If you have planned a hike or outdoor recreation with an overnight stay, you will definitely need a sleeping system. It includes:
- a sleeping bag that preserves body heat;
- travel mat to protect against the cold from below.
Only a sleeping bag will not be enough. In order for it to "work", the filler must be fluffy and voluminous, then its villi will be able to retain heat inside. But when a person lies in a sleeping bag, the lower part is compressed under the weight of the body, accordingly, the insulation does not warm and does not retain heat there. To solve this problem, a mat for tourism is used.
Why do you need a travel mat?
A tourist rug is a solution to two main tasks:
- Thermal insulation and heat preservation;
- Comfort and convenience during outdoor recreation.
Even the warmest sleeping bag won't be able to provide enough warmth without a hiking rug underneath. It works as a thermal insulating layer between the earth and the human body. Thus, the tourist caremat is a layer that protects from the cold from below and does not allow heat from the body to migrate.
When setting up a tent for the night, it is rarely possible to find a perfectly level place. In the mountains, there may be stones under it, in the forest - bumps and bumps. It is not convenient to sleep on such a surface, in the morning the back hurts and there is no strength left for further adventures. Tourist carpets are used to smooth out the features of the terrain and provide comfortable conditions for recreation. Depending on the chosen option, they can be thicker or thinner, but in any case it is possible to increase comfort. The greater their thickness, the more comfortable it is to sleep on them.
What kind of rugs are there?
All tourist mats are divided into:
- Сaremat
- Self-inflating
- Inflatable
Each of these types of carpets for tourism has its own specific uses and advantages.
Сaremat
Caremats or foams are the most budget segment. Low cost forms their availability. You can buy cartridges at the market, in the supermarket, in tourist shops and even at gas stations. This is exactly the mat with which most go on their first trip.
They make cages from foamed polyethylene. This material has a structure with closed cells, thanks to which it does not absorb moisture, retains heat, and is easy to wash.
Foams are one of the strongest carpets on the modern outdoor market. They are not afraid of friction, cuts. If a spark from a bonfire falls on such a mat, it will not affect its thermal insulation performance in any way. Durability and practicality are the main advantages of foam mattresses.
There are two main types of foams:
Rolls are a rectangular piece of foam material that is rolled into a roll for transportation. In this category, there are both budget thin options for summer hiking and professional thick carpets that can be used for mountaineering and climbing.
The disadvantage of rolled foams is their size for transportation. A twisted roll of foam takes up a lot of space in a backpack, and when attached to the outside, it creates huge buoyancy. Also, it is difficult to put a rain cover on such structures in case of rain.
Z-like. They fold like an accordion, which significantly reduces the volume occupied by the mat. Such models have a wavy surface, which increases their comfort and reduces the dimensions when folded.
To improve thermal insulation, some manufacturers use a thin metallized layer on one of the sides of the frame. In order for it to perform its function of thermal insulation, you should lay a mat with foil with the shiny side facing up. The metal will reflect body heat, and the foam layer will provide softness.
Recently, the Pinguin company introduced its accordion foam mats to the market. The line includes both classic Z-shaped and models with foil. They perfectly compensate for the unevenness of various surfaces and are suitable for use in the warm period of the year and off-season.
And the young Ukrainian brand BaseCamp offers two-layer accordion rugs used for hiking, outdoor recreation, and training.
Despite all the shortcomings, foam is an ideal option for budget tourism in the warm season. It can be used for recreation in nature, for hiking, it does not hurt to put the foam on stones, it is not afraid of damage.
Self-inflating mats
A self-inflating mat or a self-inflating mat is one of the options for travel mats for a good rest in nature. It is based on foam, which acts as the main thermal insulation. And as a shell, the manufacturers took a nylon cover. The mat is completely airtight and has vertical partitions to maintain its shape. The nylon shell is equipped with a valve through which the mat is inflated/deflated.
In the packed state, the filler is in a compressed form. When the valve is opened and the mat is spread, the insulating foam also spreads like a foam sponge and draws in air. This is the process of self-inflation. Depending on the size and model, the mat will be fully inflated in 20-30 minutes. The inflated self-inflating mattress provides softness, comfort and good thermal insulation.
