Tent or tarp?

[stove]

Not to retract any of my prior statements, but I have had some interesting experiences with ny siltarp, abd I'm wondering if anyone else :looking at Wider: has had the same problem: misting. When my tarp was already drenched from an absolute downpour in northern Nova Scotia a week or so ago, I found that additional rain directly on the tarp caused mist to get through. On a normal tarp, this would be no problem, but the hydrostatic head (HOW waterproof something is) of silicone impregnated nylon (silnylon) is actually quite low (avg 300mm). This can usually be avoided as a problem because the surrounding trees will ensure that rain only comes straight down, but in this case the wind was SO severe that I could not simply slant the tarp for fear of it getting ripped away.

CONCLUSION:
silnylon is good for short, devastating storms. Prolonged heavy rain (common in the northeast in some seasons) simply may be too much. I plan on doing a bit of research, as I have heard these problems from fellowong distance hikers/adventurers aswell. In the meantime, a cheap brown 9x6 tarp still works and is cheap as hell.

 

[The Cheshire]

Tent without a doubt. I got a tiny one person with a rainfly from REI years ago and havent had any reason to complain yet. Straps to the side of my pack nicely and doesnt weigh much. Never got down with tarps, although my dads a tarp master and some of his camps have almost changed my mind.

 

[keg]

ddddddd

 

[finn]

Not to retract any of my prior statements, but I have had some interesting experiences with ny siltarp, abd I'm wondering if anyone else :looking at Wider: has had the same problem: misting. When my tarp was already drenched from an absolute downpour in northern Nova Scotia a week or so ago, I found that additional rain directly on the tarp caused mist to get through. On a normal tarp, this would be no problem, but the hydrostatic head (HOW waterproof something is) of silicone impregnated nylon (silnylon) is actually quite low (avg 300mm). This can usually be avoided as a problem because the surrounding trees will ensure that rain only comes straight down, but in this case the wind was SO severe that I could not simply slant the tarp for fear of it getting ripped away.

CONCLUSION:
silnylon is good for short, devastating storms. Prolonged heavy rain (common in the northeast in some seasons) simply may be too much. I plan on doing a bit of research, as I have heard these problems from fellowong distance hikers/adventurers aswell. In the meantime, a cheap brown 9x6 tarp still works and is cheap as hell.

I've had this problem with the raincover of my hammock tent, and I solved it by angling it more steeply. But if you think it's bad in prolonged heavy rain, it's almost useless in harsh driving rain- the kind where the drops hit you so hard that it actually stings on bare skin! Luckily this doesn't happen in too many places.

 

[planet caravan]

i carry a two person tent that's not too heavy but would like to get the hang of setting up a tarp.
To yall that use tarps, what to you do if the ground you're setting up on is already wet?

 

[jonom]

i carry a two person tent that's not too heavy but would like to get the hang of setting up a tarp.
To yall that use tarps, what to you do if the ground you're setting up on is already wet?

use a ground pad (closed cell foam) or waterproof bivy or both.

for me the choice is almost always a tarp. i like to use a hammock because it beats sleeping on the ground. the only time i'll pack a tent is when i know there's going to be severe weather (heavy snow, rain, cold).

also the choice of where you set up camp can effect your comfort drastically. use large objects (natural or man-made) as cover and wind blocks.

 

[Apples]

I bring a tent for more wilderness traveling and a tarp if its going to be not as much in the wild.

 

[bote]

sorry to bore anyone who just saw me post this in the bivvy thread, but I feel it is relevant and could be very useful to many.
A good 100% waterproof tarp, something generally used to cover furniture called a drop cloth. They come big enough for more than one person and gear, and they are dirt cheap and relatively durable. Available at most hardware stores.

Linzer Heavy Duty Embossed Drop Cloth 2 mil thick 9 ft x 12 ft clear plastic KL E20 drop cloth

 

[DrinkTooMuch]

tarp, tents can be big bulky and heavy a tarp will keep you from getting wet.

 

[boucaneer]

i use a gortex british army bivi bag and a warm sleeping bag (two or three if realy cold.)

and a thermorest compact air mattress (good for sleeping on rocky ground and great for air insulation.) and roll it all up in one into a bed roll with a couple of straps. slips straight into my rucksack and when i want to camp i just roll it out, after clearing the ground for branches and sharp stuff.


having a good tarp knowledge for different situations would be great.


here is a link to a tarp set up page. http://www.naturalbushcraft.co.uk/bushcraft-articles/camp/tarpology.html

and if there are no trees or anything, another one for rope, lines and anchorage is.. http://outdooridiots.com/features/200606/pitchingatarp/pitchingatarp6.asp

one time i was sleeping out in a foresty copse and i awoke at two in the morning and looked up at the sky for some reason, the next moment i saw a large comit blaze through the sky for a few seconds burning flaming yellow.

