Therm-a-Rest Z Seat Cushion Insulated Sitting Pad

I have never wanted to give an item MORE than five stars until this one. I've been using my trusty Z Seat for over a year on longer, section-hikes on the Florida Trail and Appalachian Trail, now. I keep it strapped to the outside of my backpack where it is most easily accessed. I simply won't take a break, have lunch, etc. without breaking this bad boy out! Keeps my butt out of the dirt, damp, and cold. This keeps me both comfortable and cleaner. Even in camps with a bench or picnic table, this is SO much more comfortable. Works as a great "Welcome Mat" outside of the tent at night to help with crawling out in the middle of the night to go potty. I've used mine for a seat, a pillow, a backrest, and just a cleaner surface to put my stuff on. I'm not being superfluous when I say that the Z Seat is my BEST purchase and one of my MOST appreciated and useful pieces of backpacking gear.

I purchased this sleeping pad because it looked a lot like the Sea to Summit comfort plus pad which is also dual chambered (top and bottom sections are separate). The inflated dimensions are 75" long, 23" wide at head end, 18.5" wide at foot end, and 3.25" thick. Weighed 26.5 oz on my scale without the bag and patch kit. Valves seem of a good quality and the pad seems pretty durable and well made. The air pad is very comfortable compared to many other air pads I've tried for backpacking. With the dual chambers and compared to the r values of other pads, I think the r value would be around 2-2.5. Overall I think it's a good deal at just over $30, just make sure to read the actual specs I included above.

Design is not bad, the cushion has just enough thickness to take the edge off most surfaces and it is waterproof enough to handle the Pacific NW. It is super light and packable. I folded mine in half one time and slid it into one of the outside sleeves of my pack - super low profile. The biggest issue I have with this item is durability. Within 1 trip I am already seeing some significant gouges and chunks of foam missing. At this rate I see this item as more of a disposable seat cushion, not likely to last more than 1 season MAX. Combine that fact with the $15 price point and you get 2 stars. If it was $5 I might be inclined to buy 3 per season and live with the short lifetime, because there are many things that the design gets right. I just wish the price was a little lower or the durability was a little higher.

When you're backpacking it's easy to collect lots of gear that individually doesn't weigh much but collectively ends up weighing too much. If you're looking for something to keep your butt off the wet rocks/logs/ground, in my estimation this is worth the weight "sacrifice". Tip: Be careful if you strap it outside your pack though; it's so light that if it falls off you likely won't notice until it's too late. I think this will now be part of my permanent gear; I'm very happy with it.

I sat on a thin metal stool on a chilly night with one buttcheek on the aluminized version of this seat and one cheek on the non-aluminized version (coyote brown) for 10 minutes and measured both my butt as well as the metal stool's surface temp with an inferred thermometer multiple times. The readings did not have a consistent or significant difference. Both the aluminized version and non-aluminized version are great. Great for backpacking, picinc benches, thermally-conductive aluminum bleachers or anywhere your butt may roam.

Pros: more comfortable than you might think. Great for hard stadium benches, a tree stump, or just the ground.Very light and packable.Keeps your butt warm.More uses than just a sit pad. Can be used to block wind, fan a flame, act as a kneeling pad, or between your knees at night.Cons: too pricey. It's probably not worth $15 in material, but I can't find a similar quality pad anywhere, so it is what it is.Silver thermal covering started wearing off almost immediately. Turned to a dark grey within 2 days of moderate use. I can't tell if it's effected the warmth factor or not because it was on for such a short time.I have concerns about the longevity of the pad as it seems to be flattening out.

I was a bit skeptical about this pad - when would I use it? But it comes highly recommended so I tried it out. It's awesome! I took it on a three day rafting trip last weekend and used it all the time. It's a great kneeling pad when packing gear or cooking at a picnic table, it kept my butt dry after our folding chairs got wet, and it worked as a perfect seating pad on the raft itself! This lil' pad is now on my camping essentials list.

Great sit pad. At 2oz it very light and still comfortable. Stores easy in the side pocket or on top of my pack.

We have been enjoying these sitting pads a lot (we bought two), We use them everywhere, especially on the benches in the park, which are mostly made of metal, and cold, and hard to sit on. So these pads are savers, light, bright, and of excellent design. They fold easily and take little space.

Fast delivery. Ultralight 60 grams. 33cm x 41cm (Length x Width). Actually quite warm to sit on. Good for cold ground. Will be using it as a seat pad and something to stand on when taking my shoes on and off when leaving my tent. Very robust.

Brilliant to pop in your rucksack, very light great seat for a quick rest.

Brilliant to pop in your rucksack, great as a seat for a quick rest.

Tougher than it feels. Seems really soft and liable to damage. 3 weekends away so far and it's still perfect.