Hey everyone, I need some help figuring out the temperature rating for these sleeping bags. They have a red exterior and a flannel lining. We’re planning to be in Yosemite this Christmas, and the temperatures tend to drop to 20-30 degrees at night during December.
Sounds like an old 4lb Coleman bag with polyester and flannel. It’s likely good down to about 40 degrees. You mentioned car camping, right? I’d suggest packing some extra blankets for layering with that bag, and don’t forget a warm pad for underneath to avoid losing heat to the cold ground.
@Vail
Thanks for the advice! The friends who were planning to use these bags are tent camping with an air mattress to avoid ground chill. Looks like I need to find some warmer bags.
Mason said:
@Vail
Thanks for the advice! The friends who were planning to use these bags are tent camping with an air mattress to avoid ground chill. Looks like I need to find some warmer bags.
Is it a regular inflatable mattress from a big box store? Those are known to feel quite cold. Be careful relying on that for warmth.
@Daryl
Yes, it’s a standard air mattress, but I was planning to add a thermal tarp on top for extra insulation.
Mason said:
@Daryl
Yes, it’s a standard air mattress, but I was planning to add a thermal tarp on top for extra insulation.
If they’re getting new sleeping bags anyway, maybe they could use these old ones as an extra layer under the new bags to insulate against the air mattress chill. Throwing in some blankets would help too.
@Oli
Great idea, thanks! That way, I can use the tarp for something else. Really helpful!
Mason said:
@Daryl
Yes, it’s a standard air mattress, but I was planning to add a thermal tarp on top for extra insulation.
Just a heads-up, that might not be enough to stop the cold from the ground. An insulated pad would be better.
Mason said:
@Vail
Thanks for the advice! The friends who were planning to use these bags are tent camping with an air mattress to avoid ground chill. Looks like I need to find some warmer bags.
You know, a closed-cell foam mattress would be much warmer than an old-school air mattress. The large air chambers in those older mattresses just end up moving heat away from you and warming the ground instead.
Those won’t be enough. If they’re Coleman Brazos bags, like I suspect, they might be rated for 30f but that’s just survival, not comfort. You’ll want bags rated for much colder temperatures.
Drew said:
Those won’t be enough. If they’re Coleman Brazos bags, like I suspect, they might be rated for 30f but that’s just survival, not comfort. You’ll want bags rated for much colder temperatures.
Yeah, I was thinking a bag rated for at least 20 degrees, maybe even 10 would be safer.
Drew said:
Those won’t be enough. If they’re Coleman Brazos bags, like I suspect, they might be rated for 30f but that’s just survival, not comfort. You’ll want bags rated for much colder temperatures.
I remember a night it hit 20 degrees and I was in my old Coleman, even wrapped in a Kelty Galactic 30, and still felt cold because my pad wasn’t insulated enough.
Could it be a Coleman Stratus 50-degree fleece bag?
Check the model number, it should be on the tag.
Greer said:
Check the model number, it should be on the tag.
I tried that, but couldn’t find any matching info online. It was the first thing I did.