Philip J. Smith's Blog: Ultralight Foam Sleeping Pads: Benefits and Advantages

Monday, January 29, 2018

Ultralight Foam Sleeping Pads: Benefits and Advantages

Sleeping-under-a-tarp-with-an-ultralight-foam-sleeping-pad

Closed cell foam sleeping pads are quite popular with ultralight backpackers who want to shave every ounce from their gear list and need gear that can't fail. If you want to carry multi-purpose gear to save weight, you're hard on gear, or want to save money, closed cell sleeping pads provide many advantages over inflatable and self-inflating pads.

Advantages of Foam Sleeping Pads

Fail-proof, puncture proof
Durable
Ultralight
Don't absorb water
Good R-value
Inexpensive
Firm
Quiet to sleep on
Simplicity
Don't have to be inflated or deflated
Easily combined with other sleeping pads for more warmth (inflatable, self-inflating, underquilt)
Easy to trim

Granted, foam pads aren't for everyone. But they are simple and reliable to use. You don't have to blow them up before use or struggle to deflate and pack them each morning. There's nothing to break, they're inexpensive, easy to modify and trim, and quite lightweight. You can stack them for cold weather use. You can even shape extra pieces of foam to support parts of your body, like a donut shape to support your hips, or a raised platform for your head, that you can stack on top of a foam pad for extra comfort.

Egg carton foam pad used to create a backpack frame in a frameless backpack — Egg carton-shaped foam pad used to create a backpack frame in a frameless backpack (Granite Gear Virga 2)

Multi-Purpose Ultralight Backpacking Gear

One of the cornerstones of ultralight backpacking philosophy is the use of multi-purpose gear. If you can use one piece of gear multiple ways, you can reduce the number of items you carry, the size of your backpack, and the overall weight of your gear. If you take this route, it's obviously prudent to use gear that can't fail…like a foam sleeping pad. It can never leak or burst.

You can use a foam pad as a :

Sleeping pad
Second sleeping pad to augment inflatable/self-inflating/hammock underquilt in winter
Sit pad
Tent or hammock door mat
Backpack frame (rolled or flat)
Stove wind screen
Pot cozy
Foam padding in a (broken leg or arm) splint

Foam pads are easy to lash to the outside of backpacks (Granite gear Crown2)

Best Foam Sleeping Pads

The three most popular foam sleeping pads with ultralight backpackers are the Therm-a-Rest Z Lite, the Therm-a-Rest RidgeRest, and Gossamer Gear's Thinlight foam pads. The high quality ubiquitous blue foam pads of yesteryear are now quite difficult to find and buy, so these are your best options.

1. Therm-a-Rest Z Lite Sol Foam Sleeping Pad

The accordion shaped Therm-a-Rest Z Lite Sol (w/ aluminized reflective surface) sleeping pad is a backpacking classic that's easy to attach to any backpack. Weighing 14 ounces (72″ x 20″), this close cell foam pad has an R-value of 2.6 and costs $35 – $45, depending on the length. While easy to trim with a pair of scissors, you can also buy a short (51″ x 20″) Z Lite Sol which weighs 10 ounces.

Read the SectionHiker.com Z Lite Sol Review.

2. Therm-a-Rest RidgeRest Classic

The RidgeRest Classic Sleeping Pad is made with crosslinked polyethylene foam. With an R-Value of 2.6, it 's available 48″, 72, and 77″ lengths, weighing 9, 14 and 19 ounces ($19-$29). Like the Thermarest Z Lite, it can be trimmed using a pair of scissors. An aluminized version, the RidgeRest SOLite, is also available with an R-value of 2.8, as well as the thicker aluminized RidgeRest Solar, which has an R-Value of 3.5.

3. Gossamer Gear Thinlight 1/8″ Hammock Foam Sleeping Pad

Gossamer Gear's Thinlight 1/8″ Foam Pad is a multi-purpose item that can be rolled and placed inside a frameless UL backpack to provide structure, attached to the outside, or used as back panel padding with backpacks that have an external pad pocket or elastic attachment system. Made with closed cell Evazote foam, it can also be trimmed to make a custom ground pad, a hammock sleeping pad, or paired with an inflatable pad for protection and greater thermal insulation. Weighing just 2.4-2.8 ounces per roll, it's a hardcore UL option for DIY enthusiasts. Cost: $18.

Wrap Up

However you slice it, closed cell foam sleeping pads are a tremendous ultralight backpacking sleeping pad option. Lightweight, affordable, and easy to customize, they provide tremendous value for the money, which explains their continued popularity within the ultralight backpacking and long distance hiking community.

Written 2018.

Philip J. Smith's Blog