Thanks, Jeff. I apprecaite the info. This is something I would have never thought of. Then again, that's why I came to this forum, to learn.

Now, I keep the three bags that come with the ECWS (military issue) put together within each other. If I were to lay them out flat as you have suggested, would having them all connected within each other for convenience sake also create the same effect, or it is the compression that causes the loss of effectivness to maintain their isnsulative ability?