Boundary Waters Quetico Forum :: Gear Forum :: Under Quilts and Mosquito Infiltration
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Wharfrat63 |
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lyontyl |
Although I have been using the "search" function on the website I'm not really finding anything on the use of under quilts vs. mosquitos in the forums so I thought I would lean on some of my fellow forum members to guide me. My friend says that he doesn't believe that the mosquitoes will get between the under quilt and the hammock but he also hasn't been up to the BWCA so I don't know if he has a gauge of how thick they can be. My concern is that the mosquitos will get between the hammock and the under quilt and bite any of my extremities or back if they are exposed. Can anyone on here with first hand experience help confirm or deny this. I know I could put a pad in the hammock or a sleeping back but the under quilt is supposed to allow for not really needing a lot of covers in the actual bag so I don't want to bulk up if I don't really need to. I will be testing out my hammock setup before I go but I live in Iowa and the mosquitos are quite smaller and not nearly as thick so I can't replicate the situation and I don't want to go under prepared. It wouldn't be ideal to do "trial by fire" in the north country. |
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907Tundra |
lyontyl: "Should be in my driveway today but I'm running a Kammok Mantis hammock. You’ll be just fine with the Mantis and Ember combo. Set it up at home before you go by laying in your hammock and having someone else snug up the elastic drawstrings on the ends of the UQ. You’re backside will be well protected and the integrated bug net will keep your topside secure. No need for an extra bug net or pad. I’m a believer in Permethrin and you can find versions that do not use petroleum distillates and will not harm synthetic fabrics. I have used it on my clothes but I don’t use it on my hammock. I guess I never felt the need to. I’ve used my hammock in Alaska and just last week in the BWCA. Plenty of mosquitoes around but never a problem with my hammock. Have a great time. I almost gave up camping years ago because I just couldn’t get a good nights sleep in a tent anymore, then I tried a hammock and now I can’t wait to hop into my hammock in the evening…pure bliss. |
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Savage Voyageur |
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bhouse46 |
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AmarilloJim |
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mirth |
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mgraber |
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etuller |
I made my own hammock and made a big tube of bug netting and then I don't need to worry about my arms overhanging the edges of the hammock. I head in in about 10 days and am a little nervous about the skeeters this year. Last year I am not sure I saw more than 10 in a week. |
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unshavenman |
Your underquilt should be completely snug against your hammock and thus your backside when you are laying. When you are not in your hammock the underquilt should actually lift your hammock up a bit. This will eliminate any chance of a cold spot or Cold Butt Syndrome (CBS). No mosquito will ever get you with a correctly deployed underquilt, and there should be no need for an air mattress if you are using an underquilt. |
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lyontyl |
Looking at the ENO Ember under quilt. I have read that a quick permethrin treatment on the underside of the hammock will help but I thought I read somewhere that it has a petroleum base of some sorts and doesn't play well with nylon fabrics. I'm not sure if anyone else has read it isn't good on nylons and polyesters? I can also be persuaded to just run a sleep pad with a sleeping bag. |
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zootownboarding |
lyontyl: "Should be in my driveway today but I'm running a Kammok Mantis hammock. I was just up there end of June and head back in Saturday. I strictly have hammock it. Do not use an underquilt imo, a small pad and just a fleece blanket worked excellent for me down to 51 degrees. Also a good bug net is way better than underquilt. |
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lyontyl |
I ended up bringing a Klymit inflatable sleep pad and I bought an all-weather OneTigris underquilt. It only took one night for me to answer my above question. When I woke up the first morning my sleep pad was perpendicular to my body so that obviously didn't work. But the under quilt did lay tight enough to the back side of the hammock that I did not have any issues with mosquitos biting my back. So during the summer an all-weather under quilt with a 40-50 degree sleeping bag as a blanket working perfectly fine. I will also comment that I don't think I will ever tent camp again going up there after using a hammock! |
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lyontyl |
mirth: "Welcome to the Sky Sleepers club!" I am one with the sky |
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Catrina |
Catrina |
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Unas10 |
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zootownboarding |
Unas10: " This style of net should keep them away from your underside. " That's the net I use. I spray it with permetherin at the beginning of the season, and it's good to go, BWCA or river trips every weekend. Underquilts serve a purpose, only as an insulating layer. for bulk and weight during warmer weather, net, pad and either fleece or topquilt is much better. |
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carmike |
Pads and blankets also work, so you can't really go wrong. I just prefer the UQ for simplicity. Again, just my .02. |
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scottiebaldwin |
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Bjmd28 |
Recently did a bushwhack from our base camp over to a PMA and didn’t want to take my main set up. I took my lounging hammock, a borrowed bug net and threw in a sleeping pad. I was fine, even with an on the fly set up. |