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#179664 - 09/11/13 11:31 PM air pad size?
liberty Offline
newbie

Registered: 09/11/13
Posts: 6
I'm 5'6 and am looking at purchasing an inflatable air pad to put in a bivy. I want to get the therma rest Neo air because they are rated best, but Idon't know what size to get? The small is my exact height but the regular is around a half foot longer. Should I get the small and save just a few grams? But will I regret not having the extra length later? What are the pros and cons?

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#179665 - 09/11/13 11:39 PM Re: air pad size? [Re: liberty]
Pika Offline
member

Registered: 12/08/05
Posts: 1814
Loc: Rural Southeast Arizona
A lot of people on this forum sleep on pads that reach from hip to shoulder. They use a pack or other padding to insulate their legs and a stuff sack containing extra clothing as a pillow. Having a full-length pad is somewhat of a luxury and you pay for it with it's weight. If you are trying to lighten your pack you should be thinking of ways to minimize the amount of pad you carry consistent with good insulation and a good night's sleep.
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May I walk in beauty.

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#179666 - 09/12/13 03:14 AM Re: air pad size? [Re: Pika]
OregonMouse Offline
member

Registered: 02/03/06
Posts: 6799
Loc: Gateway to Columbia Gorge
That's what I do--a short pad. I generally sleep on my side curled up in the fetal position, so a full-length pad is wasted on me.

I also was extremely uncomfortable on the NeoAir. It certainly isn't "rated best" by everyone! It seems that everyone either loves it or (as with me) hates it! The horizontal baffles "bucked me off" every time I turned over. I strongly recommend you spend some time on the floor of the store with several different pads. When you get the new pad home, try it out on the floor for 2-3 nights before you decide whether it's a keeper.


Edited by OregonMouse (09/12/13 03:17 AM)
_________________________
May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous, leading to the most amazing view--E. Abbey

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#179667 - 09/12/13 06:38 AM Re: air pad size? [Re: OregonMouse]
Glenn Roberts Offline
Moderator

Registered: 12/23/08
Posts: 2208
Loc: Southwest Ohio
For many years, I used a short (48") Thermarest and put my internal frame pack under my legs; this worked really, really well with the Granite Gear Vapor Trail pad, with its inch-thick foam backpad.

However, when I went from the Thermarest to the NeoAir (which I really liked, especially the All-Season), the pack was enough thinner than the pad that my lower legs bent uncomfortably (I'm a side sleeper.) So, I went to the 66" pad. My feet-to-shoulders were on the pad; I put my pack at the head of the pad (for some height) and my pillow on top of them. The bonus was that it neatly stored my pack in the limited space of my one-person tent.

Eventually, I switched to the Big Agnes Q-Core and Q-Core SL pads, which I really love. They're much more comfortable than the NeoAirs. The next thing that happened was that I bought a two-person tent that was half a pound lighter than the one-person tent I had been using - giving me the luxury of extra space. I've now upgraded to the full-length (72") version of the pad, and put my pillow on the top portion of the pad. Did I ever miss that extra length before? No. It's just one of the little luxuries I stumbled across when doing the ongoing balancing act of weight, comfort, convenience, and cost.

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#179668 - 09/12/13 08:40 AM Re: air pad size? [Re: Glenn Roberts]
bluefish Offline
member

Registered: 06/05/13
Posts: 680
My wife is also 5'6" and loves her x-lite. I have the men's version and use the 72" size which is just the right length for me. We've found them very comfortable, and the weight and small pack size are awesome. Both of us sleep stretched out, so we find the longer pad is worth it. About 20 nights on them since we bought them, and not a problem. I have an original Thermarest that has very frayed edges but still has never had a leak after 35 years!. My wife used it until we got the x-lites. They've been well enough insulated for snow for us, too, though we both are warm sleepers. I move around a lot and when I used a short pad and pack, the pack ended up migrating and my legs dangling. I'd have to get up and rearrange the furniture. At 8 oz. they were light enough and pack small enough to warrant the extra length for us. I tried various pad / combinations trying to reduce pack size, but always opted back to comfort. The neo-airs seem to allow both. The 66" women's model has a greater r-value (3.9) compared to the regular men's (72") at 3.2.


Edited by bluefish (09/12/13 08:48 AM)
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#179669 - 09/12/13 09:34 AM Re: air pad size? [Re: liberty]
lori Offline
member

Registered: 01/22/08
Posts: 2801
I'm 5'7" and still use a medium NeoAir. I sleep on my side, knees bent, and just fit on it. Putting the pack at the foot end gives me a place for my feet to land if I roll on my back.

