Tent Purchase (is a good omen?)

[VultureChow]

So I've known what tent I wanted to purchase for a while now and was tracking ebay, craigslist and every store that carries them. Kodiak canvas 10x10 deluxe flex bow. $499. About a month ago, Dick's Sporting Goods started carrying them, but had their pricing wrong. The 10x10 was listed at $599. I actually emailed them to tell them this. Their response was that I was wrong, but miraculously the next day the site showed it "Marked down" from $599 to $499.

A few of the past few days, Dick's had a 20% off sale, but since I still had to pay for large item shipping I got cold feet. I even had it my shopping cart. Then this morning they announced 25% off a single item and I got an email coupon for 10% off if I empty my cart now. And wonders of wonders they stack!

So... I'm buying it. It come out to under $400 including shipping which beats or matches the going price + shipping when one of them shows up on ebay.

That it happened today, on the day you can first register for the presale has to be a good omen. Right?

Sorry. I'm just really excited.

[Elderberry]

[junglesmacks]

Make sure to bring a spare cheapie tent as storage for your cooler and other stuff! ..not to mention re-bar to secure that sucker down with.

[VultureChow]

Make sure to bring a spare cheapie tent as storage for your cooler and other stuff! ..not to mention re-bar to secure that sucker down with.

I'm solo, so I'm planning on using half the tent as storage. It's a lot of tent just for me, but perfect for storage and sleeping. Regarding staking, I'm trying to figure out if I can get buy on some heavy duty military stakes instead as I'm flying in. Threads on this tent seem to suggest this would work.

[junglesmacks]

Make sure to bring a spare cheapie tent as storage for your cooler and other stuff! ..not to mention re-bar to secure that sucker down with.

I'm solo, so I'm planning on using half the tent as storage. It's a lot of tent just for me, but perfect for storage and sleeping. Regarding staking, I'm trying to figure out if I can get buy on some heavy duty military stakes instead as I'm flying in. Threads on this tent seem to suggest this would work.

Trust me, you'll still want just a cheapie Walmart dome tent or something to store your cooler and other things in. You'll want that extra space to move around in and something to keep sealed while you're not in it vs the in and out nature of a cooler and storage. Trust meeeeeeeeeee

[VultureChow]

Make sure to bring a spare cheapie tent as storage for your cooler and other stuff! ..not to mention re-bar to secure that sucker down with.

I'm solo, so I'm planning on using half the tent as storage. It's a lot of tent just for me, but perfect for storage and sleeping. Regarding staking, I'm trying to figure out if I can get buy on some heavy duty military stakes instead as I'm flying in. Threads on this tent seem to suggest this would work.

Trust me, you'll still want just a cheapie Walmart dome tent or something to store your cooler and other things in. You'll want that extra space to move around in and something to keep sealed while you're not in it vs the in and out nature of a cooler and storage. Trust meeeeeeeeeee

I have one of my old single man backpacking tents that I don't use anymore but is still in one piece. Would that work?

[wh..sh]

And here I was camping in a tent I bought from a friend for $25

[theCryptofishist]

If you were a serious backpacker it might be that you already have the skills to camp in a single tent.
I'd put a shade over your tent as far more useful than a canvas shed. Eplaya is filled with people saying that what works for them is automatically the best thing for everyone else. It's nice to know that there are actually other people who don't like camelbacks, for instance.

[trilobyte]

I've never done the easy bake oven (tent directly under the sun) thing, but I agree with what junglesmacks is saying. You'll go into & out of the tent with your coolers in it many times throughout the day, which not only makes it more likely you'll track in dust but increases the chances that at some point through the week it may get left unzipped when a dust storm kicks up (everything inside will get covered in dust).

[VultureChow]

I've never done the easy bake oven (tent directly under the sun) thing, but I agree with what junglesmacks is saying. You'll go into & out of the tent with your coolers in it many times throughout the day, which not only makes it more likely you'll track in dust but increases the chances that at some point through the week it may get left unzipped when a dust storm kicks up (everything inside will get covered in dust).

I'll consider using the backpacking tent for storage since I'm investing in a really good tent, I don't want to spend more and the sheer volume of space is absurd for one person. I still go out for a two night backpacking trip a dozen or so times a year, but haven't been on a good week long trip in a few years. The only thing my friends consider camping involves a truck and a generator, so I've been doing that.

