost issue (my partner, well she disagrees and thinks we should spend hundreds on a downmat).

Basically we need a double width and a single width alternative to an air bed for comfort (and warmth ideally). I doubt downmats come in double widths. We want something thicker than a thermarest but with the performance of them or better. All camping out of the back of a car (if solution is light enough perhaps cycle touring too).

Any suggestions??
 

Squidders

Full Member
Aug 3, 2004
3,853
15
48
Harrow, Middlesex
If you absolutely need a double mat for car camping in all conditions, the best are things like the Exped MegaMat Duo 10 or Sim Comfort 7.5.

My partner and I have two Thermarest Dream mats that popper together. They are VERY comfy, the fleece topper is nice to sleep directly against and we just throw a duvet over the top. Considering the comfort, they pack quite small but not nearly good enough for cycle touring.

I actually prefer two mats because when we move around during the night, the other person is unaffected.

Another option would be to get two Thermarest Neo Air mats and a down coupler.
 
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ADz-1983

Native
Oct 4, 2012
1,603
11
Hull / East Yorkshire
Two people on one air bed is bad idea. When other moves, so do you. Get two separate and strap them together instead.

Two Thermares NeoAir Xtherms will keep you toasty. Best R value you can get on an air mattress.
 

cranmere

Settler
Mar 7, 2014
992
2
Somerset, England
Another vote for two single mattresses here.

I don't understand why anyone buys double sleeping bags either, they are never big enough and you end up fighting the other person all night.
 
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Stew

Bushcrafter through and through
Nov 29, 2003
6,446
1,284
Aylesbury
stewartjlight-knives.com
Our two single vango inflatable mattresses combined are narrower than our double vango inflatable mattress on it's own so doing two singles isn't always the best plan.

My wife is not a happy camping sleeper, at least until now. We had previously done rollmats and air beds but not got it right. I splashed out a while back and got a 7.5cm thick vango comfort double. It's a winner!
 

cranmere

Settler
Mar 7, 2014
992
2
Somerset, England
2 singles zipped together still doesn't work for me, they have to be enormous caravan type bags for it to be even remotely practical. Each to their own I guess, we have an enormous bed or we end up tangled in a heap which keeps both of us awake.
 
Jul 30, 2012
3,570
224
westmidlands
That will be very cold as you're sleeping on a bed of air as a single cavity. Self inflating mattresses have foam inside them so the air is in lots of smaller cells and insulates. Also with that, it's a large height in the tent.

Not really, a quilt works bytrapping the hot air like a hot air baloon(convection) a mat works by keeping you away from a dense surface (conduction) silver foil works by reflection(radiation). If you need a bit more insulation (any) take a silver coated duvet to lie upon. And get a bigger tent.
 

mountainm

Bushcrafter through and through
Jan 12, 2011
9,990
12
Selby
www.mikemountain.co.uk
2 singles zipped together still doesn't work for me, they have to be enormous caravan type bags for it to be even remotely practical. Each to their own I guess, we have an enormous bed or we end up tangled in a heap which keeps both of us awake.


They are enormous caravan types - for car camping.
 

Stew

Bushcrafter through and through
Nov 29, 2003
6,446
1,284
Aylesbury
stewartjlight-knives.com
Not really, a quilt works bytrapping the hot air like a hot air baloon(convection) a mat works by keeping you away from a dense surface (conduction) silver foil works by reflection(radiation). If you need a bit more insulation (any) take a silver coated duvet to lie upon. And get a bigger tent.

Not really what?

Believe what you like but that air bed will be colder than a self inflating mattress that's thinner. I say this from experience, even with putting an extra blanket on top of the air bed before sleeping on it. Spend your money as you like but I wish I had known this earlier and could have saved my money by buying the right thing at the start....
 

Paul_B

Bushcrafter through and through
Jul 14, 2008
6,154
1,546
Cumbria
We have been using air mattresses for car camping for the last 2/3 years. OK for summer and some we've had seemed warmer than others. We've had 3 or put it another way one a year. Not durable even if you buy expensive and good brand like Outwell. Plus cold in early 3 season use, we've had to resort to closed cell foam mats on top. They just don't offer much insulation. That's a known fact I'm afraid, no responsible retailer will sell it for cooler use because they'll just get it returned I reckon. Simple reason they convect heat away to the ground. CCF mats, self inflating mats and those airbeds with synthetic insulation or down inside effectively restricts air movement (convection) making them more effective insulation. Try using one on a cold night, first on its own then put a CCF mat on top. You'll very soon notice the difference. CCF mat on its own will be as warm as CCF on air bed if you tried it out.

Was thinking of alpkit self inflating mat, so the double dozer does look good.
 

The Ratcatcher

Full Member
Apr 3, 2011
268
0
Manchester, UK
Having been out and about in all sorts of places and conditions around the UK for over 40 years, I thought I'd found the answer to the problems of sleeping comfortably when the thermarest was invented. Last year, I discovered I was wrong. Putting together a traditional bed roll as an experiment, and unable to find a bearskin, I got a double sheepskin, intended as a large hearthrug. After the first weekend using it in the woods, the thermarest was relegated to the kit for sale box. The sheepskin on its own rolls to about the same size as a decent CCF mat but is a lot softer and warmer, and can't spring a leak.
 

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