bondebond
Central Kansas
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Joined: 07/16/2008
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The first 7 years of tenting for my wife and I was consistently in the rain. Even upgrading several tents along the way, we would invariably end up with standing water in the tent, with nothing touching the sides, a rain fly and all.
I sprayed the waterproofing on the non-mesh nylon fabric, added a ground pad and invested in a fair amount of rope and tarps. I can't tell you how many times I set up camp in pouring rain. I hated starting a weekend camping experience already wet. These steps seemed to eliminate most of the water problems.
Thank goodness they finally came up with a better design for the canopy for the picnic table from the old tarp with sectioned tent poles and guy wires. I remember last year, 5 guys holding the dern up in a rainstorm while it was getting beaten down. The next day, we swapped to another guy's free-standing straight leg collapsible canopy. I bought one the next day I was home.
One thing that I look for in a campsite/campground is wood chips for the tent site. The first time I set up on tree wood chips, I thought it was going to be like sleeping on rocks. And what value would it provide. It rained. Of course.
The water was kept away from the tent flooring, helping us stay drier inside. I was impressed. This is used a lot in Minnesota and Wisconsin. I haven't seen it much elsewhere yet.
Myself, The Boss, and two wanna-be Bosses
2006 Jayco 1007
There are 10 types of people in the world: Those who can count, and those who can't.
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HuckleberryHunter
Issaquah, WA
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Joined: 09/13/2007
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I have an older Sears nylon dome tent that I used constantly for years. It stayed waterproof for just over 10 years before the seams started letting water in. After thoroughly washing and drying the tent, I went to GI Joe's and picked up four cans of Camp Dry spray sealant and sprayed down the whole tent, hitting the seams with a little extra. I think I put on one coat, then let it completely dry before adding another coat. I did the whole tent (minus the floor as that was still good and not nylon fabric). I then sprayed down the inside and outside of the rain fly too. I made sure all was clean and dry before treating and all was dry before putting away. The next time I camped in the rain it did not leak anywhere. I now use a TT, but the tent is on the shelf for the next time it's needed.
Good luck. Leaking tents are not much fun.
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OutTheDoor
USA
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Joined: 08/07/2008
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When I was a kid I had my uncle's army tent. It was a rain poncho and you had to have two to make a tent. He brought home a buddy's as well as his own from overseas. We had a ball in that old tent. The only thing he would tell us is "don't touch the canvas or it will leak". Well it did leak and we didn't touch it  . We still had a blast, wet and all, though at the time my friends and I were about 11-14 years old. WE used to tell ghost stories to each other after lights out and scare the hebee jeebes out of each other. Much better than horror movies!
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niks97cobra
Aiken, SC
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Joined: 06/22/2008
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I bought a tent from wal-mart back in '02 and have been camping about once to twice a year and each time it has rained pretty good and the fly that came with it for the top did just fine. Never have had water in the tent.
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dchuntnevada
Nevada
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Joined: 04/03/2006
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A sure fire way to keep water out is to set it up inside… Other than that, if its raining hard enough you will get some moisture in it, the other factors are the quality (not necessarily the cost), size (try and climb in a small tent when its raining and not get water in it) Age/wear, How wet you are when you go in it…. Also make sure you have a good rain fly (and you don’t forget it at home) lots of people seal the seams or spray the fabric. I have never done either but most tents recommend sealing the seams, for the most spraying the fabric is not necessary when its new, the fabric should already be waterproof and the spray can damage the surface make it less breathable and slower to dry out or just be redundant, after a few years of use its another story, in that case I always make sure the leaky side is at the low end and I get the high side. They do make some products designed to recharge fishing/wading jackets that could work on a tent but require being washed and dried
Dc
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dchuntnevada
Nevada
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Joined: 04/03/2006
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If you spray the tent from the inside with the canned stuff you will get to dizzy to worry about any water coming in
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Notenoughtime
Lakewood, WA
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Joined: 02/21/2008
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Well, We have an ez up and it is such a multiple use item. shade or rain protection. We have carried it over and put it over the kids tent many times and if it is nasty out we lower one side so the rain will drip off at the back side.
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edmontoncamper
Edmonton Alberta Canada
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Joined: 08/13/2007
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dchuntnevada wrote:If you spray the tent from the inside with the canned stuff you will get to dizzy to worry about any water coming in
Best answer yet!
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beemerphile1
NE Ohio
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Joined: 04/20/2007
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My experience with many years of tenting is that a good quality nylon tent won't leak from the start. You get what you pay for. If you do want to seal seams do NOT use the latex seam sealer. Use the good stuff, Sean Grip is it's name. When the tent does eventually begin to leak because the DWR (durable water repellent) has worn out it is time to replace it.
Canvas tents can be treated with Thompson's Water Seal. It comes in a can as a liquid, set up the tent and brush it on. Allow to dry thoroughly and you're good to go. Very few camping tents are made from canvas anymore (if any).
Tim
"Okay, I admit it, the only thing I'm really good at is being me."
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2006 Weekend Warrior FK1900
1998 Ford E150 4.6L
1996 BMW R1100GS
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