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Reviews > Stuff Sacks > Dry Bags > Sea to Summit eVent Compression Bag > Test Report by Erin Marie Hedden

SEA TO SUMMIT EVENT DRY BAG
TEST SERIES BY ERIN M. HEDDEN
LONG-TERM REPORT
October 23, 2011

CLICK HERE TO SKIP TO THE FIELD REPORT
CLICK HERE TO SKIP TO THE LONG-TERM REPORT

TESTER INFORMATION

NAME: Erin M. Hedden
EMAIL: tookieblueeyes@live.com
AGE: 33
LOCATION: Southeastern Colorado, USA
GENDER: F
HEIGHT: 5' 9" (1.75 m)
WEIGHT: 153 lb (69.40 kg)

Backpacking Background: I have been backpacking since 4 years of age, taking long trips into the mountains with my family. I hike various terrains from mountains and plateaus to grasslands and prairies. My excursions can be a day hike with a light-weight waist pack, a loop trail taking up to 5 days on which I keep my pack as light-weight as possible, or an in-and-out trip for a night or two where my pack can be heavy. Slow and steady is my pace and I use a tent or a hammock depending on weather and terrain.


INITIAL REPORT

PRODUCT INFORMATION & SPECIFICATIONS

IMAGE 1Manufacturer: Sea to Summit (Boulder, Co)
Year of Manufacture: 2011
Manufacturer's Website: http://www.seatosummit.com
MSRP: $34.95 US
Size: M (medium); available in XS, S, M, L, XL
Listed Dimensions: 8 x 18 in (20 x 46 cm) and these dimensions were verified as accurate.
Listed Weight: 5.2 oz (147 g)
Measured Weight: 4.8 oz (136 g)
Listed Capacity: 14 liters as a dry bag; 4.2 liters compressed
Fabrics: eVent for the base, polyurethane-coated 70 D nylon body and lid.

INITIAL IMPRESSIONS

The Sea to Summit eVent Compression Dry Sack is the first dry sack that I have had that didn't have a purge valve. Instead of the purge valve to do the work of releasing the air trapped inside the sack once it is packed, the air is able to escape through the air-permeable eVent base.

The seams are double stitched and taped to make them waterproof and there is reinforced stitching on all of the stress points.

The product information sheet that came included in the packaging notes that the dry sack is made of 70 Denier, 210T Nylon with Polyurethane inner coating and the base is made of 3-layer eVent.

READING THE INSTRUCTIONS

IMAGE 2Two sheets came included with the product, a product information sheet and a sheet with tips to help get the best out of the Sea to Summit Dry Sack.

These two sheets were easy to read and pointed out some of the common tips and tricks such as to refrain from using DEET containing solvents sush as mosquito repellents on the materials because they will damage the waterproof coating and the seam sealing tape.

Overall the sheets were very informative and easy to read.

TRYING IT OUT

I jammed a pair of pants, a shirt, socks and a jacket into the sack and all those things compressed quite nicely. I did this to keep some items dry while I took the kayak out on the water at a near by lake. When I got to the other side and unpacked the items I found that all materials were dry even though the sack itself got a little wet laying at the bottom of the kayak.

This concludes my Initial Report for the Sea to Summit eVent Compression Dry Sack. I have plans to take use the dry sack on my next excursion to Four Pass Loop in the mountains outside of Aspen, Colorado where there will be a few river crossings. I look forward to further testing out this item and reporting my findings.


FIELD REPORT

FIELD LOCATIONS AND CONDITIONS

The Sea to Summit eVent Compression Dry Sack was used during a stay in Snowmass National Forest under the Maroon Bells just outside of Aspen, Colorado, where it rained for the majority of the time and the temperature never got above 62 F (17 C) during the day. At one point I got a reading of 45 F (7 C) on a key chain thermometer that I carry with me on all of my outdoor adventures. This reading was obtained while it was raining in the later hours of the evening. Though the sun would come out for short periods of time at intervals throughout the days, it rained every night almost continually. The conditions were exceedingly damp, cool and humid.IMAGE 1

During a trip out to Holbrook Lake near Cheraw, Colorado, I used the Sea to Summit eVent Compression Dry Sack to store a change of dry clothing while kayaking across the lake from the eastern rocky bank to the western sandy shore. It was a hot, dry afternoon with a temperature of 108 F (60 C). Waters were calm but with two of us in the kayak and all of our movement a couple inches of water found its way into the bottom of the kayak.

The Sea to Summit eVent Compression Dry Sack was also put to use on another kayak trip down the Arkansas River in Southeastern Colorado. The trip covered a total of 14 miles from its start in La Junta, Colorado, to where it ended in the Oxbow State Wildlife Reserve near Bent's Fort on highway 109. This trip took place on a cool day in early September. The temperature was 89 F (32 C) and there was a slight breeze coming in from the north.

