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A place to chat about gear and the philosphy of ultralight. Ultralight bushwalking or backpacking focuses on carrying the lightest and simplest kit. There is still a good focus on safety and skill.

Forum rules

Ultralight Bushwalking/backpacking is about more than just gear lists. Ultralight walkers carefully consider gear based on the environment they are entering, the weather forecast, their own skill, other people in the group. Gear and systems are tested and tweaked.
If you are new to this area then welcome - Please remember that although the same ultralight philosophy can be used in all environments that the specific gear and skill required will vary greatly. It is very dangerous to assume that you can just copy someone else's gear list, but you are encouraged to ask questions, learn and start reducing the pack weight and enjoying the freedom that comes.

Common words
Base pack backpacking the mass of the backpack and the gear inside - not including consumables such as food, water and fuel
light backpacking base weight less than 9.1kg
ultralight backpacking base weight less than 4.5kg
super-ultralight backpacking base weight less than 2.3kg
extreme-ultralight backpacking base weight less than 1.4kg
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Ground sheets

Sat 14 Jul, 2018 8:15 am

I’ve just retired my Gossamer Gear Polycro sheet. The tape patching the holes is starting to weigh more than the sheet!

What are you all using and where did you get it from?

Re: Ground sheets

Sat 14 Jul, 2018 2:03 pm

I use plastic black damp proof lining for concrete floors used on construction sites from Bunnings or construction suppliers. It’s cheap, durable, 100% water proof, easily replaceable and can be cut to your tent floor shape. It comes in more than one thickness thin or thick.

Re: Ground sheets

Sat 14 Jul, 2018 2:41 pm

I've been using the offcuts from our floating floor install if and when I use one

Re: Ground sheets

Sun 15 Jul, 2018 8:32 am

Al M wrote:I use plastic black damp proof lining for concrete floors used on construction sites from Bunnings or construction suppliers. It’s cheap, durable, 100% water proof, easily replaceable and can be cut to your tent floor shape. It comes in more than one thickness thin or thick.

Which thickness(es) have you used, Al?

Re: Ground sheets

Sun 15 Jul, 2018 3:01 pm

Why not get more polycro?

Re: Ground sheets

Sun 15 Jul, 2018 3:57 pm

viewtopic.php?f=58&t=27799
This was up a while ago. I got mine as you can see from Amazon. Now, who knows?
ps just checked, there are digressions all over the shop-maybe look for my post/comments-might help.
If you find it in Aus. (I couldn't) post it up.

Re: Ground sheets

Sun 15 Jul, 2018 7:01 pm

Tortoise wrote:
Al M wrote:I use plastic black damp proof lining for concrete floors used on construction sites from Bunnings or construction suppliers. It’s cheap, durable, 100% water proof, easily replaceable and can be cut to your tent floor shape. It comes in more than one thickness thin or thick.

Which thickness(es) have you used, Al?


The thinner one. Visit and have a feel for which one is nice.

Re: Ground sheets

Sun 15 Jul, 2018 7:51 pm

I cut a footprint for my first (heavy) bushwalk tent from black builders plastic.
Think it weighed close to a kilo so never used it! I probably chose a heavy weight plastic too...
Currently use a HD space blanket if I'm tarping, and/or a 1200mm tough ccf under my tent/airmat/bum pivot point.

Re: Ground sheets

Mon 16 Jul, 2018 3:05 am

My thin builders plastic perhaps 0.2mm thickness, 2x1m size weighs about 170g. I also sometimes use a Bunnings standard cheap blue tarp medium thickness of 1.8x1.2m size weighing 220g, which has metal eyelets at corners and also works quite well at around $6. I have thinner grade Bunnings tarps that may weigh even less.

Both compare well with standard 2 person tent footprints and ground sheets from Big Agnes, Vango, Sierra Designs etc at similar weights costing $40-99. Some BA UL footprints are around 110g for $85.

Re: Ground sheets

Mon 16 Jul, 2018 12:14 pm

Simple research online shows the Gossamer Gear polycro sheet is from the US and it's the postage that makes it unworthy.

For those interested in the quality end of the market. Where the cost isn't necessarily top of the list of priorities. Where long term performance in the field is what really matters. I would vouch for the original space blanket. That's not one of these common, paper thin emergency space blankets you get for a pittance anywhere.
I've only ever found it imported by Ansco. It's the original US version. Costs close to $50. Oddly enough it depends on the packaging.

There have been copies over the last couple of decades. Kookaburra and Coghlans have both put out more affordable versions. Unfortunately, cheaper too. Through use they delaminate between the layers a little quicker. This can produce a ballooning effect. I think the Kookaburra one even omitted the eyelets which made manufacture less costly. It is certainly one outdoor product which can allow you to choose the level of quality and make a judgement based on your own frequency of use.
I still have in use some of the originals after twenty years. They are at least multi functional.

Re: Ground sheets

Mon 16 Jul, 2018 4:09 pm

I always consider the rubbish factor (end of life) for a product choice, and it's actual effectiveness.
And material/manufacture, origin, size, weight... a fussy shopper!

Re: Ground sheets

Mon 16 Jul, 2018 4:27 pm

You'll buy polycro (window film) locally /or ebay.
50um clear builders film you can buy at 2m wide.
Grabber space blankets are good, we use these, but in another weight category v's polycro.

We've used these and more, but i've no strong preference. A balance with what tent floor you have, is one necessary?. I find Polycro and Tyvek are a awkward to handle.

If spending big on Cuben tent, a similar cuben groundsheet works/is light. Then again a Cuben floor is easy to tape /repair (I don't bother with a groundsheet with my own little tent).

