Posts Tagged "Camping"

Camping Tent Designs ? The Greatest Strengths And Worst Weaknesses Of Frame Tents Revealed

October 13th, 2011

Frame tents are very popular family camping tents, since they come in larger sizes and can accommodate more people than classic dome tents. They do have great features, but they also have their disadvantages. When considering these camping tents, you need to think carefully about your priorities. Is the bigger comfort worth it to put up with the disadvantages of a frame tent?

Frame tent styles
One room camping tents
More room camping tents (usually 2 to 4 rooms, created by sewn-in room dividers)

Main strengths of frame camping tents

Larger living area – Frame tents can accommodate anything from 3 up to 12 people. They provide more living space than other camping tents, which makes them great for family camping. Besides storing all your stuff, you can comfortably spend time inside, in the evenings or on rainy days. If you have a large frame tent, you can even have some camping furniture permanently set up to sit together and play games.
Sturdy construction – The canvas hangs over a sturdy frame of stiff tubular poles. This makes the tent itself very stable, and it can be secured against blowing away by guy ropes and pegs.
Larger usable area – Frame tents are the camping tents that use ground area most efficiently. Due to the almost vertical walls, you can use the complete interior space. Unlike in many dome tents that restrict you to the center, camping furniture can be set up anywhere you like in a frame tent. For example, you can cook inside when it’s raining, keeping your kitchen close to the walls and out of everybody’s way.
More freedom of movement – The vertical walls and bigger height of these camping tents also allow you to stand and walk in your tent, whereas dome tents force you to bend when you get closer to the walls.
More room option – This allows for more privacy when camping with friends, and it can help keeping the kids off each others’ throat. A spare room can also be used to store your things, dry your clothes, or as an entertainment area.

Weaknesses of frame camping tents

Longer setup – Frame tents are not necessarily easy to set up. They often take longer to pitch than dome tents or ridge tents, since the frame is larger and consists of more parts. Also, the larger size of the tent may require more people for the setup.
Higher prices – Frame tents tend to be more expensive than equally sized dome tents, but this does not always have to be the case. The price also depends on the brand and quality. You can get great deals on any kind of camping tents when you shop around a little.
Less wind stability – Due to their corner-design, frame tents are less suitable for extreme weather conditions like heavy winds. If you plan such an excursion, dome tents are the better camping tents.
Larger pack size – Since they are larger, frame tents also produce a larger package to transport. This might be a problem if you have a small car.
Bigger weight – Due to their heavier frame, these camping tents weigh more than other types. This can cause problems like overloading your car.
Less available pitch places – Camping tents must be set up on a level surface. The larger a tent is, the more difficult it is to find a space large enough. Especially bigger sized frame tents don’t fit in so easily as compact dome tents.

In general, you can say that frame tents are great camping tents for spending a week or more in one place, with the whole family or maybe a couple of friends. You can have luxurious camping and thoroughly enjoy yourselves. Make sure, though, that you can transport a tent of that size. If your car is too small, you might consider hiring a trailer. For extreme weather or travel tours, frame tents are not recommendable, due to their bigger weight and pack size and higher pitch effort.

B. Berlin is the marketing director of Family Tents World.com. To find quality camping tents visit www.familytentsworld.com today. Our family tents bring the best of frame and dome tents together to meet your family’s camping needs best.


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12v portable air conditioner camping tent

October 9th, 2011

12v portable air conditioner camping tent
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How To Choose A Good Camping Tent For Your Next Family Safari

September 12th, 2011

Size
The size of a tent is determined by how many people it can accommodate – hence tents are categorized as two- man, four-man or six-man. Take note though that this is under very ideal situations where no camping gear is present – in reality, this may not apply and might only make sense to backpackers who usually travel light.

So for everyone else, www.familycampinggear.com advises you divide the advertised rating by two to get the real capacity of the tent. Therefore a tent rated as four-man should really accommodate two adults and possibly 2 very small children.

Plan with a minimum of 30 square feet of floor space per person. Make this even higher for longer camping trips, unless reducing weight is important.

Most two-man tents measure 35 square feet – hardly enough for any additional comforts or accessories. According to www.familycampinggear.com, adding space for clothing and a space to stand up without walking on your tent mate, will result in a more livable situation. This means an eight by eight feet tent (64 square feet) would be ideal for a two-man family camping tent. This gives you 32 square feet per person – which is ok.

