Sweating in the sleeping bag

[SDLorax]

I have been poking around on other internet and hiking/backpacking/camping forums and have not really gained any light into the issue.

Here is my issue. I sweat when I sleep. I know everyone does to some extent, but my wife always says I'm the furnace in the bed and I heat it up too much (not that way either... ok that way too ). The problem gets worse and makes thing very uncomfortable when I'm in my sleeping bag. Unless its in the 20's with my 20 degree bag, I'm rolling steam out the bag. I can't seem to find a happy medium for keeping warm and sleeping. Its either I'm waking up frequently through the night soaked and getting cold from the moisture, or waking up frequently, cold, because the bag is open or cold air is getting in.

Right now my solution is to pack my extra polypropylene base layers to wick away the sweat and either have the bag open and use it like a blanket or keep the zipper from all the way up and use my jacket or something like a light blanket rather than the full bag.

Anyone else have this problem? Mine seems to be worse when I'm out exerting energy all day and fall asleep hard (like when hiking all day in the mountains).

 

[Trial153]

I tend to sleep hot as well. I just vent the bag with the zipper most of the time.

 

[MThuntr]

unzip the bag and sleep under it

 

[brymoore]

Buy a higher degree bag - 30 or 40 degrees.

 

[El Jason]

unzip the bag and sleep under it

This is what I do.

 

[marksjeep]

Get a good liner in your sleeping bag. Pull the liner out each day and air it out on a line.

http://www.seatosummit.com/travel-and-sleeping-bag-liners/

 

[SDLorax]

Buy a higher degree bag - 30 or 40 degrees.

I was just out scouting with a 40 degree bag and the night temps got down into high 40's and I was still a pile of sweat.

I like the liner idea. I thought I would use an extra pair of base layers as the liner that I would just sleep in. But maybe the liner would be lighter and not be as warm.

Thank you for all the ideas thus far!

 

[2ski]

I don't use one, but maybe a quilt would be up your wheel house.

 

[mplane72]

I have the same problem. I have a fleece liner that I leave zipped and then just leave my 30 degree bag partially unzipped to vent or adjust as needed. Works for me.

 

[Deleted member 28227]

I have the same problem with my 15 degree bag I just use it like a blanket, my threshold for zipping it up seems to be about 10-20 degrees.

 

[2ski]

I don't know. Maybe you are putting too much stock into sleeping all night without waking up once or twice. I always wake up on the ground in a sleeping bag. It just is what it is. When I get too cold I wake up and zip up the bag. If I get too hot, I wake up and vent it.

 

[NoWiser]

I have the same problem, Lorax. It makes it miserable. Either I'm freezing my arse off or I'm drenched in sweat. I can't find that happy medium. The problem is that I don't wake up until it's too late when I'm overheating. When I finally realize it, I'm soaking wet along with my sleeping bag. It only seems to happen when it's cold. My theory is that my face, exposed to the cold air, kicks my furnace up and my body sweats in my warm sleeping bag.

I had a -30 bag from Cabelas and had to completely scrap that. It just didn't work. I could darn near wring it out in the morning. I got a Marmot Helium (15 degree down bag) and it's better, but is most comfortable (when I use it alone) when the air temp hovers around 0 degrees.

I bought a Kifaru woobie a few years ago and it has been a great investment for me. I keep it with me and use my old, worn out Eureka 15 degree bag (more like a 40 degree bag). If I get cold I pull the woobie over me and warm right up. This works great for most situations. If it's suppose to get really cold I sleep in the helium, unzipped, with the woobie over me and then zip up as far as needed throughout the night. If it gets down to -10 or colder I stick the woobie in the bag with me and use it like a liner. If it's really warm I use the woobie alone and sleep on top of my bag. I hate sleeping bag liners because I'm always getting twisted up in them.

On occasion I still wake up sweaty, but getting the woobie has definitely helped me out. I got mine used for a good price, otherwise they are pretty spendy.

Good luck!

 

[Schaaf]

I'm a hot sleeper as well. A quilt has been my savior. Easy to vent and if it does get real cold it is still easy to wrap up in.

 

[mtmander]

use the sleeping bag as a blanket and use a liner , you can adjust as it gets colder outside to where you get in the sleeping bag , with a liner, unzipped to zipped.

 

[Bambistew]

What kind of bag? I tend to sweat more in down. A synthetic bag and a liner work well for me in warm temps. I don't break out the down until it gets cold, or I use it like a quilt.

 

[Festus]

Last year I left the bottom of my bagged unzipped about 12 to 18 inches. This seemed to keep my temp regulated better. Not sure if this actually 'vents' better or if just the cooling of the feet helped regulate body temp better.
If I did wake up cold, just pull foot/feet in and fall back asleep without having to wake completely to zip up. My feet are always hot, though.

 

[Dinkshooter]

unzip the bag and sleep under it

this

 

[SDLorax]

I like the idea of the woobie or something similar like a liner. I'll look into doing that rather than my base layers. Makes more sense to me than having the tight fabric against the skin.

Bambi - It doesn't seem to matter for me. My lightweight bag (40) has some down in the upper and the rest is synthetic and my heavier bag (20) is all synthetic (North Face Cats Meow).

I know it seems like a silly thing to ask about for some, but the struggle is real I tell you

 

[the nikster]

I use a silk liner. It dries fast so I can rinse it out every day if needed.

 

[Epfd217]

I'm also a hot sleeper. I typically do the "unzip, use like a quilt" method. This is usually the best way for me. Also, reduce or be more deliberate about what you wear to bed. A set of thin base layers will do wonders, they don't have to be skin tight. If they are wicking then they won't heat you up and will help keep you from getting sweaty and therefore damp and cold at some point during the night.

Most people I talk to about the issue say they are cold at night and then explain how they overdress to compensate and don't realize they are getting sweaty. They complain they wake up cold and they are hanging out of their bag. Inreality they were sweating and tried to cool down and didn't work until they got super cold.

If you're really hot, think how you would during the day when you're hiking, thin light layer on the skin, and less insulation. Airflow helps too if you can manipulate the tent doors/vents.