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Reviews > Sleep Gear > Quilts and Blankets > Rumpl Original Puffy Blanket > Test Report by joe schafferRumpl
Original Puffy Blanket
Test Report by Joe Schaffer
INITIAL REPORT - April 27, 2017 FIELD REPORT - July 18, 2017 LONG TERM REPORT - September 5, 2017 REVIEWER INFORMATION:  NAME: Joe Schaffer EMAIL: never2muchstuff(at)yahoo(dot)com AGE: 69 GENDER: Male HEIGHT: 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) HOME: Bay Area, California USA I enjoy California's central Sierras, camping year-round with a goal to match my age in nights out each year; about 30 solo. For comfort I lug tent, mattress, chair and such. Typical summer trips run 5-8 days; 40 lb (18 kg), about half food and water related; about 5 miles (8 km) per hiking day. I winter base camp most often at 6,000 to 7,000 ft (1,800 to 2,000 m); 2 to 3 nights; 50 lb (23 kg); a mile or so (1.6 km) on snowshoes, often pulling a sled. Product: Original Puffy Blanket Manufacturer: Rumpl, Inc. Website: https://www.gorumpl.com Mfr. Measures: 1-person as ordered (from website) Weight: 3.1 lb (1.41 kg) Length: 80 in (203 cm) Width: 54 in (137 cm) Other sizes: Throw 50 x 70 in (127 x 178 cm) 2-Person 88 x 84 in (224 x 213 cm) Mfr. Description: (from website) Temperature rating: 45 F (7 C) 20D Ripstop Nylon with DWR with 3D Hollow Fiber Synthetic Insulation resists water, dirt, odor, pet hair, and other debris machine washable synthetic insulation designed to mimic softness of down Colors: Deepwater (blue); Maize (yellow); Charcoal (pictured); Jam (red) MSRP: $99 US My Description: This 15-horizontal-baffle three-layer blanket is rectangular with slightly rounded corners. It is the same material, color, baffle design and size on each side. Bright blue welt trims the perimeter seam; and matching-color thread sews the baffles. Two of the baffles on one end and three at the other are sewn straight across. The rest are all evenly spaced at the edges, but get variously elliptical in between. The baffle seams are not staggered, being sewn straight through from one side to the other. Sewn into the perimeter are four loops: The bottom end has a grosgrain loop on one edge about 12 in (30.5 cm) up the seam and on the other edge a polyester webbing loop about 11 in (28 cm) from the bottom end; and a grosgrain and a poly loop each about 10 in (25.4 cm) from the top end (noting that nothing in the product design inhibits using either side or end as top). Shell material is light ripstop and feels like nylon. Included stuff sack has a drawstring-cord lock closure, no flap. The bottom seam has a grosgrain thumb-loop sewn in, and about 13 1/2 in (34.3 cm) up the side from that is a bag-material flat loop. The bag appears to be made from the same material as the blanket shell; and is amply screened with the company logo and the model. My Specs: 1-person as ordered Blanket weight: 2 lb 9 1/2 oz (1,180 g) Stuff sack weight: 3/4 oz (20 g) Stuffed size: about 7 x 18 in (17.8 x 45.6 cm) Blanket size: about 54 x 80 in (137 x 203 cm) Loft: about 1 1/4 in (3.2 cm) Received: April 26, 2017  Impressions: Wow. From the website glory for this product I never realized how truly blanket-deprived I was. The shell material seems about as light as any sleeping bag I have, and fairly soft for a hard finish. I was prepared to doubt the claim that the insulation mimics the softness of down, but I probably could be tricked into thinking it is down if I wasn't paying attention to the weight. It feels pretty comfy. I enjoyed sleeping under it overnight. It is what it is, of course--a blanket. It has no hood or zipper, or any means of closure. That being the case, I find myself wanting to quibble with the generic claims of small and light. This product is in the price range of sleeping bags that are lighter, pack smaller and rated at the same 45 F (7 C). The website shows a picture of the stuffed product next to a person carrying it, with 'light and packable' superimposed. Notwithstanding the distraction of a mightily curious superimposed logo placement, to my eye the picture is a thousand words different from the stated claim. The blanket is bulky in a backpacking perspective and I will use the stuff sack to contain it. I wasn't sure when I took the blanket out that I'd be able to stuff it back in, but I found cramming it in there not so difficult. I certainly like the thumb loop making it easy to extract the blanket. My experience with sacks made of such light material is that they don't get along well with bulky things being jammed in to fit. As a person who generally eschews the weight of stuff sacks, however, I'll