Backcountry Forum
Backpacking & Hiking Gear

Backcountry Forum
Our long-time Sponsor - the leading source for ultralite/lightweight outdoor gear
 
 
 

Amazon.com
Backpacking Forums
---- Our Gear Store ----
The Lightweight Gear Store
 
 WINTER CAMPING 

Shelters
Bivy Bags
Sleeping Bags
Sleeping Pads
Snow Sports
Winter Kitchen

 SNOWSPORTS 

Snowshoes
Avalanche Gear
Skins
Hats, Gloves, & Gaiters
Accessories

 ULTRA-LIGHT 

Ultralight Backpacks
Ultralight Bivy Sacks
Ultralight Shelters
Ultralight Tarps
Ultralight Tents
Ultralight Raingear
Ultralight Stoves & Cookware
Ultralight Down Sleeping Bags
Ultralight Synthetic Sleep Bags
Ultralight Apparel


the Titanium Page
WM Extremelite Sleeping Bags

 CAMPING & HIKING 

Backpacks
Tents
Sleeping Bags
Hydration
Kitchen
Accessories

 CLIMBING 

Ropes & Cordage
Protection & Hardware
Carabiners & Quickdraws
Climbing Packs & Bags
Big Wall
Rescue & Industrial

 MEN'S APPAREL 

Jackets
Shirts
Baselayer
Headwear
Gloves
Accessories

 WOMEN'S APPAREL 

Jackets
Shirts
Baselayer
Headwear
Gloves
Accessories

 FOOTWEAR 

Men's Footwear
Women's Footwear

 CLEARANCE 

Backpacks
Mens Apparel
Womens Apparel
Climbing
Footwear
Accessories

 BRANDS 

Black Diamond
Granite Gear
La Sportiva
Osprey
Smartwool

 WAYS TO SHOP 

Sale
Clearance
Top Brands
All Brands

 Backpacking Equipment 

Shelters
BackPacks
Sleeping Bags
Water Treatment
Kitchen
Hydration
Climbing


 Backcountry Gear Clearance

Topic Options
Rate This Topic
#169552 - 09/18/12 09:18 PM Sea to Summit Thermolite Bags
jbylake Offline
member

Registered: 09/15/12
Posts: 202
Loc: Northern KY USA
I wonder if anyone has experience with these. I was looking for a Big Agnes Overbag to use with my bag at a store in Lexington KY that carries BA products. The manager suggested a
Sea to Summit Thermolite bag. Some are rated to add 40 degrees to your existing bag, of course provided you're using a mat, which I do.
Thier claims are this.
Fits inside of your primary bag.
Much lighter than an Over Bag/Sleeping Bag Combo.
Various bags rated 25 - 40 degrees additional protection in cold.
Extends the life of your current bag by keeping skin oils and persperation away from your bag.
Can be use seperately as a mild/warm weather bag.
Small, lightweight, and fits into a small stuff bag.
Costs around $69 - $70, depending on chosen model vs. up to 3 or 400 bucks for some Over Bags that are bulkier, and heavier, and larger than your primary bag.

Hoping to find someone here that has had experience with these.
Do they live up to their claims? Pretty lofty claims if you ask me, but I have no idea. $70 bucks is a great deal if they really do the trick.

Thanks ahead for your input.

J.

Top
#169557 - 09/19/12 03:12 AM Re: Sea to Summit Thermolite Bags [Re: jbylake]
TomD Offline
Moderator

Registered: 10/30/03
Posts: 4963
Loc: Marina del Rey,CA
No idea on those, but I do have an overbag. Mine is made by MEC, a Canadian company similar to REI, and, as Pete pointed out, is a co-op like REI. Mine is similar to this one--

Penguin

I would be wary of the claim regarding the temperature. Seems a bit much to me.

And yes, I did edit this to fix my faux pas about MEC.


Edited by TomD (09/20/12 01:14 AM)
_________________________
Don't get me started, you know how I get.

Top
#169562 - 09/19/12 09:40 AM Re: Sea to Summit Thermolite Bags [Re: TomD]
JPete Offline
member

Registered: 05/28/09
Posts: 304
Loc: Eastern Ontario
Tom, never thought I'd disagree with you, but as a member of MEC, I can't let this one go by. At the upper left of the website it says Mountain Equipment Co-op. Sorry to do that to you, but it may be important for some. Suspect Phat may be right behind me. The lifetime membership today I believe is $15 (I paid $5 -- yes it was several years ago). best, jcp

Top
#169567 - 09/19/12 11:17 AM Re: Sea to Summit Thermolite Bags [Re: jbylake]
BZH Offline
member

Registered: 01/26/11
Posts: 1189
Loc: Madison, AL
I've never used one, but everything I have read online is pretty dubious about those claims. They say at best you can add 5-10 deg. unless the liner is a vapor barrier layer. You can get quite a bit of additional heat retention with a vapor barrier layer, but they aren't very comfortable and there is an art to using them.

