The Biopod DownWool Ice 185 is one of three sleeping bags in the Ice sleeping bag series from the German company Grüezi Bag. The comfort temperature of the sleeping bags range ranges from -1°C for the Ice to -8°C for the Ice Extreme. In our test we tested the Biopod DownWool Ice 185.

General

The DownWool Ice 185 is currently available in three different sizes. The maximum body size for the sleeping bag can be found in the name of the sleeping bag. In this case of the DownWool Ice 185 it is 185cm accordingly. The comfort temperature is -1 ° C. According to EN 13537 temperature specifications, the sleeping bag can be use till temperature of -26 ° C.

Grüezi Bag reaches a comfort temperature of -1 ° C with 750g of its unique down-wool mixture of 70% duck down and 30% refined wool. The duck down filling used has a 90/10 down-feather ratio with a filling power of 650cuin. The down used by Grüezi Bag is also certified with the Resposible Down Standard (RDS). The compressed packing size of the sleeping bag is Ø 23 x 25 cm with a weight of 1708g.

Special Details

To prevent cold air from escaping from the sleeping bag, Grüezi Bag has equipped the DownWool Ice 185 with a warmth collar, an adjustable hood and a face baffle. In addition, the sleeping bag can be equipped with an electrically heated hip bag. However, this is not included in the purchase price. For the highest possible sleeping comfort, the sleeping bag has a pillow compartment, which prevents the pillow from slipping.

For the outer material, Grüezi Bag relies on the highly water-repellent impregnation Bionic Finish Eco. Furthermore, the sleeping bag is equipped with an inner pocket and an outer pocket, which allow you to stow your valuables close to you.

Review

In order to test the thermal output of the Grüezi Bag Biopod DownWool Ice 185, we warmed up the sleeping bag and used a thermal imaging camera to see how much heat the sleeping bag emits and where cold bridges occur.

First, we spread out the sleeping bag so that the down can be puffed up properly and maximum isolation can be achieved. To warm up the sleeping bag, we placed three hot water bottles, which we filled with hot water, in the body area of the sleeping bag, as well as a hot water bottle in the head area. We put two glasses between the hot water bottles so that the warm air can be distributed throughout the sleeping bag.

After 15 minutes we took three pictures with the thermal imaging camera in order to see in which areas the Grüezi Bag Biopod DownWool Ice 185 emits the most heat. The blue areas on the pictures mean that they have the lowest surface temperature and the further the color changes towards red, the higher the surface temperature at these points is. However, the images cannot be compared one-to-one, as the temperature range is redefined for each image. You can see this from the three temperature indications on the picture (red = highest temperature, green = lowest temperature, white = average temperature).

In the overall view it can be clearly seen that the Grüezi Bag Biopod DownWool Ice 185 emits a lot of heat at the points where the hot water bottles are placed. But this is normal because here the sleeping bag is exposed to enormous heat. Furthermore, the thermal imaging camera shows that the sleeping bag is well insulated. This can also be clearly seen in the close-ups of the foot and head area. In the head area, slight discoloration / loss of heat can be seen at the seams.

Conclusion

The Grüezi Bag is the only company that uses a mixture of down and wool. The images from the thermal imaging camera clearly show that Grüezi Bag can keep up with other sleeping bags in terms of thermal performance. Otherwise, the Biopod DownWool Ice 185 feels very high in quality. Only the very high weight and the large pack size are reasons for us why the Biopod DownWool Ice 185 should not be included on every winter tour.

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