down material compression!!

[Wilderbeast]

Hi all,
just been inspecting more closely my new mountain equipment 500 , the compression sack it's with is o.k but I feel if I got a better sack I could compress the whole thing WAY more but would this damage the sleeping bag???
cheers all

 

[andybysea]

If mountain equipment supplied it with a bag id use that one ,they make good gear, i assume they know and recommend how much to compress your bag, by the bag they supply, you probably could compress it more but the more you compress it the more strain you put on it.

 

[Shewie]

I don`t use compression sacks anymore and just stuff the bag down into my sack foot end first. It means you don`t have that awkward lump which can only go in a couple of ways.

I wouldn`t have thought it possible to compress a bag too much though, as long as you store it uncompressed under a bed or something when it`s not in use.

 

[Graham_S]

get a dry bag with an air release valve in it.
You can compress the bag down without straps, keep your sleeping bag dry, and it's malleable while compressed so you can easily conform it to the contours of the space it's going to fit into.
I find my bag takes up far less room in my rucksack when I use this method.

 

[saddle_tramp]

get a dry bag with an air release valve in it.

Never seen one of them before . . who makes/sells em?

 

[Lasse]

Never seen one of them before . . who makes/sells em?

I just bought one from Exped, sold at Climbers-shop.com, looks good and the medium version fits my Alpkit SH800

 

[Shewie]

get a dry bag with an air release valve in it.
You can compress the bag down without straps, keep your sleeping bag dry, and it's malleable while compressed so you can easily conform it to the contours of the space it's going to fit into.
I find my bag takes up far less room in my rucksack when I use this method.

Any chance of a piccy when you get chance Graham ?

I`d be interested to see a doss bag in one of these.

 

[The Cumbrian]

I use a drybag with a valve like that and it works pretty well. For the best results though, get one of those vacuum storage bags ( the kind that you roll up rather than put a hoover on ) and it makes your kit much smaller.
The only downside is that it's more awkward to use than the drybag system, ie you need to roll it on a flattish surface rather than just sitting on it.

Cheers, Michael.

 

[wentworth]

Ray Jardine writes that compression stuff sacks snuff out 10 or so % of the loft of insulating gear the first time you use them. He estimates a further 2% reduction on ever subsequent compression.
That sounds like a lot to me. I have noticed reduced loft in my bags that have been heavily compressed overtime. Maybe only 1/2 an inch less or so.
I try not to compress more than I need to by using big stuffsacks.

 

[scoops_uk]

I've no direct experience but I have been advised also that over compression can damage the loft, particularly in down.

Scoops