what to sleep on

twisty8 · Post by **twisty8** » Mon Aug 16, 2004 8:36 pm

after 3 burns, my air mattress is dead.
didn't like it much anyway (not thick enough with one person, but jiggles too much with 2 people).

so, any recs? the thermarest type?

how about foam...someone referred to 3inch foam...any suggestions on where to get some?

JezebelinHell · Post by **JezebelinHell** » Tue Aug 17, 2004 8:10 am

You can pick up foam 'egg crates' at pretty much any evil satanic super-store (Wal-mart, K-mart, Home Depot, etc). They're comfy, light, easy to carry, and fairly cheap.

MissNev · Post by **MissNev** » Tue Aug 17, 2004 11:55 am

We purchased 4" very dense foam at Mill End Fabrics in Reno. It wasn't cheap, but it is more comfortable than any air mattress I've ever slept on. It has been to the Playa for 3 years in a row and on several camping trips and it has not worn out.

Fat SAM · Post by **Fat SAM** » Tue Aug 17, 2004 1:05 pm

Am I going to die if I just sleep on a bag on the floor of my tent?

MissNev · Post by **MissNev** » Tue Aug 17, 2004 1:31 pm

Do you normally sleep just on the floor of your tent, Sam? You may be used to it. For me, I would be a hurting, and by extension grumpy, unit. I prefer to sleep in relative comfort.

JezebelinHell · Post by **JezebelinHell** » Tue Aug 17, 2004 1:51 pm

I sleep during the day (not just at BM, I work nights), and tents just get too damn hot. Fortunately for me, my camp has a huge shade structure with lots of couches, so when I get sleepy I just pass out on one of those couches for a couple hours. My tent's just my storage unit out there.

Fat SAM · Post by **Fat SAM** » Tue Aug 17, 2004 1:55 pm

Yeah, I like to sleep on hard mattresses and on the floor, too, sometimes. My wife is partial to real soft stuff, so lately I don't get my fix. When I camp, thoguh, I always sleep on the ground. Air mattress seems like a space/time waster.

MissNev · Post by **MissNev** » Tue Aug 17, 2004 1:59 pm

Sam, since you are local, if you would like a foam mattress thing for your wife, I have an extra that I would be happy to part with. It is a single sized small fold up chair that opens to a bed. One of my camp mates last year used one and loved it. He folded his up during the day to have a chair and make more room in his tent. It has been sitting in my garage, but it should be fine. Let me know if you are interested. It was going to end up in a garage sale or at Savers anyway.

JezebelinHell · Post by **JezebelinHell** » Tue Aug 17, 2004 2:11 pm

Ahh...Savers...
How do I love Savers? Let me count the ways...
1 is for having Girl Scout uniforms in my size
2 is for only charging a couple bucks for them
3 is for having clothing so bright and tacky and hideous you can't believe it was worn anywhere but the playa
4 is for having really nice warm coats for the playa that cost $5
5 is for all the random cheap camping supplies

Fat SAM · Post by **Fat SAM** » Tue Aug 17, 2004 5:36 pm

Miss NEV, yeah, I think she'd love that. Let me ask her tonight and see what she thinks - she's an interesting woman. She may want to sleep on the ground just for the new sensation. I'll pm you if she wants it, for sure! Thanks very much!

And also;

SAVER's RULES!!! We got some really crazy gear there. I got an extremely psychedelic two tone green polka dot dress there that's mind boggling. Rachel got an weird old bridesmaid's dress. I got some incredible red pants and rainbow suspenders! RAINBOW SUSPENDERS!!! C'mon. Where are you gonna find those? I think we should make another trip there, just in case, though. This talk of rain on the playa has me spooked.

TheJudge · Post by **TheJudge** » Tue Aug 17, 2004 7:16 pm

air mattresses are tough out there. Even the good ones seem to get a leak relatively quickly.

The double-thick kinds seem to be pretty good. Even if one of the chambers leaks, you wont wake up on the floor of the tent.

Foam padding is nice too, and I place one underneath my air mattress just in case.

You can also do well with an old futon mattress. Much cheaper than buying high-density foam and they can be rolled up or folded into a couch for added floor space in the tent.

A cot works great too, provided you are sleeping solo. Not so much fun for couples.

Post by **AntiM** » Tue Aug 17, 2004 7:25 pm

We keep a cot in the common shade area for daytime nappers. Just be sure you get one that will hold three people, cots in the open tend to get used as couches. Train everyone to keep it covered up when not in use too ... otherwise it is a dust bed.

Donita · Post by **Donita** » Wed Aug 18, 2004 6:42 pm

Fat SAM wrote:Am I going to die if I just sleep on a bag on the floor of my tent?

I accidentally fell asleep on my sleeping bag on my livingroom floor
a couple nights ago. That was enough to make me go get some
foam egg crates.

Mithra · Post by **Mithra** » Wed Aug 18, 2004 8:14 pm

I'm sleeping on a trampoline this year. Got the idea while surfing Ebay. They had trampoline tents for sale. So I found a cheap 12 foot trampoline and picked up a trampoine tent for it.

I have a king size 2 inch mattress topper to go on the trampoline, a giant velor piece of fabric to cover it, add lots of pillows and some blankets....

It will be ringing it a few times with EL Wire and covering it in Alluminet...Thus the Mithratron was created.

Yep, I'm roughing it.....

Mithra

MissNev · Post by **MissNev** » Wed Aug 18, 2004 10:34 pm

Mithra, not to be forward or anything, but can I please come over and check out your trampoline tent????? PLeeeeaaase? I'm serious here.

Mithra · Post by **Mithra** » Wed Aug 18, 2004 11:00 pm

That's what all the girls say.....I suppose the checks in the mail and you'll respect me in the morning.....

