Storing gear in a hot attic?

[George P Burdell]

I have recently moved into a house with very little inside storage, so my tent, thermarest, sleeping bags, will all have to go into the attic. Will the extreme heat of next summer damage any of these? Does anyone else keep their gear in the attic? I don't want the coating on the tent fly to melt to itself or anything.

(The valve on the thermarest is open, before anyone asks)

[peanuts]

in my opinion not a good idea. instead hang the tent and its parts in hangers in the garage. thermarest underneath the bed and sleeping bag hanging a hook high enough in your closet.

[nitewalker]

dont do it!!!! i was watching antiques road show and they said that the heat ruined the fabric of some old turn of the century garment and that extreme heat will ruin most anything.. it turns the fabric into a brittle mess, it will kepp peeling apart when touched.. dont forget that was old school im not sure what would happen to the new synthetics. if you read tent labels they say to much heat and sun is no good so im sure it must apply to clothing etc...i wouldn't do it. one season you might be able to get by but for extended periods of time no way....

[nitewalker]

most things like to be stored in a cool dry place.

[take-a-knee]

I have recently moved into a house with very little inside storage, so my tent, thermarest, sleeping bags, will all have to go into the attic. Will the extreme heat of next summer damage any of these? Does anyone else keep their gear in the attic? I don't want the coating on the tent fly to melt to itself or anything.

(The valve on the thermarest is open, before anyone asks)

Put your thermarest either under or behind your couch. Get yourself a queen-sized pillowcase that matches your couch in color, sew a drawstring channel in the end and store your sleeping bag in it, instant throw pillow. As for the tent, I'm sure you can find room for that.

[thestin]

I had a home in Kennesaw.GA. and the attic could reach temps over 120 degrees in the summer. DO NOT store your equipment in the attic. It will be damaged or ruined.

[Fiddler]

Unless you've got a very low bed you should be able to lay them all spread out flat under the bed - sleeping bag on top of the others.

[George P Burdell]

Ok, I'll figure out somewhere in the house else to put everything. I've got cats and kids who think that thermarests are great fun to play with, so those have to stay out of reach. I'm thinking of making a sort of gear loft to hang from the ceiling....don't know how well that idea will go over with the Boss, though.

[Seeker]

don't know how well that idea will go over with the Boss, though.

it's either that, or she agrees to let you replace your complete set of gear every couple years... (hmmm... maybe not a bad idea!)

i just moved from an old, large rental into a newer, smaller (but mine!) house. my wife is pretty short, and can't reach the cabinet over the fridge. so that's mine, for camping gear. i also have the top half of the MBR Closet, and a stack of shelves in the main hall closet, and my foam pads are under the bed. it's a hassle to have gear all over the house (i used to have about 50' of shelf space in the old garage, plus my own gear closet in a spare bedroom at the old place), but at least it's all inside.

maybe you can find some nooks and crannies she doesn't use (or other places, like the top shelves of your kids' closets) that could work for you. good luck.

[Tinker]

I live in a basement apartment with carpeting. It never showed any signs of dampness, but I stored a Thermarest pad under my bed and it mildewed on the bottom side. I cleaned it with mild bleach water, and now it stands on its side next to my bed.

Attic storage is a bad idea. I guess basements aren't too good either. I've always stored my sleeping bags and tents out of their stuffsacks, too. I use large storage tubs to organize my stuff.

[Chache]

Put a gable fan in or a thru the roof fan. they are only 40 bucks

[Bob S]

Put a gable fan in or a thru the roof fan. they are only 40 bucks

And buy some roll insulation and put it up. The fan and insulation is only a few hundred dollars. It will save that much in gear you won’t damage.

[River Runner]

If you can talk the 'boss' into thinking creative, you might be able to use a storage trunk as a coffee or end table & use it to store some of your gear.

If you have a spare corner or little niche you could stack storage totes & put a folding screen in front to hide them. Or, you could do like I do and just stack them in the bedroom anyway...

Get rid of stuff you'll never use, like dress clothes () & use that space to store your sleeping bag. Same goes for the kitchen - who needs all those pots & pans & dishes when you can have a titanium kettle and a lexan spoon?

[River Runner]

Another idea is to buy one of those plastic storage sheds & put it in a shady spot in the yard & store your gear in totes there.

[Bob S]

Another idea is to buy one of those plastic storage sheds & put it in a shady spot in the yard & store your gear in totes there.

Camping & hiking gear is too important to store outside, put something else outside, but keep the camping gear safe & warm inside.

[mudhead]

Another idea is to buy one of those plastic storage sheds & put it in a shady spot in the yard & store your gear in totes there.

Mice...

DCon in your stuff, bites.

[Egads]

OK you Ramblin Wreck; you should use your superior cognitive abilities to solve this problem of heat transfer and chemical stability (in theory). But since this is reality, don't do it.

Egads
GT ME 82

[George P Burdell]

I'd thought about the attic fan- that will be my backup plan if I can't make room inside a closet.

Egads- Ha. The heat transfer I can handle, but don't bring up memories of chemistry at Tech...I barely made it out of the one class we had to take.

George
GT ME 04

[take-a-knee]

I'd thought about the attic fan- that will be my backup plan if I can't make room inside a closet.

Egads- Ha. The heat transfer I can handle, but don't bring up memories of chemistry at Tech...I barely made it out of the one class we had to take.

George
GT ME 04

Powered attic ventilators use more energy than they save, unless they are solar powered. More insulation will make your house warmer/cooler, but it won't change the hellish environment in your attic.