not carp about this one. It does pain me to know my blankie has been squished in it from the day of birth in China. I don't know what the flat-loop is for on the stuff sack, nor have I divined the purpose of the loops on the blanket, let alone why they are different and why the placement on one end does not match up. My impression of warranty is they would be willing to listen, but want the latitude to say no to a claim they find unreasonable. Order-wise I got an email that the product would probably arrive on a certain date (which it did); that it had shipped and the tracking number; and that it had been delivered. Customer service included a bubbly message thanking me for the order and inviting me to contact the customer experience representative if I had any questions or concerns. I don't remember getting that much attention the last time I bought a new car. Most of the time in summer I find myself using my sleeping bag as a quilt anyway, so I've been on the lookout for a quilt warm enough to let me sleep. This blanket is much larger than the 45 F (7 C) quilt I did try and that did not let me sleep at 45 F (7 C). It's wide enough that when I'm with my always-cold camp buddy I'll be able to get the blanket over both of us head-to-toe, which I can't do with any backpacking bag I have. Solo I can wrap it around me from foot-to-midsection; and from there up tuck each side far enough under my body to hold it in place. This should work even better in a hammock; and when I roll out into the mud I will surely appreciate the relative ease of laundering a synthetic-fill product. Field conditions: 1. May 2-4, 2017: Pt. Reyes National Seashore, California. Backpacking, 13 mi (21 km); tent camping, elevations 1,025 ft (312 m) and 955 ft (291 m); insulated all-air mattress. 34 lb (15 kg) leave weight. Two camps. 2. May 14-15, 2017: Stansilaus National Forest, California, Clark Fork. Car camp. 33 F (1 C). Tent camping, insulated all-air mattress; 6,100 ft (1,860 m). One camp. 3. May 22-26, 2017: Stanislaus National Forest and Yosemite Wilderness, California. Backpacking 15 mi (24 km), hammock, insulated all-air mattress; 4,700-6,500 ft (1430-1980 m); 75-40 F (24-4 C); calm, nights very dry to very damp. 44 lb (20 kg) leave weight. Three camps. 4. Jun 5-8, 2017: Loon Lake, El Dorado National Forest, California. Backpacking 10 mi (16 km), hammock, insulated all-air mattress; 6,400 ft (1,950 m); 75-36 F (24-2 C), some calm, some gusting winds. Dry three days and sprinkly the last night and day. 45 lb (20 kg) leave weight. Two camps. 5. Jun 13-16, 2017: Bergson Lake, Carson Iceberg Wilderness, California. Tent, insulated all-air mattress; 6,420 ft (1,957 m). 10 mi (16 km) backpack/3 mi (5 k) road hike. 45 F (7 C) sleeping temps, one night very humid and two nights very dry. 40 lb (18 kg) leave weight. Two camps. 6. Jun 20-23, 2017: Shasta National Forest, California. Hammock, insulated all-air mattress; 8 mi (13 km) backpack, 50 F (10 C) bedtime, mostly calm. 5,720-6,360 ft (1,745-1,939 m). 40 lb (18 kg) leave weight. Three camps. Impressions:  1. PT. REYES: The first night at Sky Camp was so warm and dry I slept on the folded-in-half blanket, not under it. The second night at Glen Camp was 45 F (7 C) and drippy humid when I went to bed. I again folded the blanket length-wise and this time slept between it. Both nights I was wearing a shirt, shorts, pants and socks. The second night I also wore a sherpa hat. I found the blanket deliciously supple and comfortable. I was never clammy. I also somewhat to my surprise was never cold. I'd brought enough extra clothing to compensate for what I thought would be inadequate insulation, but had no need of it. I'd put my heavy jacket over my lower body the second night and fairly quickly threw it off. The blanket is big enough I never had parts exposed, and in fact I did like the roomy freedom to thrash about a bit. As far as sleeping comfort is concerned, I am so far 100% satisfied with this product at the temperature tested, which is the advertised rating of 45 F (7 C). It likely was a few degrees warmer inside my little tent with another person, but the temperature no doubt also fell a few more degrees by daybreak. 2. CLARK FORK: I thought I'd be snow camping, but the ground was dry. Bummer. I knew the temps could approach freezing, so I had a 30 F (0 C) bag for backup. I got in the tent just above freezing, though it felt much warmer. I had on jeans a long sleeve tee and a serious fleece hoodie. I bulked up with a sherpa hat, down booties and a ski jacket over the blanket at my feet. I slept quite comfortably. Now and then I could feel cold spots at my middle where the blanket either pulled off me (I had it folded in half on top of me, so it wasn't very wide) or there was a large air void. The backup bag was in the tent, but I never bothered to take it from the storage bag. After the sun came up and the tent started heating I eventually threw off the blanket, but even then I was not feeling clammy. I was quite favorably impressed. 