Single walled waterproofing

[Hiking Man]

I am finaly giving up my old 5 pound bombproof tent for a Lightheart gear solo or duo (not sure which yet?). Is there anything that you should treat your silnylon single walled tent with for more effective waterproofing before first use?

[Stir Fry]

Man go ahead and bite the bullet, so the speak, and go with Cuben fiber tarp or tent. Several options out there. I know its 2 x's the $ but you will not regret it.

[bigcranky]

No, the silnylon is waterproof enough for 99.9999% of backpacking use. I've had some very light misting through the fabric during the most intense thunderstorm I ever had on the trail, but that was one storm in over eight years of using silnylon tarps and tents. Not enough to worry about, IMHO anyway.

[Blissful]

No waterproofing the fabric but you can use silnet to do the seams. u will get condensation build up with humidity and in rain

[Persistent]

Hiking Man,
As said by others above, other than seam sealing, no additional waterproofing of the fabric is required. If you purchase either the Standard Solo or the Duo you will be getting sil-nylon which is rated for 3500 mm of water minimum hydrostatic head. The tents do need to be seam sealed with a silicone based sealant prior to first use but we can even do this for you if you choose. If you buy the Standard Solo you will also be getting a fully double walled tent so your concern about single walls is eliminated.
Please don't hesitate to contact us should you have any other questions.
Marc Penansky
LightHeart Gear

[Del Q]

I agree on the sinylon BUT, "the difference between men & boys is the price of their toys"............backpacking is my hobby, there are a LOT more expensive hobbies, I have been saving up and decided to try the Six Moon designs cuben fiber tent, should be here in a few weeks in time for my Fall section hike.

1. Lighter, even with the $60 cuben fiber poles, keep hiking poles handy for other things, like 20 oz
2. Packs smaller than current silnylon tent, always good
3. More waterproof - silnylon is excellent and has made it through MANY nasty storms, misting does happen.

Time will tell then something new will come out.

[Hiking Man]

Thanks for the feed back everyone. I did not think that there was anything to improve the waterproofness of silnylon, but wanted to ask just to make sure.

Marc AKA Persistent,

You and your wife make a great product. I love the tent design of both the solo and the duo. Think i am going for the duo, but i do love how the solo is a doubled walled. The duo is HUGE and will be great for me and my girlfriend to take out. At 2lbs and the room the tent has there is NOTHING out there like it. I seen it at Trail Days this year. Only thing i could think of that would make the Duo better is to offer one out of cuben. Only have one more question what is the highest winds you have heard the duo or had the duo in? You should be seeing my order in the next week or so. Like the new website!

[Persistent]

Hiking Man,
Thanks for the nice comments. With regard to the Duo in wind, we have been in winds of about 35 MPH on the PCT this past April and others have reported it into the mid 40's MPH with no problems as long as it was staked out appropriately.
Thanks for checking out the new website.
Marc Penansky
LightHeart Gear

[Hiking Man]

No problem for the nice comments it's eazy when you have a nice product to talk about. THanks for the wind info i was kind of woundering about that. Can't wait to get my order in and spend my first night on the trail in my new duo and thanks again for all your help. Happy hiking.

[Sir-Packs-Alot]

Good choice on the Lightheart tent! I met those folks at the "AT Celebration & Backpacking Clinic" at Amicalola Falls back in March when I was speaking - very nice folks and very cool tents. I still carry a 23 ounce Six Moon Designs "Luna Solo". It's got the full floor as well - but not nearly the sitting room and big vestibule that the lightheart tent has that I checked out. Good Luck!

[HeartFire]

There is still a chance to get 10% off on tents at our new website - just use the coupon code "First10". This is for the first 10 people who order from the new site. the code can only be used 10 times, and the spots are getting used up
LightHeart Gear
Judy

[Toli]

There is still a chance to get 10% off on tents at our new website - just use the coupon code "First10". This is for the first 10 people who order from the new site. the code can only be used 10 times, and the spots are getting used up
LightHeart Gear
Judy

I was 1st of ten girl!!! Awesome tent Judy... My friend has been sewing since she was 8 years old(and TRYING to teach me) and was amazed at ur work... Seam sealed and good to go ...

[Tipi Walter]

Man go ahead and bite the bullet, so the speak, and go with Cuben fiber tarp or tent. Several options out there. I know its 2 x's the $ but you will not regret it.

I would be interested in reading some long-term reviews of cuben fiber tents and their pros and cons after several years of hard field use. I googled this subject but there just aren't any decent reviews unless you know of any. I'll keep looking.

[Hiking Man]

I have spent sometime online as well looking for cuben fiber reviews for long-term use and can't find anything. A friend of mine has a cuben fiber trap for her hammocks and loves it. Had it out in a really bad strom a few days before trail days this years and she stayed dri with no sagging. I was there and that was the most intenst storm i have ever been in, more less on the trail. Trees were falling all around us. Other then that i have no idea how good cuben fiber will hold up. I think i am going to wait a few years before i put the $$$ out for one.

[daddytwosticks]

Backpackinglight had a thread just a few days ago discussing cuben durability. Seems like several hikers have done thru-hikes on different trails using cuben fiber equipment with good results. As for me, I haven't bitten the bullet yet and shelled out the money.

[skinewmexico]

I'm going to bet that cuben is not going to be one of those long term fabrics. But time will tell. And if you're really paranoid about waterproofing, go to Wallyworld, buy a can of Atsko silicone spray, and spray your tent. It will add a couple of ounces though.

[MuddyWaters]

Atsko Silicone water guard or water guard extreme.

http://www.atsko.com/products/waterp...ter-guard.html

http://www.fntpost.com/Products/Boot...+(12+oz.+Spray

You should not need to do anythingfor a new tent but seam-seal with sil-net or mineral spirits/silicone prior to use. The silicone sprays are used to recondition if needed.

Some mfgs use higher rated hydrostatic head silnylon than others. Search "silnylon" and "misting" on this forum and read for a while.

All silnylon stretches and sags, especially when wet. This is a major drawback in a small tent because you will need to re-tension during night to maintain integrity in storm conditions. Some install rubber-tubing "tensioner" on the guy lines to keep them tight as the silnylon stretches.

Again, read. Know what you are getting into. Out west where its dry, or below freezing, it doesnt matter much. In the SE where its rains for several days straight, it can.

Seam sealing can add a couple ounces to what you thought was a light tent. Adding silicone spray for misting can do the same.

Cuben doesnt stretch, so it doesnt pitch as tight. It also doesnt sag, so it doesnt need to be re-tensioned. It also does not have a reputation for misting, is lighter, and stronger. If bonded construction instead of sewn, it requires no seam sealing saving a few more ounces.

[MuddyWaters]

I have lots of cuben items that I love. Strong, light, tough. In the heavier wt fabrics, its very tough. Its still pretty tough in the ultralight that seems like tissue paper. Cuben tech is working on a breathable cuben fabric as well. They have discovered the cuben market outside of sails , may just exceed the market it was developed for.