51
votes
Is it warmer to sleep in a car or in a tent?
I suggest using both the car and the tent together.
A car will lose heat fastest through the windows, so use the tent to cover them (and the top). The windows are a thin single layer of glass, while ...
- 25.9k
45
votes
Accepted
Do tent colors have functional purposes?
If you want to reduce your visual impact on the other people in the area, choose a tent with colors that match the landscape you're going to camp in. Green in forest or other vegetated areas, brown ...
- 27.1k
33
votes
Accepted
Why do most tents have black floors?
One reason (and I don't know enough to suggest this is the main reason) is for identification.
When putting a tent up you may have a bundle of fabric that you need to set down on an uneven surface, ...
- 24.9k
31
votes
Accepted
How to win against ants
The best way is to reduce (actually to remove) any kind of attractions they like: food and water. If they cannot find anything useful, than they will stop releasing scents that attracted other ants.
...
- 1,899
28
votes
Under what conditions does heating a tent artificially make objective sense?
The general rule I use is if your tent needs to be heated to be comfortable, then you're "doing it wrong" and should have gotten a better tent. There isn't really any weather (especially backpacking, ...
- 2,810
26
votes
Why aren't (poly-)cotton tents more popular?
I grew up car-camping in a frame tent (slept 4 in about 1/4 of the floor area). Those things are heavy. Seriously heavy. Lifting the fabric onto the central pole with that half-extended was hard ...
- 25.9k
24
votes
Do tent colors have functional purposes?
If you are stealth camping, it helps to have a tent that blends in. If you are camping where there is hunting, it helps to have a tent with bright, high contrast so that you can be sure you are seen.
...
- 32.1k
24
votes
Why should a good tent be UV resistant?
It's because the sunlight will damage the tents fabric over time.
UV damage occurs when long term exposure to the sun damages the fabric and thread of your tent or rain fly. The fabric will become ...
- 69.2k
22
votes
Why should a good tent be UV resistant?
A tent's UV resistance isn't for you, it's for the tent. High-energy UV rays will break down many synthetic and natural textiles over time. UV resistant fabrics are not as susceptible to this ...
- 508
22
votes
Advantage of truck tent?
I can think of a few advantages:
You're off the ground, which means you're not at risk of getting flooded out or allowing animals access (ants, snakes, rodents, etc).
You can set up wherever you can ...
- 1,543
21
votes
Is it warmer to sleep in a car or in a tent?
The car, mostly because you can use the heater. You will want to make sure that the exhaust is clear to avoid carbon monoxide poisoning and only run it for a short periods at a time. This also helps ...
- 69.2k
19
votes
Accepted
Tent inside of a tent - any improvement in warmth?
That's essentially how 4 season tents work, the tent is full nylon (no mesh) and the fly is full and basically acts as a second tent, creating that air gap. some 4 season tents even have little ...
- 53.4k
19
votes
Under what conditions does heating a tent artificially make objective sense?
I would say there really aren't any. Even a hypothermia patient would get wrapped in a hypo wrap and the stove would be used to boil water to go into Nalgene bottles.
The problems with running a ...
- 69.2k
18
votes
Accepted
When making camp in the mountains, which direction should I face my tent?
Depends on where you set it, where I'm from the wind is almost always the determining factor, when you're in thick trees and wind isn't a factor, then you set your tent wherever it fits. Which ...
- 53.4k
17
votes
What do I need to do to a tent that's been stored for a long time?
Putting it up in the garden sounds like a great idea, as it will let you check if:
all parts are still there,
everything is in working condition,
you still know how to actually put it up.
One ...
- 3,474
16
votes
Do tent colors have functional purposes?
I have a Marmot tent and those were my color choices. I chose the brighter one as I thought it would be useful if I were lost and needed visibility, either lost from my own campsite or in need of ...
- 9,491
16
votes
Accepted
What to wear to walk to showers: clothes or towel?
I wear my swimming trunks to the shower. My wife wears a pull over sun dress (light weight, thigh length). We wear our shower shoes, we carry our towels and shower supplies. We usually just take ...
- 30.3k
16
votes
Sleeping pad slightly wider than tent?
If you only need the extra width for your elbows, try a sleeping pad with wings. This is a common practice in hammock camping, because the elbows tend to get chilly when pressed up against the hammock ...
- 4,384
15
votes
How to win against ants
There are a number of articles on the web telling you how to kill ants that invade your campsite with common household products. See, for example, Tips And Tricks To Stop Ants From Invading Your Camp....
- 23.1k
14
votes
Accepted
Does touching the tent outer wall from the inside make it leak?
Snow Crash's and WedaPashi's answers explain well, how water leaks through the fabric by capillary action and how touching the inside increases water flow through the fabric. I will try to answer the ...
- 21.7k
14
votes
Accepted
What do I need to do to a tent that's been stored for a long time?
Additionally to what April mentioned I would:
Check if any of the plastic parts (if there are any) got brittle. If they did I would replace them (this should be easy if the tent is actually still ...
- 12.6k
13
votes
Considerations for older campers?
The single most important consideration for your parents is going to be their comfort.
For starters they must have something comfortable to sleep on or they're going to spend every day achy and ...
- 53.4k
13
votes
Accepted
Considerations for older campers?
My wife & I are both in our mid-50's, and we stopped going car camping a few years ago largely because of the lack of sleep and difficulty getting into and out of our tent. Our last trip we were ...
- 621
13
votes
Accepted
Is this low-footprint tie down feasible for a canopy tent?
Your intuition about swapping the ropes around is not sound:
As RBarryYoung notes in the comments, the pivot points change. In your third design, the tent could pivot 90 degrees such that the back ...
- 246
12
votes
Considerations for older campers?
If your parents gear worked for them 10 or 15 years ago.
If the gear has not seen significant wear in storage.
If your parents have remained in nearly the same physical condition (or better) as 10 ...
- 30.3k
12
votes
Why aren't (poly-)cotton tents more popular?
A good cotton tent is expensive, but can be very good value as they last a lifetime and are childproof. In The Netherlands, families may camp up to 5–8 weeks per year, car camping on campgrounds in ...
- 27.1k
12
votes
Looking for lightweight backpacking tent suggestions
Okay, I've made enough suggestions in the comments I figured I'd better summarize them in an "answer." It's not fully what you asked for; this is more of a summary of all the "almost ...
- 4,384
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