Hooped Bivy Help

[rhyan]

Hello!

I fancy a hooped Bivy and have been looking at this:

http://www.outdoorgb.com/p/the_snug...undle=153403&gclid=CNqh-fO8vscCFcHnGwodwGIEYg

has anyone used one of these or have any other suggestions?

Thanks!

 

[mick91]

I've used something similar, wasn't a great nights sleep as I recall but that was down to conditions not gear. In all honesty though I would urge people looking at poled and hooped bivvies to consider 1 man tents. I have a very cheap 1 manner that really does the job. Waterproof small and light. I bought it on a whim for about £15 out of Argos and it lives in the bottom of my bag as an emergency one. Maybe the thickness of a pop bottle and a foot long.

 

[petrochemicals]

I've though of getting one of those in the past, but the consensus seems to be a seperate head tarp gives a bit more ease of use.


http://www.backpackinglight.co.uk/tarps-and-bivy-bags/WE102.html

Shame they don't make thehooped bivvy in 2 pieces really.

 

[rhyan]

Yeah, I like the idea but they do weigh about as much as my 1 man tent.... I usually use an Alpkit Hunka XL bivy bag and UST tarp.

https://www.alpkit.com/products/hunka-xl

http://www.heinnie.com/ultimate-survival-base-tarp-for-one-person


Maybe I will shelf this idea!

 

[woof]

I've got a goretex one, not a snugpak, think they are great, always used mine with a tarp & a cheap foam mat underneath it & with a thermarest inside.

Rob

 

[The Lord Poncho]

Breathability of the fabric is crucial in hooped bivies unless you leave the entrance partially unzipped. In mine ( a good quality one with the super breathable bivvy bag version of goretex), i used to get condensation on the (non breathable) floor in most conditions (despite trying to cover the whole of the floor with my sleeping mat), and also on the top section around the foot end to the point that my sleeping bag would begin to get wet. I note that the snugpak bivvy is rated at 5000 g sq m breathability - which is not particularly much when your breathing inside it (and like my bivvy, has a non breathable floor).

I would therefore not recommend it based on those facts, vs my experience of something similar and significantly more breathable. But as soon as i say something like that, there will be doubtless someone that will come along on here and state that they use one all year round, with absolutely no condensation problems, and indeed, they have sold their house just to spend longer living inside their snugpak bivvy!

 

[Harvestman]

The main criticism that I have read of these tunnel bivvi things is the lack of space to move compared to a single person tent of comparable weight and price.

Saying that, I've always fancied one

 

[fenrir]

I'm obliged to support Lord Poncho and provide the requested statement: So far, I haven't had issues with the Snugpak bivi (the pure bivi, not the stratosphere) concerning condensation. However, I would like to add that I do not breath into it, which likely makes up more than 90% of the humidity my body may produce during one night. As such, I would highly recommend anyone to keep some zip open at an appropriate position to keep the airflow (and humidity flow) going. If you do so, it shouldn't be much different to a bivi underneath a tarp without breathing into it ...

 

[The Lord Poncho]

I'm obliged to support Lord Poncho and provide the requested statement

Excellent - I knew that would happen!

 

[richardhomer]

I've though of getting one of those in the past, but the consensus seems to be a seperate head tarp gives a bit more ease of use.


http://www.backpackinglight.co.uk/tarps-and-bivy-bags/WE102.html

Shame they don't make thehooped bivvy in 2 pieces really.

I've never seen one of those before. I like the idea

 

[Jaeger]

Aye Up Rhyan,
Here is my two-pen'th on the subject -
I've been using hooped bivvies in my job for decades since I first came across the Argy tunnel patrol tents back in the '80's - starting out with DIY versions that I made from Brit military ponchos and either glass fibre or aluminium poles and then ‘progressing’ to even lower profile versions. If you need to be ‘bushcraftY’ i.e. discreet and extra low and the ability to sit up isn't an issue it is the way to go.
As several have stated, condensation can be a problem if you don't vent them correctly and there are so many factors that can affect this that despite my best efforts I have sometimes ended up slightly damp - but never wet. (mossi net at closures helps).
More of an issue to me has been the impression of lack of foot room and the fact that the upper material can come into contact with you/your doss bag beneath and so you loose heat via conduction, especially in heavy rain/snow.
Some years back when I came into a bit of brass I forked out on a Corinthia Goretex Observer Bivvy (£££!). It has proven superb for covert rural observation but I still ended up ‘modding’ it to create a foot box and a diagonal ridgeline to raise the bag’s upper body section from myself beneath. As far as heating up food/water whilst still maintaining the low profile, an appropriately coloured umbrella, again modified for use against the hooped end of the bivvy has proven successful – if you don’t mind operating on your side/back/stomach/elbows/hips etc Lol!
Used for normal bushcraft I have found that I still need to set up a ridge style basher above it for cooking/freedom of movement and so as someone commented a standard poncho ‘basher’ (tarp) set up and a normal bivvy bag or that one man tent (looked at Lavvus?) might just be better in most circumstances. The (commercial) hooped bivvy might be an expensive route to go down to find out they are not for you.
However, there is a potential (and relatively inexpensive) trial option that you might consider – the Dutch army issued a (Brit dpm pattern) single hooped Goretex type bivvy (I’ve mod’ed one for observations making it similar yet slightly lower still than the Corinthia).
I picked it up for about £40 from Surplus and Outdoors in Kidderminster (no commercial connections!) about 18 months ago. Even if it doesn’t become your usual bushcraft M.O. it is still a useful bit of kit to have for ‘what-if’ scenarios. Hope that you find this useful.