I would rather not use it/deal with it either. I have a 9.5 x 11 dome tent for just me. So I'm going for only 4 days. Suggested water for 1 = 6 gals. What if I bring 12 gals? Think that will that be enough to keep the tent weighted down.. plus utilizing car?
Also. how much dust are we talking will get in a mesh tent if no alterations made? I don't THINK I'll have an issue with having some dust in my tent. I mean... c'mon ppl.. it's the frickin desert!!! Giant evil dust BUNNIES FROM HELL??? Well that would be another story.
OK so I read the post about not using rebar.... and dust que
-
nebulachic
- Posts: 48
- Joined: Sun Jul 13, 2008 1:12 pm
- Location: Boston
?I would rather not use it/deal with it either. I have a 9.5 x 11 tent for just me. So I'm going for only 4 days. Suggested water for 1 = 6 gals.
What if I bring 12 gals? Think that will that be enough to keep the tent weighted down.. plus utilizing car
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Personally - I pass on the ribbed rebar. Removing it after it has been stuck in the p[laya surface can be a challenge, even after a little rain cemented the stakes.
I opt to use "smooth surface" spikes, bent like candycanes. The smooth surface has less friction when pulling the suckers from the ground.
As for the tent - each and every year I attended BM - I seen many a nieghbors tent get blown across tghe playa in the ussual dust storms. Winds in these storms can be as strong as a minimal hurricane, and two years ago - dust devils were very common.
It is best to anchor that tent with as much as you can, otherwise when your nieghbors downwind finish removing it - it be in worse shape then when blown there.
As for water - The weekend before BM - we start sucking down the water as prep and this includes frequent water drinking during our venture from the West - just too be in the habit of drinking water. If your piss is not clear - your dehydrated.
Two of us go through 30 gallons of DRINKING water that week - and another 30 gallons for showering and non drinking purposes. Keep in mind the more booze you drink - the more dehydrated you can become.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Also. how much dust are we talking will get in a mesh tent if no alterations made? I don't THINK I'll have an issue with having some dust in my tent. I mean... c'mon ppl.. it's the frickin desert!!! Giant evil dust BUNNIES FROM HELL??? Well that would be another story.
Dust??
I am still too this moment cleaning out dust from the last burn from the RV- its not that it is thick, it is very fine and invasive and gets everywhere. I even considered dipping RV in a lake and pulling it out to rid the dust.
They are called dust storms for a reason - because you cannot see the goggles your wearing. The air can become thick with light particle dust, but eventually blows clear. The first three days as people arrive - you will constantly be surrounded by wind blown dust. This is from vehicular traffick - ussually people driving faster then they should.
I sometimes look across from 3:00 to the opposing 9:00 and am amzed at the dust the other side of the city endures, and it is very hard to tell if the same view can be seen from opposite positions.
As you said - dust - desert- be prepared.
Goggles - military surplus stores have them.
Some time of face protection, be it cotton rags/towels or a dust mask
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Last year - I ran around to nieghboring vampsites asking "Got Milk"? seeing how someone forgot to double check the fridge to see if the milk was on board the RV. Least I made friends that way - but if you run out or low on water - it can be serious. Hate to see you buy ice just for the water.
Fenwick
If you stick to your water rationing, your 12 gallons of water will weigh 96 lbs. when you get there -- and you'll still have 48 pounds left at the end of the week (water weighs ~8lbs. per gallon). That, plus some stakes should be enough to ensure your tent doesn't become a kite.
As for dust in the tent -- bring an extra sheet and cover everything in your tent when you're not in it (anchor it with some of your gear). When you're ready to turn in, carefully roll it up, take it outside, and shake it out.
You'll never prevent it from getting dusty... but this will help keep it from becoming a sand box.
As for dust in the tent -- bring an extra sheet and cover everything in your tent when you're not in it (anchor it with some of your gear). When you're ready to turn in, carefully roll it up, take it outside, and shake it out.
You'll never prevent it from getting dusty... but this will help keep it from becoming a sand box.
-
nebulachic
- Posts: 48
- Joined: Sun Jul 13, 2008 1:12 pm
- Location: Boston
Chances are that the ones that came with your tent are useless. 2' rebar stakes work well... as do 12" "military" stakes (they're V-shaped). If they're the little plastic stakes, or the small-diameter round aluminum ones...(6-8 inches) they won't cut it out on the playa.nebulachic wrote:Stakes as in... the rebar? Or the ones that came with my tent?mk-ultra wrote:That, plus some stakes should be enough to ensure your tent doesn't become a kite.
The playa is just too soft. You have to get into it by at least a foot to begin anchoring something. 12" works fine for anchoring things like personal tents.
-
TomServo
- Posts: 6160
- Joined: Wed Dec 01, 2004 1:17 pm
- Burning Since: 1999
- Camp Name: Black Rock City Assholes Union Local 668
- Location: Las Vegas, Nevada
OHH NO!! buy a stake rebar or those black ones they sell at home depot right next to the rebar...breath....should go down about a foot into the playanebulachic wrote:Stakes as in... the rebar? Or the ones that came with my tent?mk-ultra wrote:That, plus some stakes should be enough to ensure your tent doesn't become a kite.
anything worth doing is worth overdoing..
In my tent last year:how much dust are we talking will get in a mesh tent if no alterations made? I don't THINK I'll have an issue with having some dust in my tent. I mean... c'mon ppl.. it's the frickin desert!!! Giant evil dust BUNNIES FROM HELL???
Notice the top of the box? It should be the same color as the sides. Base of the fan? My ear plugs?
