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australia:touring_tents

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touring tents

see also:

Introduction

  • touring tents can be classified as those tents designed to allow more comfortable living experiences when used over a week or more in terms of:
    • increased height preferably allowing one to stand up (ie. at least 180cm high internally)
    • increased floor space that is generous for at least 2 adults to relax even if rained in
    • reasonable temperature performance on sunny days to obviate the need for a tarp suspended shelter and also allow sleeping in despite sunrise hitting the tent
    • awning to allow shade outside
    • excellent window and door functionality to provide visual connection with the outside when desired and good ventilation to reduce risk of internal condensation (most are mainly mesh for the internal canopy) while allowing more pleasant day time temperatures
    • able to resist strong winds and heavy rain
    • preferably a zippable power cord access point
  • as such these tents will be much heavier and considerably larger than hiking tents and are thus only used by those driving a vehicle to a camp site
  • general desirable design features
    • the right size for your needs:
      • 4P (usually 2.4×2.2m) are twice as wide as a 2P hiking tent but it is still tight for 2 adults with gear &/or 1-2 young kids - a 6P (3×2.8m) will be more spacious and comfortable even for just 2 adults but the larger size limits tent site options and is larger and heavier
      • if you want to use a queen size mattress or you have more kids then a 10P may be the way to go
      • packed size fits your vehicle and is light enough you can carry it
    • wind-resistant design with lots of guy out points for stability and metal main poles/frame rather than fibreglass
      • note that most tents WILL RISK BEING DAMAGED in very strong wind gusts over 60-100kph - take the tent down in such conditions!
      • fibreglass poles can fracture and break in winds above 30kph!
      • polycotton canvas is one of the strongest materials in high winds but needs to be seam sealed and is heavier, and as it is only 1500mm waterhead, may need a fly for shade and heavy rain
    • lots of ventilation options and its nice to be able to guy out the fly windows
    • mesh should be small enough to prevent midgies hence most use “No-See-Um mesh”
    • zips should be YKK brand for highest quality
    • the fly generally should be ripstop polyester (nylon stretches and sags when wet) for strength, PU coated for UV resistance and have at least 1500-3000mm waterhead rating and should be designed so that rain does not pool on it and it should have a reasonable separation from the tent canopy itself to provide ventilation and reduce wicking of water and condensation
      • a bonus is the fly having a blockout coating to block 95% of sunlight which allows:
        • warmer nights
        • cooler days especially at sunrise allowing you to sleep in
        • less disturbance from lights such as car headlights or campers with torches
    • strong, tough flooring with at least 3000mm waterhead rating that also feels nice
      • PVC Poly Oxford floors are a step up from usual budget crinkly polyester floors and less slippery and dust collecting than a silnylon floor that is used in some ultralight hiking tents
        • Oxford denotes a stronger weave pattern while the PVC coating adds the waterproofing while a PU coating if present adds UV resistance
        • 150D PVC coated Poly Oxford floors generally give 3000mm waterhead rating

Fast set up relatively storm-proof tents with blockout

Fast set up relatively storm-proof tents without blockout coating

2-fold fast set up relatively storm-proof polycotton canvas tents with large unzippable ceiling mesh

  • these are very heavy box shaped tents and pack to a very long 2m and thus need to be transported on roof racks
  • Oztent RV3 Plus
    • 22-24kg, 8oz polycotton canvas (1500mm waterhead rating) 2-3P tent with awning and 210T polyester fly (mainly needed to reduce condensation issues as well as providing shade in the daytime) and many options for accessories such as awning walls
    • comes with 2 spreader poles and 4 main poles for awning plus 2 smaller poles for rear of fly - these could be transported separately to reduce weight in the main bag
    • mesh is 65g no-see-um
    • floor is 510g PVC
    • 2 small side windows near front, front door, large rear window and large ceiling window all of which have dual fine mesh plus canvas options for control of ventilation and privacy/view
    • not deep enough for a stretcher bed depth-wise but will fit sideways
    • not aerodynamic and will be noisy in the wind and you will need to take the awning down if wind picks up
    • fly really needs to be zipped on BEFORE unfolding the tent otherwise its a bit high to reach - this then means you need to fold it back over the awning when viewing stars
    • packs to 202cm (L) x 27cm (W) x 21cm (H)
      • awning, rear window canvas and ceiling canvas ALL MUST be rolled up before packing to avoid distorting the embedded stiffeners
      • fly can be fully removed for easier packing
    • tent itself is 240cm (W) x 200cm (D) x 190cm (H) and awning adds further 240x200x220cm peak height with 4 adjustable poles
    • see https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=40ZZgpy49mU
    • $A1499 RRP; $AU1299 on special https://www.tentworld.com.au/buy-sale/oztent-rv3-plus-tent
    • opt extras:
  • Oztent RV5 Plus tent
  • Oztent RX5 tent with living room

2-fold fast set up relatively storm-proof polycotton canvas tents without ceiling mesh

  • these are very heavy box shaped tents and pack to a very long 2m and thus need to be transported on roof racks
  • Oztent RV3 Lite
australia/touring_tents.txt · Last modified: 2022/03/29 19:57 by gary1

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