Finding the perfect camping tent that will satisfy every one your requirements can be quite challenging. A tent is one of the most important camping gear that you need to acquire. Unfortunately, tents are pretty expensive. Making a mistake on your shopping can lead to wasted cash, wasted energy, and wasted time. You may even find the tent that you have acquired to be very uncomfortable and hard to set up. You may also end up with a tent that you cannot use depending on the season or month of the year that you are going camping. Hopefully, these guidelines will help you out and give you a better shot at finding that perfect tent just for you.
Different Types Of Tents
Dome Tents
Dome tents can fit only one person or a lot of people. This is one of the most popular designs as this requires only two poles and the design gives the tent a lot of interior volume or space. The poles tend to cross or create a cross mark. This provides the tent more stability and strength. This is also the reason why the tent will have a dome shape. The poles will arc which gives the tent the bubble or dome like design.
Quick Pitch Touring Tents
Touring tents are for car camping. They are too heavy to be carried for backpacking purposes. Touring tents usually have aluminum frames built in to the tent. These frames serve as the skeleton. The frame will either lock, or extend to create the shape of the tent. This saves a lot of time in terms of setting up the tent and packing it up. All you have to do is move the frames in a certain direction and the tent is already set up or ready for use.
Cabin Tents
Cabin tents are tents that are designed like a cabin. It is like a portable house. There will be dividers, walls, doors, windows and layers inside the tent. The shape will often look like a small cabin or house as well. This is a great design if you want to be as comfortable as possible with your family.
Swag And Stretcher Tents
This is a tent made out of canvas, includes a mattress and bedding all rolled up. All you have to do is roll it to set it up or pack it up. It is very simple and easy to use which is why a lot of people like this kind of design. You can use it inside your car, in a cot and other types of hard surface material. Most of the swag tents that I see are very horizontal or there isn’t much height to them. They are simple to use with a simple design.
Number Of People
One of the things you need to think about is the number of people that is going to sleep in the tent. The number of people is important since the more people that can fit into the tent, the heavier it will be and the larger the compact size it is going to be. The difference can be huge since some tents can be used for backpacking and some cannot. Some tents can only be used for car camping.
One Person Tent
One person tents is the traditional backpacking tent. This is very lightweight, easy to carry and very compact. Most companies or manufacturers tend to design this type of tent for backpacking purposes. It is very easy to setup as well. Most of the tents that I have tested have a setup up time of less than 5 minutes. It takes very little energy and time to setup these types of tents. This is great for backpacking since the last thing you want to do is put a lot of effort into setting up the tent after a very long hike. You don’t want to have problems and hassles packing the tent either in the morning.
Two Person Tent
This is a good tent meant for two people. This type of tent is usually lighter than bringing two one person tents. So if you are backpacking with a lover then getting a two person tent will save you some backpack space and will also be more lightweight than bringing two one person tents. This can be used for car camping also. This will often have enough room for two people where they won’t feel so boxed in or feel that there isn’t enough space in the tent. This type of tent is very roomy for two people.
Three or Four Person Tent
I hardly see anyone who goes backpacking bring a three person tent. Maybe if it is a short hike, you can do it but if the hike is pretty long then most people will not bring a three or even a four person. People who get this a 3-4 person tent will often use it for car camping. It is a good size tent to share with your buddies, friends and people you know. You can put a couple of sleeping pads inside the tent and still have a lot of space for people. The problem with sharing your tent is that some people like to have lights and fans while sleeping while others do not. So if you are planning on hanging a tent light or fan in the tent, some people may not be able to sleep.
Large Family Tent
This type of tent is very big and large. You will often spend 30 minutes or more to set this thing up. If you do not go camping that much then you may have problem setting up big tents like these. This is great for families thinking of camping. This will have enough room for usually around 8 people or more. The tent will often walls, layers or rooms. You can divide people into sections of the tent. This almost feels like a mini house where you have lots of room, lots of space for sleeping, and a good comfortable place you can call home away from your actual home.
3 Season VS 4 Season Tent
It is important to know the seasons and temperature that you can use your tent. The tents that you will see will often be usable for 3 season or 4 season.
