FLEXTAIL ZERO PUMP Review

Recently, FLEXTAIL sent over a beta version of their new ZERO PUMP for me to test out, and I have to say that I’m excited about this little pump. If you’re an ultralight backpacker or paddler looking for a lightweight, compact, electric pump to inflate your sleeping pads, then read on. Even if you’re not, you may be interested after reading my impression of this little device. It makes inflating a thick sleeping pad easier than with the pump bags provided by pad manufacturers.

What is it?

The FLEXTAIL ZERO PUMP is the world’s smallest pump for sleeping pads, weighing only 1.2oz (about 34.02 g) without the battery and measuring approximately 1 inch by 2.95 inches. It comes with six different nozzles to fit various brands of sleeping pads, such as Therm-a-rest, Klymit, Nemo, Sea to Summit, Big Agnes, Exped, and other pads with similar valves. It features a user-replaceable battery and is available in a package that includes a USB-C rechargeable battery.

The pump is easy to use, with a double-click button to start the pump and a single click to turn it off. To use, you connect the right valve to the output side of the pump and then insert the value into your sleeping pad and press the button twice. In about 50 seconds, it fully inflates your mattress. It can also deflate your sleeping pads by attaching the nozzle to the other side of the pump.

The ZERO PUMP is currently available from Indiegogo, where it has raised over 12,000% of its flexible goal. If you hurry, you can get one for $38 with a rechargeable battery.

Weight

There’s a good chance that if you’re reading this article on PaddlingLight, you’ll want to know about the pump’s weight. The total weight for the pump with a battery and valve is 2.1 ounces (about 59.53 g).

To breakdown the various weights of the components:

• The ZERO PUMP weighs 1.2 ounces (about 34.02 g) empty.
• FLEXTAIL provided me with an USB-C rechargeable Nitecore NL169R 950 mAh battery for testing purposes. You can buy the final product with a FLEXTAIL rechargeable battery. The Nitecore battery weighs 0.6 ounces (about 17.01 g). Most CR123A batteries weigh about 0.6 ounces (about 17.01 g).
• Each nozzle weighs 0.3 ounces (about 8.5 g).

The ZERO PUMP in Use

I cover the specifics of battery life below for those that like to geek out about that stuff, but before then and now that all the technical talk is out of the way, what do I subjectively like about the Zero Pump?

The most important part is that the pump inflates my sleeping pads quickly. As a family, we use two different inflatable sleeping pads and one self-inflating pad (my wife is an old technology holdout). With the ZERO PUMP, we can get our two inflatable pads fully inflated in about two minutes with less work than blowing into a bag and then squeezing the bag over and over. With the Nitecore NL169R battery, we get around 40 inflations, which is more than we need on a typical trip. Even if/when my wife switches to a new pad, we’ll still have more than enough battery life for our typical seven-day canoe trips into the Boundary Waters.

The next thing that I like (or dare I say love when compared to other pumps) is the form factor. It’s a round tube and the nozzles are rubber and slide over the tube and stay in place. It is the most elegant solution for a pump that I’ve seen. It can’t get simpler than a tube that sucks in air on one side and spits it out on the other side. The narrow tube also easily slides into the same stuff sack as my sleeping pad, and I don’t have to worry about a hard edge ripping the pad.

Because the nozzle is rubber and slides snuggly over the pump’s end, it doesn’t fall off and get lost in the pack like the nozzles on other electric pumps do. It also securely attaches into the sleeping pad’s opening. I can connect it, and while it inflates the pad, I can do other camp chores, such as pulling out sleeping bags and arranging our tent.

I also like that the battery is user replaceable. One of the problems with built-in batteries is that they have a limited lifespan and once you reach the end of the lifespan, it’s difficult or impossible to replace the battery. With a replaceable battery, this becomes a non-issue. The other thing I like about replaceable batteries is that it is easier to carry an extra small CR123A battery than an entire power bank. As few of us, such as myself, do not use a smartphone when on trail so seldom need to carry a power bank. That said, the battery that I have provides enough juice that we don’t have to worry about carrying a spare battery.

All-in-all I like the ZERO PUMP and will be using it as a replacement for my old pump on all my trips.  

Battery Requirements

For the test, FLEXTAIL sent over a Nitecore NL169R 950 mAh rechargeable RCR123A with the beta unit. That’s what I’m testing with. It is USB-C rechargeable. If you buy the Energy Pack from FLEXTAIL, they include a RCR123A rechargeable battery with a USB-C charging port. It seems to me that if you are buying one, you’ll want to get that battery. On Amazon, I’ve seen rechargeable 16340 batteries with 2800 mAh ratings. I can’t verify that they are legit. Do yourself a favor and buy the ZERO PUMP with FLEXTAIL’s battery.

For anyone buying the ZERO PUMP without a battery, FLEXTAIL gives you the following guidance. You need to meet each of these three criteria:

• The battery size has to be Φ16x34mm (16340 battery type)
• Battery voltage has to be between 3.7v-4.2v
• Battery capacity has to be larger than or at least equal to 650 mAh

If you’re looking for a battery, look for a 16340, RCR123A or a CR123A that meets all the above requirements. If they meet those requirements, FLEXTAIL claims they’ll work.

If you don’t plan on getting the FLEXTAIL battery, I’d recommend the Nitecore NL169R 950 mAh battery. The Nitecore battery is nice because it is USB-C rechargeable and features a red light for charging and a green light for fully charged. The Coast ZX310 650 mAh battery is also excellent and has a USB-micro recharge port. It also has indicator lights to show when it is charged.

Battery Use Tests

For the battery use test, I inflated two separate pads to gauge inflation speed. The first was my Exped mummy-style pad. It’s an older version of the medium Ultra 3R mummy that measures 72 inches long and 20.5 inches wide at the widest point. The second was a Nemo Tensor Insulated 20-inch by 72-inch pad.

It inflated the Exped mummy-style pad in 30 seconds with a freshly recharged battery. It took 50 seconds to inflate the rectangular Nemo with a fresh battery. With the Nitecore battery, the speed dropped off as the battery drained. That’s to be expected.

To test the total battery length on a charge, I let the pump run until the battery ran out. With the Nitecore NL169R 16340 battery, I saw a total run time of 34 minutes. A little bit of math suggests about 40 inflations for the rectangular and 68 inflations for the mummy pads. This is specific to the Nitecore NL169R at 950mAh. It may vary with different batteries.

I know it doesn’t exactly work like this, but a rule of thumb might be you’ll get one mummy pad inflation for about 14 mAh. You’ll get one rectangular pad inflation for about 24 mAh. That will help you plan your battery use with whatever battery you end up buying.

Here are the important stats to help you plan. These stats are based on my specific pads using the batteries that I had for the beta test.

Inflation Rates:

• Mummy: 30 seconds
• Rectangular: 50 seconds

Number of Inflations for the Battery Life (950mAh):

• Mummy: 68
• Rectangular: 40

Estimated mAh per Inflation:

• Mummy: 14
• Rectangular: 24

Conclusion

I’m excited about this new pump. For years, I’ve been using a different pump, but after doing the beta test on this unit, the FLEXTAIL ZERO PUMP will be the pump that I carry with me.

The ZERO PUMP is currently available at Garage Grown Gear, a great, small retailer out of Minnesota that I order lightweight gear from often.