Comfy no-heat warmth solution

[regis101]

Sleeping with the head under the covers is basically what this thread is all about.

 

[jacqueg]

Sleeping with the head under the covers is basically what this thread is all about.

Yup. But some people feel suffocated if they just bury themselves completely with their covers. A "tent" is a good solution.

 

[regis101]

Thats what the paper towel roll is for.
It doesn't matter. The concept is to have head and torso coverage to aid in colder wether. How much or how little this area is covered would depend on an individuals own comfort .

 

[ckelly78z]

Even in the Summer, I have to have my ears covered with something to sleep well. I usually sleep on my side with a blanket covering everything but my nose...of course, I am in a house that has a cold bedroom (away from the woodstove) so temps of 45 and up. What really helps is laying in a King size waterbed set at 90 degrees.

Boondocking in cold weather would have every muscle of mine cramped up from shivering.

 

[LoveCareThinkDo]

I do something similar, but without the elaborate "tent" system.

I have 6" of foam underneath me. I sleep in a pretty thick sleeping bag (don't know its degree rating). Then I put a dense blanket on top. It is not super thick but looks like it is densely woven from cotton strings. It weighs the sleeping bag down well, and is easy to keep neat and tidy on top.

I arrange the top blanket to extend a bit farther up than the head end of the sleeping bag.

I will stick my head under all the covers so that my breath heats the space inside the sleeping bag and the humidity makes it feel warmer. Once I "run out of air" I tuck the sleeping bag under my chin, while keeping the woven blanket over my head. It allows just enough air to pass through to keep me from feeling as if I am suffocating, but still keeps my face warm.

I don't need any tent pole or wire or paper towel tube. None of that stuff would stay in place once I start rolling over in my sleep anyway.

I also sleep in a double-layer of sweat pants, a T-shirt, and an oversized hoodie. The hood keeps my head warm and face warm while keeping the blanket from laying directly on my eyelids.

 

[dragonstar85]

Thank you! I’m needing ideas to keep warm at night sleeping in my car. I’m going to try this. I’m going stir crazy staying out in the middle of nowhere with a family member. I want to move back into my car but with the -30 temps we been having at night I know I need to figure that part out especially my head staying warm. I have a winter sleeping bag and beginning of last winter I used it with Hot Hands. I think once it gets a little milder I’ll test this out.

 

[AMGS3]

This is not exactly on the specific subject, but I thought it could add to someone else's sleeping bag tent situation.

I recently figured out I can get double mileage on my hot water bottle if it's wrapped in a sweater and then put in my bed under the blankets. I know this may seem obvious, but prior to this I was just wrapping it in a t-shirt. Now, in the sweater, it's still warm 8 hrs later. And a lot of people use those cigarette lighter warming cups to heat their water in a car camping situation.

~angie

Sent from my VS501 using Tapatalk

 

[JD GUMBEE]

I don't need any tent pole or wire or paper towel tube. None of that stuff would stay in place once I start rolling over in my sleep anyway.

This is exactly why I did this. I turn rather violently through the night myself and have never once disturbed the "tented" bag over my face.

 

[Low277]

I just recently slept outside in a sleeping bag in the back of a pickup with a shell on it.  I was curious about how cold it would be. I put a piece of 3/4" polyiso foil faced insulation on the pickup bed. I have a 0 degree rectangular sleeping bag I bought online for about 65 bucks, I also had a sleeping bag liner. Kind of like a giant pillow case. It is supposed to add about 10 degrees to the bags rating. I wore polyester long underwear and t-shirt, nylon dress socks as base layer.
I also wore cheap fleece sweatpants and a matching sweatshirt along with a loose fitting pair of wool socks. I wore a watch cap and a loose hooded balaclava. My sleeping bag is long, 90" so a stuffed a cheap fleece trow into the bottom of the sleeping bag to fill up some space.  It was -16f when I crawled into the sleeping bag about 10pm and it was - 18f at about 7am when I got out. This was on Jan. 20th 2019 in NW Minnesota.

Not being completely crazy, I researched some before doing this. I read in a few places not to put head in sleeping bag. so as not to introduce any moisture.  I did this with my pickup in the driveway near my house so I could seek warmth if needed.

The first 20 minutes were cool but as the bag warmed up it was comfortable temp wise. The surface I was sleeping on was a little hard. But it is doable.  The pickup shell prevented any wind but with the back door open didnt provide any insulation.

I hope to try it again, on a colder night.

 

[regis101]

I just did the third blanket trick during the past few days. First night was without and the head/face was cold. Second and third night(s) I used a third blanket to fashion a make shift bivy using the top of the seat back of the vans couch as support and let the blanket drape on over myself and the edge of the cushion.
Wowza. Major difference. Totally impressed. Many thanks for the tip.
Yes, I amuse easily.

 

[JD GUMBEE]

Yup, once you sleep like this, you seldom waste fuel @ night after.
Glad it worked for you.

 

[Firebuild]

I hope to try it again, on a colder night.

On a colder night. Wow. That would be cold enough for me!