Tent Insulation?

[PsychoBurb]

I've tented down to 9*f. while Elk hunting. I have a 0 degree bag (canvas exterior, flannel lined, with holifoil). It keeps me comfortable down to the mid 30's. When the mercury drops lower, I break out the heavy wool moving blankets. I drape one or two, as needed, over the outside of the sleeping bag and it works wonders to maintain body heat. I also put down a cheap bag for padding, and top it with another wool moving blanket to provide a nice insulated surface to sleep on.

The above works for me on both a cot, and an air mattress. I don't sleep on the ground.

Another trick, get the smallest catalytic heater you can find, and set it up under the cot in extreme temps. A 1lb bottle will last all night, and you'll be nice and toasty without having to heat the whole tent. Getting out of bed in the morning when it's in the single digits is another matter entirely.

For added insulation, and protection from rain and snow, we use a huge tarp to cover our entire tent. We stake it directly to the ground on two opposing sides, and tie it out so the other two sides are a few inches off the ground. It traps a lot of heat into the tent yet still allows a decent airflow. As a bonus, you can get additional dry storage under tharp if you size it correctly.

 

[cico7]

Wool blankets are great insulators. Lay them over the tent, they still insulate even when wet.

Space blankets, lay them over the outer walls.

PopupGizmos makes an insulator blanket for popup campers that could lay over a tent.

 

[mvbeggs]

How to REALLY stay warm on those cold nights!!!!

On a recent camping trip the temps got down into the low 40's or high 30's and (obviously) it was more than a little chilly in the tent. Now, I had two sleeping bags (one stuffed in the other) and wore enough clothes to keep warm. But has anyone thought of a way to perhaps insulate a regular tent so it retains body heat longer (as I'd prefer not to have a tent heater)?

Maybe bring along some sheets and hang them up inside to double / triple layer the tent walls?

Thoughts on how to better insulate a tent so it's a little warmer and more comfortable for cold weather camping?

All these ideas are great, but to stay warm on those sub zero nights, I use a double bag with a sexy, hot blooded, female thrown in....works great!!! :victory:
(BTW, typically....... I mean, always...... my wife )

 

[NC_IslandRunner]

And remember the bag rating is not a comfort rating, it will just keep you alive at that temp. If you plan on camping in 15 degree weather get a bag rated 0 or lower. You can also get a multi- temp bag that has layers you can add or remove dependant on the weather.

 

[grizzlyj]

My 2p

Some ventilation is needed. If you cover the whole thing you may not let enough O2 in and CO2 out! Be careful!

But not too much!

One person in a three man tent will not be warm when its cold. Two people might be, three should be. If you can't close off nearly all the vents in your tent then you need a warmer tent.

And if you have a hood, internal collar etc on your bag you need to do them up or you'll lose a lot of the performance.

If a more winter based tent is a no go then I would use a bivi bag. Then its adjustable while in the tent, and removable in the summer.

 

[Cee-Jay]

 

[Photomike]

A lot of good ideas. For me here is what I found;

- 4 season tent made a huge difference

- If only a three season(or most are more like one), I put a ground sheet over the top to cover some of the vents

- Sleeping pad - A good sleeping pad will make thins so much better. Stay away from sleeping right on top of an air mattresses as they suck the heat out of you. If you are using an air mattress and cannot afford or want a sleeping pad put several layers of comforters on top, or even better, put a reflective space blanket on top. I just used the comforters and reflective space blanket below me and toss the air mattress for winter.

- A GOOD sleeping bag makes a HUGE difference. We had a guy around here that made down sleeping bags years ago, double baffled and they were amazing. His bags were on Everest with just about every group and just about any climbing group would have someone with one.

- Good socks and a touque - Keep the socks loose fitting and the touque on till you warm up in the bag then put on when you wake up in the morning.

And finally after sleeping in freezing temps I found out the best accessory .............













Yes I wimped out and moved inside!!!!:ylsmoke:

 

[bodgie]

A number of people down in my part of the world are using this product to keep tents cool/warm(er).

http://www.kingspaninsulation.com.au/Products/Kingspan-AIR-CELL/AIR-CELL-Insulshed®-50/Overview.aspx

Doesn't take much effort to make something useful.

 

[Wareagle]

Guys, I take a smaller tent (TNF tadpole) when really cold. I toss a piece of Corning foam board underneath. I have some custom fitted polar fleece blanket material on floor. Also I have experimented with different fmaterials in gear loft and on op of tents. Polar fleece breaths well, but still helps with insulation. A candle lantern adds a surprising amount of heat to a backpacking tent. Aside from that, I have a nice kelty bag, thermarest, and Patagonia expedition thermals.

