View Full Version : Will my cheap three season tent work?
ec.hiker
02-15-2011, 23:54
I or I should say we leave in less than thirty days march 5th I think I have a dome tent that I like it is a quest or something like that I can't remember right now. The rain fly does not go all the way to the ground. I have a ground sheet for it and am planning on bringing another tarp to string up above it to add extra protection from blowing wind and rain which I am not even sure if I will need anybody think that will work or should I just go ahead and buy a better tent which I really don't want to pay for our bags are rated for 20 degrees and we have bag liners that add 10 degrees If i do pick up a tent I am really considering the kelty grand messa. Oh ya by the way I don't think we are going to be staying in shelters much if at all privacy issues as in we are a new couple and I really don't want mice chewing up all my stuff
SweetAss03
02-16-2011, 00:16
My advice...buy a good tent. Doesn't have to be a $300 tent, and you can get nice tents off of REI outlet.
It depends what is cheap about it. If it has fiberglass poles, then I would strongly consider a different tent. You can upgrade the poles, add guyouts and extend the fly, but upgrading the poles can be very expensive.
Most tents work. The big question is, will you want to work with it? If it's cumbersome to put up and down, is too cramped, or otherwise makes you uncomfortable, then it should probably be replaced.
Here's what I'm thinking though. If you're already planning on bringing another tarp, why don't you just let that tarp be your shelter? If it's bug protection and a bathtub floor you desire, then go ahead and sew that in. Maybe add in a lot of extra netting on the sides so that you can hang your tarp high when trees and weather allow you the luxury of lots of headroom. Also sew in extra loops or lineloc's to make setup that much more flexible and secure. You could even add in some kind of peak for added warmth, protection and privacy. This might be a little heavy for some folks, but you aren't big on saving weight. I bet the final weight would be about the same or less as your tent.
Get a new tent. Doesn't have to be a $300 crazy light job but get one that doesn't leak.
I have a buddy who has a tent that sounds exactly like yours. He carried a tarp with it, etc. etc. One morning we got the remnants of a hurricane over us. The next night he got hypothermia.
You may want to seam seal it before you leave. I would leave the extra tarp and ground sheet.
malowitz
02-16-2011, 00:41
Keep an eye on steepandcheap.com You may see some good, 1/2 price tents on there. Earlier this year they had MSR Carbon Reflex 1 and 2 tents for 1/2 price. Alps Mountaineering tents show up frequently.
mkmangold
02-16-2011, 02:07
Our cheap 3-season tent works. Just modify your behavior: sleep with your clothes (but not boots) and hat on. Stay close to your pee bottle. Bring hand-warmers. Share body heat.
fiddlehead
02-16-2011, 05:56
I once started a thru-hike with a $5 "instant tube tent" it was called.
It was just basically a long garbage bag with no ends.
You just tied a rope to two trees after threading the rope through the thing.
Worked fine until about Erwin TN.
We got tired of being wet and the bugs started bothering us.
So, we bought a new tent.
I think more important than having a great tent, is knowing how and where to set it up and always assume it's going to rain before you turn in.
Have fun.
mweinstone
02-16-2011, 08:33
you could walk to neel gap with it and then look at the best tents and order one from the cheapest place then walk to the next town and pick it up and leave your old one in a hiker box.
Old Hiker
02-16-2011, 08:45
Keep an eye on steepandcheap.com You may see some good, 1/2 price tents on there. Earlier this year they had MSR Carbon Reflex 1 and 2 tents for 1/2 price. Alps Mountaineering tents show up frequently.
Roger that on steep and cheap. Got my wife an alps single person tent she loves and my Scout troop 3 Alps 2-man tents for the boy leaders. More than 1/2 off and great tents. You just have to be on a computer when it pops up.
Old Hiker
02-16-2011, 08:51
About 5 minutes with google:
http://www.nextag.com/ALPS-MOUNTAINEERING--2701033/tent-discount/brand-html (http://www.nextag.com/ALPS-MOUNTAINEERING--2701033/tent-discount/brand-html)
http://www.overstock.com/Sports-Toys/Tents/13129/subcat.html (http://www.overstock.com/Sports-Toys/Tents/13129/subcat.html)
http://www.sierratradingpost.com/d/322_Tents.html (http://www.sierratradingpost.com/d/322_Tents.html)
http://www.amazon.com/s?ie=UTF8&rh=n:2204486011,p_4:Alps&page=1 (http://www.amazon.com/s?ie=UTF8&rh=n:2204486011,p_4:Alps&page=1)
Enjoy and good luck!
flemdawg1
02-16-2011, 11:56
I had a 2-man Academy Broadway dome tent. It had a 2'x2' Rain fly and fibreglass poles. It worked fine in the dozen of so nights I used it, but was very humid. However, tents like this are the ones I find most often abandoned on the trail. Most often still staked to the ground, with a broken pole.
Bags4266
02-16-2011, 12:00
Keep an eye on steepandcheap.com You may see some good, 1/2 price tents on there. Earlier this year they had MSR Carbon Reflex 1 and 2 tents for 1/2 price. Alps Mountaineering tents show up frequently.
I saw that carbon reflex on sac. I was salavating over it. If I didn't have so much stuff now I would of bit.
Blissful
02-16-2011, 12:11
You need a good tent. A cheap tent PLUS a tarp and you're also toting tons of weight. Esp if you wake up and its sopping wet.. Makes life on the trail when you are dead tired at night and don't want to fight dampness and rain a whole lot better.
Buy the MSR hubba hubba. :)
Snowleopard
02-16-2011, 12:37
... I have a dome tent that I like it is a quest or something like that I can't remember right now. The rain fly does not go all the way to the ground. I have a ground sheet for it and am planning on bringing another tarp to string up above it to add extra protection from blowing wind and rain ...