Think about how much down it would take to add 40° to a bag. If a bag manufacturer could get rating with a thin layer of cloth instead of expensive down, they would do it in a heart beat.

Top
#169568 - 09/19/12 11:49 AM Re: Sea to Summit Thermolite Bags [Re: jbylake]
lori Offline
member

Registered: 01/22/08
Posts: 2801
I got one on eBay for 15, which is what it's worth imo.
_________________________
"In the beginner's mind there are many possibilities. In the expert's mind there are few." Shunryu Suzuki

http://hikeandbackpack.com

Top
#169584 - 09/19/12 08:34 PM Re: Sea to Summit Thermolite Bags [Re: lori]
OregonMouse Online   content
member

Registered: 02/03/06
Posts: 6799
Loc: Gateway to Columbia Gorge
A few ounces more of down in the sleeping bag is a lot warmer and lighter than any liner around! My experience with a silk liner was (1) it wasn't any warmer than without the liner and (2) it took me several minutes to get untangled from it so I could exit the sleeping bag in the morning. A couple times of that nonsense and the liner went into the trash.

I'm having a couple ounces of down "overfill" added to my Western Mountaineering sleeping bag this winter. WM charges only $20 plus shipping for this service.


Edited by OregonMouse (09/19/12 08:35 PM)
_________________________
May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous, leading to the most amazing view--E. Abbey

Top
#169590 - 09/20/12 01:12 AM Re: Sea to Summit Thermolite Bags [Re: JPete]
TomD Offline
Moderator

Registered: 10/30/03
Posts: 4963
Loc: Marina del Rey,CA
Pete, DOH! What was I thinking? I am fixing that, so just you and I know what a dope I am sometimes. thanks
_________________________
Don't get me started, you know how I get.

Top
#169595 - 09/20/12 08:35 AM Re: Sea to Summit Thermolite Bags [Re: TomD]
JPete Offline
member

Registered: 05/28/09
Posts: 304
Loc: Eastern Ontario
Tom, If it comes to a dope contest, I've got you beat hands down. I have very much appreciated your input over the years. It was just that I'm rather partial to MEC, and didn't want anyone to get an unfortunate surprise when dealing with them. No big deal at all. best, jcp

Top
#169645 - 09/21/12 02:06 PM Re: Sea to Summit Thermolite Bags [Re: JPete]
frediver Offline
member

Registered: 05/11/07
Posts: 114
It looks like the same product is sold bt Adventure Medical Kits, I wonder if there is a price difference.
FYI the S&S web site only says "up to" 15*" added warmth .

Top
#169647 - 09/21/12 03:27 PM Re: Sea to Summit Thermolite Bags [Re: frediver]
lori Offline
member

Registered: 01/22/08
Posts: 2801
Originally Posted By frediver
It looks like the same product is sold bt Adventure Medical Kits, I wonder if there is a price difference.
FYI the S&S web site only says "up to" 15*" added warmth .


The Thermolite is fabric. The AMK bivy is mylar. HUGE difference in comfort - There's a reason mylar blankets are only for emergencies.

_________________________
"In the beginner's mind there are many possibilities. In the expert's mind there are few." Shunryu Suzuki

http://hikeandbackpack.com

Top
#169673 - 09/22/12 05:54 PM Re: Sea to Summit Thermolite Bags [Re: lori]
frediver Offline
member

Registered: 05/11/07
Posts: 114
Guess I could be mistaken but I think you should check the entire AMK "blanket" product line, I think you will find they do offer thermo-lite.
Rechecking again and I think it is called now the Escape Bivvi, $50.00 retail.

Top
#169679 - 09/22/12 08:06 PM Re: Sea to Summit Thermolite Bags [Re: frediver]
Franco Offline
member

Registered: 04/05/04
Posts: 1010
Loc: Australia
no they are not the same product , it is the packaging that looks similar but that is about it.
Here are a couple of pics that should make this a bit clearer :


Top
#169683 - 09/22/12 09:30 PM Re: Sea to Summit Thermolite Bags [Re: JPete]
TomD Offline
Moderator

Registered: 10/30/03
Posts: 4963
Loc: Marina del Rey,CA
Hehehe. The thing that makes my gaffe even worse is that I have something from MEC. In my defense, I didn't buy it, but yes folks, the C in MEC does stand for Co-Op. Reminds me never to post late at night.
_________________________
Don't get me started, you know how I get.

Top
#169710 - 09/23/12 09:11 PM Re: Sea to Summit Thermolite Bags [Re: TomD]
frediver Offline
member

Registered: 05/11/07
Posts: 114
Thanks that image does show the difference better than the description.

