What do YOU wear in your sleeping bag?

[gregorach]

I usually sleep starkers in my Ajungilak Kompact. If it's really cold, I'll wear a pair of longjohns (OK, the cheap lycra leggings I used to wear climbing ) and a T-shirt. If it's cold enough to need a hat as well, forget it...

Worst sleeping mistake ever: wearing jeans inside a sleeping bag. No mater how cold it is kids, don't ever try this - it only makes things worse.

 

[wentworth]

I think the idea of wearing nothing inside a sleeping bag may have been an invention of a sleeping bag manufacturer to sell you a warmer (more expensive) sleeping bag. If your body heat isn't getting to your sleeping bags insulation, that's because it's in your clothing, next to your skin!

Heres a hypothetical. Say I am in my sleeping bag and the temperature drops so that I feel cold. What do I do? Do I stay not wearing clothes so that my sleeping bag can get the heat? Of course not. I put on clothes so that my heat is kept as close to my skin as possible. If your clothes keep you warm during the day, then they'll keep you warm at night ( if dry).

Adding more insulation (clothes) cannot make you colder!

 

[gregorach]

You'd think, wouldn't you? But in my personal experience, that's not the case.

 

[Brian]

I usually sleep in shorts if I can, I heat up a lot when I'm sleeping, SWMBO sleeps cold though (she would be cold on the sun!) so she wears thermals in a sleeping bag.

Brian

 

[running bare]

when i was in the forces and on several occasions when it was necessary to sleep in clothes . yea i was warm but in the cold morning i was freezing when getting out of the bag as outside temperatures strip the heat away .better to sleep comfortably with little on and then add layers when you get up. you warm up quicker that way. imho.

tom

 

[wanderinstar]

Well, lots of different ideas. Perhaps I should have said, I have a Nanok Comfort 0deg bag with a silk liner and will be in a hammock at New Year. Didnt have a good nights sleep at weekend, was in a tent on a closed cell mat. It may be the mat that was the problem, so will also have an" Airic" mat. That will hopefully cure the problem.
Ian.

 

[twelveboar]

If it's really cold I wear thermals in my sleeping bag, but the thing I think that is most important is to eat plenty before crashing out. If you go to bed even slightly hungry, you'll struggle to get warm. Also try to have an easy to prepare hot snack handy, (cup a soup, hot chocolate, etc...) so if you do wake up in the dead of night freezing cold you can warm yourself up. I learned this the hard way, back when I was a mad keen ice climber, who begrudged the weight of a tent so we used to bivvy in the lakes at temperatures down to -15.

 

[BorderReiver]

As with everything else,it depends on the individual.

If you find you are too warm (like me),wear nowt.If you feel the cold wear a base layer or pyjamas.As your feet are far from the main furnace it might be worth trying socks if you do feel the cold.

 

[paul.e]

whatever you do or dont wear in your maggot, if you get out in the middle of the night for a call of nature it pays to put a fleece or something similar on and then take it off as you get back in.that way the cold air attaches itself to the fleece and when you take it off it stays outside your bag and you dont have to rewarm your outer layer.

 

[wentworth]

But you could argue that if you put on a fleece when getting out of your sleeping bag, you would be colder, as that fleece is at outside temperature, rather than 37 degrees C (or whatever temp it is inside your bag). ie. if you wear clothes to bed, they're pre warmed for when you have to get up.

After reading my previous post, I realised it comes across as a bit agressive! appologies for that... not my intention. Experiences differ I guess.

 

[nzgunnie]

I think the idea of wearing nothing inside a sleeping bag may have been an invention of a sleeping bag manufacturer to sell you a warmer (more expensive) sleeping bag. If your body heat isn't getting to your sleeping bags insulation, that's because it's in your clothing, next to your skin!

Here's a hypothetical. Say I am in my sleeping bag and the temperature drops so that I feel cold. What do I do? Do I stay not wearing clothes so that my sleeping bag can get the heat? Of course not. I put on clothes so that my heat is kept as close to my skin as possible. If your clothes keep you warm during the day, then they'll keep you warm at night ( if dry).

Adding more insulation (clothes) cannot make you colder!

yes, actually it can, since the insulation in your bag is more efficient than that of your clothes, as it holds more warm air. Once you reach the limit within which your clothes will keep you warm, and you prevent the insulation in the bag from lofting and reaching it's full potential, you are going to be colder than if you let the more efficient bag do it's job.

