Therm-a-rest turf war
Monday, May 31, 2010 at 1:29PM The long-standing kings of inflatable expedition and camping mattresses are Therm-a-rest. They innovated and replaced the old use of heavy and cumbersome foam alternatives. Although these have been championed as expedition-tough, the raw fact of having an inflatable skin on an extreme journey has always led to puncture and deflation problems. Therm-a-rests have always also been on the high end of most budgets.
In recent years others have tried to replicate and improve on the design, amongst them Alpkit (UK-based) with their low-cost copies and the down-filled alternatives from Exped. As someone who travels for weeks or months without resupply and the option of carrying spares, choosing the very best sleeping mat is vital. Waking in the middle of the night on a cold and hard ground is not the way to get your much-needed rest! So how do these other mats fare in comparison to the 'original'?
I know a number of people who have used all three, Therm-a-rests, Alpkit Airics and Exped DownMat Pumps. I have personally used a number of Alpkit mats for hundreds of nights but others had found theirs to leak or puncture easily. After a big Twitter straw-poll asking others for their experiences, the results seemed to say:
Therm-a-rests : Expensive but almost no-one who responded found theirs to leak out-of-the-box and the only failures were after some sustained trauma!
Alpkit Airics (note Airics have now been replaced with a new range): Half the price and very similar build to a Therm-a-rest. Despite a very good report from those on Twitter, a guiding company I work for ordered ten and five were found to leak immediately. I have been lucky with my own Alpkits but it does knock my confidence in them.
Exped DownMats: An expensive but clever pump design. The down filled compartments undoubtedly provide fantastic insulation. I know two people who have tested them over a long period of time and both have found them to deflate within a week of use. A great idea but more robust development needed.
Why not share your experiences? Comment below!
Reader Comments (3)
Alex, I have used mostly Therm-a-rests and Insulmats from Pacific Outdoor Equipment (http://pacoutdoor.com/sleeping-pads). I have enjoyed sound sleep on both using a few different models from each. The Insulmats were part of some sponsored kit for our expedition on the Amazon and I can say that their particular design (raised sides) did seem to provide for a good sleep. However, they punctured just the same as a Therm-a-rest or any other inflatable for that matter. No problems at all with their quality of manufacture. Easy to patch. No failures beyond puncture. Most recently, I used a Therm-a-rest Prolite womens full length mat when walking across Iran. Did the job and apparently gave more a more comfortable sleep as well (warmer and slightly wider!)
Never used the down mats from Exped but have always wondered about how good they might be. Leading 3 back to backs on Kili in Sept and thinking of testing out for the hell of it the Therm-a-rest Z-lite - no punctures there - foam and nothing else!
I would like to try an AlpKit mat, the kit had from them previously has been solid and really is very cheap compared to other offerings.
Super warm and clever pump design on the Exped Downmat but they aren't very quick to inflate and not something easily done on the inside of a 2 man tent. Its supposed to be slip resistant as well, but due to its height and design you can slide all over it. You've also not mentioned how monstrously expensive they are, even compared to the Therm-a-rest.
Just had to chuck a Therm-a-rest Base Camp due to an unfixable leak but it provided a seriously comfy sleep. Leak was a bit of a pain, as I had to blow it up every night.
If I was spending a long time in a base camp I'd look at getting another one, but at the moment I'm going to stick with my Z-rest for now, really very comfy for a roll mat but has a habit of accumulating water in anything but cold and dry conditions. Not ideal for Scottish Winter!
Alex, you know the issues I had with "Fat Airic" on our Greenland crossing. The puncture on day 18 left me with 10 relatively uncomfortable nights. I was lucky to eventually locate the puncture hole on the ice cap but repair was tricky due to the location of the hole (and the general inconvenience of cold temperatures / glue etc). But even after returning home I still haven't been able to repair it due to the location of the damage. That may be unlucky but it was afterall the second Airic I owned and they both punctured. Will I trust another Airic on my next cold weather adventure? I don't think so...