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Post by ukpacker on Sept 19, 2016 2:46:34 GMT -8
Hi
amongst others i have a Vaude Power Lizard two person tent, I love the outer tent it's very stable and light but the inner tent fabric is too light to prevent drops of condensation from penetrating the fabric.
Has anyone tried waterproofing a fine nylon inner tent? it's solid fabric not mesh.
Thanks for any ideas.
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Post by dirthurts on Sept 19, 2016 3:31:05 GMT -8
What traps water from getting out will also trap water inside as well. My fear would be that if you waterproof the nylon body, the water vapor from your breath will not be able to escape and then you'll have an all new condensation problem, on the nylon. You would really be in a tough spot then. I would avoid coating that body at all.
Is the nylon body just getting wet or is it actually dripping through?
Are you leaving your vents open when you camp?
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Sept 19, 2016 4:41:00 GMT -8
A Vaude, brings back some good memories of times spent on the Dosewallips. Any ways. I am into the 3rd year of owning a single wall, zPacks Duplex (1.29 pounds), tent. My wife and I went through a learning curve on properly pitching the tent to prevent internal condensation from building up. First and formost, in tent pitcing, is location, location, location. We pitch the tent at least 200 feet from a water source, with the head of the tent pointed into the wind. We do not pitch the tent in low spots, if we can help it, such as depressions or gullies. The final part of the pitching is lee side venting. I have awoken many of mornings to run my hand on the roof of the tent to find it bone dry. From the zPacks FAQ: |
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almostthere
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Post by almostthere on Sept 19, 2016 6:23:52 GMT -8
pitch the tent in a better location, as noted. Never pitch on a lawn or other live foliage.
Stake it out fully and open all vents, do not let the fly droop anywhere.
Under some conditions it will be inevitable- a few drips don't hurt anything.
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tigger
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Post by tigger on Sept 19, 2016 7:11:38 GMT -8
A few tricks I've learned - bring a shamwow. Using a tent footprint will help cut down on condensation. Having your face directly under a vent will cut down on condensation. In winter, a candle lantern hanging inside (carefully) will cut down on condensation.
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Westy
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Post by Westy on Sept 19, 2016 7:50:20 GMT -8
First and formost, in tent pitcing, is location, location, location. We pitch the tent at least 200 feet from a water source, with the head of the tent pointed into the wind. We do not pitch the tent in low spots, if we can help it, such as depressions or gullies. The final part of the pitching is lee side venting. Bingo! We do the same with one minor addition: If possible and feasible, pitch in an east facing exposure to capture first light. It's more of a corrective then preventive action. |
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Post by ukpacker on Sept 19, 2016 9:46:46 GMT -8
Just returned from a Lapland trip , thats where my nearest wilderness is. Nowhere is more than 200 feet from water, drainage is poor (i think you call it muskgeg?) and it rained one day in three, last summer was even wetter. On these trips i used another tent with a heavier dernier inner and condensation did not drip through the fabric, i would like to make the vaude work for me under these conditions because otherwise it is such a good tent, perhaps i willl have some or all of the inner tent material replaced with a heavier dernier alternative..
Thanks for you suggestions.
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Post by tipiwalter on Sept 19, 2016 12:39:45 GMT -8
** Condensation will happen in any shelter under the right conditions. ** You don't even have to be inside a tent overnight for condensation to saturate the inside of the thing. ** Condensation is worse in a single wall tent because of fly drip and/or rubbing up against the inner fly wall. ** A double wall tent prevents this dripping fly condensation from wetting gear and person. The inner tent canopy stops 90% of this water. ** Seeking out better locations is often futile and unnecessary if you are carrying a decent double wall shelter. ** With a double wall you have more freedom to camp wherever you want or must, and many established campsites are right on creek banks and atop dewy open meadows and in low spots. ** A good shelter should handle whatever conditions Miss Nature delivers, short of falling trees or tornadoes or lightning strikes.  This is fly drip hitting my inner tent canopy and not hitting me on a cold December 75 hour rainstorm in the mountains of Tennessee. Ergo---double wall! |
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Post by dirthurts on Sept 19, 2016 16:44:37 GMT -8
I'm with Tipiwalter.