If you need to really be comfortable on your outing (i.e. have room for two adults and still remain with space for a cot, a mattress and room to stand when changing), then a 100 square feet tent is the kind of tent you will need. Make sure the tent is high enough to stand in. Plan for the tallest person in the group although, as a general guide, a 6-7 foot height is good for adults and about 4 feet for kids.

Consider putting kids of about 7 or 8 years in their own tent. This gives the adults privacy. Here a 35 square feet tent (5×7 feet) would serve the kids well. Teenagers should be considered as adults when fitting a tent.

Do not go for tents larger than 100 square feet. They will give you problems when pitching because it is difficult to find a smooth and level spot large enough to set up the tent on yet you need this kind of a level spot. Such tents may also prove bulky – especially during loading and unloading into your car.

Poles
Most tent poles are made from aluminum or fiberglass. These poles are, in most cases, connected together with an elastic shock cord which helps when setting up the tent. Most good tent manufacturers provide emergency repair links to be used in the event the poles break or bend during a camping trip. Remember to confirm this before buying.

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Fabric
Most tents in Kenya are made from canvas. The trend now is to use nylon which is good for waterproofing. The window screen can be made from a translucent material. Always ensure the tent you buy is made of material that is thick enough to withstand a rough environment and cannot be easily ripped-apart.

Zippers
Before you buy your tent, test all zippers to make sure they can open and close freely without binding to the tent fabric. Good zippers should also be rust-proof.

Shape
Tents come in four basic shapes: A-frame (pup), umbrella (dome) and Tunnel (hoop). Just like its name, this tent is shaped like the letter ‘A’ with a single ridgepole across the top to hold up the tent’s canopy. The design was the classic tent design in the sixties. It’s also called a pup tent. A-frame tents have an efficient rectangular floor space.

The Dome Tent is shaped like an upside down bowl. It is the most popular, all around camping tent style for all types of camping. A modified type of dome tent called the geodesic tent is regarded as the most wind-worthy camping tent style of all modified dome tents.

The tunnel tent has a structure of simple side to side arched poles like a covered wagon. It forms a tunnel with a series of hoop shaped poles (usually two or three). Sometimes an extra centre pole is used to keep the walls from sagging. It is one of the lightest and easiest to pitch shapes available.

Tents with square floor shapes are more efficient when laying out sleeping and gear arrangements. Because of other factors, it is not always possible to have a square floor. If you buy a round floor, or nearly round like with the geodesic dome tents, you should allow some extra floor area to make up for the less efficient layout.

Seams
All waterproof seams in a nylon tent, such as on the fly and floor, must be waterproofed with a seam sealer. Your new tent should come with a bottle of seam sealer. Set up the tent in the yard before your trip, and apply the sealer. Let it dry before packing the tent. You will need to do this yearly.

Weather
Wind, rain, sun, heat and cold, all have different demands on the tent. Windy areas will require sturdy poles, stakes and anchor ropes. Geodesic tents are excellent in wind. Their igloo-like shape reduces the wind’s effect, and their pole arrangement provides great strength.

Your tent should have a completely waterproof rain fly made of coated nylon. The fly should wrap around the tent and reach down the sides nearly to the ground. This will keep out all types of rain, even if it is windy. The fly should extend far enough over the door, so it keeps out the rain when you open the door to enter or leave.

The floor should also be waterproof coated nylon. This fabric should cover the floor, and turn up the sides for about six inches or so. There should be a few seams as possible. This is called a “tub” floor. It will keep out any water that runs down and under the tent.

Sun and heat create the need for shade and airflow. The rain fly will provide shade for tent. Large screened windows on opposite sides of the tent, or a screened window opposite a screened door, will allow air to flow through the tent.

Cost
A good tent serves you for a longer time. In general, tents made out of stronger material (fabric, poles and stitching) are priced higher. They will withstand higher winds and heavier rain. But then you may not need this level of strength and durability hence you may opt for lighter versions that are always a bargain.

Again if camping is one of those things you do once in a year and you do not venture out into virtually unknown terrain during the harshest of weather conditions, then you are better-off sticking to a least expensive tent. After that, you will be more experienced and wiser to venture into more pricy options.

Read more travel articles from Kenya at: Enchanted Landscapes Travelogue

Enchanted Landscapes® is a web-based company that endeavours to market Kenya as a popular tourist destination by highlighting Kenya’s spectacular landscapes and monuments of significance in its history alongside its people’s cultural diversity, music, dishes, dressing, art and literature. Enchanted Landscapes can be accessed at www.enchanted-landscapes.com


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Camping Tent Advice – Which Tent Should I Buy?

