How waterproof is this tent?
How ?
Enough for me...
This kind of silnylon has a waterhead of about 1200mm. As a comparison Epic is rated at 800 (50%less) but still "waterproof" enough for some.
I have had a couple of sil shelters under prolonged heavy rainfall with some very minor misting on a few occasions, not enough to disrupt my sleep nor wet my down bags.
Note that many have finished trough hikes with this kind of sil tents (Tarptents and SMD) and still are using them after that, whilst others need/prefer a double wall tent over their head.
But if you are thinking of a tent that will keep you dry if several inches of water flood your spot, then this is not it...
Franco
I have used my TT Moment tent for one night and it was a stormy one. I was setup in a semi-open area beside some farm buildings with very little wind protection. It started to rain about 3 AM and the wind began to build. By daybreak the rain and wind was beating hard against the little tent. I was worried about my seam-sealing job, but I had only two very small leaks where the two mesh barriers connect to the back canopy that will have to be redone. After the wind got up, I did get some light spray though the sil nylon. Enough to get the top outer shell of my bag damp, but not enough to get the down wet. I don’t think my bag shell is treated, but it kept me warm and dry.
I now know why they say that TarpTents are half tarp and half tent. Setup in that open area and in that wind, it was blowing through the side mesh pretty good. Drafty just like a tarp, but no rain blew in though the mesh. I need to learn how to close the windward side of the canopy closer to the ground. Before it is already pouring rain. I laid a rolled up tarp inside and along and on top of the side mesh and that helped a lot.
According to the car radio in the morning we had gotten 1 to 3 inches of rain in the area. The campsite was level and there were water puddles everywhere. I had no ground sheet, but the bathtub tent floor stayed dry. Any thing lying on the mesh including my rolled up wind blocking tarp got wet.
The wind shifted from north to northeast to east and back to north. I think that the tent features of the Moment kept me a lot dryer that if I had been under a tarp in that location and those conditions.
I was using a 24 x 77 inch blue foam pad that I had trimmed the corners to fit in the bathtub floor. The 5-inch sidewalls kept the pad in place with no sliding around. Because I was car camping, I had two 25 x 77 inch Thermo Rests and I laid them on top of the foam pad. The top head end corners of those pads curled up slightly over the bathtub floor sidewall corners, but it didn’t seem to be any problem. There was room for the bottom corners to lay flat.
I was not about to crawl out of the tent in that rain, but at 5’ 11” I had enough kneeling headroom to use a pee bottle. My old backpacking tent is a two man Clip Flashlight and I do not feel like I am giving up much usable and livable interior space at all.
The rain didn’t quit till midmorning and the wind got worse. I have, but did not bring the optional crossing pole and by about 2 in the afternoon the gale was so strong it was time to add some guy lines. Instead, I broke camp and headed for home. It was a good test of the tent and I am very satisfied with it. For Moment TarpTents (like any tent) in really bad storm conditions, there are some things to think about. Some skills to learn. I already have some ideas about what to do different next time. This winter, I will be backpacking and conditions may well be a lot worse. The Moment is not rated as a four-season tent, but I wonder if that winter envelope can’t be pushed a little.
I would like to see a Video of Henry Shires tarptent Moment being set up and of the inside and outside, does anyone have this?
Dedicated REI original 1/4 Dome user here.Originally Posted by 4Bears
Until I got my Rainbow......
Tarptents get better as you learn how to optimise them for the situation. A simple trick ,for example , on how to drop a hoop tent a bit lower is to dig a little hole under the pole tips.
On a hoop shelter like that I would definitely install pole guylines and use them if pitched anywhere in the open (IE not under tree protection)
BTW, here is an (unintentionally) amusing video on how not to pitch a Tarptent...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vW2dKsLdHWg
Franco
Franco
Thanks for the pitching TT tents tips. One of the best things about TarpTents is all the good feedback from the owners and Henry, himself.
Misting again? Nuts.
My Moment was supposed to ship today.
Con men understand that their job is not to use facts to convince skeptics but to use words to help the gullible to believe what they want to believe - Thomas Sowell
When can I expect your For Sale posting on your other tents....
I'm getting smarter. I sold one in advance this time.When can I expect your For Sale posting on your other tents....
Con men understand that their job is not to use facts to convince skeptics but to use words to help the gullible to believe what they want to believe - Thomas Sowell
Could you discuss the Scarp 2 vs. the double rainbow
Thanks
Double wall, 4 season tent versus a single wall, 3 season tent.
Con men understand that their job is not to use facts to convince skeptics but to use words to help the gullible to believe what they want to believe - Thomas Sowell
The answer is "sort of." Here's a diagram showing standard long and extra wide/long pads inside the Moment. The Moment has 5" bathtub walls so technically an extra wide/long pad does fit inside the floor wall if it will bend/roll up a bit at the corners. The floor ends on the Moment are held pretty firmly in the vertical plane by vertical mesh walls that connect to the canopy.
-H
So Henry... based on the above diagram, would the 5" floor walls easily push out a bit (but still be under the tent canopy) to let the corners of the 25x77 pad lay flat, or would the pad corners rise up & hang over the floor wall? Based on my experience w/ TT (I own the DR), I think the floor walls would push out a bit b/c of how they're connected to the tent body via mesh,, maybe bringing the "floor wall" down to 2 to 3" high at the pad corners. I hope this is the case. Whatdaya think? The Neoair is the pad I'd be using w/ the Moment.
I guess my concern is.... since I'd be using a Neoair (which I don't think would bend up very well at the corners b/c of pad thickness), then the floor/mesh would have to give... & so... would they?
Big Dawg,
I don't have a NeoAir to test so at this point I'm just educated guessing as to what will happen with the pad but, yes, the mesh and floor will give if you/your pad push outward on them. If you do end up getting a Moment and it doesn't work well with your pad then not a problem to return the Moment.
-H
you can trim the neo air using a iron.
There is a video tour of the interior taken by Alex Wallace here:
http://www.tarptent.com/moment_3.html
This , to me, gives a very good idea of the inside space and design.
As for cutting and mortifying the Neo Air (if you are game..) here it is :
http://www.suluk46.com/videos.html
Franco
yea, saw that video,,, one of the reasons I figured the floor wall/mesh would allow 25x77 pad to lay flat.
I would NEVER intentionally alter the NeoAir. By doing so, it would negate REI's return policy, which is the only way I'd pull the trigger on a NeoAir.
Franco that is the funniest thing I've seen all day. "Look how freakin low that thing is! Do you want to stay all day in there?" This guy reminds me of several folks I met along the trail.
"I always told you I was more of a Westerner than an Easterner"
-Theodore Roosevelt
Appalachian Trail 2008
Colorado Trail 2010
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