Pick a tent that fits where you want to camp, not the other way around. Of course, either solution is viable. Choose the one that fits your needs the most.
I use a Big Agnes Battle Mountain 2, and I can pitch it anywhere I want with no issues...
I too camp in Tennessee, and it's the worst location for condensation I've ever experienced. If it works there...
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Post by ukpacker on Sept 19, 2016 23:30:03 GMT -8
Well yes what Tipiwalter writes matches my experiences, if it did not have such a good design otherwise i would probably put the Vaude on Ebay but it,s very stable roomy and light, seems a shame to give up on it.
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Post by rachelsdad on Oct 2, 2016 1:55:06 GMT -8
I bought a BA Scout UL2..the one w/the vestibule. I was going to be doing 12-16 mile days and foolishly thought my SD Vaporlight a less than 3.5 lbs was too heavy...(you dummy)
Luckily there are numerous lean to's on the trail....the condensation was unlike anything I had ever seen....even the nights I set it up but slept in the lean to it was soaked inside and out....I mean it was drenched akin to a wetted out hardshell
Now I would have thought it was the humidity but it was relatively low...and a gent w/a nice roomy Marmot dome was fine....but he was under canopy
Real head scratcher
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almostthere
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Post by almostthere on Oct 2, 2016 6:18:04 GMT -8
Poor ventilation.
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Post by ukpacker on Oct 2, 2016 9:19:58 GMT -8
mmmm not so convinced about that, ventilation helps under some circumstances, but my car is covered in condensation (on the outside!) on cold mornings, i have no garage so it's about as ventilated as you can get, under certain weather conditions the grass is covered in dew and the grass is pretty ventilated but that doesn't stop water condensing on the leaves, i can't stop the condensation occuring when it's humid and the tent fabric is the coldest surface around but it has been suggested that i treat the inner with a waterproof spray which i will try. Basically the whole reason for having two skins in a tent is that the inner is supposed to be a barrier to the ingress of water droplets falling from the inner surface of the rain fly.
Thanks for your idea though.
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ogg
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Post by ogg on Oct 2, 2016 9:22:47 GMT -8
In some conditions, condensation is going to happen no matter what you do. It looks like the Power Lizard inner has steep sides. It wouldn't hurt to give the top of the inner a good spray of DWR and leave the sides alone. Hopefully, water drops would roll off the top of the inner and not soak through while the sides would remain breathable.
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almostthere
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Post by almostthere on Oct 2, 2016 9:34:27 GMT -8
mmmm not so convinced about that, ventilation helps under some circumstances, but my car is covered in condensation (on the outside!) on cold mornings, i have no garage so it's about as ventilated as you can get, under certain weather conditions the grass is covered in dew and the grass is pretty ventilated but that doesn't stop water condensing on the leaves, i can't stop the condensation occuring when it's humid and the tent fabric is the coldest surface around but it has been suggested that i treat the inner with a waterproof spray which i will try. Basically the whole reason for having two skins in a tent is that the inner is supposed to be a barrier to the ingress of water droplets falling from the inner surface of the rain fly. Thanks for your idea though. I'm talking about the Big Agnes Scout in the post above mine. It has very poor ventilation. For some reason the quote feature failed me. The physics of condensation is such that I have seen it on both sides of an open tarp, over my hammock -- in some circumstances it will happen no matter what. Which is why I don't get too upset about it and don't generally fuss over single wall - double wall... when condensation happens it's an inconvenience, not a safety issue, as no amount of it will ever do real damage to anything, and pack towels can get most of it off. Getting the tarp or tent out at lunchtime and leaving it out in the sun usually does the rest. |
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