The variety of ultralight double-wall backpacking tents with a path weight of three lbs or much less which can be obtainable in the present day has grown considerably, pushed by shopper demand and advances in material and materials applied sciences. Should you desire a double-wall tent over a single-wall tent as a result of it’s extra spacious, hotter, much less drafty, and has a separate inside tent and rainfly to stop inner condensation switch, you possibly can have it with only a slight weight penalty in comparison with a single-wall tent.
Whereas ultralight single-wall tents will at all times have their advocates, the overwhelming majority of backpackers desire freestanding (See: What’s a Freestanding Tent) and semi-freestanding tents (See: What’s a Semi-Freestanding Tent) that don’t require a lot apply or superior web site choice abilities to arrange. Ease of use usually trumps a couple of ounces of added gear weight when it comes proper right down to it. See for your self, under on this sortable desk.
Tent Materials and Supplies
The lightest-weight ultralight double-wall tents are made with DCF (Dyneema Composite Materials) which is extra of an artificial laminate than a cloth. Along with being very light-weight, it’s far more waterproof than typical tent materials and doesn’t sag when it will get moist. The downsides are that it’s very costly and is bulkier than typical tents to pack, regardless that you’d anticipate the alternative.
Most ultralight double-wall tents are nonetheless made with extra typical materials together with ripstop nylon. These are often coated with PU (polyurethane) or its variants together with PeU (polyethylene urethane), which is changing into more and more fashionable. These waterproof coatings enable tents to be manufacturing facility seam-taped so that you don’t should seam seal them your self, one thing that numerous single-wall tent producers, together with Six Moon Designs, Lightheart Gear, and Tarptent require to today with their silnylon and siliconized polyester tents.
Silpoly, which is siliconized polyester, is a relative newcomer to the ultralight tent scene however is being adopted by increasingly more light-weight backpack makers together with Durston Gear and Tarptent. Like DCF, it doesn’t sag or stretch when it will get moist, which has at all times been an issue with silnylon.
A few of the tents listed above, together with these from Huge Agnes and MSR, additionally embrace carbon fiber tent poles to avoid wasting weight. These turned obtainable about 5 years in the past and have confirmed dependable, so increasingly more tent producers are adopting them.
Abstract
To summarize, there are extra ultralight and light-weight double-wall tents obtainable in the present day than ever earlier than. Should you’re available in the market to scale back the load of your backpacking tent however are hesitant to get a single-wall tent as a substitute of a double-wall one since you’re involved about tent condensation or ease of use, relaxation straightforward. The load distinction between ultralight double-wall and single-wall backpacking tents has narrowed significantly and you may persist with a double-wall tent with solely a slight weight penalty.
Double-wall Tent Benefits
- Simple to arrange
- The inside tent prevents inner condensation from making your gear moist
- Can be utilized in all three-season climate circumstances and gentle winter climate
- Vestibules present lined gear storage in poor climate
- Deep bathtub flooring forestall flooding if water swimming pools beneath
- Much less drafty as a result of much less airflow is required to mitigate condensation
- Simpler to arrange on rock ledges, sandy soil, or wood tent platforms
Double-wall Tent Disadvantages
- Tent poles could be cumbersome and awkward to pack
- Hotter in sizzling climate
- Take longer to dry as a result of they’ve extra floor space
- The inside tent could grow to be moist when pitched in rain, though some double wall tents could be pitched fly first to maintain the inside tent dry
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