Weather can be unpredictable and dampen your mood on a camping trip. Most roof top and ground tents will keep you dry for the night with a standard rain fly. Sometimes you need to pack up camp and move to another location or simply explore the area. Then what?
You may have encountered the fabric of your tent being saturated with water. Even worse, your bedding becomes damp after a few days of consistent rain. Staying dry while camping is imperative for a good night’s sleep. You also do not want to pack the tent up wet because that will lead to a dank mildewy stench that is difficult to rid.
Fortunately, there are numerous ways campers can dry out their tents and pack equipment to help keep everything dry.
Air it out
As a camper you try your best to be prepared for the unknown. With the unpredictability of weather, sometimes there is not much you can do.
If you go camping prepared with a rain fly and weather cover, your tent may still absorb a lot of rain water. Especially if you had to pack up a RTT and move locations.
The first thing you need to do when you get home or to a dry location is to open your tent.
If it’s not raining, open your tent in the driveway so the sun and wind can quickly dry out your tent. If the rain hasn’t stopped, you can lay the tent on the ground in your garage and set up a heater and or fan pointing towards the tent.
If you don’t have a garage or covered area to air out your tent, you can wait up to a couple days. After that you run the risk of damaging your tent.
Shake it off
A small but simple step you can do is shaking out your tent before packing it up. Pat the fabric firmly from inside your tent to shake off any excess water. This won’t dry your tent fully, but any water you can keep out of your tent will help.
Wipe it down
Pack a couple of spare towels in your vehicle. After you shake out the tent you can wipe down the tent and any areas that may have leaked inside.
Condensation
Believe it or not, condensation build-up can have similar effects on your tent as rain. Condensation happens when the humidity inside the tent accrues over time. Here is an in-depth article detailing exactly How To Stop Condensation In Your RTT.
You shouldn’t bring wet clothes into the tent as this will worsen the condensation. Breathing also causes condensation so you need to ventilate your tent where possible. Opening rain fly flaps or other openings that won’t let rain in can help a great deal combating condensation.
Anti-condensation mats do a fantastic job absorbing moisture in your tent. All you have to do is put the mat under your mattress. Below is an amazon affiliate link that can help you see more details and pictures about the product.
Anti-condensation mats help a lot in wet and high moisture climates. Where they really show their value is in the winter. Condensation build up during winter and snowy conditions can ruin your camping experience. This is the perfect product to sufficiently combat this common problem.
Keep the doors and flaps closed
An obvious but helpful tip. Limiting the trips you need to make in and out of the tent will stop rain water from dripping inside.
Keeping your bedding dry
It’s pretty common for the bedding to get wet near the entry of your RTT as you open and close the door. A very simple option is to lay some trash bags near the entry when you pack the tent up. This would be especially helpful if you have to move campsites while it’s raining.
Tepui Weather Hood
This accessory handles heavy rain, snow, and anything else the elements might throw your way. It is a reflective thermal hood made of ripstop polyester. It is also flame retardant, comes with taped seams, and YKK zippers for the doors/openings.
Below is an amazon affiliate image. If you click on it, it will take you to amazon for pricing and more details about the product.
If you plan on camping in a rainy area of the country or out of season, this item will go a long way.
If you prefer to go with a cheaper option, buying a tarp with some clamps can also do the job. While the Tepui weather hood is a couple hundred bucks, a tarp and clamps will only be about $20. The tarp will sufficiently block the rain, but the Tepui weather hood will also keep heat in and the cold out.
While one item may be better for you than the other, each offers protection from the rain in their own respect.
Annex
This roof top tent add on is helpful for many scenarios. A major one being rain or snow.
An annex sits below your RTT and provides a space to change shoes, clothes, and dry off. You simply attach it to your tent at the entrance, which will prevent water getting into your tent as you come and go.
This purchase goes much farther than simply helping with the rain too.
Conclusion
Both ground tents and roof top tents require you to air them out after getting wet. It’s not a huge deal as long as you do it within a few days of getting home.
If neglected, you can ruin the integrity of your tent and have a strong moldy odor to go with it. With these easy steps anyone camper can take, preparing for a rainy camping trip is as simple as ever.