if i was in a tent i would'nt of been able to see it, also for that reason, i dont like being shut up in a tent as one could not see any dangers approaching and there only being on exit.

how many times in a tent somwhere unfamilier have we heard a noise outside and wondered what it might be. with a tarp you could just look out and if it was somthing nasty, escape would be much easier as there would be so many exits.

having that quick look and check makes me feel much better and safer.

when camping near water though insects can be a problem, so i made a huge square 1.5 metre by 1.5 metre mosquito headnet with a drawstring that fits over my top half of my body so i can read or sit up and smoke or move about freely, the top can be tied to the guy rop above the head to hold it away from the face.

instead on taking ages sowing it toghether i stapled it with small staples around two sides and for the draw string hem. just get a 3 metre length of no-see-um net and simply fold it in half and staple the top and side leaving the bottom edge to get into and staple a drawstring into a hem. quick time, it took about 5 minuits.

it's nice to see the countyside you are camping out in, boring looking at the inside of a tent, unless your with a sexy loved one.

a tarp is what i prefer as long as there is a bivi bag and i am sleeping alone.

 

[boucaneer]

tyvek house wrap also makes a good cheap tarp and groundsheet. its breatable and waterproof. you can get it from construction sites.

silnylon can be a bit slippery as a groundsheet when camped on a slope, and not as tough.

if you wash tyvek in a washing mashing with no soap you can get rid of it's crunchy noise and it softens up and then you can dye it.

comes in 9 foot widths.

hope that helps.

 

[boucaneer]

Ill second what boucaneer says about the Tyvek groundsheet however I don't know about using it as a tarp since it is white and very easy to spot. Also when you wash it to make it soft use cold water and do not put it in the dryer just let it hang dry.

yeah your right about not putting it in the hot dryer, but once it is washed and air dryed, it will then take a cold dye. you could dye it olive green all over in a bath then bundle it up in a bucket and redye it black to give a patchy camoflage effect.

if dying is a trouble then you could use a water diluted acrilic paint on it.

keep the writing and logo on the inside. use the tyvek tape on the gromets and eyelets and nylon cord and pole support areas and it should be a good tarp or hoochie.

just found out tyvek framewrap comes in green too. dont know if it is as good as tyvek housewrap but the spec says it is 4 pounds heavier on the 100 yard roll, it must be due to the dye they use..

 

[boucaneer]

Have you done this with your tyvek?

no, i have been researching and some scouts and lightweighters said it could be done. still it now comes in green now.

it can even be inkjetted on from a printer, could be good for maps and data sheets.

 

[tallhorseman]

What I like the most about a common tarp is: you can just throw it over a bush, or a downed tree trunk, pin it down...done. On dry nights lay it on the ground by the fire and just use it as a ground sheet. In an emergency downpour wrap up in it like a poncho.

And here's something ya can do with a tarp that you can't do with any tent that I know of. You can leave one side of it pretty low to the ground when you stretch it, anchor the middle of the low side down with your coffee pot, creating a drain point, and any moisture you get will run into your coffee pot. And ya don't have to purify rainwater. Or at least I don't. I hate having to boil water every morning...and I hate the iodine taste of purification tabs even worse.

On the other hand, tents keep spiders and snakes and scorpions out. I guess like everything else, it boils down to preference.

 

[boucaneer]

forget the green framewrap, it turned out to be spun poly-proplene not spun polyethlene. although the water vapor tramsmisions are the same, at sd, o.o1 m, perhaps it's alright then.

as for proof, for dying one can only try it on a test piece and for acrilic painting it says on kite websites that it can be painted sucsessfully, artist's paint on it all the time. they use it as a canvas and somtimes burn it up.

 

[boucaneer]

yeah, like the drain pot idea for good drinking water, good idea to use the attomphere to do the work for you.

 

[Poking Victim]

I suspected those sythetic fibers wouldn't absorb any dye.
I don't really worry about camo in an emergency situation. There's always spray paint, though heavy and non-permanent.

 

[boucaneer]

Yeah.
It looks like thinned out acrillic paint would be the way to go. it would also stop u.v damage, but stop the breathability, so not much point of using tyvek, if it doesnt breath.

Nice experiment.

maybe the green framewrap stuff would be better.

 

[tallhorseman]

I dyed a tent a while back. It was bright yellow and I soaked it in brown dye. When it was finished the tent was a nice, mottled brown, but all of the threads and bindings that held it together, as well as the floor, were still bright yellow.

I was happy with the results, but it was amazing to see how some of the fabrics will, and some will not, accept dye.

 

[wildboy860]

Hmm... I wonder what else you can do to camofluage some tyvek? cuase I'm thinkin of goin the tyvek route to save weight vs. a regular tarp.