July 2005
Family tents: Camping in comfort
getting to know you The Eureka Equinox claims to fit six people but holds three or four comfortably, especially if they want any gear inside.
With most tents, you’ll fit about two-thirds as many as claimed.
Tents are big: Every year, about 42 million Americans go tent-camping. That’s more than the number who fitness-walk or play
golf. Nevertheless, some tents aren’t big enough, literally.
Based on our tests of 24 tents in various shapes and sizes, you’d be wise to doubt most tents’ claimed accommodations. If a package says the tent fits eight people, that may be true only if they’re stacked like cordwood or stash their gear in the car.
Tests also revealed a wide range in overall performance, from fair to excellent. Other findings:
Shape affects usefulness. For pros and cons, see Types (available to ).
Features matter. The number and configuration of windows, pockets, and doors can make a big difference in how easy it is to stay in a tent. Other extras that seem to lend some comforts of home aren’t very useful in the great outdoors. See Features (available to ).
Setup can be a snap or a chore. It took two of our engineers about 6 minutes to set up most small tents and about 15 minutes for most large tents. Setup is easier when instructions are sewn to the stuff sack and pole sections are color-coded and linked by cord or chain.
Tents can leak. Some stayed bone dry in a nor’easter that shed 1.2 inches of rain on our headquarters within eight hours. Others leaked so much they left puddles.
Wind can be a problem. When we staked the tents and used industrial fans to blow winds of more than 20 mph at each, most were deformed only slightly and regained their shape when the wind stopped. The Ozark Trail 12x10 dome, however, was pushed to half its usual size.
Ventilation varies. Tents use a mix of window placement, vents, and roofs of “breathable” fabric to let air circulate. In the best-vented tents, windows face each other, permitting cross-ventilation, and breathable material and mesh vents are used liberally, letting water vapor exit even when the tent is covered by a waterproof rain fly.
Fabric can weaken. No tent should be left in a sunny spot for weeks at a time. Its fabric, polyester or nylon, can be harmed by ultraviolet light. When we exposed tent swatches to winter sun in Florida for about a month, most lost about half of their strength and were more apt to rip. Neither polyester nor nylon proved consistently stronger than the other after sun exposure.
Two Ozark Trail tents had defects. A clamp snapped on one of the Ozark Trail 14x12 cabin tents, rendering a pole section useless. On another, a steel pole bent during gentle winds. In two of the Ozark Trail 12x10 dome tents, pole ferrules split while the tent was set up, again in gentle winds.
Based on our tests of 24 tents in various shapes and sizes, you’d be wise to doubt most tents’ claimed accommodations. If a package says the tent fits eight people, that may be true only if they’re stacked like cordwood or stash their gear in the car.
Tests also revealed a wide range in overall performance, from fair to excellent. Other findings:
Shape affects usefulness. For pros and cons, see Types (available to ).
Features matter. The number and configuration of windows, pockets, and doors can make a big difference in how easy it is to stay in a tent. Other extras that seem to lend some comforts of home aren’t very useful in the great outdoors. See Features (available to ).
Setup can be a snap or a chore. It took two of our engineers about 6 minutes to set up most small tents and about 15 minutes for most large tents. Setup is easier when instructions are sewn to the stuff sack and pole sections are color-coded and linked by cord or chain.
Tents can leak. Some stayed bone dry in a nor’easter that shed 1.2 inches of rain on our headquarters within eight hours. Others leaked so much they left puddles.
Wind can be a problem. When we staked the tents and used industrial fans to blow winds of more than 20 mph at each, most were deformed only slightly and regained their shape when the wind stopped. The Ozark Trail 12x10 dome, however, was pushed to half its usual size.
Ventilation varies. Tents use a mix of window placement, vents, and roofs of “breathable” fabric to let air circulate. In the best-vented tents, windows face each other, permitting cross-ventilation, and breathable material and mesh vents are used liberally, letting water vapor exit even when the tent is covered by a waterproof rain fly.
Fabric can weaken. No tent should be left in a sunny spot for weeks at a time. Its fabric, polyester or nylon, can be harmed by ultraviolet light. When we exposed tent swatches to winter sun in Florida for about a month, most lost about half of their strength and were more apt to rip. Neither polyester nor nylon proved consistently stronger than the other after sun exposure.
Two Ozark Trail tents had defects. A clamp snapped on one of the Ozark Trail 14x12 cabin tents, rendering a pole section useless. On another, a steel pole bent during gentle winds. In two of the Ozark Trail 12x10 dome tents, pole ferrules split while the tent was set up, again in gentle winds.