Re: Ground sheets

Mon 16 Jul, 2018 4:59 pm

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/High-qu ... 10231.html

Under $20 AUD and similar quality to my MSR groundsheet that was 3x the price. Not particularly lightweight but well made and cheap, with lots of sizes available from the same manufacturer/seller by the looks of it.

Re: Ground sheets

Mon 16 Jul, 2018 5:23 pm


Paria Outdoors
Ha Ha ha ROFL LMAO

Re: Ground sheets

Mon 16 Jul, 2018 5:26 pm

moisture proof?.. like a blue tarp or a $14 tent floor.

(I'd try a bargain tent but they are always only 1.9m long)

Time to fold out my tyvek piece and make a bathtub gs :)

Re: Ground sheets

Mon 16 Jul, 2018 6:09 pm

Neo wrote:
Paria Outdoors
Ha Ha ha ROFL LMAO

???

Re: Ground sheets

Mon 16 Jul, 2018 6:15 pm

Pariah

Noun
1.
an outcast.
"they were treated as social pariahs"
synonyms: outcast, persona non grata, leper, reject, untouchable, undesirable; rareunperson
"they were treated as social pariahs"
"their bushwalking beliefs were extraordinary and caused civil unrest amongst 24hr gym afficianados"

Re: Ground sheets

Tue 23 Apr, 2019 12:10 pm

Polycro, off eBay under sliding door window insulation.

Came with some double sided tape so I doubled up the edges and reinforced the corners with bread bag clips and bungee, works great.

Re: Ground sheets

Wed 01 May, 2019 10:49 pm

I use a cheapo space blanket when going light. I use a cheopo small blue tarp, when going not so light but still pretty light.

Re: Ground sheets

Tue 10 Sep, 2019 12:50 pm

My current two choices groundsheet wise are tyvek at 186g or a space blanket at 75g. Both of these are cut to the same size. Obviously the tyvek is a lot more durable...and easier to handle. But the size and weight advantage offered up by the emergency blanket is hard to overlook.

What I was wondering though has anyone sourced material more similar to their tent bottom and made one from that? If so, how does that compare to my currenttwo choices? Would it be a good compromise size wise, weight wise, durability and function wise? The tent I am looking to cater for has a 20d 420T 100-percent polyester floor with 2000mm sil/PU coating. And where would I source a couple of metres of a similar material to try this out?
Image

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Re: Ground sheets

Tue 10 Sep, 2019 9:29 pm

I've used 1oz cuben I had left over from another project.

The ground sheet for my Aeon Li weighs 65g including shock cord tie outs. From memory it's about 2.2x0.75m square with a double rolled edge for hemming and reinforcing the tie outs.

I forget where I originally sourced the material from but at the time it was quite cheap at the time. Ripstop by the roll sell it, but the price is quite high these days.

Re: Ground sheets

Wed 11 Sep, 2019 5:00 pm

Is Tyvek strong enough to make a tarp?

Re: Ground sheets

Wed 11 Sep, 2019 5:24 pm

Evan at Terra Rosa gear makes tyvek tarps so I guess so?

Re: Ground sheets

Wed 11 Sep, 2019 11:02 pm

Ultralight hiker has just listed polycro ground sheets on their site for anyone who's interested.

Re: Ground sheets

Thu 12 Sep, 2019 8:24 pm

Petew wrote:Ultralight hiker has just listed polycro ground sheets on their site for anyone who's interested.
Might have to check that out thank you!

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Re: Ground sheets

Thu 12 Sep, 2019 8:26 pm

Bubbalouie wrote:I've used 1oz cuben I had left over from another project.

The ground sheet for my Aeon Li weighs 65g including shock cord tie outs. From memory it's about 2.2x0.75m square with a double rolled edge for hemming and reinforcing the tie outs.

I forget where I originally sourced the material from but at the time it was quite cheap at the time. Ripstop by the roll sell it, but the price is quite high these days.
Ta for that. If I could get my hands on some cuben at a reasonable price that would def be the go. Budget wise it's a bit exy for me otherwise at the moment.

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Re: Ground sheets

Wed 25 Sep, 2019 6:15 pm

I still love Tyvek simply because it is great value for money and lasts a long time. Backpacking Light in Melbourne now sell this by the metre. https://www.backpackinglight.com.au/tyvek-ground-sheet-per-metre.html

Polypro and similar materials are really light but just do go the distance for the abuse I throw at them. Great for short UL trips. Not so great for long distance unless you have the time and money to keep swapping them out. I've used UL ground cloth from MLD while in the US and it worked fine as a moisture barrier but it wasn't great at withstanding tears over a long time. I think the repair tape ended up weighing more than the ground cloth.

Depending on the trip I also use a ZPacks DCF (cuban) bathtub floor. Hugely expensive but great as a moisture barrier with the bathtub sides and matches up well when tarp camping. Lighter than tyvek and packs up about the same. Over time I can anticipate that holes will develop but so far, so good.

Re: Ground sheets

Wed 25 Sep, 2019 7:24 pm

Polycro is the best UL ground sheet but gives little protection. It's good as a barrier to mostiure and dirt so I'm happy to use it. You just need to spend more time preparing your site. I wonder if DCF offers more than just lightening your wallet. Tyvek definitely offers more protection but weighs more.

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Re: Ground sheets

Wed 25 Sep, 2019 8:11 pm

Cuban/DCF groundsheet on my older Zpacks hexamid twin has been perfect for me, but specifically in that tent. It is well designed, hasn’t leaked, and is a great setup.

However, if I just needed a groundsheet, I’d play with the cheaper fabrics.

A

Re: Ground sheets

Mon 30 Sep, 2019 10:41 am

Agree with crollsurf. Polycro is quite durable with some care. If you fold and tape the edges and clear your site it works really well. Mine is 2.5 years old and has maybe 60 nights in it, no holes as of yet.
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