But I spent 4 months a number of years ago on the AT in my little tent, so literally, anything I can stand up in I consider luxurious.

I was intending to construct an aluminet sun shade over the canvas tent by constructing a few extensions of the tent poles to keep space between canvas and shade cloth and then guy line it out a bit.

[chiefdanfox]

I have that tent, and I absolutely love it, and I am guessing so will you. The whole mess is heavy, though. The stakes it comes with are "probably" OK, given that you will have gear inside. They are these very nice 12" x 1/4" thick (305 mm x 6 mm) aluminum stakes. (Don't loan any out, they will get "gifted" to the borrowers ) I use four 1/2" "candy cane" rebar stakes out there, just because I am a belt AND suspenders sort of guy on the playa.
If you can spare the space for an aluminet or similar tarp to shroud your kodiak, you will find it a lot more tolerable during the day. I can attest that there will be a lot of open floor space for gear, coolers, etc., because of the vertical sides. If you are diligent about the zippers, you will live a relatively less dusty life, BUT the tent will be an oven on the hot days, and you will melt through lots of ice if you keep your coolers inside.

[VultureChow]

I have that tent, and I absolutely love it, and I am guessing so will you. The whole mess is heavy, though. The stakes it comes with are "probably" OK, given that you will have gear inside. They are these very nice 12" x 1/4" thick (305 mm x 6 mm) aluminum stakes. (Don't loan any out, they will get "gifted" to the borrowers ) I use four 1/2" "candy cane" rebar stakes out there, just because I am a belt AND suspenders sort of guy on the playa.
If you can spare the space for an aluminet or similar tarp to shroud your kodiak, you will find it a lot more tolerable during the day. I can attest that there will be a lot of open floor space for gear, coolers, etc., because of the vertical sides. If you are diligent about the zippers, you will live a relatively less dusty life, BUT the tent will be an oven on the hot days, and you will melt through lots of ice if you keep your coolers inside.

I'm definitely planning on doing some additional shade over the tent. Would the coolers fair batter if I use my vehicle as an anchoring point for the aluminet and create a space shaded by that between the back wall of the tent and the car? I could raise them up off the ground using some scrap wood and tuck them back in there in the shade, but not in the tent itself.

[Savannah]

Yes--outside of the tent, shaded, and off the ground is great for coolers.

[trilobyte]

If you're doing a shade structure, then you're probably good (though like Savannah said, get 'em off the ground). I do an EMT conduit/tarp shade structure for our camp which has room for the tents as well as the coolers & kitchen gear (and a common loungey area). Works great for us.

[5280MeV]

On the subject of tents, does anyone have or have an opinion of the Eureka Tetragon:

http://www.amazon.com/Eureka-2628224-Tetragon-Tent-sleeps/dp/B000EQAUVY/ref=sr_1_3?s=outdoor-recreation&ie=UTF8&qid=1322418812&sr=1-3

I am looking for something light, compact, and inexpensive for just myself next year.

[AntiM]

On the subject of tents, does anyone have or have an opinion of the Eureka Tetragon:

http://www.amazon.com/Eureka-2628224-Tetragon-Tent-sleeps/dp/B000EQAUVY/ref=sr_1_3?s=outdoor-recreation&ie=UTF8&qid=1322418812&sr=1-3

I am looking for something light, compact, and inexpensive for just myself next year.

You'll need to find a way to seal the vents. There's a thread about that.

[gyre]

True about in and out, but better shade helps the cooler a lot.

Shade the sides too.

I used solid cover, small spacing off the tent.
Very cool inside.
Had ice when I got home.

Aluminet mesh is not adequate in my experience.
Better than nothing and easy though.

[vargaso]

Personally, I can't see spending good money on a tent to use at Burning Man, it will get beat up even in the best conditions. The two years we slept in a tent, we used the same cheapo Walmart tent with the vents sealed up and a monkey hut over the top. It worked pretty well. The additional shade structure over the tent is key, to keep out the dust some, to protect the tent a bit and most importantly so that it's somewhat tolerable if you have to go inside it during the day.

Last couple years I've slept in our minivan with the monkeyhut over that, and it is fantastic. Zero dust, for one thing. Slept in until 11 one morning, it only just started to get a little warm in the van thanks to the shade. And of course, the same old Walmart tent is still in action, we use it to store our gear. Best place for a cooler is outside, in the shade of your vehicle, not in a tent.

