Hammock Gear Economy Burrow Backpacking Quilt Review

Hammock Gear Quilt: The Economy Burrow Quilt 30F Review

Highlights | Hammock Gear Economy Burrow Quilt 30F

a near-perfect blend of high performance & good value

The Hammock Gear Burrow Quilt may well be the best deal on the market for getting a good night’s sleep in the backcountry. It blows most ultralight sleeping bags out of the water, costing 1/2 or less of a similarly rated down sleeping bag.

STAFF PICK for Value Backpacking Quilt

Weighing a scant 22 ounces and costing $180 (+30F version, wide width), this quilt is filled with 800 fill power duck down, has a 20D nylon shell, and a zippered foot box. It’s as warm as other equally rated quilts on the market and costs a fraction of the price (see comparisons below).

Myth: quilts are colder than sleeping bags | Fact: they are warmer

We camped on the Southern Patagonia Ice Shelf in a Hammock Gear Quilt.

Despite the myth that quilts aren’t as warm as mummy bags, quilts are, for the same weight, warmer than sleeping bags (see our data tables to back this up). As such, we have been using quilts on pretty much all of our expeditions for 20 years, long before they were popular in the backpacking world. Once you get used to the open sides and not being confined to the mummy bag, quilts offer incredible flexibility in sleeping positions, a wide range of temperature comfort, and lighter and more compressible pack weight. This quilt is no exception, and we’d feel comfortable sleeping in a hammock or on the ground with this all the way down to its temperature rating limit. And Economy Burrow takes the cake, costing far less than most “premium” quilts for barely any weight penalty.

Highly Customizable

Additionally, this is a highly versatile quilt option if you don’t want to go with the base specs. Hammock Gear shoppers have several choices for “upgrades” with the Burrow line, which drops the weight by a few ounces and the price up by nearly $100 when you opt for the Hammock Gear Premium Burrow. We are reviewing the economy model, which has 800-fill duck down, a 31-degree comfort rating, and weighs 22 ounces.

For the full comparison between this and the other top backpacking quilts and sleeping bags on the market, check out the full Best Backpacking Sleeping Bags & Camping Quilts.

Full Video Review | Hammock Gear Economy Burrow Quilt 30F

If a picture is worth a 1,000 words what is a comprehensive video of the quilt review worth? There’s stuff in here that we can’t begin to cover in words.

Overview | Hammock Gear Economy Burrow Quilt 30F

We’ve said it time and time again…. For us, quilts are just the way to go. When you’re sleeping outside, the sleeping pad underneath you is actually what keeps you warm and protected from the ground, not the compressed down of a mummy bag. A backpacking quilt saves weight by not having the down under you, and also saves bulk and money with less materials and insulation to pack into your bag.

This quilt is one of the best deals on the market. The materials aren’t the lightest on the market, but the minimal weight penalty for the quality of the construction and incomparable low cost makes the extra 1-3 ounces entirely worth it. We are impressed with the temperature rating accuracy of this quilt, as well as the extra features that help keep your thermal efficiency as regulated as possible, such as the sleeping pad attachment system, cinch around the neck, and lofty foot box.

Hammock sleepers can opt for the 50-inch width, and ground sleepers will probably want the 55-inch width for maximum protection.

BEST FOR: Budget-conscious quilt users looking for the best value for money in a sub-30F degree quilt and willing to accept slight weight increase vs. a premium quilt.
NOT AS GOOD FOR: Backpackers looking for the very lightest camping quilt for that check out the 18 oz The +30 Hammock Gear Premium Burrow. Restless sleepers, or those not willing to learn how to sleep in a camping quilt

Learn More | Hammock Gear Economy Burrow Quilt 30F

Also See: our Best Backpacking Sleeping Bags & Backpacking Quilts 2020 for a complete overview of the best backpacking quilt on the market including the competition for the Enlightened Equipment Revelation.

STAFF PICK | VALUE Backpacking Quilt: Hammock Gear Economy Burrow +30 Camping Quilt is by a large margin, the best cost/warmth performance of any bag or quilt. Warm, comfortable & incredibly light, and a bargain. With our top value rating of 5.0 it had the best warmth to cost ratio of all the +30 backpacking quilts we looked at — beating out most +30 sleeping bags by almost 2x for value! It’s light and well mannered and comfortable in mild conditions but can just as easily handle cold. This system when combined with a warm down jacket can handle some truly cold conditions. Use a high R Value Therma-a-rest NeoAir X-Lite sleeping pad (we like the “Women’s” pictured) to ensure you get all the warmth out of this sleeping bag.