September 9th, 2011

TENT ADVICE – Camping Tent & Equipment Advice


Going camping is one of the best ways to enjoy the outdoors. Choosing a tent and buying camping equipment that is right for you is fun too, so make sure you know which camping tent is the best suited for you, whether it be a family tent, backpacking tent or group tent. CheapTents.com has the right advice and guidance to help you in this decision.


What type of tent do you need?


Choosing which of the many different designs and sizes of tents from the many available is a difficult task. To start narrowing down the options, we suggest listing your particular requirements. The first question has to be how many people is the tent for? If the tent is for solo use then you’re really looking for a tent weighing 1-2.5kg, which immediately eliminates well over half the tent models available. Most people share tents though, so this is where the greatest choice lie, with weights ranging from 1.75 to 5 kilos, the latter being a sensible upper weight limit for a tent that is being carried.


At the lower weight range, tent space will be at a minimum for two campers whilst the upper-end models of tents will take up to three or even four people in relative comfort. If your tent will be used mostly from the car with only the occasional venture into the wilds then weight isn’t so important. If you go backpacking regularly every gram counts, so an ultralight tent is vital. How much room you need depends on how tidy you are and how well you get on with your companions! Sharing small tents may be fine in the summer, but in winter when the nights are long and cold and often stormy a roomy tent makes camping far more enjoyable. The size of the porch is important too. In winter it needs to be large enough to store all your spare gear and have room for cooking too. In fact two porches are found on many winter or 4 season tents.


When and where you will use the tent should be taken into consideration too. Some designs (‘A’ pole, geodesic, well guyed tunnel or single hoop) perform much better than others in strong winds and so are more suited for exposed high levels sites. A necessity for the mountaineer but not for the canoe camper or cycle tourer. Not all tents are four season models. For winter use look for steep walls to shed snow but with some gradient to detract the force for the wind. More important in summer is to have insect netting doors on the inner tent, essential if you are going somewhere like the Scottish Highlands where midges are rampant.

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How easy is the tent to pitch? For base camp use, this isn’t too important. If you are moving on everyday however you need a tent you can erect quickly, especially when it is wet and windy. Consider too, whether it is erected inside first or last – as inner tents ideally need to be kept dry. Finally ask yourself if you like the tent. This is important as you’ll be spending a lot of time in it. Choose a colour that appeal to you and a shape you find attractive. And when you get your new tent home take it out and check all the bits are there and then practice pitching it in the garden – the more you practice erecting your tent the more . You don’t want to arrive at your first camp site, when inevitably it will be dark and raining, to discover that you haven’t enough tent pegs and you don’t know which sleeve which pole goes in.


Tent Choice


From Wild Country, Terra Nova, The North Face, Vango, VauDe, MSR, Marmot, Mountain Equipment and more, it’s sometime difficult to choose the best tent for you. These manufacturers design their tents to the highest standards, materials and designs are tested to the limit and quality control is excellent. These are high quality, high performance tents with a guarantee of quality workmanship and materials. Personal requirements vary and priorities are highly individual, from a solo 1kg ultralight tent to a roomy base tent for two guilty gear hounds! Whatever your needs you will find the ideal tent at CheapTents.com.


Tent Design


Many and varied! Ridge or hoop tents, tunnel tents or geodesic tents, or a dome tent? Choice is very personal depending on your priorities for weight and space. A variety of factors contribute to the performance of the tent in tough conditions: How aerodynamic the tent is; the number and positioning of guy points; the number and configuration of the tent poles. Geodesic tent design is the strongest and so is often used as an expedition tent. It uses intersecting tent poles to produce a strong self-supporting structure with great internal volume. The interlocking tent poles easily handle snow load and since there is very little unsupported fabric, the tent has minimum ‘sail area’ to catch the wind.


Tunnel tents are sometimes preferred to dome tents as they offer a larger usable space for the area of the pitch that they use, as they have a good usable height along the middle line rather than a single peak as with dome tents.


Dome tents are often lightweight tents as they often use just two poles (or three including a porch pole) that cross at the apex of the tent. They use a simple tent pole structure as can be seen below, which is easily erected, making it a popular tent as a backpacking tent.

