Cold weather bedding

Any recommendations or favorite easily stored cold weather blankets or comforters?
Something that compresses down in to small packages?

Early / late season we like an electric blanket.
We use one on boat and motorhome during cold Wx

Those would be nice when hooked up to shore power. I’m more interested in something that doesn’t require electricity. I have very heavy comforter that works well but when folded for storage it takes up an enormous amount of room. Somewhere between a space blanket and a monster quilt would be nice.

Greetings,
Mr. BD. Cold? In Texas? Down comforters are the easiest to vacuum pack and compress to the smallest sizes compared to synthetics.

I am from Texas but my boat will soon be leaving Seattle and moving to Sequim Wa.
I have been looking at the down comforters on line. So many of them advertise down with other fillers.

My go to. You don't want a knockoff - look for the milspec label. Hard to beat for warmth, compact storage. Washable.

Bacchus said:

Early / late season we like an electric blanket.
We use one on boat and motorhome during cold Wx

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+1
Running one off the inverter is actually very efficient. I use a twin on my queen size bed. Have a thin blanket, then the electric blanket, and finally a bed spread / comforter. The blanket is rated at 160 watts. With the exception of when it was in the 30s, I never run it past 2 on the control. This equates to about 32 watts or about 3 amps 12 volt plus a little inverter consumption. An 8 hour sleep is about 32 amps out of the battery bank. The other nice feature is that you can preheat the bed as opposed to sliding into a frigid one.

Ted

Keep the big comforter and vacuum pack it when not in use.

We have a down comforter from Macys. No heat/AC in the aft cabin this year so that's all we had. Really cozy.

We have a heavy down comforter. We sleep on it in the Summer and under it in the Spring and Fall.

pete

Greetings,
Mr. BD. Down and "other fillers" will be warm but it's the "other fillers" that don't compress. Before you go to the expense of an all down duvet, you may try to vacuum pack your current heavy comforter in something like this: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B0167IYFXQ?linkCode=gs2&tag=hotoge0c-20


IF it is still too bulky, by all means go with 100% down AND use the above bag for storage. Be careful though. Some duvets have a %'age of duck or other fowl feathers. They ARE cheaper but have their own set of problems (more bulk, feathers migrating through the fabric and poking you).


I've had a down mummy bag for 50 years that I have been using for winter camping. Even when not vacuum packed, it schmushes down to a very compact item. Only good for 10F though.



Mr. OC's electric blanket comment is a possibility, as well.

That sounds pretty good!

Check out Wiggy's. I can personally attest to their very excellent sleeping bags in temperatures below freezing while outback camping in Alaska for the past 22 years. The very large sleeping bag compresses into 10"x16" stuff sack that came with the bag purchase. They also make comforters and blankets. Their reviews are also impressive. I dont think you will be disappointed!

No electricity or HVAC on board? What boat and equipment do you have?

My kids love the Gravity Blankets. They are about 15 lbs. and very comfy.

Thanks, I will

40’ Schucker 436. Yes, I have an electric furnace on board while tethered, or with the engine or generator running. I also have a Dickinsen propane wall heater. I can stay as warm as needed while using these devices but I prefer not to use them unless needed. Electricity and propane cost $.

We have a Pacific Coast queen size from Costco that squeezes down very small. We use it when we go tent camping (some would say "glamping") in tandem with an air bed and down pillows. The squeeze-down size is important due to trying to get all our stuff into a small VW Tiguan crossover. Even then there are times when a small electric heater comes in handy. Either there or on the boat, once it gets in the 50's some sort of heater is getting deployed.

Not electric blanket.... electric mattress pad.

I have a Ford Transit van which I have converted to a "stealth camper". It's not for recreational traveling per se, but more to keep me out of hotels when on road trips for other reasons. (I stay in hotels at work, I am NOT going in one on my own nickel). I have basics.... small fridge, induction cook plate, porta potty, sink with 5G of cold water. No shower, no water heater, no furnace. (No propane)

The mattress pad I have is about 80W. It has a thermostat which cycles on/off. (Wattage is constant when on) I turn it on medium while driving which gets the bed nice and toasty. When I go to bed I turn it to low, and that, with a good sleeping bag, keeps me more than comfortable.

I have a 300Ah house bank and a 3000W pure sine inverter. On a cold (30's) night the pad pulls about 50Ah over an 8 hour period. Plenty of juice.

Instead of an elecrtic blanket, you may want to consider a heated mattress pad. It uses considerably less electricity and the heat source is under you instead of above you. Since heat rises, that's a good thing.

Lots of good solutions. Thanks!

Two zip together down sleeping bags will pack into stuff sacs.

bayview said:

Two zip together down sleeping bags will pack into stuff sacs.

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Yeah. Sleeping bags designed for backpacking are very efficient, and comfy.

In cold and humid weather camping, we use several heavy wool blankets we got surplus, ex Polish Army. Same as a full size blanket, about 3/8 in thick, and warm. They were about $30 each 10 years ago.

I’ve got two USMC wool blankets my dad brought home from 1944. Pretty warm but shrunk from too many sessions in the clothes drier.

We prefer electric blankets.

We like it so much that when electric blankets started using digital controls, we had to upgrade the inverter to pure sine wave. This was 25 years ago when pure sine was not as common as it is now.

I use down comforters and pure wool blankets! I have also tried good-quality “down alternative” comforters and like them too

The nice thing abou the electric blanket/matress pad option is it also drives any moisture out of your bedding. Makes for a much nicer sleep even if you don't leave them on all night.

alesnloggers said:

The nice thing abou the electric blanket/matress pad option is it also drives any moisture out of your bedding. Makes for a much nicer sleep even if you don't leave them on all night.

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And a big draw on the batteries.

markpierce said:

And a big draw on the batteries.

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30-50ah isn't a big draw if it allows you to get a good night's sleep. Even turning the blanket on for 30 minutes (2-4ah?) before retiring makes a huge difference.