Anyone tried the exped downmat?

[Huntsman247]

Wondering if anyone here has got the exped downmat with the 7.1 R value and whether they are happy with it. I'm wondering how much the r value will drop over time.... Or will the baffles fail first since its an exped? Lol.
Does anyone have one and is it worth it?

[Mark F]

I bought an Exped Downmat Winterlite M for my partner who feels the cold quite cheaply on Gumtree. It hasn't had much use and I have only used it on one night but that was sleeping on 15cm of fresh snow under a quilt and I was pleased with its performance. I wouldn't worry about performance degradation with down, much more of an issue with synthetics.

[Dalmeny Mark]

Yep, I have the Downmat Winter UL in the long and wide model. I am happy with, and it has not yet had any failures. It is 3 years old and I am a old fat man so it has been tested. I am careful to not to leave it inflated in sunlight and lay down on it carefully (not a young persons leap!). I also do not use it fully inflated like a rock. It has seen use on snow, and uneven rocky surfaces, and I have not noticed any drop in apparent insulation ability as yet. (I always store it uncompressed with valves open). It allows me to sleep very comfortably. Only cons, heavier than my old gold Karrimor CCF pad, and can not use it inside a bivvy bag (It, me and my quilt was too thick for bivvy).

[Lamont]

The failing baffle issue has been addressed as of the last couple of years apparently. Was an issue for old models. Make sure you get one built last year or this and you should be right I have been told, for what that's worth.

[matagi]

My husband has an Exped Downmat UL long and wide, which he has had for several years. The only "failure" he has experienced did not involve the mat itself and was in fact my fault - I ripped the end of the Schnozzle (which is used to inflate the mat) on a trip on the Overland Track. The Schnozzle was repaired in the field using strapping tape and we have subsequently purchased another.

It is his preferred mat for use in snow and he prefers to inflate it fully.

[Huntsman247]

Thanks all for the feedback. Do you all use an inflation pump? Given the moisture issues and the down. Can you get away with just blowing it up by mouth?

[Petew]

Definitely use a pump, does double duty as a dry bag.

[FatCanyoner]

I tried one years ago on a mid-winter walk in the Blue Mountains. I was amazed by how warm it was. You could feel warmth radiating up at you. If anything, the mat was too warm for the trip (it wouldn't have dipped more than a degree or two below zero at night). It was definitely the warmest mat I'd used, and still very compact and light-weight.

It is good to hear the baffle issue has been resolved. I had several Exped mats fail on me (the baffles had a bad habit of blowing out on the first day or two of multiday trips, resulting in some very uncomfortable nights). Despite getting replacements on warranty, it wasn't worth the discomfort when they failed, so I moved over to Thermarest. My NeoAir has served me very well ever since. Warm enough for the trips I do and zero issues with robustness.

As for filling the down mats, I'd definitely use one of those schnozzel pump bags with it. My partner still uses my old Exped one with her REI mat. It's amazing how much moisture is in your breath, so beyond the issue with down loosing its loft, you also protect against mould / mildew growing inside the mat.

[matagi]

The Schnozzel also fits Sea to Summit - we use it to inflate our S2S pillows as well.

[markg]

I use the 9LW and it's awesome for snowy conditions. Bit heavy but warm as. Mine has the two hand prints on it to inflate. Make sure to leave the valve open, if it gets hot it will expand and thats when you'll do the baffles.