Quote: Originally posted by beefysmum on 01/4/2008
I have seen this and it is certainly cheap, but is it any good? I have always used airbeds before, but am thinking of changing to self inflaters, thinking of less time spent blowing the airbeds up and naff pumps that let you down when you need them.
I got a fab battery pump from Argos for a tenner. I never thought it'd be any good, but got it in desperation when my back was really bad and I couildn't use either of the two. It works a treat! I plug it in, switch it on and by the time the kettle's boiled, the bed's pumped up and the tent's virtually done too.
We give it a couple of goes with a hand pump just to get it really firm.
We bought the 5 cm versions of the outwell mats last year. They are nice and comfortable but they do not pack up very small. Unfortunately the valves broke on both of them within a few months, so now they tend to slowly leak air. I would tend to go for a more expensive make if I were to choose again.
just been looking into self inflating mattresses, as im considering a slim airic for bivvying on my mountain bike.
we've got normal airbeds at the mo, so can anyone tell me how the packed away size of a fat airic compares to an airbed?
about the same would you say? or does it take up more space? and do you get the air back out, just the same as an airbed? rolling it up and gradually forcing the air back out?
sorry, probably didnt explain myself very well there :-)
i was looking at slim airics like i say, for mountain biking. but for family camping in our tent, we use a double airbed at the mo. so was wondering how 2 fat airics would compare in size to a double airbed when packed away. hope thats a bit clearer :-)
Most deflated double air beds would be about 1/3 the volume of a single deflated air pad. With two air pads they would take up considerably more volume than an air bed.
While airpads are lighter they definitely are bulkier. Unlike an airbed with can be rolled up all sorts of ways or even kept flat and thin, the air pads can only be rolled up end-to-end.
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I bought a couple of single self inflating mats from Asda yesterday and they dont seem too bad for about £10 each. They are quite thin but much more comfortable than my floor. They are for the bongo so I will try them outnext week.
I have 2 old Thermarest mats, bought in 1993 and still going strong. I never store them rolled up, just folded with the valve open. Place something heavy on them to stop 'em filling up and opening out.
To pack 'em for transport, I usually roll 'em to expel the air, then close the valve and open them out flat. They take up very little space in the roof box that way.
I was talking to a friend just last week, she works in the Italian distributors for Themarest, and she told me that they are guaranteed for life, so if they ever develop a manufacturing fault, e.g.. a faulty valve, she can have them replaced for me, even though they are 15 years old and were bought in Ireland.
Now that's good to know
That makes me feel a bit better. I have left both my self inflating mats folded in half with the valves open in the roof of the bongo ready to go away next week. I wasn't sure if it was ok to leave them in half like that but hopefuly its fine. They were inflated but the pressure of the roof will have deflated them quite a bit.
One thing I always have trouble with is getting enough air in the mats. After a while the 'self inflation' does not work so well. However, when I blow air into the mats a lot of it escapes either when I close the valve or when I reopen it to blow again. Does anyone have any tips? This sounds tedious, but I have spent ages on some trips trying to inflate the mat.
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Topic: self inflating mat questions
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