How Hard Is It To Repair An Inflatable Aid Pad In The Field?

If you have the repair kit it’s not hard to make the repair, assuming you can find the leak. Finding the leak can be the hard part, especially if it’s very small. It can require a lot of patience.

That’s my main concern, finding a leak in the field.

I’ve only had one pad leak in the back country, on a winter trip in the Rincon mountains.  There was a creek nearby, but the water was probably just above freezing.  I spent quite a bit of time pushing the pad underwater for a minute, then stopping and putting my hands in my pockets to try and thaw out my fingers before trying again.  It was pretty miserable, and I finally just had to give up.  It was cold enough that I couldn’t sleep comfortably on the ground, so I ended  up hiking out a few days early, which was pretty disappointing.   Once I got home and put the pad in the bathtub, the leak was very easy to locate.

That is my nightmare scenario. I am sleeping better than ever with my air pad, but I started carrying a foam pad for backup.

Maybe it makes sense to ditch the air pad and carry two closed cell pads so that I can approach the comfort and R value of the air pad.

Buy the Thermarest field repair kit. Pack it with your 10 essentials.  Optimize for the good night’s sleep. Worry about the leak if and when it happens.

I have stepped on various inflatable Thermarests with snow shoes and crampons and haven’t experienced a leak yet.  I do usually put a Gossamer thinlight foam pad under it and inspect the ground carefully.

Fixing pads in the field is easy.  Finding the leak with a bathtub or calm lake is easy.  Finding a big leak is easy.  Finding a small leak in the desert or where there are no lakes or bathtubs is very, very hard.  Been there, done that.

Finding a small leak in the desert or where there are no lakes or bathtubs is very, very hard.

This is probably a silly idea, but I suppose when hiking in such environments one could carry a very small spray bottle, which wouldn’t weigh much, and a small bottle of Dr. Bronner’s, or other soap.  This might be a real aid in finding smaller leaks.  I don’t think I’m willing to go to such lengths, but just a random idea.

Xtherms are much more rugged than Xlites I’ve read.  Don’t want to have a sleeping pad fight in the middle of  Sonoran desert cacti with them, but they are pretty solid fabric denier-wise … vs Xlite and esp Uberlite (or other company’s similar offerings).

That said a lake or water source is needed as one can use a little water to get bubbles.  I always blew a pad up and listened for the hiss however faint.

Thar said, I’d carry “survival foam” just in case with any air mattress.  Maybe a reflectix bivy if in conditions requiring a Xtherm.

Like David said, soapy water.  You’ll see bubbles where the leak is

I have yet to have a leak in the field with my Xtherm, but have had both Xlites and Uberlites get holes in them. The Uberlites are delicate. My experience has been that many are slow leaks meaning you can sleep for a couple of hours, blow it up again, and sleep until it gets cold again. So, don’t panic ;-) I have found and fixed a hole in the field without dipping it in water, simple feeling around, putting your ear to a suspected hole spot. Then marking it will a mini sharpie and using the patch kit.

Note: the glue dots in the kit can get squished and on other stuff after time, so keeping it in the original ziplock bag or a separate one is advisable.

Overinflate. Listen for the hiss.

Cyclists do this regularly.

While I have seen a successful in-the-field leak discovery and repair, I’ve also seen failed attempts at such, and even a failed search for a leak in (my own) bath tub.  Some times, the leak just can’t be found.

My experience is fairly consistent with others.  I’ve probably patched 6-10 leaks.  (Not all mine.  I maintain gear owned by our local outdoors club that we loan out to members). Some were found at home in the bathtub.  About 3 or 4 were found in the field usually by dunking in a small lake or pond or a quiet part of a stream.  Last year while hiking part of the JMT my nemo tensor got a leak.  My last night I was camped at Charlotte lake I tried to find it but failed, and had to reinflate my pad six times that night.  The next day I went out over kearsarge for resupply and decided not to continue to whitney because I had no way to repair or replace my pad while in independence, ca.

As others have said sometimes you have to overinflate the pad to get the bubbles to appear when it’s submerged.

My experience with leaks are very small leaks and I could still use the pad, just had to add air two or three times during the night. Almost impossible to find enough water in a desert to locate a leak. So I just wait until I get home. A larger leak would be easier to find. So no need for a “backup” foam pad.

Nowadays I bring a 1/4″ foam pad to use under the air pad for thorn protection.