For a our first weekend away i'd like to take my duvet, my husband says this will get damp and wont dry out (he last went camp in the early 90's and this is his reference).
I know that tents have a lot of vents etc and we will be taking a small heater but in reality how bad does it get and can we survive with our duvets? we'll be using flocked airbeds so would sleeping bags give more insulation?
Whichever you use, duvet or sleeping bag, you will need some insulation between you and the airbed, and preferably also between the airbed and the ground. I speak from experience here. It makes a big difference.
Airbeds are just bags of air, which gets cold at night. Put a picnic blanket or similar under the airbed, and a blanket or one of those fleecey fitted mattress covers on top of it (e.g. from Dunelm etc). If you take a duvet, put a fitted sheet on top of the fleecy thing to make it feel more like home.
Duvets/cotton covers can sometimes feel a bit damp to me, depending on the weather and again due to my own experience. We've moved over to sleeping bags now despite my fear of feeling cooped up like sausage in a skin (I like to have my feet free and able to cool down also). Sleeping bags tend to be less bulky too.
But, I'm rambling. If you don't have sleeping bags and haven't yet been camping, take the duvet (with the blankets etc under and over airbed). For ultimate luxury you could have a duvet above and below!
See how you get on and whether you enjoy it all first, before investing sleeping bags (and it pays to get decent ones with our variable climate).
Take an extra blanket or two anyway - cosy for sitting out in plus extra warmth if it's a cool night.
I hope you have a great weekend.
------------- Camping - emotional resilience in action, a triumph of hope over adversity and antidote to virtual reality.
Hello and welcome.
I would take a duvet every time. I hate the trappy feeling of a sleeping bag and love the freedom, flexibility and snuggleness of a duvet.
At this time of year we've had no problems with a damp feeling as it's so warm but last year in April with a heavy frost each night we did. This is due to condensation. Each adult expels something like 2lts of water over night in their breathing and this condenses and rests on ur covers.
To overcome this we threw a really cheap, really thin fleece blanket over the duvet. This caught the moisture, it didn't seep through, and dried quickly and easily in the warm tent in an hour or so each morning.
I think fabric of tent will also play a part with cotton or poly cotton being more breathable and polyester condensing more, or rather trapping moisture in. But while it's mild condensation is less of a problem, or has been for us anyway. We don't have ehu so never used a heater.
Also agree with bridgeywidge about insulating the air bed. You could try foam tiles underneath (Sainsbury's do a pack of four large for about a tenner in the kids outdoor toys section this time of year), or cardboard or just a blanket. A layer underneath the bed is worth two or three on top of the bed. Likewise a layer on the bed (under you) is worth two or three on top of you in the form of blankets.
It'll be great and ull adapt and find what works best for you. Have fun :))
Hi,
When we used airbed we took our duvet but layed a fleece throw over the airbed as a sheet and soft to lay on.
We also used to go to a shop local to the campsite and ask if they had any cardboard boxes we could have and lay them under the airbeds as an insulation between the ground and airbed then when we packed the tent away we could put the cardboard in the recycle bin and save space in the car rather than taking a carpet or other bulky insulation.
if we used camp beds instead (husband has one from work) would we still have to cold underneath issue. Im not keen on them myself but I'm willing to listen to opinions on both before deciding.
Id really like to take my duvet but its a kingsize and having put a few things in the car today i think we will struggle with space!
Ours is kingside too, a big thick feather one. I tend to use a vacuum bag to get it nice and flat. Coming home I roll and squish the air out, not quite as small but smaller than otherwise. Alternatively lay in bottom of boot (in bin bag or other grot protector) with other stuff on top, it'll soon flatten and take no space.
We've only used a camp bed with a sim so that's insulatory (think I just made that word up) in itself. As most campbeds are a fine woven mesh fabric I'd think ud need some insulation else suffer the cold air coming through.
Plenty of people use air beds no problem. Just go prepared and ull be fine. U can always take a hot water bottle. We used one in April but not the summer.
Sleeping bag underneath and duvet on top for me. My little nephew brought a sleeping bag last time we camped. He was freezing and ended up getting under my duvet. Next day I bought him a cheap duvet from the nearest supermarket and he was lovely and warm
------------- Good cakes aren't cheap. Cheap cakes aren't good
We both hate sleeping bags so always used to use our duvets (we both love to snuggle in a duvet so use a single one each, and have single air beds too). We never had a problem with damp but were in canvas tents. We have now discovered the joy of old army blankets, available cheaply on eBay. We use a silver insulating mat on the ground, then the air beds (the canvas, unflocked variety which we find more comfortable than the larger flocked ones), extra fluffy fleeces as both bottom and top sheest then up to three blankets, and that keeps us much warmer than a duvet. They take up little room in the car as we use them to make a bed for the dog
Always a duvet for me, I'm a bit of a wriggler. A single duvet is easy enough to pack of course! A kingsize is a whole different challenge. I put a fake suede effect throw (bought in a Llanrwst charity shop when cold nights caugght me out) on the airbed, 'suede' side down, smooth side up to sleep on and it stays in place very well and adds warmth. For a short break damp shouldn't be a problem. Have fun!
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Topic: Bags or Duvet