To reduce the weight of the finished product, manufacturers partially remove the foam inside.
Sea To Summit uses Delta Core technology. Its essence is to create trapezoidal horizontal channels without harming thermal insulation. In this way, the weight of the finished mat is reduced, its dimensions are significantly reduced when folded, but it also reliably protects against the cold.
The Pinguin company uses vertical and horizontal zoned perforation to reduce weight. Depending on the model, one or another type of foam removal is used. For some rugs, the manufacturer used both types. Pinguin Peak has vertical perforations in areas with less stress and horizontal perforations in areas with more stress.
To ensure that the mat is comfortable during use and that the sleeping bag does not slide off its surface, brands offer various solutions. In Pinguin it is:
- use of a large silicone logo on the surface of the mat;
- soft fluffy material for the top;
- ribbed surface in some models.
In Sea To Summit, these are anti-slip elements. They are located on both sides, thanks to this, the sleeping bag does not slide on the surface of the mat, and the mat itself does not move in the tent, even if it is installed at an angle.
Soft, thick self-inflating mats are popular among tourists and fans of camping. Despite their relatively heavy weight, they are also used for climbing and mountaineering.
Inflatable mats
This is the best solution for light driving. When every gram of equipment is important, we recommend choosing inflatable carpets. Among the variety of tourist models, they are the lightest and most compact. The average volume of a folded inflatable mat will be from 1 to 1.5 liters.
An inflatable chamber is an empty chamber with small cells inside. They are interconnected. Unlike a regular air mattress, which does not provide thermal insulation, air blowers retain heat. Thanks to small internal chambers and filler, warm air does not migrate outside and comfort and thermal insulation are ensured.
Synthetic materials and natural fluff are used as filler for inflatable mats.
The structure of synthetic insulation differs from that used in self-inflating models. It resembles the materials used to insulate sleeping bags and warm jackets. Microfibers, of which it consists, are better compressed, they are more compact with the same thermal insulation performance.
One of these heaters is THERMOLITE, which is used in Sea To Summit rugs. It keeps warm air inside, light, very compact. For additional thermal insulation, this brand applies Exkin Platinum coating on the inside of the shell. The metallized layer reflects heat, and the filler prevents its migration.
While resting on cheap inflatable mats, you feel like you are lying on a water mattress. Air "flows" from one side to the other. It is impossible to sleep on such a mat. That is why leading manufacturers use small inner chambers with air and their unique designs.
Sea To Summit uses Air Sprung Cells technology. Thanks to it, the load from the body is evenly distributed over the entire surface and cells with air are compressed more evenly. And the Pinguin company uses the same arrangement of cells as in honeycombs to solve this problem.
The main advantages of inflatable mats are:
- Compactness and light weight, which are achieved due to the use of microfiber or down insulation materials;
- Comfort is provided by the thickness of inflatable mats;
- Thermal insulation is the result of using many small cells instead of a few large ones.
But at the same time, they have their own peculiarities in use. Despite the use of reinforced materials for the manufacture of the upper shell, the blowers are very sensitive to punctures. And if a damaged self-inflating mat will retain a certain amount of heat and provide softness, then an inflatable one will completely stop "working" in this form. The insulating layer compressed under the weight of the body will not be able to retain heat, the air that provides softness will escape through the place of a puncture or cut. Therefore, you need to be more careful when using inflatable mats.
Inflatable carpets are used for summer hikes and trips to nature, during bicycle trips, for difficult trekking and expeditions, in a complex with foams.
Characteristics of rugs
The quality of rest on this or that model of rug is influenced by its properties. The main ones are:
Thermal insulation. The main task of the carpet is to protect against the cold coming from the ground.
Manufacturers previously indicated for which temperatures it is optimal to take a certain model. Today, to choose a model based on temperature, the thermal insulation coefficient R-value is used. It reflects the amount of heat that the mat can transmit. The higher this indicator, the less heat it transmits, accordingly, the warmer it will be.