3 Season Tents
If you see a tent made for 3 seasons, it will usually refer to the season of spring, summer and fall. These tents are made to protect you from the weather like wind and rain but they will not protect you from the cold of the winter. The tent will have lots of ventilation so you can feel comfortable in the summer or warm months. The tent will have windows made out of mesh to allow air to flow through out the tent. The tent will either have aluminum or carbon fiber frames to keep the tent very light. There is a trend that is making the tent more and more lightweight. The tents will often use as little fabric as possible to make the tent more lightweight. There are even tents that allow you to use your hiking poles as the frame or skeleton of the tent.
4 Season Tents
Even though 4 season tents are meant for 4 seasons, these tents are usually just used in the winter. These tents are meant for snowy conditions and places with lots of wind. These are very strong tents and are made to protect the people inside it from snow, snow buildup, strong winds, ice, hail, and other types of weather conditions. The walls will often not have windows and will not have any sort of mesh or ventilation. Vents are provided for condensation but you don’t really need to worry about that in very cold climates. The rain fly will often provide extra protection from the wind by going all the way to the ground. The flaps will fold inward to allow the snow to get trapped into them which will give the tent more stability and more protection. The frames will often be made out of aluminum and the frames will be very thick. There are tent designs that will use more than two poles to provide the tent better stability and protection from the wind and snow. These tents are often very heavy and will be around 5 pounds or more. They are often more expensive than 3 season tents as well.
Lean-To And Tents
You also do not need to bring a tent if you are going to a lean-to. There are certain laws pertaining to lean-to. You need to check your state for the laws. There are cooking laws, fire laws and so on. In NY, people are not allowed to put up a tent inside a lean to. People are also not allowed to block the entrance of the lean to. There are designated places where you can create fire as well. If you create fire on places that are not designated, you will be ticketed. So you should read the laws if you are planning on camping near the lean-to or camping inside the lean to.
Tent Features To Consider
Pole Hubs
Pole hubs are usually spots on top of the tent where the poles or aluminum frames meet. These hubs provide stability and strength to the tent. The hub also provides the tent its shape. If the hub is very insecure or not stable, the shape and stability of the tent will be affected. It is easier to setup tents that have pole hubs as well since you can tell where a lot of poles need to go. You can feel the tent becoming more stable and stronger as you put more poles into the hub.
Ventilation
Tents will often have ventilation. Have you ever seen the Titanic where they were making love inside the car. Condensation was forming in the windows. Since you exhale condensation and perspire sweat, you want to have ventilation on your tent so that these things will evaporate. There are a lot of 3 season tents that offer very good ventilation since there is a lot of condensation in the summer and in the hotter months. Vents can be windows, mesh panels and holes on the tent.
Pole Clips
Pole clips and pole sleeves is where the pole attaches itself from the ground to the hub. So from the ground to the hub, you will see clips or sleeves to put the poles into. These clips will allow the tent to have more space or create the shape of the tent. Think of a pole as the skeleton and clips as the skin attached to the skeleton. If these clips are not attached to the poles, the skin or fabric of the tent will just fall to the ground. Clips are also lighter than fabric sleeves.
Color Coding
I like my tent to be color coded. I want to know where to play the poles into which clip or holes as fast as possible. I want to know where to attach the rain fly, tarps, tent lights, and other accessories as much as possible. Color coded tents help a lot in terms of setting up the tent and packing it as well. Color coding saves a lot of time and energy. However, once you use your tent about 20 times, you will most likely know how to set it up as fast as possible without color coding instructions.
Interior Dimensions
Not all tents are designed the same way. There are lots of tents that are dome like in shape which gives you a lot of height. There are also tents that are more horizontal in nature. They do not have a lot of height because the design sacrifices that space for less weight. If you love space and room, you may want to make sure that the tent you are getting isn’t very narrow or have a small interior space.
Vestibules
Vestibules are often rain fly extensions designed to store and protect your boots and other gear. Since you don’t want to sleep with muddy boots and dirty gear, it is a good idea to have this type of design. The downside to this is that obviously more fabric will mean more weight. If you want as little weight as possible, you may want to look for tents without this feature.
References:
- https://treelinebackpacker.com/2015/08/13/3-season-vs-4-season-tent-whats-the-difference/
- https://www.rei.com/learn/expert-advice/backpacking-tent.html
- https://www.snowys.com.au/blog/understanding-tent-types-and-ratings/