Tips for NeoAir® Care & Warranty
Zoe Huden
There’s nothing worse than enjoying a night under the stars only to find that your sleeping pad is flat. To prevent this from happening or to get your NeoAir camp-ready again, we compiled this guide to protecting, caring for and repairing your UberLite, XLite, XTherm, Topo, Venture or any other NeoAir sleeping pad.
Our Testing
All of our sleeping pads are made in our factories in Seattle, Washington; Reno, Nevada; or Cork, Ireland. Every single pad is tested before they ever leave our facility. The final point is our air validation testing, which fully inflates and allows it to sit for up to 40 hours to ensure the pad stays inflated. Once it passes this final test, the pad heads to packaging and then out into the world.
Day One
When a sleeping pad leaves our factory, it still has a long journey before it gets into your hands. While our packaging does it’s best to protect your future gear, it’s possible for gear to get damaged between our final testing and your door. So, with that in mind, we recommend doing your own air validation at home. Inflate your pad and let it hold air overnight to ensure that it hasn’t been compromised since the testing at our factory. This is also a good time to pull out the stuff sack and repair kit that has been rolled into your pad and place them with the rest of your kit.Prepare For Your Trip
Now that you know your pad is ready to deliver the best night under the stars, do you know what to do if your pad is punctured? Make sure you don’t just pack your repair kit, but also know how to use it. Read over the directions or check out our videos to learn how to find a leak and how to use our field repair kit.
In The Backcountry
Whether it’s your first trip with your NeoAir pad or your hundredth, it’s important to treat your pad with care. While they are designed to handle the rigors of life in the backcountry, that doesn’t mean you should be reckless. Handle your pad with care and avoid placing it directly on rock or sharp sticks. Even the friction of your tossing and turning on an abrasive surface can wear your pad down faster than you may want. If you’ll be bivying out on the rough and hard ground, we recommend bringing along a 14-ounce Z Lite or Z Lite SOL for nights extra protection at warmth. At very least, use a ground tarp or footprint before using a NeoAir directly on the ground.
When Things Go Flat
Remember that moment we discussed earlier? The one where you realize that your pad is deflating or, even worse, already flat. When this happens, you have a few options. First, you could repair it in the field. Glad you packed your repair kit and watched the videos before your trip, huh? We recommend patching your pad with the included kit. Duct tape or off-brand patches often don’t seal properly and are difficult to remove. If you’re returning home the following day, you can always wait to use our beefier home repair kit or send it to our repair shop in Seattle. Now, if your hypothesis is that the valve on your pad is leaking, it’ll be faster to use one of our valve replacement kits than it will be to have you send the pad into our shop in Seattle. If the replacement doesn’t fix your issues, send it our way. At least you tried!
The Repair Shop
Maybe you can’t find the leak or maybe there’s more than a few in your pad, our repair shop can get your pad trail ready. Something like a puncture isn’t covered our warranty but is a simple enough fix for us to get the pad ready for camping. Our repair charge and service fee for up to ten punctures is $20. This keeps your pad out the landfill and makes it much cheaper than replacing your pad. Our repair team is small and can get backed up during peak season. We are always as honest as possible with our repair estimates which can sometimes take up to six weeks due to the volume of pads and our commitment to testing and resolving the issue. If the damage to your pad is covered by our warranty, we will replace your sleeping pad with either the exact same pad or the most comparable if it has been discontinued.
