What to look for in a tent?

Sean · Post by **Sean** » Fri Dec 22, 2006 9:55 am

What qualities should you look for in a tent so that it will be comfertable and able to survive desert conditions?

unjonharley · Post by **unjonharley** » Fri Dec 22, 2006 11:01 am

Most any tent will stand up if tied down right.

Suggest you get one you can stand up in.. But not so large that you can not cover it with a shade.

Also suggest you read more of the old threads here on eplaya.

MikeVDS · Post by **MikeVDS** » Fri Dec 22, 2006 11:11 am

If you get a tent that can open up and let a breeze through you'll be more comfortible if you go in it at all during the day, but you'll also get more dust.

If I needed a tent and was just going with a small group I would probably build a 1 frequency dome and fill it with carpet and cushions. Cover it with some blankets sewn together and clip it to the supports.

Our main tent is similar but a 21 foot 4 frequency and we cover it with a parachute and hang hammocks in there too. It works out great.

Dork · Post by **Dork** » Fri Dec 22, 2006 11:38 am

I consider the shade over the tent much more important than the tent itself. If you have a good structure that blocks most of the sun and acts as a wind break, even the cheapest of crappy tents should do fine.

A tent that is tall enough to stand up in is very handy.

StevenGoodman · Post by **StevenGoodman** » Fri Dec 22, 2006 1:40 pm

I have a 10'x10' Springbar (model 5001) canvas cabin tent. Works great, easy to setup, tough as nails, and doesn't go anywhere in the wind. It is just really heavy and expensive; but it will last 20 years.

I cover it with two snow camo tarps to cut down on the heat and it is fine.

blyslv · Post by **blyslv** » Fri Dec 22, 2006 1:57 pm

My naked wife, rarin' to go!

Post by **mdmf007** » Fri Dec 22, 2006 4:47 pm

I was going to say that -

Anyways we always pack accordingly for the element and mission. BM requires a tent that is as dustproof as possible, and can vent.

To tell you the truth when we tented we simply used the 80 dollar walmart tent bought on the way. if it survived we gave it to the boy scouts across the street. If it didnt We filled it with garbage, and disposed of it enmasse.

later all - see you on the playa.

motskyroonmatick · Post by **motskyroonmatick** » Sun Dec 24, 2006 11:02 am

Shade is incredibly important!! My first year (04) I bought/brought a huge dome tent and was unable to get shade up over it and I suffered. I still had the time of my life. Since then I have allways camped in some sort of double envelope enclosure. Shade over enclosed sleeping area.
I have never camped in a dome but I would highly reccommend it as they are ecconomical, easy to build, good wind profile and a mainstay of BM architecture. There are many resources available for advice on how to build a dome so getting it right the first time should not be a problem.
Now with the tent inside the dome on the no sun side(deep playa side) put your clothes in it and fill the rest of it up with an air matress that has the battery pack inflator. Queen size is best. Cover it with a sheet and then a variety of blankets and a sleeping bag so you have what you need depending on air temp. Put some bottled water next to the pillow and then cover everything with a sheet for dust prevention.

Identify Predict Decide and Execute!

falk · Post by **falk** » Thu Dec 28, 2006 3:52 pm

If the tent has vents, make sure every one of them can be sealed up to keep the dust out. This excludes just about any tent you could buy at the local department store or REI. Coleman tents are all half netting nowadays and totally unsuitable. Eureka tents seem pretty good. Those Springbar tents look pretty nice too, but a bit pricy. A small geodesic dome is ideal, but they're a real pain to set up and making a covering for them is non-trivial.

Aluminet canopies overhead make a tent ever so much nicer.

Post by **AntiM** » Fri Dec 29, 2006 9:34 am

Our REI tent doesn't seal up completely, but we springclamp a cover over it and that works just fine. However, it is a small sleeps two backpacker tent, we use our shade area for standing up, dressing and such. Upside is that no one enters our tent, making the no shoes deal easy to enforce. Hint: never wear your shoes or boots into your tent. Big dust source in your sleeping area!

(I'm just weird and cannot sleep in a larger tent, too much space around me makes me nervous. Heck, I even have a partially enclosed canopy bed at home!)

MikeVDS · Post by **MikeVDS** » Fri Dec 29, 2006 1:21 pm

Also REIs are having their "used gear" sale tomorrow (Saturday, Dec. 30). If you need any cheap gear it's a good place to find it. REI has a policy of taking back just about anything, when they take it back they throw it in a bin until their bi-annual sale. They line up tables outside and most of the gear is about 10-50% of the original price. Most of it was returned without being used. A couple friends purchased nice $250 tents last year. One was discolored on one side and was $70 and the other had a broken pole $30. Around here people line up early in the morning to get the good stuff. So if you want a "normal" tent you might get lucky if you check them out. I also believe it's twice a year so you should get one more chance. I'm in their weird member card savings plan so they e-mail me with the dates. I'm not sure if they all do it the same day so you may want to call ahead before you line up at 5am. If you go to the Rancho Cucamonga REI, I'll be there.

Dork · Post by **Dork** » Fri Dec 29, 2006 1:34 pm

I've gotten tents and big duffle bags at the REI yard sales that are in perfect shape other than a zipper that doesn't close properly. As long as the teeth are in good shape that's a really easy thing to fix. Same with minor tears and such - easy enough to patch up.

Check REI's website for dates - different stores have sales on different dates. Some have them more often than others.

gyre · Post by **gyre** » Fri Dec 29, 2006 3:36 pm

What you want for dust is a four season tent.
That is double talk for a real tent these days.
Your shade should block ALL light, unless you really like the heat.
Anything that lets light in makes a good greenhouse.
Get the darkest tent possible, but you still need shade.
When I stretched a light blocking tarp over my tent, the heat dropped tremendously, even without an air gap.

Aluminet is available up to 90%.
They make a solid aluminet, but I can't find it in the usa.
Anyone have some?

geekster · Post by **geekster** » Fri Dec 29, 2006 4:32 pm

I will vouch for the "any old tent will work" sentiment. I have use a cheap tent I bought at a box store for the past two years. The key for me has been the windbreak. I take a carport I bought at a small independent shop (South Bay Canopy in San Jose, California), put the top tarp on it, set it so one long side is facing Southwest, remove the long support poles from that side making a long lean-to sort of structure. Then I set the tent up under that on the East end (rather have the very early morning sunlight than the afternoon sunlight). The other end under the canopy is set up as sort of a common social area with table and chairs.

The wind blows mainly from the South, Southwest, and West and this configuration works most of the time. However, if the wind shifts to come from the North, I need to quickly put the side panel tarp on the North facing side, otherwise the thing acts as a scoop and can flip over (wind shifted once last year and it pulled the rebar right out of the ground). Since the sides of this configuration slope (one side more sloped than the other), the wind tends to push the structure down into the ground rather than push it over (with the one exception noted ... North wind without that side panel in place).

So if I decide to go out and about wandering afar from camp and feel I may fall into a rabbit hole and not be back for a day or two, I put the side panel up before I leave. Takes 10 minutes, not a big deal, comes right down once the wind goes back to "normal" again.

gyre · Post by **gyre** » Fri Dec 29, 2006 4:42 pm

Maybe a windbreak will help.
My cheap tent lasted no time before the wind wrecked the zippers.
It is rare to find a cheap four season these days and the rest fill with dust.
Having doors that don't close only makes it worse.

My good tent lasted many years before being stolen.
A good tent is worth the money.
I can't afford to replace mine so I'm looking for a used one.

What to look for in a tent?

What to look for in a tent?

Make sure it can be sealed against the dust