3. STANISLAUS/YOSEMITE: The first night was very warm and I spent it in a hammock with an insulated air mattress. The second night was a little chilly and damp, but I thought the blanket alone would be enough insulation. It was not and I evacuated to my backup tent sometime during the night. (First trip in a hammock--wasn't sure how it would go.) The third night was 40 F (4 C) at bedtime and I climbed back in the hammock with an insulated air mattress, making it until daybreak. The blanket kept the top of me cozy enough, but any part of me in contact with the hammock got cold. The blanket is really slick, and the hammock puts the feet uphill, so I had trouble keeping it over my feet. The fourth night was 40 F (4 C) again at bedtime and drippy damp. I spent the whole night in the tent under the blanket and was very comfortable. I'm actually quite surprised that the blanket kept me as warm as it did in an uncovered hammock; and that in the tent it provided enough warmth to let me sleep comfortably. I wore long pants over shorts, hiking shirt, wool shirt, jacket liner, down booties and a wool sherpa hat. Reading that list seems like a lot of stuff, but it's becoming my standard cool weather kit. Had it not been for the very positive experience in the first two outings I'd never have attempted the trip with only a blanket. I had more layers, of course, but didn't need them. 4. LOON LAKE: I got better at hammock camping by tucking the blanket under the foot end of my mattress after wrapping it around my feet. Still, I'm thinking a blanket is not ideal for hammocking. The blanket was warm enough even at coolish temps that I could sleep as long as my legs were covered. If anything toward the south end became uncovered, I'd wake up. That was not preferred, but it does speak to the warmth of the product. The third night was damp and not much above freezing, but still I only had shorts and long pants, plus down booties. On top I was geared up enough my arms didn't get cold against the hammock, which the blanket alone cannot prevent. I had a corner of the blanket over my nose; I like how it smells and I didn't wake up with a sore throat from the cold air. I had a huge pack for the trip and instead of using any sack I merely stuffed the blanket into the top of the bag--sometimes I get really adventurous. It made the top of my pack bulbous, but I know the blanket is grateful for the more relaxed space. 5: BERGSON LAKE: I like the blanket in a tent more than a hammock--seems to stay in place better. With the blanket folded in half over me I didn't need booties and on top I had only a light shirt and a jacket liner. I never woke up cold. 6: SHASTA NF: I tucked the blanket end under the mattress each night and never woke up cold any of the three nights of this hammock-only trip. I wore sherpa hat, hiking shirt, wool shirt, jacket liner, shorts, long pants, ankle socks; on an all-air insulated mattress. On a picky note, I'd prefer the stuff sack be enough fatter that it could be shorter by 4 in (10 cm). I want to balance a pill of this bulk sideways. Being 'skinny' doesn't help, and I'd rather it not bulge the pack extender so far out on each side. It might be nice to have loop ties or maybe snaps to secure the folded-in-two blanket, at least enough to make a foot box. Field conditions: 7. July 4-9, 2017: Emigrant Wilderness, California. 11 mi (18 km) backpacking. 50 F (10 C) bedtime, calm. Tent camping, insulated all-air mattress. 7,480-8,400 ft (2,280-2,560 m). Leave weight 38 lb (17 kg), return 31 lb (14 kg). Five nights. Three camps. 8. July 11-16, 2017: Yosemite Wilderness, California. 18 mi (29 km) backpacking. 60-65 F (16-18 C) bedtime. Hammock camping, insulated all-air mattress. 5,520-6,960 ft (1,680-2,120 m). Leave weight 39 lb (17 kg), return 31 lb (14 kg). Five nights. Three camps. 9. July 22-26, 2017: Waldo Lake, Willamette National Forest, Oregon. Hammock, insulated all-air mattress; 1.5 mi (3 km) backpacking XC. Pack not weighed. 60 F (16 C) bedtime. 5,400 ft (1,650 m). Four nights. One camp. 10. July 26-29, 2017: Yolla Bolly Wilderness, California. Tent, insulated all-air mattress; 10 mi (16 km) backpacking trail. Pack not weighed. 65 F (18 C) bedtime. 6,240-6,560 ft (1,900-2,000 m). Three nights. Three camps. 