Hiya, Im new to this forum and Im looking for advice on whether to go for Self Inflating Mattress or airbeds.
I have slept well on a bog standard double air bed with my 7 year old daughter in the past (although was cold), but Im concerned about whether I would sleep as well with my husband as we are used to a king sized bed. Would we be better with mats instead? Or two single airbeds - which I read somewhere on this forum?
I have aslo heard that Mats are warmer than airbeds, is this right?
If you are ok with a firm bed, I find a sim much easier, I always had airbeds go down on me & they seem to split as well. We got a double sim last yr, Gelert, I think & we found it excellent. Just unroll & allow to inflate or give it a few puffs. Much easier than an airbed.
I definitely find SIM warmer than airbed. OH and I push two SIMs together and sleep in a double sleeping bag on top - you can buy a little figure-8 loop to hold the mats together, but ours don't seem to move around much so we haven't bothered. I love them, really comfy and warm. Ours are from alpkit.com - they don't make the same ones any more though.
I've always used single airbeds and found them to be very comfortable. We use singles as they are wider (76cm) compared to a double (135cm) and hubby and I like to be able to move around without distrurbing each other. I place a picnic rug under the bed, then place a thermal fleece topper and fitted sheet on top of the bed. Then I have my Duvalay (the rest of the family have good quality sleeping bags) and if it's very cold we all have a fleece blanket too. Never been cold with that little lot, although obviously it takes up quite a bit of boot space!
Best thing is to check the size of your bedroom pods as many manufacturers base their bedroom sizes on mats not beds - often bedroom pods are only 140cm wide, so you may find 2 single airbeds won't fit.
Having read all the threads on here, I am now looking at getting a couple of 10cm deep SIMs as we're planning to do several festivals this year and this will save having to take a pump.
i got a free SIM recently from Camping Mag....and shock horror they don't self inflate, you still have to pump them up. Sent it back and sticking with my airbed, much more comfortable.
I suspect you will find almost as many answers to your question as there are people on UKCS - everyone seems to have a different view.
Your question comes up quite often so use the Forum's excellent search facility to dig out more info and opinion.
For what it's worth, I personally prefer a self-inflating mat (SIM) to an airbed; partly because I like a firm bed under me, partly because in cool or cold weather a SIM offers far more insulation from ground chill.
I think it depends what you like to sleep on Ive used both and found the SIMs a bit hard for my liking so prefered an airbed but as said earlier they do tend to deflate at inconvenient times. I dont use either now as I have a bedchair.
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We use two "ThermaRest DreamTime XL's" they fasten together via there embeded connecting straps, to make a QueenSize bed, which is actualy larger than the double bed we have at home.
The "DreamTime" is more than just a SIM, as it comes with a foam insert, and the whole unit is encased in a zip on/of cover that is fleece topped and has a heavy vinyl underside, which prevents it from slipping around.
I am not sure what the thickness is, but it's around 5" we add a fitted heavy cotton top sheet to finish the job of.
Downsides are huge pack size and high cost, but well worth it imho.
I've thought of getting a SIM because I feel the cold and airbeds are not the warmest thing to sleep on. I have 2 worries: will it be too much like just sleeping on the ground and will I be even more undignified getting up. (Old age makes it a slow process). How do other people manage?
SIMs every time, I have a carp bed but it is not as comfy in my opinion. Fiona there is no dignified way of getting up from one! Lie on back, unzip bag, sit up, spin round on bum til legs are out in front, turn over on front, hands out on floor, thats saves knees getting it on the hard ground then slowly crank the joints up til upright!
After reading lots of information on here and also reviews elsewhere we have opted for two single airbeds which can be zipped together to make a double. I think I will struggle with the "hardness" of the SIM and although I love the idea, I have bad shoulders and beds which are too hard give me shoulder pain.
We do have a 5cm SIM already, so will take this too, incase of "deflation", oh and pod size wise we are ok.