PERFORMANCE IN THE FIELD

The Sea to Summit eVent Compression Dry Sack proved itself when it kept my clothing and electronics dry during my stay in Snowmass National Forest where it rained the majority of the time. While our campsite was saturated and my tent, with everything in it, was constantly damp, everything I had stowed away inside the dry sack always came out dry as a bone. IMAGE 3

When I pulled out the set of clothing I had stowed inside the dry sack for a trip across Holbrook Lake they all came out of the sack a little moist, but not wet. The clothing was only moist so they dried out within minutes of hitting the outside air. Of course the dry sack was kept on the floor of the kayak and was in around 2 in (51 mm) of water for at least an hour and a half. Given those circumstances I was still impressed with the results when I pulled out the clothing and shook them out.

There were no issues with its use during the kayak trip down the Arkansas River. Everything that I had kept inside of the Sea to Summit eVent Compression Dry sack was kept dry for the duration of the trip. Nothing inside the sack was even moist.

SUMMARY

IMAGE 2 Overall I was quite impressed with the capabilities and performance of the Sea to Summit eVent Compression Dry Sack and have no illusions about its abilities to perform the task for which it was made, keeping items dry, even in the wettest conditions.

It was easy to put at least three seperate changes of clothing in, easy to close up and compress and light enough to carry as well.


LONG-TERM REPORT

LONG-TERM TEST LOCATIONS AND CONDITIONS

The Sea to Summit eVent Compression Dry Sack was used during a few multiple night trips into the mountains of Colorado under various conditions, but none as extreme as one backpacking trip into the Snowmass National Forest where it rained for the majority of the time. temperature never got above 62 F (17 C) during the day. At one point I got a reading of 45 F (7 C) on a key chain thermometer that I carry with me on all of my outdoor adventures.

The dry sack was used on several overnight camping trips on the shore of local lakes and there were also several trips in a kayak on the Arkansas River and on Holbrook lake over the summer. On all these occasions weather was nice and sunny with temperatures up above 100 F (38 C).

Only recently did I use the eVent Compression Dry Sack during for an end of summer backpacking trip into the Wet Mountains of Southern Colorado where the weather was fairly warm, sunny with with daytime temperatures ranging between 93 F (34 C) and 101 F (38 C), the temperatures at night are unknown. The use of the dry sack would seem to have been unnecessary except as a precaution, but it was a lifesaver when the extra water bottle I packed leaked on the first day. The bottle holds 1 L (34 oz) of water and was full when I packed it up at the trialhead. It was located at the top of the pack under a jacket and on top of the dry sack. About 0.27 L (9 oz) of water leaked out of the water bottle onto the dry sack over 3 miles (5 km) before being discovered. I did not check the contents of the dry sack immediately, instead I hiked the last 4 miles (6 km) of trail left on the Greenhorn to my camp before unpacking the dry sack. There was plenty of time for a soaking to turn into a saturation.

I also used the eVent Compression Dry Sack by Sea to Summit to keep my clothing as dry as possible while I wore my swimwear out on a boat on the Pueblo Reservoir during the first week in September. It was a clear and sunny day where they temperature was 104 F (40 C). I spent 7 hours out on the waters and did not stow the dry sack in any of the compartments or holds of the boat, instead I placed it under one of the rear seats and left it there all day while 4 people all were getting in and out of the water, jumping back into the boat after a turn on the innertube or on the skis, or after a quick swim so plenty of water was brought into the boat to slosh around the deck from bow to stern. There were also several drinks spilled. The dry sack received a proper soaking in the 7 hours it spent under the rear port side seat of the boat.

PERFORMANCE IN THE FIELD

The Sea to Summit eVent Compression Dry Sack was one piece of gear I was happy to have in Snowmass National Park on a camping trip where it rained nearly nonstop.

While it was used on excursions in my kayak over the summer, both on the Arkansas river and on Holbrook lake waters, it was a piece of gear I appreciated.

More recently in late August after a water bottle sprung a leak inside my pack I was grateful I chose to use the dry sack. Even after the dry sack was wet it had been left to soak for additional time inside a backpack where it wasn't well ventilated and couldn't dry out well. I expected to be hanging out clothes to dry and going without my sweater that night but the the contents of the bag were only mildly damp around their edges where they were touching the bag itself. Being unpacked and left out in the air for a few minutes was all it took for the affected items to dry out, and not everything was affected, there were items that were still dry.

During the first week of September I used the dry sack to pack my clothing into after changing into swimwear for a day out on Pueblo reservoir on a boat. I threw the bag under the rear seat in the boat and from there it was subjected to being wet constantly for a prolonged period of 7 hours of time. There were areas that were wet and areas that were dry concerning the clothing inside the bag after the day was over. I can only assume that the areas that were affected the most were also laying on the floor where the bag was exposed to the most moisture. Items were not wet enough so that I could wring them out and not all of any one item was wet or moist, there were also sections that were dry. Once I removed the clothing from the bag and put them all on it took 47 minutes for all of it to dry out in a closed vehicle, in the dark and without the air on.

SUMMARY

In short, I feel that the Sea to Summit eVent Compression Dry Sack is a valuable piece of gear that does what it is supposed to do, within normal limits. It provided protection from the rain and lake water and never did I pull out clothing or equipment that was saturated, only mildly damp. I am very pleased with this product.

This report was created with the BackpackGearTest.org Report Writer Version 1. Copyright 2011. All rights reserved.

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