11. Aug 3-11, 2017: Emigrant Wilderness, California. Hammock, insulated all-air mattress; 35 mi (56 km) backpacking trail & XC. Leave wt 41 l b (18.6 kg) return 31 lb (14 kg). 55-45 F (13-7 C) bedtime. 7,600-8,720 ft (2,316-2,658 m). Eight nights. Seven camps. 12. Aug 18-20, 2017: Blow Lake, Three Sisters Wilderness, Oregon. Tent, insulated all-air mattress; 3 mi (5 km) backpacking trail. 55 lb (25 kg). 50 F (10 C) bedtime. 5,050 ft (1,540 m). Two nights, one camp. 13. Aug 22-25, 2017: Waldo Lake, Willamette National Forest, Oregon. Tent, insulated all-air mattress; 1.5 mi (3 km) backpacking XC. 55 lb (25 kg). Sleeping temps 50-34 F (10-1 C). 5,400 ft (1,650 m). Three nights. One camp. Impressions: 7: EMIGRANT: Temps were high enough overnight I spent most of the time with a single layer of the blanket over me and over my partner, who was cold in her sleeping bag. She woke up happy, and this part of the blanket test is proven for me. It works great over both of us, and I don't need a sleeping bag. 8: YOSEMITE: Back in the hammock again this was my warmest test segment yet, and my most comfortable sleeping in the hammock. The first four nights I kept the mattress, but the fifth I left it in the pack and went in for the night with just the blanket. I had to sandwich myself in as even at crazy high temps for Sierras night I still can't sleep directly on the hammock fabric. The blanket provided enough insulation on the bottom, and plenty on top. I am surprised at how warm the blanket is below 40 F (4 C) and yet how comfortable it is at 65 F (18 C). 9: WALDO LAKE: Even warmer nights let me sleep well in a hammock in light clothing sandwiched in the blanket over an insulated all-air mattress. 10: YOLLA BOLLY WILDERNESS: The nights were so warm in the tent I started off sleeping on top of the blanket, then when I'd wake up I'd sandwich myself in it. Mornings were also very warm, yet I never felt sweaty under the blanket. I was on an insulated all-air mattress. 11: EMIGRANT: I've been hiking at lower elevations in high temps so I took out my warmth layer for this trip to save weight and space. At 8,720 ft (2,658 m) huddled under a tarp in a thunder cell downdraft I began to question whether I'd be able to warm up enough in the hammock with pretty much only the blanket. I was tired and grumpy and frustrated that high temps were melting so much snow that Emigrant Dam was overflowing and rampaging Cherry Creek forced me to abandon a cherished plan, while I'm shivering in the cold trying to divine Plan B. Pouting severely I got sandwiched in the blanket in the hammock. In an hour the rain stopped and I was warmed enough to resume cheerful enterprise. At 10 pm temp was down to 45 F (7 C). I knew I'd sleep well and was so rewarded in the Rumpl. I like this blanket so much I'm going to stop complaining about bulk and weight, though it contributed to why I couldn't carry water weight the first day and had to strap a piece of gear to the outside of my pack. 12. BLOW LAKE: So I did get to experience why the lake is named as it is. Temperatures were not that low, but steady wind kept things cool enough. I slept fine with only one layer of the blanket over me. My partner was cold in her bag and appreciated the Rumpl being spread over her as well. 13. WALDO LAKE: Summer temps here reached a new low for me on the last night, just above freezing at sunrise. I wasn't as warm as I would like to have been below the knees, but I wasn't uncomfortable enough to put a base layer under my pants or heavy-up my footwear. I folded the blanket in half length-wise and tucked the end under the mattress, keeping both layers of blanket over me. I had a warmth layer top, so even though the blanket second layer would cover only half of my top half, I was OK. I did wake up when the blanket wasn't reaching to the mattress from my knees or hips. My conclusion was that for a 45 F (7 C) rating on the product, being able to sleep at all just above freezing with only a single layer of clothing on the bottom-half, that's definitely good performance. TOTAL NIGHTS USED SO FAR: 46. Miles carried: 139 (224 km) I've come to rather like the Rumpl and will continue to use it on shorter trips. I am completely satisfied with the one-person size--smaller wouldn't quite do and larger would be more than I need. Quick shots: a) cushy b) big c) heavy d) warm Thank you Rumpl and BackpackGearTest.org for the opportunity to test this blanket. This report concludes my test. Read more reviews of Rumpl gear Read more gear reviews by joe schaffer Reviews > Sleep Gear > Quilts and Blankets > Rumpl Original Puffy Blanket > Test Report by joe schaffer | ||||