Key Specs | Hammock Gear Economy Burrow Quilt (Standard)

Design: Down quilt with optional zippered foot box and width options for hammock or ground sleepers

Features: Zippered foot box or sewn foot box option, 20D face fabric with a DWR coating, plenty of customizable choices, cinch around neck to prevent drafts

Weight: 22 ounces | 624 grams
Insulation Fill Power: RDS-certified 800-fill duck down
Comfort Temperature Rating: 31 degrees
Length: Fits 5’7” to 6’2”
Width: 50 inches hammock | 55 inches ground
Face Fabric: 20D nylon
Treatment: DWR treatment on shell fabric
MSRP: $180

Key Features | Hammock Gear Economy Burrow Quilt

Tons of Customization Options: For a low cost quilt it comes with a dizzying array of customizations. The Economy Burrow comes in +40, +30, +20, +10, and 0 F temperature ratings. You can get the quilt in a number of colors for inner and outer shells — e.g. blue on the outer shell black on the inner. In addition, you can choose the standard 50″ (good for slimmer folks and/or hammock use) or the wide 55″ width that we find works better for ground sleepers and three lengths; short, standard and long. And if you want a slightly warmer quit you can specify down “overfill” amounts.

Vertical and horizontal baffling system: Utilizing two different directions of baffles keeps the down in place where you want it and avoids clumping and cold spots. The quilt also has extra down in a horizontal chamber around the neck that acts as additional draft protection.

Zipper or sewn foot box option: The Economy Burrow comes with the option of a sewn or zippered foot box. A zippered foot box adds a bit of bulk and weight, but also the option of fully opening up the quilt for the warmest nights on the trail or in the hammock. A sewn-shut footbox eliminates any drafts through the bottom of the quilt as well as reducing the bulk of a zipper, but also means it can never be fully opened up.

Pad attachment system: One of the issues some restless sleepers have with quilts is the potential for draftiness. The pad attachment system helps mitigate this by connecting your quilt to your sleeping pad, making sure the quilt stays over you and doesn’t gap out overnight. This optional attachment system is made of elastic cords that can be secured to your sleeping pad, and cost just $2.99 to add to your kit. The quilt has three lightweight D-ring tabs on each side for connecting to the attachment kit.

The sewn footbox on our model provides tons of warm and loft for feet on cold nights. Three is also a zippered footbox option that allows the quilt to be spread out flat like a blanket.

Ground or hammock sleepers?

While Hammock Gear is overall a hammock-oriented company, this quilt can be used for ground sleeping or hammock sleeping, making it incredibly versatile for backpackers of all types. Ground sleepers will typically use the 55-inch width option, while hammock sleepers have the confinement of a hammock, and will typically want to go with the 50-inch width.

What’s Great About This Quilt

Water-resistant face fabric:

The durable 20D nylon face fabric comes with a DWR treatment, which helps protect the insulation from getting wet.

Highly insulated foot box:

This is a very plump foot box, with plenty of insulation to keep your feet from getting cold. Or quilt had an incredible 7+ inches of loft at the end!

Incredible value:

Once again, this is an incomparable value in the specialized, lightweight backpacking market. The fact that it is literally half the cost of other comparable models makes this a no-brainer for hammock campers, long-time quilt sleepers, or anyone looking to lighten their pack weight and give quilts a try.

A zippered footbox option allows the quilt to be spread out like a regular blanket.

Economy Burrow with zippered footbox fully unzipped. This gives maximum unconfined comfort when it’s warm(er).

Save weight and pack space:

Quilts are popular with weight-conscious backpackers thanks to their weight savings and pack-space savings. By forgoing the hood, full-length (or any) zipper, and the bottom insulation, you can save ounces and liters of pack space.

Customization options:

This quilt has more options for customizing than many other custom-order quilts on the market. From length, width, temperature rating, and extra fill weight to zipper options, you can really tailor this model to your exact specifications.

What Could be Improved

Long lead time:

If you want to take this quilt on your next backpacking trip, you’ll have to plan ahead. There is at least a five-week lead time, so make sure to get your order in at least a month and a half before your trip to be safe. This is a necessary downside to custom-made backpacking gear from small companies, and all told, an estimated five-week lead time isn’t that bad.

