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How to stop a sliding sleeping pad.


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  • #1278483
    Alina G
    BPL Member

    @alina

    Locale: Toronto, Ontario

    Hi,
    We have Double Rainbow Tarptent and our sleeping pads are sliding all over the place. We have POE Peak Elite and Exped SynMat UL 7.
    My husband suggested buying foam pads and putting them under our inflatable pads but it means that we would have to carry more weight/bulk. Besides I am not even sure if it would work anyway. It might be OK once it gets colder so we can use the extra insulation.
    Henry did some sticky strips when sealing our tent but I do not find them very helpful.
    Do you guys have any suggestions?
    The sliding has an impact on the quality of our sleep.
    Thank you.

    #1772695
    jacko vanderbijl
    Member

    @jacko1956

    Locale: Shelley Western Australia

    The favoured trick by most is to use seam sealer.
    The following link shows a YouTube vid which recommends putting lines of seam sealer on the bottom of your pad and then golf ball sized dots on the floor of your tent.
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WPYPN3CeQCI

    Despite that my son and I are reticent to do that as we see it as a soil trap etc that may become grubby. Following the success we had putting our backpacking towels under our neoairs on the boards in our local track's huts (it seriously reduced that neoair "crinkle"), we are actually going to get a couple of rubber mesh sheets of the kind that you put on a sink to stop plates from sliding (two about 12" by 24" should do it) and put them between the two. The weight of the stuff we're looking at is neglible and will be possible to use both in the tent and on hut floors. They will also double for insulation to reduce burn risks in handling hot pots etc and can provide some shock absorption in the pack (we carry a few electronic bits and pieces usually).

    #1772701
    Franco Darioli
    Spectator

    @franco

    Locale: Gauche, CU.

    Alina
    Just for you
    slippery floor fix
    Franco

    #1772702
    jacko vanderbijl
    Member

    @jacko1956

    Locale: Shelley Western Australia

    The link I posted was to your vid as well….
    :-)

    #1772703
    Franco Darioli
    Spectator

    @franco

    Locale: Gauche, CU.

    Hey Jacko
    I was showing off my hyperlink skills, only took me 8 months and several attempts to work that one out…
    ( I prepared that link and than had dinner and posted it after . Forgot to read your reply in the meantime. Sorry, but thanks for finding my video)
    Franco

    #1772710
    Steven McAllister
    BPL Member

    @brooklynkayak

    Locale: Arizona, US

    Soil getting stuck in the silicone dots are a plus. It adds grip.
    I gave up on trying to keep my gear clean on backpacking trips. It makes life so much easier.

    I still can't give up on bathing and washing my clothes. Maybe some day with practice:-)

    #1772714
    jacko vanderbijl
    Member

    @jacko1956

    Locale: Shelley Western Australia

    My concerns with the grit in the seam sealer is because the neoair is useless with a leak and as we use them on hut floors as well as the tent, we may attract some sharpish stuff and increase puncture risk. With a hardier self inflating mat or similar no problem.

    #1772980
    Alina G
    BPL Member

    @alina

    Locale: Toronto, Ontario

    Thank you everyone. I have thought about putting extra sealer stripes but it seems like a messy business to me. I think that I will try what jacko suggested. Although I have not seen these rubber mesh sheets in stores. I know that they exist. I just do not use them. Where do I buy them? I like the idea.
    Anything else that can be put under the pad?
    Thank you.

    #1772983
    Bob Gross
    BPL Member

    @b-g-2-2

    Locale: Silicon Valley

    I purchased a rubberized mesh sheet in a roll that was intended for lining a wooden bookshelf. The brand is Camco. It is called Slip-Stop, #43277. 12 inches by 12 feet.

    http://www.camco.net

    –B.G.–

    #1772994
    Mary D
    BPL Member

    @hikinggranny

    Locale: Gateway to Columbia River Gorge

    I found that the silicone sealant won't stick to the bottom of my custom Kooka Bay pad–it peels right off, leaving little shreds of sealant all over the tent floor. Just the spots on the tent floor aren't enough to hold the pad still when I toss and turn. Bender says he's going to try "Super Grip non skid fabric coating" in his new SMD Skyscape. In the meantime, I'm going to try a 1/8" Gossamer Gear Nightlight pad (which I already have) underneath on my next trip. The rubber mesh for dishes also sounds good.

    The silicone sealant did work just fine on my older POE pad (the old Insulmat Max Thermo) and, before that, my old Thermarest LE. Having the sealant on both pad and tent floor really made a big difference and hasn't affected the pads at all. This is what Henry Shires recommended when I contacted him about the problem back in 2006. Interestingly, while the sealant spots on the floor do pick up some grit (especially beach sand), the sealant stripes on the pads have not picked up any dirt.

    While I detested the NeoAir and returned it to REI after 5 months of trying, I didn't have any problems with its slipping on my silnylon tent floor. That's basically the only area in which I didn't have problems with this pad.

    This week's article on inflatable pads has both good ideas on reducing sliding and actual measurements of various pads' resistance to sliding. It's well worth a read!

    #1773552
    Steven McAllister
    BPL Member

    @brooklynkayak

    Locale: Arizona, US

    I usually use shoe goo, marine goop, automotive goop, aquaseal, … on the bottom the thermarests as I find that silicone usually doesn't stick well to most sleeping pads.