How much does your tent weigh? Too much and you should use something else. How much would the tent plus tarp weigh?
Do you get wet in it? The rain fly not going to the ground may not be a problem. Often part of the side wall of the tent is waterproof and the fly just needs to go lower than the top of the waterproof part of the wall. Try it out in your back yard in the rain.
Is it hard to set up? Practice setting it up; if it never gets easy replace it.
Looking at quest tents online, they look pretty cheap and may not be worth taking. Probably a tarp plus mosquito netting would be better, but practice setting it up before you go and try the tarp out in the rain.
ec.hiker
02-16-2011, 18:19
It is the only tent I have used it is seam sealed and it weighs less than 4lbs not sure on exact weight with the two tarps less than 5. I don't even know if I will need the tarps I have never used the tent in the snow or rain just been lucky to have good weather since I am leaving march 5th I imagine I will be seeing plenty of both. Lots of room in the tent I mean all in all I like it just didn't know if I would be able to take it or not. I think what I am going to do ultimatly is bring it and the tarps the y are only about 5x5 a piece and if I don't like it leave em in a hiker box and buy another. My girlfriend will bw hiking with me so we are splitting weight. Our gear list is almost complete when it is I will put it up. she is taking 7 pair of underwear kind of crazy to me and off subject but I guess if she needs that many she needs that many I dunno I am taking two maybe three
How much does your tent weigh? Too much and you should use something else. How much would the tent plus tarp weigh?
Do you get wet in it? The rain fly not going to the ground may not be a problem. Often part of the side wall of the tent is waterproof and the fly just needs to go lower than the top of the waterproof part of the wall. Try it out in your back yard in the rain.
Is it hard to set up? Practice setting it up; if it never gets easy replace it.
Looking at quest tents online, they look pretty cheap and may not be worth taking. Probably a tarp plus mosquito netting would be better, but practice setting it up before you go and try the tarp out in the rain.
The Snowman
02-16-2011, 19:09
people have hiked the AT with everything from old shower curtains to $1000 tents. you will be fine with what ever option makes you happy be it cheap or high price.
harryfred
02-16-2011, 19:20
I have a 2 man dome free standing single wall tent I got at K-mart years ago. It sheds rain well, seam sealed and silicone sprayed. It is a bit heavy and bulky. would I use it on a thru hike.....? Yes if I could afford nothing better. Pitch your tent in your yard the next time you have a hard rain and go out and look in it the next morning. then decide if a ground cloth and extra tarp is worth it.
I carry a lighter less bulky tent now that has let me get wet in a heavy rain. I have found a couple of freestanding tents that are not too heavy or too bulky for less than $100.
set it up in the back yard and get out the hose. if it can take a drenching and stay dry inside, you're good to go.
check the weight and cubic size of all your kit and if it's feasible, go with it.
harryfred
02-16-2011, 19:41
set it up in the back yard and get out the hose. if it can take a drenching and stay dry inside, you're good to go.
check the weight and cubic size of all your kit and if it's feasible, go with it.
Just what I said in less words.
I or I should say we leave in less than thirty days march 5th I think I have a dome tent that I like it is a quest or something like that I can't remember right now. The rain fly does not go all the way to the ground. I have a ground sheet for it and am planning on bringing another tarp to string up above it to add extra protection from blowing wind and rain which I am not even sure if I will need anybody think that will work or should I just go ahead and buy a better tent which I really don't want to pay for our bags are rated for 20 degrees and we have bag liners that add 10 degrees If i do pick up a tent I am really considering the kelty grand messa. Oh ya by the way I don't think we are going to be staying in shelters much if at all privacy issues as in we are a new couple and I really don't want mice chewing up all my stuffIt will work. Will it work well? Only you know that, or will find out in due time:D
Wise Old Owl
02-16-2011, 20:37
Guess we have much of this covered, kudos to spraying the tent with a hose in the back yard!
FYI cheap tents won't last three seasons. I took a manufacture dome tent and pitched it as a fort for Austin in the backyard. Even though it was three months under deep tall trees, it had UV holes all over the place.
Have a 9x7 dome tent from Sears, do you think would be ok for a 7day hike in the Virginia AT ? It will be myself and my son. Any and all information will be great, this will be our first time tere.
Wise Old Owl
02-16-2011, 23:09
read above posts - seam seal
stuff ok
Appalachian Tater
02-16-2011, 23:18
If your tent won't stand up to wind and keep you dry then get another shelter.
SunnyWalker
02-16-2011, 23:30
Yeah, the biggest issue is weight of the total tent set-up. When you are on the trail it will end up as THE issue. It will possibly cause you to buy a new one tho the one you have works fine. it's a mental battle you will find real hard to beat and keep going up the trail.
I or I should say we leave in less than thirty days march 5th I think I have a dome tent that I like it is a quest or something like that I can't remember right now. The rain fly does not go all the way to the ground. I have a ground sheet for it and am planning on bringing another tarp to string up above it to add extra protection from blowing wind and rain which I am not even sure if I will need anybody think that will work or should I just go ahead and buy a better tent which I really don't want to pay for our bags are rated for 20 degrees and we have bag liners that add 10 degrees If i do pick up a tent I am really considering the kelty grand messa. Oh ya by the way I don't think we are going to be staying in shelters much if at all privacy issues as in we are a new couple and I really don't want mice chewing up all my stuff
Your tent will probably work if it doesn't leak. But with an added tarp, it probably is a couple of pounds heavier than a number of $150 possible replacements. If I had the money, I'd buy something that is new and weighs less than 4.5 pounds.
A 2 pound ultralight would be great on a thru hike. But okay $100-$150 four pound tents is what I would purchase if I were on a tight budget.