I also use a BA Q Core - very posh, full length - and find that it is just a tad more comfy. Also it's rated for colder weather than the NeoAir.

The most comfortable sleep of all is in my hammock with an underquilt. I still try to use it when I can. The only reason to not be in the alpine...
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"In the beginner's mind there are many possibilities. In the expert's mind there are few." Shunryu Suzuki

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#179673 - 09/12/13 01:22 PM Re: air pad size? [Re: liberty]
wandering_daisy Offline
member

Registered: 01/11/06
Posts: 2865
Loc: California
I am 5'4" and use the x-small thermarest prolite (it is mummy shaped) and also bring a 2'x2' cut square of the blue foam pad (sold at REI). I use my pack and extra clothing as a pillow, shoulders to mid-thigh on the thermarest and feet on the blue pad. I like a separate foot pad because I curl up (sort of jack-knife)and like to be able to put the foot pad at any angle. The foot pad also doubles for my "sit pad" to use outside the tent. The prolite weights 8 oz and the blue square 2.5 oz. This set-up is OK for summer, but not enough insulation for winter (not for sleeping directly on snow).

However, when I use my bivy sack, I find a longer rectangular pad works better. I then use a 3/4 length thermarest (14 oz). I still can use the pack for a pillow.

If you are choosing between a pad "exactly your height" of one foot longer, I see no reason to get one foot longer. In fact, if you do not put your head on the pad then one foot shorter is OK.

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#179676 - 09/12/13 03:14 PM Re: air pad size? [Re: liberty]
Rick_D Offline
member

Registered: 01/06/02
Posts: 2939
Loc: NorCal
If I'm going minimalist, I take a short Neoair as a torso pad, with a clothing pillow and whatever's handy under my feet. The Neoair is incredibly light and tiny, hardly taking up any pack space at all. I usually sleep pretty well.

If it's to be colder or I know I'm to be sleeping on alpine rock, I take a longer pad that keeps my feet off the ground while extending to my shoulders. I still use a pillow. It weighs a few ounces more than the short and has a higher R-value, but still packs quite small compared to a self-inflating pad.

Forest campers can usually get away with less of a pad because the ground is more forgiving and can actually insulate, compared to alpine camping on rock or mineral soil.

Cheers,
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--Rick

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#179678 - 09/12/13 03:19 PM Re: air pad size? [Re: bluefish]
Glenn Roberts Offline
Moderator

Registered: 12/23/08
Posts: 2208
Loc: Southwest Ohio
I forgot to mention that one preference I have is for the rectangular shape over the mummy or tapered shapes. I find that, as a side sleeper, I end up with arms or legs off the pad if they're tapered, but not problems with the rectangular. I would emphasize that this is purely a reaction to my own sleeping habits, not an indication that tapered pads are a bad idea.

In the Q-Core series, I pay a weight penalty of 2 ounces. OK, I'll leave my matches or flint-and-steel at home (3 ways to start a fire is probably just as good as 4, for what I do.) smile


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#179701 - 09/14/13 11:47 PM Re: air pad size? [Re: Glenn Roberts]
Jimshaw Offline
member

Registered: 10/22/03
Posts: 3983
Loc: Bend, Oregon
I consider my Warmlight Down Airmattress to be an integral part of my camping gear and it goes with me all year round. Its wider at the shoulders and tapered towards the feet and about 3 inches thick and ok for camping on snow especially with a thin closed cell pad under it. I think its 80 inches long. I can put my foam pillow on top of the pad and have lots of room to stretch out and have my toes still not hanging over the edge. The only thing about such a thick pad is you will want to put spare clothing items etc closely around you to insulate the floor and give your arms someplace to land if you stretch them outside your sleeping bag.

It weighs 27 ounces.

I can float on a cold lake and be in an insulated space - it floats quite high.

When I was a kid I was thrilled to get a 3/8" blue foam pad when they first came oout - it sure beat sleeping on the ground, but it probably weighed 10 ounces. For 17 ounces more I can have a large 3" thick pad.

When trying to go lighter, you do not have to give up everything comfortable - leave out some other junk instead. grin I have friends who are real minimalists - one carries a machete and bivy sack, the other carries a sleeping bag. Neither has a pad nor a pack. I guess they carry food and water in a shopping bag and about the only hardware they have is a lighter. Thats all they take. Who cares how heavy their sleeping pads might be if thats the primary piece of camping gear? Like a pad, bivy sack and coat, and carry it all in the bivy sack.
Jim
_________________________
These are my own opinions based on wisdom earned through many wrong decisions. Your mileage may vary.

