Sleeping Mat or Exped air matress

[AndyE]

Hi

New to the forum so go easy on me

I've done a search and after three pages of results I can't find any negative reports on the Exped ..so I'll assume there aren't any
A question on durability of these air mattresses.

I'm planning a kayak expedition in 2012 , I'll be living in a tent for at least six weeks maybe eight , I like the weight and pack size of the Expeds but I.m wondering about durability.
Six weeks is a long time on an air mat , whats peoples opinions should I go for an exped or stick to the thermarest ?
Bearing in mind that most of my camping will be on beaches , In a tent yes, but sand does get in and its very abrasive .

On an expedition last year I used a thermarest xl basecamp and it was great , no problems with it , extremely comfortable and i slept well . Its just the pack size and weight of the exped appeals to me

Thanks
Andy

 

[Shambling Shaman]

I do like Exped stuff the dry bag's have not let me down yet.

If you carry the repair kit you should be ok with either. I used my thermarest pro lite for nearly every day for about a year and had one puncher (pine needle) even deflated it was ok and only took a few min's to fix, and its still ok to this day, approx 5/6 years on..

 

[Dave Budd]

I switched from rollmats to a thermarest about 14 years ago and never had a problem camping in some funny places for upto 6 weeks at a time (when I was digging for a living), not a single pucture amazingly.

Then last year I wanted a bit more luxury than the 1" thick thermarest so bought an Exped (synthetic rather than down) and I've used it most weeks since early last summer. So far it's more comfortable by far and no punctures. The olnly niggles I have are that it'sfairly narrow (not a problem for me, but a wide bloke might suffer from lack of rolling around at night), and the valve makes strange squeeks occasionally. I've had it left inflated in my leather workshop for the last couple of months and it hasn'tgone down at all but the strange noise did make me think that my bowls were on the move for a while!

I would go for the Exped or one of the equivilant versions by thermarestover a mat any day! Dunno what the new thermarests are like but I'm sure they are still as good as my old work horse

 

[Dartmoor navigator]

I have an exped downmat. The first one sprung a leak, it really wasn't repairable, due to where the hole 'occurred'. I replaced it and the second one developed a slow leak through the valve.

But my third one has been reliable

If I were heading out for 6 weeks I would take my TAR Prolite. Simply based on those experiences. If you took a TAR prolite short, the pack size isn't that big. Just prop your feet up with 'something ese'.

 

[Nova & Pinky]

We have exped downmats and they are incredibly comfortable. Ours are the older models without the integrated pump tho, and take ages to blow up so we recently bought an Alpkit Base 180(for pinks) and Dirtbag (for me) and used them a couple of weeks ago while it was freezing. The dirtbag took up a little more pack space but was very comfortable and looked pretty durable.

 

[Shambling Shaman]

Oh, and welcome to bcuk Andy

 

[Toddy]

I have an exped downmat. The first one sprung a leak, it really wasn't repairable, due to where the hole 'occurred'. I replaced it and the second one developed a slow leak through the valve.

But my third one has been reliable

If I were heading out for 6 weeks I would take my TAR Prolite. Simply based on those experiences. If you took a TAR prolite short, the pack size isn't that big. Just prop your feet up with 'something ese'.

Do you think you could elaborate a bit ?
Truthfully, apart from one that melted too near a stove, this is the first time we've ever heard of *any* leaking and we're genuinely interested.

cheers,
Toddy

 

[Dartmoor navigator]

Do you think you could elaborate a bit ?

Just google downmat leak - you will see a few more. When they were first introduced I remember a whole pile of people complaining that they had sprung a leak.

I am not trying to run the product down, I like it... But given my experience, I shall never entirely trust it.

WRT Prolite Short - excellent piece of gear. Light , compact, small pack size etc. It probably comes down as far as my mid/top thigh, so I just lay out my rucksack for the rest of my leg to be supprted on. Works a treat, but is in no way as comfy as a downmat.



Number one had a small perforation (from new) in the crux of the seam toward the head end. At first I put it down to temepratures as I had been camping down to about -8 or so, but no it was a problem. I tried to glue and patch - but trying differing glues to this 'corner' was difficult. Anyway it was replaced. The next one kept deflating slowly too - I could only put it down to the valve as I could never find the leak - it was replaced. The third one has been fine.

I hope that helps.

 

[AndyE]

Thanks guys

I am after a bit of comfort so would probably go for the largest mat Six weeks is a long time in a tent especially after paddling 30-40 miles a day ( weather depending )

I did find one short video on you tube about a leaking exped , but it looked to be an old style mat

Again thanks for the replies

Andy

 

[Toddy]

Well there you go, we really do live and learn.
I really did mean it, I only know of one that leaked until this thread.
Actually, that says a lot for them on a forum with as many members as this one, with as many folks that use them outdoors in the most astonishing range of conditions.

Good to know they stand by their guarantees and warranties though

cheers,
Toddy

 

[northernranger]

Hi..
I have used thermarests for many years,including prolonged periods of travel in various countries and found them to be very reliable, but never terribly comfortable..
after using karrimats for years before this, certainly the switch to the thermarest was a revelation in comfort, however i would say the increase in comfort going from a thermarest to an exped mat as ten fold that of my earlier revelation..
I have an exped downmat dlx and whilst i can not yet make amazing claims of durability it certainly seems up for the job.
i wolld say that on any prolonged trip comfort for a good sleep is crucial to your whole experience , and any inflatable mat can puncture... for the sake of carrying a small repair kit and taking a few moments to carefully check your patch for sharps (again as with any inflated mat) i would go for comfort and go for the exped.. the comfort for the pack size is brilliant..
more fuel for thought..

 

[plastic-ninja]

Get the Exped Andy.If you worry about punctures on the beach get a piece of Tyvek a bit bigger than your mat and put it down as a groundsheet.If you have not met Tyvek it is a building membrane about the same weight as cartridge paper but it is waterproof and seems to be almost indestructibly tough.You cannot tear it and it is hard to puncture : I use some as a groundsheet for my tarptent in the summer.Oh and did I mention that it's cheap too.You may be able to blag some off a builder or else buy it on Fleabay.I just checked Fleabay and looks like about £2 a metre.
Cheers , Simon

 

[FreddyFish]

As the years roll by I seem to have become more built for comfort rather than speed. So with that in mind......

I not got an Exped but i've been eyeing them up for a while now,

Does anyone use an Exped in a hammock?

Does anyone have experience of army type camp beds? (Pros & Cons)

Thoughts appreciated

 

[Spikey DaPikey]

Army camp beds are OK, but you still need a mat on top or your back gets very cold.