Sleeping bag repair

The subject of sleeping bag repair is a touchy one to say the least, especially when you are dealing with a very expensive bag. If you have a less expensive bag then I say at least try it. If you do not have any experience sewing I would strongly recommend hiring a professional shop to do the repairs but we will take a look at some of the things you could do yourself.

If the zipper on your bag breaks, Mountain Hardwear makes a product (The Zipper Repair Clamp) that should be an easy fix although the zipper should be replaced sooner than later. If the zipper sliders get loose the teeth won't lock together and that is something you can fix yourself. You will need a pair of pliers, do not use needle-nose. Take the pliers and squeeze the left side of the slide together and then the right side, using needle-nose will put uneven pressure on the slides and damage them. Only do a little at a time because if you tighten it too much then you have a completely different problem. You will need a screwdriver or another flat tool to spread them apart again.

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During sleeping bag repair you can also replace the slider. You need to remove the slider stops on the bottom on most sleeping bags or if you have a double slider then on either end. The slider stops can be on zippers that do not separate at the bottom, jeans for example, or they do separate like a jacket would at the top. If they do not separate then you will need to open the seam or cut the bottom ½ inch off and put new ones on after the new slide is on and working properly. You will need to resew the bottom of the zipper back together if is a non-separating zipper.

Holes or cuts in your sleeping bag can easily be fixed by sewing it back together and then putting a piece of repair tape on the outside. Use a tape that is designed for sleeping bags only, it needs to be flexible and waterproof. If you can't sew, you can put the tape on the inside, it can be tricky, and then another piece on the outside. You can also replace the whole panel but that needs to be done by a professional company. Rainy Pass Repair, Inc is a very reputable company and does fine work.

If you have cold spots in your sleeping bag you can fix those yourself too. Again I don't recommend it on an expensive bag. You can find these spots by sleeping outside on a cold night, they won't take long to find, and marking them with tape or writing down where they are. You can then take feather from a feather pillow and cut a slit in the inner or outer layer and re-stuff the bag. I would recommend cutting the inner layer so you don't ruin the water repellent layer. Once the bag is stuffed sew the fabric layer back together and put a repair patch over the seam. Gore-tex makes a repair kit as does McNett Industries.

If the seams start coming loose on your bag simply try re-sewing it. This is something probably left to a professional unless you are experienced.

In sleeping bag repair washing your sleeping bag is not something you want to do often since washing it can and probably will break down some of the materials used for insulation.

There are also a few things that cannot be fixed.
If you lose the loft in your synthetic bag then you might as well pitch it. There is no way to restore the loft in synthetic bags.
If the baffles get ruptured then pitch it. Time for a new and better one. You can tell if the fill all collects in one area of the bag.

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