Top
#169733 - 09/24/12 11:57 AM Re: Sea to Summit Thermolite Bags [Re: jbylake]
verber Offline
member

Registered: 01/26/04
Posts: 269
Loc: SF Bay Area, CA
My experience is that the warmth these liners added is exaggerated... and the salesman has got to be smoking something. The warmest liner I saw on the Sea to Summit website claims is 20F. Thermolite isn't magic. It provides less warmth per / oz than down, primaloft, Climashield or polarguard... I believe around the same the high loft fleece.

The lightest option would be to use a down bag or quilt that appropriately warm... but that might be cost probative. If you have a bit of extra room inside your bag then you can use either insulating clothing or a small quilt inside the bag to boast the warmth.

I use a quilt which works well to 35F when wearing a light fleece hat and summer weight base layer. When I add a down baklava, gloves, a mid-weight base, and a ultralight down vest I am good to 20F, or if I am using my warmest down jacket and insulating pants I am good to around 0F.

In the dead of winter I switch from my quilt to a down bag and my daughter uses my quilt inside her sleeping bag to boast it's warmth.

As others have observed.. the mylar emergency liners are not very comfortable but can add a surprising amount of warmth (especially when is very cold) due to functioning as a vapor barrier. If you are looking at <10F conditions a vapor liner is a good idea to preserve the insulation of your primary insulation, but I would want a material that is a bit more comfortable than mylar next to my skin... and for vapor barriers to function properly they need to be very close to your skin.

I have a a few notes and links to other information sources on my sleep systems page and on my recommendations for insulated clothing

Top
#169811 - 09/26/12 01:31 AM Re: Sea to Summit Thermolite Bags [Re: verber]
jbylake Offline
member

Registered: 09/15/12
Posts: 202
Loc: Northern KY USA
Thanks, but I need to correct a couple of things. The Thermolite EXTREME bag liner advertises 25 degrees, not 40, as I mistakenly posted. It's a fiber fabric, not mylar as someone suggested, and is advertised to be suitable to be as a warm weather stand-alone bag. Weight is advertized at 14 oz.

Hope this clears thing up. They do make a lighter version with less claimed performance (about 15 degrees I think and weighing about 8 oz.

Thanks,

J.

Top
#169924 - 09/28/12 11:53 PM Re: Sea to Summit Thermolite Bags [Re: jbylake]
jbylake Offline
member

Registered: 09/15/12
Posts: 202
Loc: Northern KY USA
Thanks for all of your input. Seems like the verdict is pretty much unanimous. They don't work. Glad I didn't have to spend $60 to learn that lesson.

For now, I'll just keep using my old military bag. Consists of two mummy bags and a multi-layered gortex bivy bag.

Rated for 40 below for 4 hours sleep.

But definetly not for the Lite Gear talk on a forum dedicated to light gear. If you pack the whole thing it weighs over 6lbs.! We don't get 40 below weather here, maybe wind chill of -15 or a little more, but I was hoping to take a winter trip to the Rockies, or even a guided trip in AK. It is nice and toasty when the weather here drops in the teens, but again it's not light weight, was designed for young strong troops, not middle aged men. The stuff "sack", would probably hold most peoples gear for a 3 day trip.

Plus it's a real pain to zip and unzip everything. Especially if nature calls in the middle of the night in the dark and possibly, snow. frown
No fun at all.....

Thanks for your input, and saving me some $$....

J.

Top

Shout Box

Highest Quality Lightweight Down Sleeping Bags
 
Western Mountaineering Sleeping Bags
 
Lite Gear Talk - Featured Topics
Backcountry Discussion - Featured Topics
Make Your Own Gear - Featured Topics
Featured Photos
Spiderco Chaparral Pocketknife
David & Goliath
Also Testing
Trip Report with Photos
Seven Devils, Idaho
Oat Hill Mine Trail 2012
Dark Canyon - Utah
Who's Online
2 registered (), 174 Guests and 0 Spiders online.
Key: Admin, Global Mod, Mod
Newest Members
Noodles, McCrary, DanyBacky, Rashy Willia, WanderBison
13240 Registered Users
Forum Links
Disclaimer
Policies
Site Links
Backpacking.net
Lightweight Gear Store
Backpacking Book Store
Lightweight Zone
Hiking Essentials

Our long-time Sponsor, BackcountryGear.com - The leading source for ultralite/lightweight outdoor gear:

Backcountry Forum
 

Affiliate Disclaimer: This forum is an affiliate of BackcountryGear.com, Amazon.com, R.E.I. and others. The product links herein are linked to their sites. If you follow these links to make a purchase, we may get a small commission. This is our only source of support for these forums. Thanks.!
 
 

Since 1996 - the Original Backcountry Forum
Copyright © The Lightweight Backpacker & BackcountryForum