    Thinned silicone works great on silnylon floors, but the various goo/goop products work better for most sleeping pads

    #1773648
    Dan @ Durston Gear
    BPL Member

    @dandydan

    Locale: Canadian Rockies

    I don't really like putting thinned silicone on the floor because it adds quite a bit of weight (1-2oz) and it makes the tent a dust magnet. I'm not terribly worried about keeping my stuff sparkling clean, but it does suck when it's permanently filthy. When I painted a tent floor, I missed the good 'ol days when I could just shake the crud out of my tent.

    If I had to do this again, I'd put a lot of effort into finding a way to paint something on the bottom of the pads, or just buying different pads. See the recent BPL state of the market part 2 on pads where they measure the slipperyness of pads. Different pads is an expensive solution, but it may be the best one given your concerns.

    With that said, I tend to blame silnylon more than I do the pads. Silnylon is just slippery stuff and not a great tent fabric IMO. I much prefer a PU coated Nylon as they are non-slippery and usually far more waterproof, while not weighing much more. Silnylon is the biggest reason why I've never bought a Tarptent.

    #1773806
    Alina G
    BPL Member

    @alina

    Locale: Toronto, Ontario

    Interesting.
    Who does the PU coated Nylon tents? I will look into it.
    Thank you.

    #1773810
    Alina G
    BPL Member

    @alina

    Locale: Toronto, Ontario

    @Steven. Thank you for this tip. Questions:
    Which of the mentioned works best?
    Do they attract dirt?
    What is the best way to apply and how much?
    How much weight do they add?
    Do you apply it only in the sleeping pad?
    Thank you.

    #1773825
    Steven McAllister
    BPL Member

    @brooklynkayak

    Locale: Arizona, US

    > Which of the mentioned works best?

    All the Goop's, Goo's and Aquaseal are the same stuff, made by the same company. Just packaged different.

    > Do they attract dirt?

    Not as much as silicone, from my experience anyway. My sleeping pad is clean.

    > What is the best way to apply and how much?

    You need very little. I usually use a stick, toothpick is good. Very thin short lines in shoulder hip area and random other spots. 1/2 ounce at most.

    > Do you apply it only in the sleeping pad?

    I use the Goop on the sleeping pad only. It doesn't stick well to silnylon. Probably does with urethane floors though. I haven't tried.

    For silnylon I use silicone flowable windshield sealant and paint very fine diagonal lines.

    You don't need very much 1/2 ounce is too much.

    #1773944
    Andy F
    Spectator

    @andyf

    Locale: Midwest/Midatlantic

    I have a Tarptent Moment and a few other Tarptents. I use a SynMat UL7. I coated both sides of the floor with a diluted silicone caulk mixture described here:

    http://jwbasecamp.com/Articles/Silnylon1/index.html

    You could just coat the inside and see if that's good enough. I coated both sides to reduce slippage of the actual floor on the ground. I used GE Silicone II for doors and windows because it's the caulk made for the outdoors.

    #1773984
    Dave Heiss
    BPL Member

    @daveheiss

    Locale: Pacific Northwest

    Andy,

    I have the same Exped Snymat UL pad, but I use mine in a Contrail. Did coating the floor work for you?

    #1773986
    Jake Palmer
    BPL Member

    @jakep_82

    Locale: Pacific Northwest

    I have an Exped Synmat UL7 and my girlfriend uses a Big Agnes Aircore pad. Our first night out in a Double Rainbow we had significant issues sliding around. Before our last trip I coated the entire floor in a very thin mixture of silicone and mineral spirits. It added less than and ounce to the tent and now we basically stay in place throughout the night. Dirt does tend to stick slightly to the floor, but it's an insignificant amount and a worthwhile concession in my opinion.

    #1773987
    Andy F
    Spectator

    @andyf

    Locale: Midwest/Midatlantic

    Dave,

    Yes, coating the floor worked well. It only goes so far though, as once the slope is steep enough, you or your bag start sliding off of the Synmat itself.

    #1773993
    Shawn Bearden
    BPL Member

    @shawnb

    Locale: SE Idaho

    What about the aerosol can spray silicone on the mats? I haven't tried it but might give a light and broad 'grippy' coating?? Correction – spray Plasti Dip (not silicone)

    #1773995
    Bob Gross
    BPL Member

    @b-g-2-2

    Locale: Silicon Valley

    All of the spray silicone that I've seen has been a silicone-based lubricant, and that is not what you want for this purpose.

    –B.G.–

    #1774183
    Dave Heiss
    BPL Member

    @daveheiss

    Locale: Pacific Northwest

    Thanks – I had painted a few strips of thinned silicone onto the Contrail floor when I seam sealed it, but for the Exped SynMat UL, which seems to be a little slicker than my old pad, it looks like I'll need to add several more strips to help keep me in place.

    #1774193
    Franco Darioli
    Spectator

    @franco

    Locale: Gauche, CU.

    Atsko and others (McNett Thundershield Silicone Waterproofing) do sell a type of spray-on non lubricating silicone.
    That works well to boost or renew the waterproof coating of siliconised nylon fabrics but it is too thin (for me) for the floor application.
    silicone spray

    BTW, if you silicone peels off easily it was probably a silicone mix not 100% silicone.
    If it is pure silicone it will say so (100%) on the label.
    100% silicone

    So the one on the left is the correct type, the other isn't…
    Franco

    #1774296
    Shawn Bearden
    BPL Member

    @shawnb

    Locale: SE Idaho

    Correction. I suggested spray silicone but I was remembering the stuff I had incorrectly. I'm actually thinking of aerosol spray 'Plasti-Dip'. It's a rubber coating and can be sprayed lightly or continue spraying for a thicker layer.

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