Cool weather camping

atreis wrote:
We use fleece - lightweight and warm.

Once, when the furnace stopped working in the middle of the night, I got up and put on my polar weight base layer underwear. I was actually too warm and kicked off some blankets. Low 20s F outside.

The furnace problem turned out to be a loose electrical connection. Easily fixed in the morning.

In extremely cold weather (not just cool), in the morning we always moved our mattress forward about 6" to let the wall dry out good from our moist breath at night. The mattress underneath was never damp. It's that tiny space by your head that can cause problems if you don't air it out.

Naio wrote:
Anything that doesn't breathe (like foamboard, space blanket, etc.) will make your mattress moldy.

Tent campers don't have that problem because they lay the bedding out in the sun to dry each morning, and then pack it up.

Interesting I never thought of the not breathing aspect. But wouldn't that be the same with the mattress just laying on the plywood bed frame? Another option would be to lift the bed and use some of the 3M-77 spray foam and glue sheets on the bottom of the plywood. That way you still get some insulation, but the mattress can still breathe.

Regular sheets, knit cotton blanket, and down comforter. I keep the thermostat set at 62 to 65 during the day and turn it all the way down (or sometimes off) at night.

We use a heated mattress pad at home to warm the bed up in winter, but turn it off when we go to bed.

In the RV, things warm up soon enough once we get in bed. No heated pad/blanket. The mattress and mattress pad are more than enough to keep heat from escaping from below.

Wayne

Anything that doesn't breathe (like foamboard, space blanket, etc.) will make your mattress moldy.

Tent campers don't have that problem because they lay the bedding out in the sun to dry each morning, and then pack it up.

20f exterior temps/65f exterior temps.


popup gizmos/reflectix panels and used normal sheets/blankets.

wbwood wrote:

2oldman wrote:

wbwood wrote:
Ok, we are looking at not running the heater or using any type of electric....

Then you'll need some way to keep the heat from being sucked out of you from below.

I don't think a heater will keep the heat from being "sucked out below". Unless the heater is between me and the mattress.

While I don't have this concern where I camp, I always thought that a sheet of the pink foam board insulation (R7.5) under the mattress would make for a much warmer bed.

Link

wbwood wrote:
Ok, we are looking at not running the heater or using any type of electric....

Then just pretend you are in a hard sides tent, and use good sleeping bags

Me I like my electric mattress pads or blankets

And the Olympic catalytic heater

04fxsts wrote:
I just throw on a couple blankets and two dogs on top of that, keeps me warm. Jim.

...unless it's a three dog night :).

I just throw on a couple blankets and two dogs on top of that, keeps me warm. Jim.