The Softie Expandion 5 is a warm, synthetically insulated bag which is ideal for those who are out in the cold and damp regularly. The insulation inside the bag is taken care of by Snugpak's 100% polyester fill, this allows it to be extremely durable but also will keep you nice and toasty when the moisture creeps in unlike a down bag. If you do happen to get the bag soaking wet, the Softie includes hanging tabs to allow you to air the bag out.
The main feature of this bag however, is that it can be expanded to a larger width, simply by unzipping the standard zip, locating the 'expander zip' and zipping it back up. This allows the bag to open up from 80cm wide to 92.5cm wide, ideal for those who wriggle around in their sleep! This expansion zip is located on a super stretchy panel that runs down the length of the sleeping bag, this moves with you rather than holding you like a straight jacket. What makes this bag even better though, is that it can be shortened and lengthened with clips that are placed on the lower of the bag. This allows the bag to be used for smaller users, children and 6ft people alike.
The mummy shape optimises warmth and comfort when the temperature drops, while a naturally shaped foot box allows your feet to point upright while sleeping if you prefer to sleep on your back. If you require a little more warmth and cosiness, the hood features a drawcord to pull the fabric in closer. An integrated torch is placed inside the hood for quick and easy access in the middle of the night.
This sleeping bag will happily accompany you from temperatures around -15°C and upwards, making it an ideal winter bag for wet or dry adventures.
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Can be shortened with included clips
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Synthetic insulation performs in wet conditions
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Included torch
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Mummy shape utilises warmth
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Anti-snag zip
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Elasticated hood
How warm a sleeping bag do you really need? We’ve tried to help you by grouping our sleeping bags by their recognised comfort ratings. These are the ratings supplied by the brands that indicate the temperature at which you will remain comfortable whilst sleeping on an insulated sleep mat. After all, comfort is what you want when it’s cold and wet outside, and you’re all tucked up in your nice warm sleeping bag.
We always recommend that you choose your bag according to the coldest conditions you will experience; you can always unzip a bag if it is too warm, but trying to sleep when you’re too cold is just miserable. Bear in mind that we are all individuals, so we all feel the cold differently and that our own resistance will fluctuate depending on a whole load of factors, including how much we have eaten, whether we have consumed alcohol, whether we need a wee or what kind of mood we are in!
Sleeping bags do not generate heat; they only trap the heat we produce, so it is vital that you get into your bag when you are giving off warmth, don’t go to bed when you are cold, have a hot meal or a hot drink or do some brisk exercise to get you nicely warmed up.
Traditionally sleeping bag manufacturers provided their own temperature ratings based on their experience, the product's intended end-use and the perceived environment. However, each brand tested their bags in different ways, and it was hard to find a fair comparison between models. So, in 2005 a European standard for sleeping bag temperature ratings, EN 13537, was introduced to give consumers a comparable guide to sleeping bag performance across a range of brands and models. The ratings have four different temperature ratings to give you an indication of the bag's performance.
Comfort Rating: This is the temperature at which an average female should experience a comfortable night’s sleep. On average, women sleep colder than men, so this rating is some degrees above the "comfort lower limit" for a man.
Comfort Limit Rating: This is the lowest temperature at which an average male should experience a comfortable night’s sleep whilst laid down in a curled up position.
Extreme: This is a survival rating where the user is likely to suffer health damage such as Hypothermia. It should be treated with the utmost caution and not be relied on for general use.
However, the EN 13537 European Standard does not apply to down-filled sleeping bags with a fill weight of more than 800g; for those bags, you will have to rely on the manufacturer's experience and technical expertise, which is often more accurate!
Most reputable brands still use their own rating system alongside EN 13537, for instance, Mountain Equipment's “Good Night’s Sleep” and Rab’s “Sleep Limit”. These ratings are often the most accurate guide to the overall performance of a sleeping bag being used by an average outdoor enthusiast because they are based on years of expedition heritage, field trials, technological experience, and constant feedback.
But please bear in mind that all ratings are only a guide and, as mentioned earlier, there are a huge range of factors that can affect your comfort; if you are just not sure, it is always wise to go for a warmer model.
The biggest difference you can make to your overall comfort is to use an efficiently insulated sleeping mat. Once you get inside your sleeping bag, you instantly compress all the filling beneath you, greatly reducing its efficiency. Therefore using a quality sleep mat will ensure you are properly insulated from the cold ground, and you will be a lot more comfortable... Basically, there is no point in buying a top-quality sleeping bag if you are just going to lie down on the floor.