Sythetic Sleeping Bag & Down Allergies

When I first started researching gear, I thought I had to go synthetic on the bag because of a down allergy myself. It was quickly pointed out that the down used in sleeping bags and garments for backpacking is free of the dander that you'll find in pillows and comforters designed to go on your bed. With allergies, it's not the down itself people are allergic to, but the dander, so even people like us with down allergies can usually use down bags.

Just to test this, I picked up a second hand Kelty Lightyear 45D bag. Sure enough, no allergy problems with using the bag. So, I have to ask if you've actually tried down gear yet, and if not I suggest you give it a shot. You might be surprised.

Tom

My brother is alergic to down in pillows but also uses a down sleeping bag with no problems.

That's interesting. So there may be no reason to pick up the weight penalty of a synthetic bag for the winter…

That said, synthetic stuff is still a bit safer, yeah?

Is the weight of the Lafuma reasonable for what it is?

…I turned out to be allergic to a down bag, I guess I could just return it quickly (after trying it out at home maybe) or re-sell it here at only a small loss.

I could also think about a nice quilt if that's the case…they always seem to be made of down.

Dave

Synthetic might be "safer", but down is hardly "unsafe" so long as one is careful. That said, the extra weight of synthetic might be worth it for the piece of mind factor.

As for the Lafuma, that seems pretty heavy to me, but I haven't really looked at 20* bags lately.

As for quilts, they are definitely worth looking in to. I can't use a mummy bag because of how I sleep (mostly stomach and stretch out a fair amount), and the quilts are just the thing for me. Not only that, but they tend to be lighter than comperable bags. Also, check out top bags as well. Basically, they're sleeping bags with no down on the bottom. A hybrid of bag and quilt.

Just some things to think about ;)

Tom

You can use Down with no problems, I have a bad feather allergy and can use 800 fill down with no problems.

I find that I prefer a quilt …. try fanatic fringe

After lifelong allergies to feathers, I found I can use high quality down with no problems. It's hard to beat the fluffy warmth.

I really like the quilts. I bought a Nunatak this summer and it's great. My winter bag is a WM, but if I were in the market again, I would definitely consider a quilt.

Pam

It appears that a feather allergy doesn't always mean a down allergy – but sometimes it does. I had to ask a hotel to switch out a down comforter for synthetic after my girlfriend had a violent reaction. Down products are expensive, borrow one and see if it triggers your allergy before making a big investment. Richard