To determine the thermal insulation index, the boxes undergo certain tests. After that, the data is indicated on the characteristics of the model. Choosing a model for active recreation, from be driven by thermal insulation and the season of use. Sleep on a mat with a low R-value at sub-zero temperatures will be intermittent and of poor quality.
Seasonality is one of the criteria for the classification of rugs, which is closely related to thermal insulation. The higher the thermal insulation, the lower temperatures the model can be used.
Conventionally, the gradation of seasonality can be expressed as follows:
- R-value 0.5-2: models for the warm period of the year, when the air temperature is higher than +10С; suitable for light hiking, trekking, rafting;
- R-value 2-3.5: for off-season, when temperatures are within -10С +10С;
- R-value 3.5-5: for winter hikes in the temperature range from -10C to -20C;
- R-value higher than 5: for extremely low temperatures below -22C. They are used for mountaineering, climbing, and expeditions.
Dimensions and shape. Previously, all tourist mats were rectangular in shape. But with the advent of passenger cars, the ease of equipment also affected the mats. Added models with rounded corners, oval and even shortened.
Today, there are two main forms on the market:
- Rectangular Can have straight or slightly rounded corners. They fit perfectly in classic tents with a rectangular bottom, provide tight joints, and prevent drafts between mats.
- Oval or cocoons. Their corners are maximally rounded, which allowed to reduce weight. This also includes trapezoidal options. They will be narrowed to the bottom, it is optimal to use them for tents of the ultralight series, the bottom of which narrows in the leg area.
In order to reduce the weight of equipment, mats of different sizes appeared. This allows not only to minimize the total weight, but also to choose the best option for everyone. For example, Sea to Summit offers the same model in several sizes. Their collections feature two lengths – large and regular. And there are three of them in the catalogs of the Pinguin brand. The gradation between sizes is small, but for those who value every gram in the backpack, this allows you to save weight.
Also, manufacturers are increasingly offering models for men and women that differ in shape, size, and degree of insulation. Most often, women's models are shorter and have better thermal insulation.
Comfort of the rug depends on its thickness. The thicker it is, the more comfortable it is to rest. The large thickness smooths out all the unevenness of the surface where you have to sleep.
- Foam mattresses are made from 0.6 cm to 4 cm thick. It is comfortable to sleep on the thickest of them even on stones, but they take up a lot of space in a backpack.
- Self-inflating mats are available from 2 cm in thickness to 10 cm. Variants with a thickness of 4 cm are used for winter hikes, and with an index of 7 - for camping, because they are more bulky and heavy.
- Inflatables are most often soft, due to their low weight and compactness, they are often made thick. Their thickness starts from 4 cm.
Reliability. In hiking life, it is not always possible to handle equipment with care. Therefore, it is important when choosing a carpet to choose it according to the conditions of use.
Foams are the most durable, they are not afraid of punctures, cuts, and all kinds of damage. They are equally used both for light walks with an overnight stay, and for mountaineering and climbing, when you have to climb into a tent in cats or use a lot of iron.
Self-inflating and inflatable mats require more attention. There is always a risk of damaging them.
But at the same time, self-inflaters win. The foam filling in such mats can retain heat even when the shell is damaged. But if you damage the inflatable carpet, it will no longer be warm. To solve such problems, manufacturers equip the mother for tourism with repair kits. You don't need special skills for this, your task is to find the place of damage, apply glue to the surface of the mat and patches, and press them tightly together.
To protect the tourist from the cold in case of damage to the inflatable or self-inflating carpet, manufacturers offer various solutions. Most often, this is a structure with two separate layers, each of which is pumped through its own valve. Sea to Summit uses this option in its Comfort Plus series models. The same solution was used by Pinguin engineers when developing new rugs for the 2022 collection. Wave, the new mat from Pinguin, has a two-layer construction with two flaps.
As you can see, the price of the rug is not the most important criterion for choosing. It is important to understand that all these options have pros and cons, and everyone decides for himself what to choose.
The wholesale company SMG represents such brands as Pinguin, Sea to Summit, BaseCamp. Our warehouses offer a full range of models from manufacturers recognized by the world tourist community.