Question about sleeping pad R values: most people obsess over the number and ignore the ground under them | Camping Gear Reviews - The Design Community Hub
Question about sleeping pad R values: most people obsess over the number and ignore the ground under them
I camped at a spot near Bend, Oregon in early March where the overnight temp hit 24 degrees, and my buddy froze on a pad rated R 5.2 while I stayed warm on an R 3.1, and the only real difference was that I laid down a cheap closed cell foam pad and a sheet of Reflectix from the hardware store. The ground pulls heat out of you way faster than the air does, so a $12 foam layer under your inflatable does more than jumping up two R points ever will. Why does every review thread treat the R value like the whole story when almost nobody mentions what they put underneath?