Choosing a
sleeping bag
There are only a few things to consider when choosing a
sleeping bag:
- Rating;
- Filling;
- Size;
- Shape;
- Cost.
Rating
The rating is fairly obvious, a
one season bag is only suitable for either indoor camping or use in very warm
climate, a two season bag is suitable for normal summer use outdoors, a three
season will cope with end of spring to early autumn, a four season will deal
with early spring to late autumn and a 5 season will cope with most winter
weather. For high altitude or arctic conditions, a proper expedition bag will
be required.
Filling
The filling can be either natural down from ducks or
geese, which is very warm and light but not very easy to look after as it takes
a while to dry out and must be cleaned with specialist products.
A synthetic filling, while heavier, is easy to care for
and dries quicker and also gets around the problems of allergies towards down.
Size
Bags come in various sizes for children adults and tall
people. Obviously choose the correct size for you.
The only caution is that buying bags for children can be
expensive so its better to
buy an adult bag and cinch the spare ‘tail’ off with cord or a belt
and merely move this down as the child grows.
Shape
There are basically two different shapes for a bag, either
mummy or straight.
A straight bag is generally cheaper, but due to the extra
air space takes longer to warm up, and can’t be pulled around the head
for warmth.
A mummy bag is more shaped to the body, has less waste
void to warm up and can the hood be pull up around the head to stop warmth
escaping.
Cost
Pretty obvious, the better quality and higher rating the
bag, the more expensive it will be. Also, down bags are generally more
expensive than the equivalent synthetic bag.
There are some specialist bags that have a built in ground
mat and are waterproof. Cheap Far Eastern ones are not worth the money. The
more expensive ones are really only meant for the armed forces and this is
reflected in the cost!
Other considerations are zips and baffles.
Most companies make left and right zipped bags. This not
only allows for which is your primary hand, but also enables bags to be zipped
together.
Baffles are warm flaps that run behind the zip to stop
draughts and also around the shoulder, again to stop drafts.
Some bags, particularly the warmer rated ones, have a
breast pocket inside to store a small flask of water.
The last thing to consider is colour, the manufacturers,
particularly of the cheaper ‘summer’ bags, come in a whole rainbow
of colours…
