clamping 2 tarps together

[tatonka]

would several plastic ties hold tarps together ?

[TomServo]

You can lace them..but grommets don't really match up...unless you add your own. I've duct taped tarps together, with no problems..but required a lot of duct tape

[CornMan]

What you can do is tightly zip tie a tarp to a long gardening stick such as a thin piece of bamboo, and then zip tie the other tarp to the same stick. I've done it with tarps with grommets that do line up without the stick. I connected them with bungee balls wrapped multiple times really tight.

[CornMan]

The way that our camp clamps them together is to put a cross section of EMT conduit right between where the tarps meet, and we then use bungee balls to connect each tarp to that with a gap between each tarp and the conduit.

[TomServo]

+100 on zip ties! I forgot about those..

[FIGJAM]

I've bolted them together at the grommets.

[tatonka]

thks all

[Captain Goddammit]

My camper shade tarp is two unused side panel tarps from a Costco carport, attached together down the middle.
I got a cheap grommet kit from Harbor Freight and installed a grommet every foot, then zip-tied them together. I figure with the load spread out over that many grommets it should be OK.

[Elliot]

Related: I have learned something about securing tarps by the grommets. At first I used a zip tie at each grommet, and I had a lot of tear-outs. Last year I used long ropes that I laced thru all the grommets and around the horizontal poles. Practically no tear-outs. Seems the rope distributes the load evenly by working its way back and forth thru the grommets as needed.

[Captain Goddammit]

Aha .. Thanks, I'll do it like that then!

[theCryptofishist]

more ideas here...

[Savannah]

Related: I have learned something about securing tarps by the grommets. At first I used a zip tie at each grommet, and I had a lot of tear-outs. Last year I used long ropes that I laced thru all the grommets and around the horizontal poles. Practically no tear-outs. Seems the rope distributes the load evenly by working its way back and forth thru the grommets as needed.

That's what I do with my shade cloth . . . grommets + rope.

Grommets + bungee balls worked without tear-outs on my monkey hut in '09.

[Elliot]

Aha .. Thanks, I'll do it like that then!

After carefully applying critical thought to the new data, I trust.

[melodiousdirge]

Depends how fancy you wanna get, and what kind of tarps we're talking about.

Standard woven poly tarps from a hardware store: Putting a towel down on the floor, overlapping the tarps, placing some fabric or cardstock over the seam and then ironing gives you a nice seam. Super 77 spray glue works as well, and duct tape as well, although duct tape is not great in heat and/or wind for extended periods.

Canvas: Sew

Vinyl: Heat seaming as above, or solvent cement.

If you just want to rig them or clamp them, folding the edges together before clamping makes a big diff. Adding your own grommets can work, but it's time intensive. If you're going to use ropes, use one rope and lace the grommets - tying one rope per grommet pair puts a lot more stress on the tarp and can rip out the grommets easier. I like the idea of a broom handle or conduit.