How well do tent stakes work on the playa?

[gladeye]

This will be my first time tenting it, instead of sleping in an rv or van. I figure I'll need to stake my tent, because I know how the winds can get. I've seen lots of rebar used for bigger structures, but how well do regular tent stakes work on the playa? I've read that the soil pack is pretty hard this year, for what that'll help. The stakes I have are the mediocre ones that came with my tent. Should I invest in longer or stronger ones or are they good enough?

[theCryptofishist]

Go for the rebar--even on a tent. Cover the rebar with slit tennis balls or stuffed animals or rebar caps. If you insist on steaks get really good ones. This is 15 years or so of the event's experience on the matter, and those little aluminum toothpicks will be crumpled by your hammer before you get your fly up...

[phil]

I'm with cryptofish. I've seen tents rolling through camps like a tumbling tumbleweed. The playa surface is crumbly and won't hold a regular stake; you need to get down a foot or more, depending on conditions. See Bob Stahl's page at
http://www.geocities.com/potatotrap/tech/bluetarp.htm
and click on desert storms and read the descriptions of local weather, then click on the building materials link for suggestions on securing your stuff.

The winds can be brutal, and although we don't have blizzards every year, you should expect them and be prepared to weather them.

[gladeye]

I'm with cryptofish. I've seen tents rolling through camps like a tumbling tumbleweed. The playa surface is crumbly and won't hold a regular stake; you need to get down a foot or more, depending on conditions. See Bob Stahl's page at
http://www.geocities.com/potatotrap/tech/bluetarp.htm
and click on desert storms and read the descriptions of local weather, then click on the building materials link for suggestions on securing your stuff.

The winds can be brutal, and although we don't have blizzards every year, you should expect them and be prepared to weather them.

Thanks for the tips. I've never worked with rebar, but I imagine I'll need a good size mallet to wack it in. Unfortunately, the web page that link goes to had tihs message:

"The web site you are trying to access has exceeded its allocated data transfer. Visit our help area for more information."

[swampdog]

Last year I took a few "heavy duty" long tent stakes as an experiment. Couldn't get them 3 inches into the playa before they started to crumple.

[phil]

"The web site you are trying to access has exceeded its allocated data transfer. Visit our help area for more information."

DANG! That site's a _resource_! I don't know if it's monthly or daily quota. If it's monthly, we're all in deep trouble.

[HughMungus]

I just bought some 16" plastic stakes at Home Depot. $2.99 each. They also had 12" galvanized steel stakes at 90 cents each that might work for a tent.

[theCryptofishist]

[quote="gladeyeThanks for the tips. I've never worked with rebar, but I imagine I'll need a good size mallet to wack it in."[/quote]The mrFishist has a 3?5? # sledge for this.

[vic]

Rebar stakes are cheap and easy to get, why screw around with something that may not work? If you do not have a sledge hammer, you can borrow one on the playa. Bring a pair of vice grips to twist them when you pull them out.

[Gravity Mike]

Thanks for the tips. I've never worked with rebar, but I imagine I'll need a good size mallet to wack it in.

Yeah, you need one of those mini-sledges, those one handers that are like the child of a full size sledge and a regular hammer.

Gravity