Sea to Summit Ember Eb III

The 2 layer shell keeps all this quality down in one place. A 3D NanoShell™ is used to prevent down leakage and the outer shell is made from lightweight 15D nylon. The quilt features both horizontal baffles from the feet up to the hips, and vertical baffles around the torso. 

The Ember Eb III quilt can be lain flat and used like a blanket, but it also features adjustment straps with press stud attachments and a zipper and draw cord for a foot box on colder nights. When attached with press studs, the adjustment straps can be positioned around your sleeping mat, not only keeping everything together but creating a tighter pocket to sleep in. A short zipper at the feet can be zipped up to keep the feet warmer and is still wide enough when zipped to slide the sleeping pad in. A draft guard lines this zipper to keep warm air in and cold out. A draw string at the very bottom of the quilt can be tightened to create a closed foot box when the zipper is done up. When the hatches are all battened down, this quilt could almost be mistaken for a sleeping bag. 

The compression sack is made of lightweight Ultra-Sil® nylon. Ultra-Sil® nylon has been designed for improved water repellency. By combining a siliconized outer surface, a polyurethane inner surface, and seam sealing, a water resistance of 1,200mm can be achieved.

A separate ‘2 way’ storage bag offers step by step care instructions and 2 convenient ways to store the Eb III. When the zipper is done up, a ‘storage cell’ offers compact storage; when unzipped it expands to create a larger ‘laundry bag’.

• Ultra light 15D nylon 386T liner.
• Ultra-Dry™ Premium Duck Down.
• YKK zipper at the foot box.
• Adjustment straps with press stud attachments.
• Compression sack and “2 way” storage sack included. 

A true foot box can be created with the integrated zipper.

This is a great product. The materials used are well thought out; striving for minimal environmental impacts while maintaining the highest standards in performance. This sort of customizable sleep system allows you to make adjustments to the quilt to make it more like a sleeping bag when it’s cold, or leave it open and use like a blanket.  As someone who always seems to need at least one limb outside of the nest, I really like this adaptability provided by the Eb III.

It’s a simple solution: reducing weight by reducing materials. Insulation is maintained by combining high-quality materials with clever design. The short zipper and draw cord create a warm foot box; though while the zipper has a draft guard, the draw cord does not. A small hole is still open at the bottom of the quilt and this could either be welcome ventilation or easily fixed with socks or by kicking a shirt down to block the draft. By sliding a sleeping pad into the foot box and attaching the adjustable straps around the pad, a pretty convincing sleeping bag is created. It was warm enough on its own, but it could easily be used in addition to another bag when those arctic outbreaks hit. 

The bags provided are great as well. The compression sack does its job well and is waterproof for when it inevitably encounters moisture out on an adventure. The cell storage/laundry bag is a cool addition allowing for extra storage options in order to accommodate for any situation.  

When compared to full sleeping bags, the Eb III matches up fairly evenly.  Synthetic bags of a similar weight such as the Mountain Hardwear Ultra Lamina are certainly cheaper, but just don’t measure up to the warmth of real down. Bags filled with real down are fairly comparable in warmth, vary in weight, but are a bit more expensive. The Sea to Summit Spark SP III is about $100 more, but weighs about 50g less and only achieves an extra 1°C for the temperature rating. The Mont Bell Down Hugger 900 is almost $150 more, weighs about 10g more and also only achieves and extra 1°C for the temperature rating.

When thinking about a sleeping system, the warmth to weight ratio seems to be among the top factors, and price being the deciding one. The Sea to Summit Eb III quilt can stand up next to full sleeping bags when talking weight and warmth but takes the lead when it comes to price.