The balloon bed is an attempt to create a plastic free sleep mat for short wild camping trips that meets the following criteria:
- Comfortable
- Lightweight
- Economical
This post is a quick look at what I made and instructions for how I have made it. Dimensions and costs included.
The concept
My project objective is to build a plastic free (or at least nearly) wild camping setup for UK hill and moorland use. This means I cannot rely on trees (hammocks), nor fires for warmth and comfort. For the sleep system wool, silk and wax cotton make an effective solution for insulation however sleep mats that are commerically available are all based around plastic. Thermarests, plastic, ridge rests, plastic, inflatable mattresses, plastic. etc.
For a comfortable sleep pad/mat we need it to provide two things. Cushioning from the ground, and an insulative barrier. Inflatable mats, such as the classic thermarest rule supreme here. They are simply the most comfortable way to create a lightweight sleep mat. Could I achieve an inflatable mat without using plastics? The answer is yes!!
Many years ago in the mountain marathon world, some clever people hit upon the idea of using latex balloons with a thin nylon cover for a super lightweight but comfortable sleep mat. The nylon cover is no good to me but as modelling balloons made from natural latex are biodegradeable and easily available I though it would be fun to craft a plastic free equivalent. Now it isn’t a perfect concept, balloons are single use items (or a few uses, but on to that later) but a wax cotton balloon bed is a super simple and cheap sewing project so decided to explore the idea.
Dimensions
I found that for the standard size 260q modelling balloon a 7 cm wide flat pocket works nicely. This allows fairly easy threading of the balloon into the sleeve with no large gap between balloons. So allowing for a cm of so for the pocket dividing stitches a 50cm wide ballon bed is about right for 7 balloon bed, or 57cm wide if you want the extra width of 8 balloons.
For length 122 cm is about right. You could go slightly longer however the balloons won’t give much extra length than that. In sleeping with a pillow uinder my head and I usually put a jumper or my backpack under my foot end, as I do when I use a 3/4 length thermarest.
Materials & Equipment – 7 ballon bed – Add 7cm extra width for 8 balloon bed)
- Lightweight wax cotton fabric – 124 x 102cm (48″ x 40.1″)
- Strong thread – Strong cotton for pure plastic free approach. Polyester whilst a slight compromise in plastic free will give superior logevity and strength so is arguable a good compromise comprising a fraction of the overall product materials.
- Sewing machine – I use a Singer Heavy Duty 4411 (Review here)
- 260Q Natural Latex Balloons (Qualatex are one such brand)
Instructions
- Sew a folded 1cm (0.5″) seam across one of the 102 cm ends. This will be the seam at the opening end.
- Fold the fabric in half across the width and sew the closed side and end (the end is optional. It can be open or closed, if open it will need a folded seam. Open means easy to remove a popped balloon if it happens, closed means less exposed balloon and chance of popping).
- Mark the 7cm (2.75″) pockets with a long rule and chalk. Sew these.
Usage
- Inflate balloons and insert into sleeve
- With this type of modelling balloon you can deflate by carefully cutting off the tied end and using again the next night. 2-3 nights repeat usage of the same ballon is possible with care.
Costs
The wax cotton/ oilcloth material can be sourced for <£15 with enough spare to make a few ditty bags, sit pads or other wax cotton bits. Thread cost is <£1. Natural latex balloons are around 7-10p each. So 50-80p per trip if reuse the balloons.