tent washing
Owen Ernest Kelly
1989. It's the kind with flexible poles over the outside.
I lent it to a friend who MACHINE WASHED IT IN WOOLITE (without
asking). The colors ran so I now have a tie-dye tent. I'm not so
concerned about the color of the tent as what that *means* for a nylon
tent:
Do I still have UV protection or will the nylon break down in the sun
now ?
Is the fabric still waterproof ?
Does the fabric have any strength left ?
Will the seams have to be resealed ?
I haven't seen it yet, and he thinks it's no problem but (obviously)
he knows zip about camping. I'd appreciate any input you have about
the consequences of washing a tent in Woolite. Does my friend owe me a
tent or should I just pack up my tie-dye tent and not worry about it ?
Thanks a lot,
Owen Kelly
Peter Beckman
>I lent it to a friend who MACHINE WASHED IT IN WOOLITE
I recently called the makers of my Eureka! tent because the waterproof
coating on the fly was peeling off. The VERY first question the
operator asked me was if I had machine washed it. I exclaimed "no",
and the operator told me to send it in, they may replace it if it
looks like I didn't abuse it. From this conversation, I would guess
that washing it causes damage and nullifies any warranty express or
implied. Check with the manufacturer to be sure.
-Pete
Alan Bernardi
receipies. I cannot give any garanties, I never tried them myself, but I will
in my next outing. The four recipies are put in order of strenght
according to the brochure. Also I had to translate the recipies therefore
the terminology use might not be the exact english terminology.
Citronella (citronnelle) essential oil (huile essentielles)
Ideal for childrens
Equal part of Citronella and Cedar (cedre) essential oil
Efficient insect repellent and soft to the skin
Equal part of Citronnella and Clove (Girofle) essential oil or Clove
essential oil alone.
Ideal for fishermen
Mix 10 to 15 ml of the essential oils into a 250 ml of Soft Almond oil (huile d'amande douce).
--
Alan Bernardi
Bell Northern Research
Montreal, Canada
Ba...@bnr.ca
Bob Haar
The Woolite shuld not be a problem. That is often recommended for
washing nylon fabric camping gear. But the machine washing might be
a real problem. I would suspect that you have either lost all waterproof
coatings or at least weakened the bond so the coating will peel off
later.
The first thing I would do is to set up the tent and try it out.
Simulate a rain storm with a sprinkler and see if the tent leaks.
(:-) actually, the frist thing to do might be to find a
new friend. (-:)
It is possible to re-coat waterproof fabrics, but I would not
expect the tent to ever be the same.
Does this tent have a separate rain fly? If so, you can probably buy
a replacement.
If the floor leaks in just a few places, seam sealer can fix that.
Also, use of a plastic groundsheet will help in that area.
---
Robert Haar InterNet : rh...@gmr.com
Computer Science Dept., G.M. Research Laboratories
DISCLAIMER: Unless indicated otherwise, everything in this note is
personal opinion, not an official statement of General Motors Corp.
Chris Webster
It has a seperate fly, which does not need washing. What
is the recommended way to wash a tent?
--Chris
wayne trzyna
My wife washed ours in the bathtub, by hand one time. It didn't
seem to harm it any.
--
-Wayne Trzyna
trz...@CS.ColoState.EDU
Kenneth James Clark
>On the subject of washing tents, my tent needs a washing.
>It has a seperate fly, which does not need washing. What
>is the recommended way to wash a tent?
I've washed my tent two ways. The first way was in the bathtub with lots
of lukewarm water and Woolite. The second way was in a big commercial spin
washer (the way I wash my sleeping bags too) with Sportwash. No problems
either way. The problem I have with normal washers is the small tub and
that nasty agitator. Agitators can do some serious damage.
Ken
Peter Silsbee
>
>My wife washed ours in the bathtub, by hand one time. It didn't
>seem to harm it any.
>
up losing large amounts of waterproof coating. To be fair, there was some
mildew which, I understand, is not good for tent waterproofing, so maybe the
tent's time had come.
At least one manufacturer, probably North Face, recommends setting the tent up
and sponging it with a mild soap solution. Make sure it is completely dry
before storing it.
--Peter
Steve LaSala
If you tent is ancient enough to have any ropes attached, be sure
to remove them before machine washing. They tend to tie themselves in
gordion knots around the body of the tent, inhibiting rinsing and subsequent
use.
Nick Lemberos
>I have a good two-person nylon tent by Sierra Designs, about $300 in
>1989. It's the kind with flexible poles over the outside.
I also have a 2 person Sierra Designs tent w/ 3 flex poles for the tent and
one for the fly/condom. Dont know the model.
>I lent it to a friend who MACHINE WASHED IT IN WOOLITE (without
>asking). The colors ran so I now have a tie-dye tent. I'm not so
>concerned about the color of the tent as what that *means* for a nylon
>tent:
I have washed mine w/ a home washing machine w/ woolite last year.
3 weeks ago was the 1st time i used it since then and it rained the
last day. The tent was perfectly dry (except where the fly was loose
and touched the tent.) Even tho we made the mistake of having our
ground tarp extend past the tent and we were sleeping on a pudddle...
the tent was dry.
>Do I still have UV protection or will the nylon break down in the sun
>now ?
no idea.
>Is the fabric still waterproof ?
probably. (if it is like mine, ripstop looking stuff, no colors ran)
>Does the fabric have any strength left ?
machine washing wasnt a great idea, im sure that stresses the tent more
than packing and unpacking.
>Will the seams have to be resealed ?
I dont think so.
From reading some of the posts, SOME tents cannot be washed. Others can.
Only the manufacturers (might) know for sure.
nick
ps: is this addressed in a FAQ? if not, it should be.
--
Nick Lemberos ni...@socrates.umd.edu
Academic Computing ^ sew-crates
"Doing life with no chance for parole" -L. Anderson