Hi Kaye. You seem to know a lot about sleeping bags. I've read that if you roll them up and squash them in their bags you ruin them and their warming capabilities and insulation is greatly reduced. SO, how do you store yours? I really don't have room to hang them anywhere and I hesitate lay them under a bed as they will get dusty and it also prevents me from vacuuming under the beds, which I do regularly. I bought a 45 gallon tote (I cannot beLIEVE how much stuff I've bought because of ONE sleepover!! FOUR sleeping bags (four in my family, couldn't resist the 75% off (but we DON'T camp so WHY did I do this??) an air mattress, the way cool airpump, and this tote!!) but I can only get TWO of the bags into the tote, otherwise I'll be squashing them and ruining their warmth factor!! And I cherish that warmth factor!! Any ideas? I thought of plastic lawn and leaf bags, and just kind of pushing the sleeping bag in it lightly and sealing it. Do you think that's a good idea or will the black plastic bag somehow ruin the fabric of the sleeping bag? And I still can't imagine where I'm going to now store four leaf bags full of sleeping bags!! YES, I obsess about things!

By Pamt on Saturday, January 21, 2006 - 10:53 pm:

Kate, deep breath. You roll them up and store them in the bag they came in. I've never heard the thing about the warmth factor, but we have bags and do camp (and even in the south 30 degrees is still 30 degrees...and that's cold!) and it's no problem. Especially since you will only be using yours indoors I wouldn't worry about it.

By Kate on Saturday, January 21, 2006 - 10:59 pm:

LOL, Pam! I researched it!! Part of the warmth is the fluff....squash the fluff and you've lost your insulation. Or so they say. And they say it's especially important for people (like me) who rarely use them to not store them tightly rolled. I probably would have been better off continuing to borrow my sister's (tightly rolled) sleeping bag over and over again, as my sanity may have been less taxed. And all of you would have been less taxed....

By Marcia on Saturday, January 21, 2006 - 11:51 pm:

We always store ours rolled up and in the bags they came in. My kids camp outside, and I am far from being anywhere warm.

By Colette on Sunday, January 22, 2006 - 07:28 am:

lol Kate! Relax! We camp every summer/fall and we always roll ours up. I put them in the lawn and leaf bags, tightly rolled up and store them in the basement. I've done this for years and never had to replace a sleeping bag.

By Vicki on Sunday, January 22, 2006 - 09:48 am:

Well, I can't believe if it wasn't ok to store them in the bags they provide, they wouldn't provide them!! I am sure the sleeping bag companies don't want to ruin their own products and have people disappointed in them! I would relax about it and store them how the companies that make the product recommend you store them!!

By Kaye on Sunday, January 22, 2006 - 09:59 am:

I roll mine, but the bags they came with have plenty of room. A couple of mine didn't come with bags (or the bags tore. I do use lawn and leaf bags. I think by rolling them, they mean TIGHT. We had a couple of old ones that we would roll tight, and then tie tight and we had to toss them.

Really you have to go with this, you bought a good name blanket, yes air between everything gives insulation and that brings warmth. But cheapy bags have cotton fluff in them. Most of them now use polar tech stuff which doesn't have the same issues, the "batting" doesn't tear and bunch up (think about an old comforter). Also when you open them to use them, give them a good shake and set them out an hour or two before bedtime. It will give the material time to bounce back.

Relax you are fine. If you are using them and you do find you are cold, take a nice blanket inside with you and wear socks and a hat (90% opf your warmth is lost through your head). You will be fine

By Bea on Sunday, January 22, 2006 - 11:54 am:

To restore the fluff, you could toss them on air in your dryer for a while before you use them