QUILTS that put insulation where it’s needed
THEY’RE MOST POPULAR WITH THOSE WHO ARE IN TUNE WITH THEIR GEAR AND ARE LOOKING TO MINIMISE WEIGHT
ZONED INSULATION is a growing revelation in the world of sleeping bags, and it makes a world of sense.
Down is a near perfect insulator, but it has a major downside, if you will excuse the pun: when compressed, whether by weight or moisture clumping, it loses its insulating properties.
This weakness is taken into account in zoned insulation designs, which reduce the amount of down in areas where it will be compressed – usually the back of sleeping bags.
Sleeping quilts are a relatively new fad – particularly popular in the ultralight community – which takes the idea one step further by removing the back of the sleeping bag entirely.
“Quilts are extremely efficient for their volume and weight as you’re not carrying additional down that is squashed underneath you,” says Sandy McLean, a director of Wellington based Ampro Sales,the distributor of Therm-a-Rest sleeping bags and mattresses.
“A lot of bags already