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#179702 - 09/15/13 12:54 AM Re: air pad size? [Re: Jimshaw]
OregonMouse Offline
member

Registered: 02/03/06
Posts: 6799
Loc: Gateway to Columbia Gorge
After a few years with my pad from the late Kooka Bay, I'm looking for a replacement. It is comfortably squishy enough and it is warm enough, but no matter what I do, it slides all over the tent every time I turn over. I've tried silicone seam sealant and polyurethane seam sealant, both of which peel off almost immediately, leaving shreds of it all over the tent. Putting the pad on top of a thin foam pad doesn't help, either. Nor do the silicone stripes or spots already painted on the tent floor. I also have decided I don't like the mummy style, whose width unfortunately is already tapering right where I'm the broadest (hips). It would probably be fine if I weren't such a restless sleeper. As the years go by, I need to turn over more and more often.

For the time being, I'm back to the insulated air pad from POE (which I understand is also gone, although the name was taken over by what claims to be a different company) that I bought from Sierra Trading Post in the fall of 2006. It was a discontinued model with a mouthful of a name, Insulmat Max Thermo, and I believe I paid all of $30. It weighs 17 oz (as opposed to the 13 of the Kooka Bay pad. It's a half inch thinner than the KookaBay pad but still works fine, although at temps below 25*F it starts getting cold.

However, at least for colder weather, I plan to try the Exped UL7 Downmat. I think I'm going to get the 60 inch length (full length for me) even though it's another 3 oz. penalty over the old POE pad and 7 oz. more than the Kooka Bay pad. It will be a lot warmer for the "shoulder season" coming up when nights at higher altitude get down to 15*F. I also like the idea of the outer tubes on each side being a little bigger than the others, so I'm less liable to roll off. Like the POE pad, it is the same width from top to bottom, so I don't have to keep worrying about where my knees and feet are.

Interestingly, one of the few places I have found that carry this pad is one of the big sponsors of this site, backcountrygear.com. I wanted to use the latest REI 20% off coupon, but REI doesn't carry the Exped Downmat, only the Synmat, which is not nearly as warm.

IMHO, a good night's sleep is more important than weight! And as Jim says, you can always save weight elsewhere!
_________________________
May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous, leading to the most amazing view--E. Abbey

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#179713 - 09/15/13 05:17 PM Re: air pad size? [Re: OregonMouse]
Jimshaw Offline
member

Registered: 10/22/03
Posts: 3983
Loc: Bend, Oregon
mouse
It dawned on me that there are some other variables in sleep style that matter. For instance I inflate my big D.A.M. so that when I am stretched out on it, I float and the tubes are less than full, and if I sit on it, I would sit through onto the ground.

If for instance, I would sleep in a ball, my hips would be on the ground and the end of the airmattress would be up in the air. In that case a _much_ shorter (smaller) pad would be better I assume because it wouldn't sag under the weight of hips as much and a closed cell pad under that would add padding to those hips.

The only time I recall roll or slding off my airmattress - (etc) was camped on the side of a mountain with a silnylon bivy sack.
Jim
_________________________
These are my own opinions based on wisdom earned through many wrong decisions. Your mileage may vary.

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#179715 - 09/15/13 08:03 PM Re: air pad size? [Re: Jimshaw]
rockchucker22 Offline
member

Registered: 09/24/12
Posts: 751
Loc: Eastern Sierras
I'm agree, I fill my BA pad just full enough to keep my hips off the ground by an inch or so. I'm also a side sleeper and found the 20"
wide not quite enough. I just splurged and got a Exped syn mat ul 7, 26" wide, can't wait to try it. It packs much smaller than my BA insulated air core. And weighs less!!
_________________________
The wind wont howl if the wind don't break.

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#180456 - 11/01/13 10:34 PM Re: air pad size? [Re: Pika]
JeremyRardin Offline
newbie

Registered: 11/01/13
Posts: 13
It also depends on what season you primarily will use this pad. If you are using it in below-freezing temps. then it is good to have a full length pad as well as a closed cell foam pad along with your inflatable. I don't tend to need the padding for my lower waste, but if your pad is 2.5 inches thick, you are going to notice the height from which your feet will drop.

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