Family tents and group tents come in a variety of sizes and tent design. They are usually designed with the intent of being used as a base camp tent, where the tent is erected just once or twice for a single trip. This means that they can be bigger and heavier, but at the same time providing more practical and usable space for longer durations and more people.


All tents must be pitched correctly for optimum performance. Care in siting, e.g. tail to the wind or a sheltered place, can make a substantial difference.


Tent Materials


Most flysheets and groundsheets are made from a lightweight nylon fabric or, alternatively, a more durable lightweight polyester. For groundsheets, a slightly heavier fabric is used, since increased abrasion resistance is required. Ripstop nylon is reinforced with a fibrous mesh to prevent tearing.


Both flysheets and groundsheets are coated to make them completely waterproof. A variety of coatings are used. Polyurethane (PU) is probably the most common. Silicone elastomer, as used by The North Face, enables even lighter weight nylon to be used without sacrificing any of its strength. All these coatings are non breathable. Thus condensation may form on the inside of the flysheet. However, this can be reduced by good ventilation. Groundsheet protectors (footprints) are also available and help to protect the tent’s built in groundsheet from getting ripped or dirty.


Tent Repair and Care


It’s important to be prepared. If you’re looking to make an investment in a high quality tent, it’s important to make sure you take good care of it. Make sure you read the section above, but also consider buying tent repair kits and tent cleaner.


Tent Brands


Many camping equipment shops will sell a variety of tents to suit different people’s needs with some companies specialising in a particular range of tents such as lightweight tents, base camp / expedition tents or even group or family tents. Popular tent brands that are sold in many camping shops include Vaude Tents, MSR, Wild Country Tents, Vango, Mountain Equipment Tents, The North Face Tents, Wynnster and Aztec Tents.

CheapTents.com Camping Equipment Shop

Ben McKay, CheapTents.com Marketing Dept.

Tel: (UK) 01925 411 385, Email: tents@cheaptents.com


Online Camping Equipment Shop, selling tents, outdoor clothing, rucksacks, sleeping bags, walking boots, climbing equipment, and providing advice to outdoor sports and camping enthusiasts for almost 20 years.


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The Basics of Tent Camping

August 10th, 2011

Tent camping is an activity my family has been involved in for many years. Our camping trips combine fishing, hiking, and swimming to the regular camp site life of cutting wood, starting a fire, food preparation, cooking, eating, games, and just relaxing. We’ve made a lot of good memories from our camping trips. We’ve always gone up in the mountains and found great camping hiking spots either at designated campgrounds that offer water for washing, and some type of restroom (out house or rest-stop type), and garbage cans, or places where there were no creature comforts at all. We always camped by streams, lakes, or rivers during the summer months.

If you intend to have a successful camping experience, planning is important. As a retired Army Airborne Ranger, who has had to live out of a ruck (back pack) for many days, having the right camping gear when you’re camping will make the experience that much more enjoyable.
The best camping tents for families are tents that have separate rooms. Since we have two children our tent has three rooms — my wife and I sleep in a room, the kids sleep in a room, and the entrance room is for dressing and storage. We use a combination of foam and inflatable mattresses. We use rectangular sleeping bags that you can zip together for the wife and I, and the kids have their own individual bags. Bring extra blankets for chilly nights. We also use poncho liners for the kids to use inside their sleeping bags. We’ve had our tent for over 15 years and average 2-3 camping trips each summer.

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We also take a couple of tarps. We use one tarp on the ground under the tent and make it long enough to have about 8 feet in front of the tent door. We take our shoes/boots off outside to keep the inside of the tent as clean as possible. We bring a small folding stool to place outside the tent door to help with putting shoes on. The second tarp is used to cover our kitchen/cooking gear if it rains.

We use two camping stoves – one uses propane (which we mainly use for heating water for hot drinks and washing) and the other is a 2 burner stove and uses fuel, which does not burn as hot. We use this one for cooking bacon, pancakes, eggs, etc. Bring a couple of frying pans, and camping pots/pans – remember to bring a spatula if you’re going to cook pancakes or eggs.

We always start a fire in the morning(for warmth) and in the evening, for cooking. Bring a collapsible grate to put over the fire if you plan on laying anything on it to cook or heat up. We make pointed sticks by cutting small branches from nearby trees for the polish dogs or bratwurst – so bring a couple of knives. We cut our own wood from the dead branches and logs you find near the campground. We bring an axe and small saw with a folding blade to get the wood the right size to fit in the fire pit.

