A palm-sized pump that saves time, protects your sleeping pad and earns its place in any backpack.
There are a ton of backpacking gadgets out there.
Not all of them impress, but the Flextail Zero Pump 2 is my absolute favourite piece of new gear. The original Zero Pump was already a great piece of kit—small, simple, and effective. The second generation takes that foundation and refines it. It’s lighter, inflates a bit faster, and the battery goes further between charges. Nothing dramatic, just a cleaner, more capable version of something that was already pretty good.
Size-wise, it’s tiny. Smaller than a chocolate bar and about an ounce without the battery. It clips onto a pack strap or keyring and you barely notice it’s there. Six nozzles in the box means it plays well with most sleeping pad brands, and it deflates too—a nice bonus when you’re breaking camp in the morning.
Let’s be honest, inflating a sleeping pad has never been the hard part of backpacking. There are loads of great pads out there that are either self-inflating or have built-in pumps. The Zero Pump 2 just makes that part even easier. It takes less than a minute to inflate most pads and works with just about everything out there. I’ve used it on some of my older pads and the connectors are compatible, which is a welcome surprise.
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Here’s something worth considering—every time you blow up your pad with your lungs, you’re pushing warm, moist air into it. Over time, that moisture can break down the internal materials and shorten the life of your pad, even if it’s just those last few puffs to get it nice and firm. We’ve all spent good money on a quality sleeping pad, so it’s worth thinking about. The Zero Pump 2 helps minimize or eliminate that entirely.
The Zero Pump 2 is a practical, well-thought-out piece of kit. If you’re looking to round out your sleep system and take better care of your gear at the same time, it’s definitely worth adding to the mix. –David Arsenault aka Camper Dave, Prairie Peak Provisions
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