Damn women all they ever want you for is your trampoline....well that and sex....

Did I mention that the Mithratron has two levels? The underneath part is for day use, double shaded from the sun.

MissNev,
Or course you can come by, come to Thermal Shock, it's by Ranger Station Berlin. The Mithratron only resembles a trampoline tent, sort of like Dr. Who's Tartus. It's realy and extradimentional device capable of traveling the multiverse. But I digress.....

MissNev · Post by **MissNev** » Thu Aug 19, 2004 12:47 pm

You sure know the way to a girl's ummmmm heart! Looking forward to seeing your trampoline! Let me know if you need a passenger along on your trip to the multiverse!

Martiansky · Post by **Martiansky** » Sat Sep 24, 2005 7:36 pm

I used a foam flip couch and it worked out great, very comfortable......except for the fact it took up most of the back of my truck, I would bring it again. I recently bought an airbed with the folding frame so hopefully it'll work out for me. I'll be bummed out if it leaks.

sputnik · Post by **sputnik** » Sat Sep 24, 2005 9:20 pm

I have no problem with 3/4" thermarest, but I'm usually pretty well smashed by the time I crash so I don't notice. Have not been lucky enough to know how it holds up under two.

Post by **AntiM** » Mon Sep 26, 2005 7:26 am

We got one of those self-inflating backpacker mattresses and couple it with an egg crate pad or even a dense foam mattress topper. This is not an air mattress, so it can't spring a leak.

robotland · Post by **robotland** » Mon Sep 26, 2005 8:27 am

Ditto the self-inflater....very comfy. When it's not so cold, a BIG hammock is comfy too. (Hung "deep" instead of "long", so you can lay diagonally on it and thus keep your back straight instead of hunchback-of-Gilligan's-Island style. Does support dual-person usage, too.)

diane o'thirst · Post by **diane o'thirst** » Thu Feb 09, 2006 9:41 pm

Line the hammock with a sheepskin quad for chill-proofing and added comfort.

Wait...pricey...dust-magnet...never want to get out of the bloody thing...never mind. Continue, please...

robotland · Post by **robotland** » Fri Feb 10, 2006 7:45 am

[quote="diane o'thirst"]Line the hammock with a sheepskin quad for chill-proofing and added comfort.

quote]

Oh YEAH! An inside-out hanging sheepsleeppod! Or in your case, a wolf in sheep's clothing....

Atar · Post by **Atar** » Fri Feb 10, 2006 4:22 pm

Actually, for insulation I'd recommend you attach the wooly side of a sheepskin to the OUTSIDE of your hammock. Air == insulation. If you trap the air between your hammock and the leather of the sheepskin it will insulate great. If you lay the sheepskin directly into the hammock and lay yourself down on the wool (or sleeping bag for that matter) it will push out the air and insulate less.

Hope that helps

Atar

diane o'thirst · Post by **diane o'thirst** » Fri Feb 10, 2006 4:42 pm

I'll keep that in mind but the hammock I use in camp is one of those Yucatan hammocks. I don't like the canvas ones because most of them have spreader bars — good for kicking back, bad for sleeping.

Maybe one of those memory foam pads would be a better choice...not as pricey, less dust-prone, just as insulating and cozy...

Edit:
Having a "H'mmm..." moment...
Has anyone thought of bringing a kiddie pool, filling it with water and sleeping in an inflatable pool lounge floating on the water? I'm thinking for shelters a little more roomy/elaborate than your average camping tent. The pool/bed could do double-duty as a room humidifier, and if you wanted to get decadent and have a photo op, fill it with floating candles. Artistic/decadent infrastructure!

Atar · Post by **Atar** » Sun Feb 12, 2006 8:08 am

How big a kiddie pool are you hoping on? Most inflatable kiddie pools in Holland max out at 2 meters across if you look REAL hard. But maybe finding bigger ones is easier in America (Supersize me!

). Also remember that the water will turn into graywater during the event (bodypainted people stepping in, drinks being spilled, people that wanna bathe in your bed

). So you'll have to take it all back home or vaporize it in the last two days or so.

Other than those concerns... I like the idea

Or, if you want a simple bed thats original, throw down an inflatable kidde boat and turn it upside down. Makes for a great lounge chair/bed

diane o'thirst · Post by **diane o'thirst** » Sun Feb 12, 2006 2:56 pm

Yeah, I thought about the greywater factorization after I posted, plus it'd get cold. At nights it'd be like laying in ice water unless you had one of those battery-powered bucket heaters like they have for horses...

The inverted inflatable boat sounds like a good idea, sort of like a hammock-and-stand in one piece and collapsible down to virtually nothing.

Gizmo · Post by **Gizmo** » Sun Feb 12, 2006 5:53 pm

One of those memory foam mattress toppers and a cot from the camping store. Can be just as comfey as your bed back home. Getting up off the ground with the cot seems less dusty.

diane o'thirst · Post by **diane o'thirst** » Sun Feb 12, 2006 7:22 pm

Heads up:

I checked through my local Sunday paper and saw a bunch of sales on camping equipment. 'Tis the season! Check your paper circulars and local sporting good stores. For instance, I saw a twin inflatable mattress for about $20, another had them for $29 but had a "buy one get one free" deal.

Does anyone know of a glue to stick vinyl together that won't compromise the material's integrity? (I'm thinking of buying a couple air mattresses, glue them back to back and have an elevated air mattress with a backup in case one gets a leak)

Atar · Post by **Atar** » Sun Feb 12, 2006 9:02 pm

They usually have holes in the sides, if they're meant for the water. Throw some tie-wraps through those holes.