UKC

Anyone got any recommendations for sleeping pads which are decently durable? I've heard lots of stories of Neo Air pads popping or sort of ballooning so I'm reluctant to get one of those especially as they cost an insane amount nowadays. Are the Nemo Tensor/Exped pads any good?

My original Thermarest is probably at least 30 years old now. It’s got a few repairs, but still going strong. 
 

I had a lightweight one that ballooned once. This can be avoided by making sure to leave the valve open unless you’re actually sleeping on the mat. 
 

Cheers

Al

My forty year old karrimat was still going strong until to my bitter regret it went awol in my last house move

It might not be as svelte as some of the Thermarest products, but I doubt I'll ever put a hole in my Z Lite.

I've got an ultralight Neo Air and I've never had a problem but I am paranoid it's going to get punctured, it really is crisp-packet material.

I use a thin foam mat underneath it. In winter conditions or if I think it might be rocky I'd use a standard foam mat underneath it.

Foam mat + Neo air us warm, comfortable and some emergency resilience - so if it popped things would be bad but not the end of the world 

It is overly expensive and I probably wouldn't buy one again, but it does pack really small and light!

I've had an exped downmat ul for years. It seemed expensive when I bought it but it's done hundreds of nights, including quite a few rocky bivvies and it's been fine.

A Z Lite is a Thermarest product! 😀

Oscar, I have a 33 year old Thermarest which is still good. Our 25 year old one started delaminating and Thermarest just sent me a brand new one, no questions asked. 

This https://www.ukclimbing.com/gear/camping/sleeping_mats/sea_to_summit_ultrali... is coming on 10 years old, is probably my most used mat now, and still works flawlessly, and this ultra ultra light one https://www.ukclimbing.com/gear/camping/sleeping_bags/therm-a-rest_hyperion... which I also have used a fair amount is also fine 6 years on. The only mats that I've had quality problems with are Alpkit ones where we went through 3 or 4 that leaked, delaminated and so on. Alpkit always replaced and this was a decade ago, but I think premium brands seem worth it in the long run. 

Thermorest's warranty is amazing. 

If I was worried about lifespan I'd definitely buy thermorest again. 

Very happy with my big agnes rapide SL. Also the sea to summit comfort plus insulated. 

my thermarest neoair xlite got a pint hole in it the first time I used it. 

Interesting stuff! Thank you so much for the advice all