My wife and I are not "prefessional" campers, at least not yet, so
forgive if this is a FAQ.

For our wedding, we recieved a nice tent (Eureka) which we have used a
few times. The problem is we keep getting water up through the floor.
After the first time, we bought a tarp to put under the tent, but if
water gets between the tent floor and the tarp, we're swimming.

Whats the best way to prevent this from happening - sealers? switch
tarp types? pontoons?

--
tim harincar             Then Harold remembered how the government
soc1...@vx.cis.umn.edu   has fun in the desert. It shoots off rockets.
                         -Crockett Johnson, _Harold's Trip to the Sky_
                          [More Adventures with the Purple Crayon]

This is the difference between a $150 tent and a $350 tent.  Manufactures
save money by not adequately waterproofing the floors.  I just learned
this after years of getting wet.  Last April, we were at the beach and it
rained all weekend.  Of course we got soaked.  While walking around the
campground, I noticed a site where they did not tuck the ground cloth
underneath the tent.  Pools of water were developing under the tent.  I
saw the guy who owned the tent and talked to him for a few minutes.  It
turned out his tent was dry as can be!  I has spent hours tucking the
ground cloth under the tent, digging a moat, etc... and I was soaked while
he did nothing and was perfectly dry.  He had not even bothered using
seam sealant!

So after seeing that, I went and bought the same type of tent, an REI
GeoDome.  In the process I also leaned what to look for in a tent.  The
main points are as follows:
        1. Make sure the tent has a "bathtub design" with minimal seams
           on the floor.
        2. Floor seams should be taped.
        3. Make sure the floor is coated.  You can usually tell by
           feeling the floor.  If it feels slightly sticky it is coated.

Go to a high quality camping store and check out the North Face and
Sierra Designs tents to see what I am talking about.

Tents that are not waterproof may be made water resistant using a product
called RECOAT found some camping stores (i.e. CAMPHOR in NJ).  This is
similar to what comes on the more expensive tents.  
By applying it to the floor, the nylon should become more water
resistant.  I did this to my old tent and it worked great.  Also, use a
product called Seam Grip to waterproof the seams.  The general consensus
is Seam Grip is far better than other types of seam sealers.

Cut the ground cloth to be slightly smaller then the floor of the tent.  
This way the water will not hit the ground cloth and become trapped
underneath.  The function of the ground cloth is to protect the bottom of
the tent from abrasions not to keep it waterproof.

Good luck,

Paul Borghese

This will happend if you don't pick your campsite carefully, and if
it rains you must make sure your tarp doens't stick out from around
the edges of the tent to catch water and direct it under your floor.

I have an Eureka tent, but I'm almost ashamed to admit I usually use
my el cheapo 60 dollar tent I got at a discount store.  It's a bit
easier to put up, and although probably many ounces heavier, many of
those tents have a plastic floor, no tarp is needed. I don't usually
hike to far to camp, and I usually camp in good weather, so it works
for me.

I don't know if one would want to apply any sealer to the tent
floor, but the tarp is essential..

stubbs

: In article <Ct7A9q....@news.cis.umn.edu>, soc1...@vx.cis.umn.edu (Tim Harincar) writes:
: > My wife and I are not "prefessional" campers, at least not yet, so
: > forgive if this is a FAQ.
: >
: > For our wedding, we recieved a nice tent (Eureka) which we have used a
: > few times. The problem is we keep getting water up through the floor.
: > After the first time, we bought a tarp to put under the tent, but if
: > water gets between the tent floor and the tarp, we're swimming.
: >
: > Whats the best way to prevent this from happening - sealers? switch
: > tarp types? pontoons?
: >

Ah, yes, H2O, the source of life...

Here are a few suggestions in addition to Stubbs'.  

1) Use a seam sealer to waterproof all the seams, particularly those around
or on the ground.  If water is gushing into your tent, this should make
a difference provided that you don't have any rips.

2)  I assume you have a nylon fly for the tent.  Make sure it is not touching
the walls.  If it is, and you touch the walls from the inside, water can
come through the areas you touch.  The reason for this is that the walls are
porous to allow you enough air to breath.  The surface tension of the water
keeps it out until you create a path for it to enter... Then you are in trouble!

3)  Follow Stubbs' advice:

: This will happend if you don't pick your campsite carefully, and if
: it rains you must make sure your tarp doens't stick out from around
: the edges of the tent to catch water and direct it under your floor.

Make sure you are not at the bottom of a hill!!

: I have an Eureka tent, but I'm almost ashamed to admit I usually use
: my el cheapo 60 dollar tent I got at a discount store.  It's a bit
: easier to put up, and although probably many ounces heavier, many of
: those tents have a plastic floor, no tarp is needed. I don't usually
: hike to far to camp, and I usually camp in good weather, so it works
: for me.

I agree.  My el-cheapo tent only started leaking after about 15 years
of abuse.
k
: I don't know if one would want to apply any sealer to the tent
: floor, but the tarp is essential..

There is a seam on the floor of my Eureka Bike & Hike tent. If your
model also has a seam on the floor, by all means, seal it!
B
BTW, if it is damp in your tent (but not soaking), this is probably due
to the condensation of your breath, not water leaking in, particularly
if it is chilly at night.

Good luck -- here's to *dry* camping!

Simal

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Sima Newell, B.Eng.                             e-mail: s...@emf.mcgill.ca
Department of Electrical Engineering          
McGill University                                  
Montreal, Quebec                                      
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