Here are the basics of camping gear to bring:

Tent with rain fly, tarp, tent stakes, and hammer

Sleeping gear to include mattresses – inflatable or foam, blankets (poncho liners), and pillows

Cooking/kitchen equipment – camping stoves, folding camping table, frying pans, pots to heat water and cook in, paper plates, bowls, and utensils, napkins, paper towels, wash rags, towels, cutlery, large spoons, tongs, can opener, lighters, tin foil, plastic wash basin, scouring pads, disposable wipes, detergent, plastic storage bags, and trash bags. We pack this in see-though plastic tubs with folding lids. We pack most of our non-cooler food in these types of containers, too.

Fire pit necessities – if you plan on scrounging your own wood from the forest floor – axe, folding saw, gloves, newspaper for fire starting, lighter, a folding grate (campfire tripod), and a folding shovel.

Personal hygiene – soap, wash cloths, towels (dark in color), shampoo and shower shoes (if your campground has a shower), toothpaste, and toilet paper.

Safety equipment – flashlights, lantern, spare batteries, cell phone with car charger, map of the area, first aid kit, compass or GPS, and plenty of drinking water.

These are some of the items you’ll need to have an enjoyable camping trip. After your first trip, you’ll be able to fine-tune your list. Tent camping takes a lot of prep work, but it is so worth it for the memories you’ll always have.

I’ve been tent camping for over 35 years and as a retired Airborne Ranger, I have experience in wilderness survival.  For more information on camping tents and camping hiking gear, please visit us at http://mycampingtentsandmore.com.  We carry a nice selection camping gear from tents to flashlights at reasonable prices.  Check us out!

 


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How to Select a Good Camping Tent

June 24th, 2011

 

Before you head out on your next trip to the great outdoors you will need to check whether you have all the right camping gear to make the occasion a memorable one. Camping is a wonderful experience and one that is enjoyed by people of all ages if you’re properly outfitted and have all camping gear you’ll need.

Whether you are heading into the wilderness or planning to tent camp at an organized camp ground, having the correct equipment will ensure you are ready for any eventuality and situation. A quality tent should be at the top of the list. These are available in a dizzying array of shapes, designs, and sizes. It’s imperative you choose a tent that can accommodate the number of people who will be accompanying you on the trip or have more than one tent depending on the situation and how many people want to sleep under one roof.

Before you start looking for a camping tent, decide how much you’re willing to spend.

Types of Camping Tents:

Camping tents are classified using three ratings: 3 season, 4 season, and all season. The 3 season tent works well except for cold weather conditions, the 4 season tent is designed for extreme cold temperatures, and the all season tent is generally thought of as a family or car tent. Most cabin tents are all season tents.

Besides the seasonal classification, there are also backpacking tents and regular tents.
Backpacking tents are light-weight and are fast and easy to set-up. The largest   backpacking tent I would recommend would be a 3 man tent. This would give 2 people plenty of room and not be too heavy to carry in your backpack. Regular tents are used for
car/truck camping where you drive to a campground and don’t have far to set-up your campsite.

 

What’s the right size of camping tent (not a backpacking tent)?

 

The size and weight of a tent doesn’t matter, just as long as you’re able to carry it from you car or truck to the campsite and it fits in your vehicle along will all your other camping gear.

 

Tent capacity is based on the number of people who can sleep in one. For example, a 2 man tent will accommodate 2 people and have very little storage space. A good rule is to buy a camping tent that has a capacity rating of 2 people more than the number who will be using it. This will provide enough space to spread out a little and store your gear, too. If you’re doing family camping, the multi-room tents work great. Multi-room tents come in 2-room styles, where the rooms are separated by an inside tent wall with a zippered door. The 3-room design has the 2 room, plus an added screen room, which is great for storage and for changing clothes, playing games, etc.

 

Other features to look for are:

A rainfly to keep the rain out

Folded seams and double stitching to help keep rain out

A one piece waterproof tub floor keeps water out

Noseeum meshing to keep insects out

Heavy duty zippers that hold up with frequent use

 

If it rains while you’re camping or your tent is damp when you strike camp, you’ll want to set-up the tent in your yard to air it out when you get home. This helps prevent mildew and mold.

I’ve been tent camping for over 35 years and as a retired Airborne Ranger, have experience in wilderness survival. For more information on camping tents and camping hiking gear, please visit us at http://mycampingtentsandmore.com. We carry a nice selection of camping gear from tents to flashlights at reasonable prices. Check us out!

 


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