Not as light as Premium Quilts:

This is called the “Economy” for a reason. You’re getting an incredible deal, but there are certainly lighter weight custom made and stock options on the market that use 7D to 10D fabrics and 950-fill down, e.g. The 18 ounce +30 Hammock Gear Premium Burrow with 950 FP down, 10D fabrics and 55″ ground sleeping width. You’ll pay a premium for the lower weight and packability, but for backpackers looking for the absolute lightest setup, this probably won’t be the quilt for you.

Quilts take some getting used to:

Restless or active sleepers can go back and forth with quilts. On one hand, a quilt affords more space to sprawl and a greater variety of sleeping positions than the confines of a mummy bag. On the other hand, it can be easy to toss off the protection of a quilt and end up getting chilly at night, and if you don’t adjust and secure a quilt correctly for your own sleeping temperature, you might feel colder than in a mummy bag or suffer from drafts coming in the open sides.

Compared To…

Be sure to check out our:

Best Backpacking Sleeping Bags & Backpacking Quilts 2020 which lists all serious competition for the Enlightened Equipment Revelation Quilt including both quilts and sleeping bags
and our Supporting Data | Backpacking Sleeping Bags and Camping Quilts that rank sleeping bags on both performance (warmth to weight) and value (warmth/cost)

Competition for Hammock Gear Economy Burrow Quilt 30F

Not like we need to keep reiterating what an incredible deal this is, but here’s an at-a-glance rundown of other comparable quilts on the market, in style, materials, and temperature rating.

HG Premium Burrow 30: Economy Burrow is 1.5 oz heavier, costs $90 less
Enlightened Equipment Enigma 30: Economy Burrow is 4 oz heavier, costs about $100 less
Katabatic Gear Palisade 30: Economy Burrow is 3.6 oz heavier but costs $155 less (!!!)
Western Mountaineering Megalite 30: Economy Burrow is 2 ounces LIGHTER and costs $290 less

Hammock Gear Premium Burrow

The Hammock Gear Premium Burrow is the Econ Burrow’s competition for weight, & performance. While the Premium Burrow is around 3 ounces lighter it’s also about $100 more But You will not go wrong with either quilt. Again, Econ Burrow weighs a smidge more but otherwise has the same level of warmth, function, and customization at a much lower cost.

Learn More | Hammock Gear Premium Burrow

Zpacks 20F “Classic” Sleeping Bag

The crazy light Zpacks 20F “Classic” Sleeping Bag is serious competition for the Econ Burrow and Premium Burrow. It has a higher warmth to weight ratio and can be fully zipped up to become a hoodless sleeping bag. This solves the draft issues associated with true quilts. As such, it’s a hybrid between a sleeping bag and quilt. High cost is the serious downside of the Zpacks 20F “Classic” Sleeping Bag. It’s $200 more than the Revelation.

Learn More | Zpacks 20F “Classic” Sleeping Bag

The Thermarest Hyperion 20 F Sleeping Bag. provides the closest competition for a conventional backpacking sleeping bag. Not surprisingly, it is the lightest traditional sleeping bag in our guide, with the highest warmth/weight. But compared to the Econ Burrow it’s a lot more confining and a lot way, way more expensive.

Learn More | Thermarest Hyperion 20 F Sleeping Bag

Katabatic Gear Flex 22

The Katabatic Gear was one of the early players in the quilt market and has a devoted following. They also have a patented pad attachment system for their quilts. The Katabatic Gear Flex Flex 22 on performance specs (warmth to weight ratio) is close to the Econ Burrow, does not compete for value costing almost double the price!

Conclusion | Hammock Gear Economy Burrow Quilt

Budget-conscious quilt sleepers looking for a lightweight, accurately rated quilt should look no further. 800-fill down, DWR-treated shell, and a mid-range 30-degree rating makes this an incredible all-around quilt for an astonishing $180. Plus, with customizable options for everything from the foot box, to the width, to the fill weight, hammock sleepers, ground sleepers, ounce-counters, and colder hikers can modify the standard HG Economy Burrow to their liking. This quilt weighs just a few ounces more than 30-degree quilts costing hundreds of dollars more, and with the right usage, you’ll be just as protected and snug in this quilt as you would in a mummy bag.