View Full Version : Uses for Tyvek
Trebor66
10-05-2013, 10:00
Many hikers use Tyvek for groundsheets or tarps. What other uses have you seen it used for?
Valley Girl
10-05-2013, 10:28
Check out youtube. I have seen instructions for making wallets and sleeping bag covers.
kayak karl
10-05-2013, 10:52
http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/search.php?searchid=4613282&pp=
I have seen people write hitchhiking signs on their tyvek ground cloths. You can do a generic one like, "Hiker to town," or one guy kept folding his and writing town names as he moved along.
kayak karl
10-05-2013, 10:59
we did rule out boiling your shorts in tyvek bag. http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/showthread.php?30703-Boiling-your-shorts&p=475517#post475517
SCRUB HIKER
10-05-2013, 13:44
I have seen people write hitchhiking signs on their tyvek ground cloths. You can do a generic one like, "Hiker to town," or one guy kept folding his and writing town names as he moved along.
Yeah, who would that guy be?
24315
lush242000
10-05-2013, 16:29
Many hikers use Tyvek for groundsheets or tarps. What other uses have you seen it used for?
As a vapor barrier in construction. Sorry I couldn't help myself. http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/10/06/6ehehese.jpg
Sent from somewhere.
LOL!!! Wow! Scrub I totally forgot that was you!! Looks like you gave up with the town names though. :)
Just Bill
10-05-2013, 19:19
One of the best uses for Tyvek, especially for folks like myself in the trades, is to use it for practice gear. It sews just like 1.9 ounce Sil-nylon. You can make cheap prototypes of your designs. It is good for making patterns as well. I also highly recommend it for scout troops. A roll of it, coupled with some conduit and a few screw on connectors lets you make an infinite variety of cheap tarps for group camping. Buy a grommet kit and get creative and you can make tons of tarps in any size you want, including mess tents, cook tents, gear tents, and even tent tents. A $120 roll (10' x 150')will cover most Troops, and it packs up better than the heavy blue tarps typically used. While we are on the topic, pick up a 50lb box of aluminum pole barn nails and your troop's staking needs are covered too.
Old Hiker
10-05-2013, 19:22
Yeah, who would that guy be?
24315
Are they written backwards for people to drive past and look back in their rear view mirrors?? :confused:
Joke. Small joke. I swear.
SCRUB HIKER
10-05-2013, 20:36
LOL!!! Wow! Scrub I totally forgot that was you!! Looks like you gave up with the town names though. :)
There are more on the other side ... I think the last one I ever wrote is the one that says "Callahan's Exit 6," which was put to use promptly after leaving you guys' motel room in Ashland.
Are they written backwards for people to drive past and look back in their rear view mirrors?? :confused:
Joke. Small joke. I swear.
I took the picture with Photo Booth on my Mac, which is supposed to act like a mirror, and then was too lazy to flip the image around. But you bring up an excellent idea ... I would not rule out a Tyvek sandwich-board style sign in the future, with all the stuff on the back written backwards for the benefit of all the people who just blew by.
I have made a food bag that works. A tarp with grommets that works. A bivy bag that does not work for me. too much moisture, does not breath enough.
Rocket Jones
10-06-2013, 08:20
According to one tyvek sheet spec sheet I saw, instead of grommets they recommend bunching the corner and using a sheet bend to tie a line to it. You could then run the line out to the tent stake.
Just Bill
10-06-2013, 11:25
Two- 1 1/4" wide folds, covered over with Tyvek tape. Heat a 40d nail (1/4 dia.) to start your holes. Use a Cheap plastic grommet kit from any sporting goods store. Not bomb proof, but it will make it a season. Next season, well just fold it one more time and move the grommet a few inches over. Melting a hole, rather than punching one makes a big difference, as does adding the Tyvek tape. Lasts longer than the sheet bend and rock trick will, which works great in a pinch, but wears away the corner after a few trips. No matter what material you are using- avoiding strapping your tarp down for nuclear war will make it last longer.
No matter what material you are using- avoiding strapping your tarp down for nuclear war will make it last longer.
And, using shock cord, small to large diameter depending on tarp size, tied in a loop through the grommet, to give staked lines some stretch will help keep the tarp from tearing out at the corners.
yerbyray
10-15-2013, 04:32
I made a kilt out of tyvek and wore it on a few trips. I had softened it up in the washing machine and it was very light weight and comfrotable.
I have a pic of it at the house and will try to add it when I get home.
Yerby Ray
annamagpie
10-29-2013, 09:25
A friend just gave me the end of his roll of Tyvek. Excited to try some of these things. Thanks for the thread!
The Old Boot
10-29-2013, 11:28
Many thanks for all the suggestions, particularly the tarp and shock cord combo. I've been wanting to carry a second tarp for over the kitchen area on camping trips but didn't want to add any more weight. The Tyvek is an excellent solution to the problem.
Now to find some Tyvek up here - seems all the builders use Typar which is definitely not the same thing!!
Trebor66
10-29-2013, 15:24
I'm fortunate to live in a area that has a fair amount of house construction going on. It only takes a few minutes of driving around a construction site to find all the Tyvek I want. I have seen different people here on WB selling it and I would imagine you could probably Google it as well.
fiddlehead
10-29-2013, 17:39
We often strung up tyvek on a barbed wire fence on our CDT hikes.
Just bunch up a corner of your tyvek, tie some string around it tight and the other end to the fence.
Often it's the only way to get out of the sun for a lunch break or whatever. Or for rain of course.
Also, a$$ pad if it's damp out, or snow.
Carry a Sharpie to write destination for town.
Oh yeah, ground cloth for my floorless tent. (duh)
jimmyjam
10-29-2013, 18:02
I've made tyvek wallets and an envelope to hold my stakes. Also I have a 2ft x 2ft piece for a "door mat" to my tarp that I have written "hiker to town and hiker to trail " on, it works like a charm.
You can make light stake bags and other gear pouches out of tyvek; also a small piece works to sit on wet ground and stay pretty dry.
keepinitsimple
11-26-2013, 10:40
The tyvek envelopes make great stuff sacks too