Remember the clothes that keep you warm during the day are keeping you warm while you are generating quite a bit of heat through movement. Your not moving much at night. If you really enjoy sleeping fully clothed then that's fair enough. However if you want to let your bag do the work it was designed for, then allowing that fancy insulation to loft is going to give you a warmer nights sleep than relying on your clothes while limiting the effectiveness of the insulation in the bag.

If you are getting very cold in your bag then it's not good enough for the environment your in. Wearing lots of clothes inside the bag is not really the answer to having an inadequate piece of kit, especially if you don't like sleeping in lots of clothes and you don't get the rest you require.

 

[wentworth]

Excuse me, but wearing my clothes in a bag isn't making it loft any less. Think about it- when you have on a jumper, it only adds a few mm of bulk to your body. Do you really think this is going to compromise the loft of your bag? Is your bag that tight?
And as to your other statement; If as you say, my clothes reach a level where they cannot insulate me any further, where is the heat escaping to? Into my bag of course! Just because the bag itself doesn't feel as warm when I'm wearing clothes doesn't mean it isn't insulating me. It simply means that the heat is where I want it to be- directly against my skin.

As to having an inferior piece of kit- why use a warmer(read heavier) bag than you have to? why not use a thinner and lighter bag and use your clothing which would otherwise be lying unused beside you at night. One of the most important lessons in selecting gear is having an integrated system.
And my gear choices have been carefully thought through. My sleeping quilt I have made 1.5 inches thich, so that it will keep me warm to around 40 degrees F in accordance with the Effective Temperature Rating Formula - ETR=100-(40 xT)
If I encounter temps that are colder than this (ie. winter) then I put on my coat when I sleep.

Wouldn't it be strange if you got warmer the more clothing you put on during the day, but colder the more you put on at night. Hmmmmm...

 

[gregorach]

I think what nzgunnie is saying (and it agrees with my experience) is that you need to get the filling of your bag up to a decent temperature before it works properly - it's insulating capacity is somewhat non-linear. If you don't get it hot enough, it simply doesn't work properly and leaks more heat than it would if it were warmer.

All I can say is that after trying both approaches in sub-zero temperatures in Scotland (on subsequent nights), I will not be sleeping in anything heavier than a pair of longjohns and a t-shirt again. Your experiences may vary.

 

[Razorstrop]

Sleeping bags are designed to absorb body heat and use that heat to 'loft' cells in the sleeping bag , which are what keep you warm. If you wear clothes in a sleeping bag that lofting effect is either far slower or no existant. This does not include technical base layers or even long johns as they are designed to be worn close to the skin, therefore allowing the heat out and moisture in.
If you go to bed fully clothed then all the heat has to go through your clothes lesseing the amount of heat that can get to and loft the celling in the sleeping bag, leaving you only with the heat from your clothing and the equivalent of a blankets warmth. Also it should be taken into account that when you ar ein your sleeping bag you can lose 1 litre or more during the night. This moisture has to go somewhere, now it can either go into your clothing and remain trapped there, lowering your body temperature or it can go into the bag, which has a bigger surface area to dissapate the mositure through. Which is why in ideal conditions we air our sleeping bags after using them.

This is conventional thinking for all quality sleeping bag manufacturers, so if you disagree I suggest you take it up with them.

My 50p's worth
Mr Strop

 

[innocent bystander]

But :

"ENDURANCE SF Range
Designed for the Norwegian SF forces as an insulating layer to put outside the uniform and rig, also used as a part of the
new tactical sleeping system."

Just to stir the pot some...

 

[bambodoggy]

Excuse me, but wearing my clothes in a bag isn't making it loft any less. Think about it- when you have on a jumper, it only adds a few mm of bulk to your body. Do you really think this is going to compromise the loft of your bag? Is your bag that tight?
And as to your other statement; If as you say, my clothes reach a level where they cannot insulate me any further, where is the heat escaping to? Into my bag of course! Just because the bag itself doesn't feel as warm when I'm wearing clothes doesn't mean it isn't insulating me. It simply means that the heat is where I want it to be- directly against my skin.