[gyre]

Easy to use a cheap tent if you can take a tent condom to go around it.

My not so cheap walmart tent distintegrated in the first wind after it was set up.

Not all that much fun without a tent that stands up or closes.


I had a huge difference in ice life with the cooler shaded.
Fun to never fetch ice on the playa at all.

The only cheap one I've had luck with survived with poles and tarps shrouding it.
Wouldn't stand straight up in wind without that.
Flat.

The one I took last time wouldn't have survived without 200 lbs of tarps around it.

Good tents are worth it.

[BBadger]

Last couple years I've slept in our minivan with the monkeyhut over that, and it is fantastic. Zero dust, for one thing. Slept in until 11 one morning, it only just started to get a little warm in the van thanks to the shade. And of course, the same old Walmart tent is still in action, we use it to store our gear. Best place for a cooler is outside, in the shade of your vehicle, not in a tent.

How much did the supplies for your monkey hut cost?

[maryanimal]

I've never done the easy bake oven (tent directly under the sun) thing, but I agree with what junglesmacks is saying. You'll go into & out of the tent with your coolers in it many times throughout the day, which not only makes it more likely you'll track in dust but increases the chances that at some point through the week it may get left unzipped when a dust storm kicks up (everything inside will get covered in dust).

Word!

I have a great tent. It's huge and comfortable and I stored my supplies in my tent, and brought in unnecessary dust. Although my windows didn't have flaps for closure. I had a front and back door with covered flaps. I'm going to make some window covers and place them on the outside of the tent. My tent had waay too much playa dust in it.

So it's a small tent for my supplies this year! And a cover for over my tent.

[MyDearFriend]

I covered the vents in my tent (Eureka Sunrise) with fleece throw, clipped to the poles at the corners and then stretched down on the sides with bungees through shark-bite grommets. Worked great; no dust issues at all. Of course I had the tent under an aluminet monkey-hut, for shade & storage.

PS I love the shark-bite things; they go on & stay on and then come off again without leaving a mark. Look here.

[AntiM]

I covered the vents in my tent (Eureka Sunrise) with fleece throw, clipped to the poles at the corners and then stretched down on the sides with bungees through shark-bite grommets. Worked great; no dust issues at all. Of course I had the tent under an aluminet monkey-hut, for shade & storage.

PS I love the shark-bite things; they go on & stay on and then come off again without leaving a mark. Look here.

We do nearly the same thing, but with old pressed felt blankets held on by spring clamps, under a carport. Sometimes we add an extra quilt or comforter over the tent.

[vargaso]

Last couple years I've slept in our minivan with the monkeyhut over that, and it is fantastic. Zero dust, for one thing. Slept in until 11 one morning, it only just started to get a little warm in the van thanks to the shade. And of course, the same old Walmart tent is still in action, we use it to store our gear. Best place for a cooler is outside, in the shade of your vehicle, not in a tent.

How much did the supplies for your monkey hut cost?

Monkeyhut cost 80 bucks (PVC, tarp and those stretchy things with the ball on the end to secure the tarp to the PVC). I recommend the monkeyhut regardless of how "good" your tent is, it's all about the shade and windblock. '07 and '08 has some very nasty wind storms and the cheapo tent survived just fine thanks to the monkeyhut. And yeah, secure the hut with rebar and guidelines. I built mine based on the plans here: http://www.chromatest.net/Lovemonkey/. I've used it 3 years, I'll need to replace a couple of the 10' sections this year.

Still, I'd recommend spending the 400 bucks on renting a van and sleeping in it with the monkeyhut over that. SO MUCH nicer, and you can move the van during the day to use the hut for shade if you don't have another shade structure. Seriously, if Burning Man is the only place you'll use the tent, rent a van instead. No amount of sealing will keep out the dust out of a tent

[theCryptofishist]

...those stretchy things with the ball on the end to secure the tarp...

Ball bungies, I believe.

[junglesmacks]

...those stretchy things with the ball on the end to secure the tarp...

Ball bungies, I believe.

Ball bungee, not bungie.

[Bob]

guidelines

Guy lines.

Monkeyhut

Primate hut.

[vargaso]

...those stretchy things with the ball on the end to secure the tarp...

Ball bungies, I believe.

Ball bungee, not bungie.

Bungee balls!
http://www.amazon.com/Neiko-Heavy-Duty- ... B000MTVFR6

Anyway, those things are awesome.