Helinox  Chair Zero Groundsheet

I got the groundsheet on a whim, but I'm really glad I did. It helps in three distinct ways. 1) It keeps the legs from sinking into soft ground/snow/sand. 2) It keeps the legs from spreading out when you sit in the Helinox chair. 3) It allows you to put a rock or other heavy item on it, to keep the chair from blowing over/away in a strong wind. I used it often at every camp, and the groundcloth really helped. The longest backpacking trip so far was a 7-day/8-night loop in the Sierra Nevada last Summer, and it held up perfectly on sand, gravel, snow, and rock. Using the groundcloth to hold rocks/weights to keep it from blowing away during the night was a use case I didn't anticipate, but I used it for that purpose every day/night I had the Helinox set up.

Assemble Chair in this order: 1) Assemble all the aluminum poles 2) Put the groundsheet on the poles. It is tight but you can do it. It gets easier each time you do it. 3) Put the chair fabric on the poles. It is critical you put the chair fabric on only after the groundsheet has been installed. If you do not put the ground sheet on BEFORE the seat fabric, you may end up writing one of those did-not-fit reviews. I have been using the chair with the ground sheet for months now. It works great with no problems.

People need to hit the gym if they can't get this thing to fit. Sure, its a snug fit, thats because it's held in my tension! The groundsheet is essential top making the Chair Zero experience complete. I too put a rock on it to keep the chair from being blown away by the wind. The only negative is that if you attempt to wrap the groundsheet up with the chair and put it all in the chair bag, its a very snug fit. I bought a slightly larger dyneema bag for the chair zero from a 3rd party that solves this issue.

Two other reviewers stated this ground sheet did not fit the Chair Zero. After 30 minutes, I was starting to agree with them. Then, my wife figured out that if you assemble the poles, install the ground sheet, and as a last step attach the seat fabric it all works ... barely. Try attaching the seat fabric as the last step. I still think the ground sheet should be a little larger.

I was unsure if this would fit the Flexlite Air Chair and it does. There is a bit of slack in the center, more than the for the Chair Zero but it does a good job of stabilizing the chair and keeping the legs from sinking in on soft ground.

I spend the Winter Guiding in Everglades National Park. I have tried many compact chairs in deep sand on the many Islands and beaches on the Gulf of Mexico. It can be very frustrating sitting in this type of chair in sand. You have to wiggle as the legs sink so you settle the chair legs evenly. If there is a shell or other object buried under you one leg hits it and the chair tilts and often falls over spilling person, coffee and meals. It also makes the chair very short. The Ground Sheet acts like a snowshoe on the chair and is by far the best way to deal with these problems I have found. No more being thrown by the chair or sitting just inches off the ground.

I purchased the Chair Zero Groundsheet at the same time I purchased the chair. It didn't fit no matter what video or tip I followed. I called Helinox and described my problem. They went up their chain and got back to me the next day and said there was a manufacturer error. If you go on the Helinox website you will see the dimensions are different than what REI has for this one. REI's says 14 x 11 x 1 inches and Helinox's site says 15 x 11 x 1. Helinox knows of the problem now but REI doesn't. I will be reporting it to REI. This is as of March 2022. I don't know how far back the manufacturing defect goes but this may account having good reviews and bad reviews on this product. That being said this is a well made product other than the sizing being off. I have returned this product after a trip to my local REI yesterday. They tried to get it on my chair too and couldn't. I hadn't received the callback from Helinox at that time. I gave this an average review only because it is going to be fixed for future inventory. I really didn't want to give it any stars. Geez! :-)

I’ve been bringing my Helinox chair on bicycle trips for years, and it’s been frustrating when it sinks on soft ground. This mat works very well, even on soft, wet sand. Do not try to fit this on your chair out of the package. Soak it in warm water to soften it up, then put it on, and leave it on for a while. It will stretch out nicely. It’s still tight when I put it on, but it’s supposed to be, otherwise, it would not work.

Fits my Chair Zero easily as long as I pull on the loops. If you don’t pull on the loops, it’s going to be a struggle. My complaint is that it’s 5.25oz. If you’ve paid $150 for a chair that weighs only 1lb, you’d really have to wonder about adding this 33% weight penalty. For $25, they could have used some lighter materials.

The groundsheet does exactly what it is supposed to do, keeping my Chair Zero from sinking into the ground. So far I've used it on sand and soft, loamy mixed hardwoods forest ground. With my base weight at about 12.5 lbs (that includes my Chair Zero and groundsheet) my chair is my biggest "luxury" item and the groundsheet makes it WAY better to use. I haven't had to use the chair in windy conditions yet, but I know that the next time I'm on the beach at Lake Superior I can throw some rocks on the groundsheet and my chair won't blow away when I stand up. It does of course fit very tightly, and a smaller child or someone with diminished hand strength or arthritis would have a difficult time getting the groundsheet onto the chair. This might loosen a little after more use. I would say if you put a Chair Zero in your pack, put a groundsheet in there too! Well worth the weight!