 

[JRCCRW]

I don't have a backpacking solution, as I only go out in my Jeep + Bantum. I use a 3 season tent on the large side (sleeps 6). I use camo moving blankets that I found at Harbor Freight. They are cheap and light. I just roll them up and use them to fill dead space in the trailer. I put them on the tent floor and the large one over the top of the tent underneath the fly. They work very well.

 

[lupinsea]

Thanks a bunch, guys, for all the suggestions. I suppose I should add some information:

A while ago I figured out I'm not all that enthused about cold weather camping, ditto for camping in the rain. And I'm not really set up for it as a result.

So. . . I mostly save my camping for the late spring / summer / early fall time frame. I have a three person, three season Kelty that is about an 8 ft square dome arching up to ~5 ft high. It that has served me well during the summers. But it's a mixed bag. Half the dome is a mesh screen for watching the sky. Sounds nice. And plenty of ventilation in this regard and I've not had any condensation problems. But it really chills things off and lets the heat out so i'm almost always throwing the rain fly over the tent on all but the hottest nights.

Sleeping comfort is / has been handled via a nice, thick queen-sized Coleman air mattress. During the summers it's not an issue and really comfy to sleep on, the mattress being about 8" thick when inflated. Man, this has been a HUGE benefit for me getting a good night sleep camping. But I've noticed what you all have mentioned, that the air mattress lets cold air circulate under me at night when the temps drop. And . . . lately I've been annoyed at how much room the air mattress takes up in the tent. There's no good way form me to stand up and get dressed in the mornings. Given that it's either just me, me and the dog, or now me and my son out camping (the hot blooded, beautiful wife does not go camping) I'm really thinking of getting two smaller mattresses / pads so there is free space in the middle of the tent to stand up or walk.

As for sleeping bags . . . I hate sleeping bags. I hate the feeling of being constricted in them and getting tangled up as I toss or turn during the night. Of particular loathsome attention are the mummy sacks. I can't stand the thought of those. So, I have one of the wide, square sleeping bags. Not sure of the rating. It was made by (or made for) Victorinox and sold at Costco for ~$30 or so. It's several yeas old now. During my normal camping season(s) it is perfectly fine. And, at the risk of TMI, I normally don't wear stuff when I sleep. Again, I hate getting tangle up.

This last camping trip in the 30-40 deg weather was very much an anomaly. My friends and I were determined to go after a series of life events delayed us from heading out earlier in the year. Not really having any cold weather gear I tried to make the best of it by doubling up sleeping bags, etc. It worked well enough as I stayed warm at night but man, lots of layers and I did not like the tangled up feeling. Not to mention that any time any appendage ventured outside the sleeping bag it was nearly frozen off. WHich sucks because I like to read in bed and it's hard to lay on my side and old my book if I'm stuffed in a sleeping bag. So my arms are usually outside the bag when I read.



I'll look into the Thermarest-type foam sleeping pads. My friend had one (the deluxe dreamtime thingy) with him this trip and swears by it. So much so I didn't get a chance to try it out on this trip. He wouldn't share. Maybe two of them on either side of the tent with an isle between would be nice.

The wool blanket ideas are nice, too, I'd like to pick up a few. I can see them being nice to line the tent floor and in a pinch, throw them between the tent and the rain fly.

 

[SSF556]

Guys...I have an OzTent4 and I am wondering what the risk is to run a propane powered catalytic heater.......not sure I will run it during the night...but thinking it may be good to use to heat up before sleeping and when we wake up....

 

[sixbennetts]

Go to Walmart and buy a big, cheap tent.
Bring your smaller, better tent, too.
Set up the big tent.
Cover the floor with pine needles and a tarp.
Set up your small tent and slide it in.

A cheap Yankee told ya that.

 

[gasman]

I haven't winter camped in 20 yrs, and I really miss it , the coldest temps I remember was minus 32 f, 3 guys in a small 3 man isodome 4 season tent , maybe 3 to 4 feet of snow ... so I haven't seen this one mentioned yet .....If you have room try bringing a bail of hay or straw to put under your tent , of course you will want a tarp between the snow and the straw ! And if I can I will find some large rocks to heat in the fire, wrapped in a towel and stuffed in your sleeping bag you will be warm all night long