As to having an inferior piece of kit- why use a warmer(read heavier) bag than you have to? why not use a thinner and lighter bag and use your clothing which would otherwise be lying unused beside you at night. One of the most important lessons in selecting gear is having an integrated system.
And my gear choices have been carefully thought through. My sleeping quilt I have made 1.5 inches thich, so that it will keep me warm to around 40 degrees F in accordance with the Effective Temperature Rating Formula - ETR=100-(40 xT)
If I encounter temps that are colder than this (ie. winter) then I put on my coat when I sleep.

Wouldn't it be strange if you got warmer the more clothing you put on during the day, but colder the more you put on at night. Hmmmmm...

Ok, you've convinced me...lol...give me my dollar back!

If you are getting very cold in your bag then it's not good enough for the environment your in. Wearing lots of clothes inside the bag is not really the answer to having an inadequate piece of kit, especially if you don't like sleeping in lots of clothes and you don't get the rest you require.

Think you've just hit the head on the old nail with that bit Mate, I sleep very warm usually and that's why I wear just my boxers in my 95 bag as I find it very warm. In the spring to summer and then summer to winter transition when I'm still using my Ranger light summer bag I tend to throw on either my swanni bushshirt or buffalo special 6 shirt and then I'm warm enough. The point being that I adapt so that I am sleeping at the right temp.

I think what nzgunnie is saying (and it agrees with my experience) is that you need to get the filling of your bag up to a decent temperature before it works properly - it's insulating capacity is somewhat non-linear. If you don't get it hot enough, it simply doesn't work properly and leaks more heat than it would if it were warmer.

I can sort of see what your saying here but it makes little sense to me, if it needs heat to make the insulation work then it would surely fail, heat would be drawn from the outside of the insulating layer and that part of the insulative layer would be cold and drawing more cold to it. Surely the very idea of insulation is that it is not effected by heat and that it traps heat...it's the air between that is used by the heat and not the other material. Surely the more insulation you put round something the less the heat can escape into the outside cold air...? What if I was wearing a down jacket in my sleeping bag...would I be warmer or colder? I'm pretty sure I'd be warmer so it's not so such a question of if you wear clothes but "what you wear".

What we may have here is no doubt the reason for this whole thread and the original question asked "What, do you wear in your sleeping bag"... as in not the idea that you have to be starkers or done up like a turkey (extreams are never good) but more so that like in the outdoors we discuss things like wool being good if you're going to get wet in the cold and cotton being good if it hot and steamy... The question to ask is maybe what type of clothing is best suited to keeping you warm when you sleep in a sleeping bag that isn't up to the job"

Well, that's how I see it anyway.

Bam.

 

[Carcajou Garou]

Underwear and T-shirt in summer, wool long johns in winter with a headcover. Mocassins near the sleeping bag for the night calls. I usually eat something .... a few cracker with peanut butter to keep me stoked in the cooler weather. CG :yo:

 

[nzgunnie]

At the end of the day it comes down to what you find works, and what you find is comfortable. Not surprisingly people have different ideas on this.

All theories and formulas aside, I can't stand sleeping in lots of clothes and I don't go into the outdoors looking for discomfort, and a good night's sleep is important. If that requires a slightly heavier bag then thats OK for me. Having said that, my bag is a Macpac Ember, with 500gm of down and a pertex or reflex outer (can't remember which). Although I've never weighed it, it is quoted as being 1.15kg, so weight isn't much of an issue anyway. I could have gone for a 700gm bag, but I was persuaded by the salesman that I probably wouldn't need that much (even though he could have sold me a much more expensive bag that I went into the shop looking for!).

I have found by experience with this bag and others I have used, that less is more, and I am warmer with only a layer of thermals or a T shirt. If it is really cold I find a hat helps keep in any extra heat that might be lost around the head. I wont sleep without a top of some kind on, since there is always a little bit of a draft around the shoulders.

 

[Razorstrop]

But :

"ENDURANCE SF Range
Designed for the Norwegian SF forces as an insulating layer to put outside the uniform and rig, also used as a part of the
new tactical sleeping system."

Just to stir the pot some...

Nice try but null and void because its a sleeping system designed to be used with clothes, which is a whole different kettle of fish to a conventional sleeping bag

Hurry its going to boil over!
Mr Strop

 

[monkey_pork]

Being a canoist, I use Immersion Research base layers.

I find them a bit heavy for any active stuff in them in the UK (other than paddling), but for sleeping in, or kinda hanging about in the cold and wet (and paddling in of course) - very comfortable ...

Both of the bigger canoe shops in Devonshire carry thier stuff.