Notice the top of the tissue box? The top of the water bottle? The wadded up shirt on the right edge of the frame is my navy blue flannel shirt I wore at night.Whether you'll have an issue with dust is up to (a) you and (b) the weather.
-
Captain Goddammit
- Posts: 8589
- Joined: Sat Sep 06, 2003 9:34 am
- Burning Since: 2000
- Camp Name: First Camp
- Location: Seattle, WA
Re: OK so I read the post about not using rebar.... and dust
You don't THINK you'll have an issue with "some dust" in your tent...nebulachic wrote: I don't THINK I'll have an issue with having some dust in my tent. I mean... c'mon ppl.. it's the frickin desert!!!
Wait 'til you see what a dust storm is. Maybe you'll get lucky and miss the heavier weather. If you don't, you'll get "some dust".
GreyCoyote: "At this rate it wont be long before he is Admiral Fukkit."
In a mesh tent?
Two inches in five minutes after setup.
And the wind came through and ripped the doors off.
Depends on the amount of mesh and how good the tent is.
This was early with no windbreaks.
Some people cover the mesh and do well.
Smaller the mesh the better.
Last year, small amount of mesh and no issue until dust blew.
Depends very much on how deep the fly is.
Two inches in five minutes after setup.
And the wind came through and ripped the doors off.
Depends on the amount of mesh and how good the tent is.
This was early with no windbreaks.
Some people cover the mesh and do well.
Smaller the mesh the better.
Last year, small amount of mesh and no issue until dust blew.
Depends very much on how deep the fly is.
-
[email protected]
- Posts: 34
- Joined: Wed Oct 22, 2003 4:20 pm
- Location: San Francisco
- Contact:
removing 2' rebar is trivial
Don't be befuddled into believing that removing 2' rebar stakes is difficult. It is not, if you simply bring a pair of vise grips. Lock the vise grips onto the rebar and twist is back and forth several times, then continue twisting it while pulling up. My camp plants 50+ rebar stakes every year and we never have significant problems getting them out. You can pour a little water next to the rebar to lubricate it coming out, but it really isn't necessary.
If you use rebar, put a plastic coke bottle over it, or a rebar topper (looks like an orange mushroom) or a tennis ball with a small hole in it, to prevent puncture wounds. I also use a short section of "fun noodle" (the foam plastic tubes used as a swimming pool toy) over any exposed rebar to prevent kick injuries (duct tape the fun noodle on). I use straight rebar. It's easy, cheap, strong as hell, reusable every year -- I've never had a problem with it.
If you use rebar, put a plastic coke bottle over it, or a rebar topper (looks like an orange mushroom) or a tennis ball with a small hole in it, to prevent puncture wounds. I also use a short section of "fun noodle" (the foam plastic tubes used as a swimming pool toy) over any exposed rebar to prevent kick injuries (duct tape the fun noodle on). I use straight rebar. It's easy, cheap, strong as hell, reusable every year -- I've never had a problem with it.
-
Timezone LaFontaine
- Posts: 347
- Joined: Sun Aug 05, 2007 2:40 pm
- Burning Since: 2006
- Camp Name: Lamplighters
- Location: yonder
- Contact:
Dust gets in your tent. I just occasionally pull stuff out and dust it off. It's not a big deal. I prefer abundant mesh because it keeps things breezy and cooler for a few dozen extra minutes in the morning when the sun begins pounding on the tent. Other people seem hellbent on figuring out ways to prevent dust from getting in but I think they just enjoy the challenge of the impossible.
I use ziplock "big bags" to keep all my stuff in... a couple of bags for clean clothes, a couple of bags for dirty clothes, and then a bag for my various other stuff. These have worked perfectly for keeping my clothes and sundries free from dust.
I also use smooth L-shaped or candy-cane shaped bars (I guess they're aluminum? -- they're silvery, about 1/2" or 3/4" thick and a bit more than a foot long) instead of rebar. They have a spiral groove on the end (kind of like a screw) which provides some grip once they're driven into the ground with a small hammer, and at the end of the week they're not too difficult to remove with the claw end of the hammer (squat down, hook the hammer into the L part, and then lift with your legs, not your back). They're available in bins right next to rebar at the hardware store. I like them because I can drive them way into the playa leaving very little exposed, and turn the curved ends inward to be flush against my tent and minimize the danger of someone tripping over them. They've worked perfectly for me... the only thing I didn't like about them is that they seem to be unbelievably filthy when you buy them, like they're covered in soot. I spent a good ten minutes just washing them off.
I use ziplock "big bags" to keep all my stuff in... a couple of bags for clean clothes, a couple of bags for dirty clothes, and then a bag for my various other stuff. These have worked perfectly for keeping my clothes and sundries free from dust.
I also use smooth L-shaped or candy-cane shaped bars (I guess they're aluminum? -- they're silvery, about 1/2" or 3/4" thick and a bit more than a foot long) instead of rebar. They have a spiral groove on the end (kind of like a screw) which provides some grip once they're driven into the ground with a small hammer, and at the end of the week they're not too difficult to remove with the claw end of the hammer (squat down, hook the hammer into the L part, and then lift with your legs, not your back). They're available in bins right next to rebar at the hardware store. I like them because I can drive them way into the playa leaving very little exposed, and turn the curved ends inward to be flush against my tent and minimize the danger of someone tripping over them. They've worked perfectly for me... the only thing I didn't like about them is that they seem to be unbelievably filthy when you buy them, like they're covered in soot. I spent a good ten minutes just washing them off.