How to Choose a Tent: An Explainer

How to Choose a Tent: An Explainer

Your tent protects you from the elements and forms years of outdoor memories. Your home in the hills, a tent is one of the biggest purchases an outdoor enthusiast can make.

With camping season upon us, we took a snapshot of the current tent market to help you choose the best tent for your outdoor pursuits. Pick a tent that’s right for you. Learn more about tent types, materials, storage, and tent care below.

Guide to Choosing a Tent

Choosing the Right Tent

Step 1: Assess how you will use your tent. Be honest with yourself.

Will you roll it out of the minivan? Or do you need to haul deep into the backcountry? If so, how many miles? While 2 pounds per person is reasonable for a weekend backpacking trip, you may want to go lighter for long-distance hikes. That said, if you will only use it car camping, weight shouldn’t be a significant concern.

Step 2: Consider the weather where you camp most of the time. If you use it mostly in the heat of the summer, ventilation is a primary concern. Even if you camp occasionally in cold weather, choose your tent based on the majority usage. How often do you really camp in the snow?

Step 3: Think about capacity. How many people will sleep in it? Each person at a minimum needs 2 feet of elbow room. Big and tall folks will want more width and a longer tent. Will you bring a dog? What about kids?

In-Store Evaluation

At the store, even if the tent is already set up, ask if you can set it up. Is it intuitive? Do the poles snap together easily? Will you be able to set it up in the dark, with cold fingers, in the rain?

Crawl inside, stretch out. Do your head or toes touch either side? Sit up in the tent. Can you see yourself suiting up in it each morning? When you wake up in the night to answer the call of nature, will you disturb your tent mates?

Evaluate the doors and ventilation. Will it ventilate properly for your conditions? If there’s condensation (there likely will be), where will it drip or pool? Can you fit your party inside, in sleeping bags, without touching the walls? That will be the first source of moisture.

Pick a Camping Tent

Somewhere between extra-large cabin tents and ultralight backpacking tents lies the realm of the camping tent. These are a popular option and include models like the iconic REI Half Dome 2 and the Kelty Circuit.

These tents tend to be light enough to carry for an overnight or weekend backpacking trip. But they’re not ideal for long-distance hikes.

For those who car camp regularly but want to hit the trail from time to time, a camping tent is a strong option. Look for two-person tents weighing 4 to 6 pounds.

Backpacking Tents: How to Choose

Beyond a few hundred feet from the car, you’ll appreciate something that you can carry in a backpack. Enter the backpacking tent.

Backpacking tents prioritize weight and packability over space. However, forward-thinking engineering also includes pole configurations that pop out the walls, allowing more livable space than ever before.

Touted as three-season, backpacking tents walk a line between ventilation and weather protection, with large mesh panels covered by retractable rainflies. These tents are ideal for most backcountry pursuits and provide nearly year-round coverage.

For serious backpacking, look for tents weighing less than 2 pounds per person. The lighter the better. Strong options include the Big Agnes Copper Spur HV UL 2 mtnGLO Tent, which weighs in at less than 2.5 pounds and comes with an integrated internal light, and the MSR Hubba Hubba NX, which has a pole configuration designed to maximize headspace while still proving light and packable.

Mountaineering Tents

Hiking above the tree line, where wind and snow can unexpectedly crash your party. In that situation, you’ll want a shelter that can stand up to a nuclear winter. A citadel in the storm, a mountaineering tent is designed to deflect sheer force winds and bear heavy snow loads.

These four-season tents are often constructed with additional poles and more durable materials, adding weight (and cost). In turn, these bastions of the high country provide more peace of mind and overall protection.

Ultralight Shelters

For those with a few miles under their belt and long miles ahead, significant weight savings can be found in a whittled-down shelter. It’s a stretch to call them tents, so these shelters will typically be your second or third “tent” purchase.

A niche arrow in your backcountry quiver, these shelters often double down using trekking poles as tent poles or eschew the poles all together.

Just like a mountaineering tent will be overkill for most, on the other end of the spectrum, these ultralight options can leave the unprepared exposed. But with experience, tarps, hammocks, bivy sacks, and pyramid tents can be pragmatic shelters.

Glossary: Understanding Tent Material Jargon

Perhaps no outdoor purchase has more data to sift through than tents. Jargon abounds; it’s helpful to understand what it all means.

Tent Materials

While you can still find canvas tents on the market, most of today’s tents employ a synthetic nylon fabric. Measured in denier (grams of mass per 9,000 meters of a fabric’s thread), the lower the number the lighter (and more fragile) the tent will be.

Some ultralight shelters cut weight by using specialty fabrics, like silnylon (silicone-impregnated nylon) and Dyneema (military-/maritime-grade fabric).

Single-Wall / Double-Wall Tent

Most of the tents you see in stores or online are double-walled. Double-wall tents have a breathable inner tent overlapped by a waterproof outer rainfly. This configuration allows condensation from your breath to quickly move to the outside layer, preventing the dreaded midnight condensation rainstorm.

A few scenarios make a single-wall tent a viable option. High alpine environments will freeze any condensation to the tent wall. Tents with enough ventilation will allow moisture to freely escape before condensing.

No-See-Um Netting

No-see-ums are small flies that bite. (Though the term has become ubiquitous for any small bug that bites.)

No-see-um netting (mosquito netting) is often used to reduce weight and provide superior ventilation on double-wall tents. With the rainfly removed, the mesh tent can turn your shelter into a 1-million-star hotel.

Tent Poles

Most tents have aluminum tubing poles connected with an elastic cord. To loft the tent, poles either slide through nylon sleeves or clip into durable plastic clips. At the end of the pole is a pin that inserts into a ringed grommet.

More complex tent designs will color code the poles with hooks and grommets for an easier setup.

Tent Stakes

Tents stakes should come with the tent and will match the tent purpose. Lightweight tents will come with lighter weight stakes, and heavy camp tents will have a heavier gauge stake.

Aftermarket stakes can be purchased to cut weight and add durability.

Pro tip: Look for native stakes – rocks, roots, trees – to tie down the tent.

Tent Vestibule

We all love the great outdoors, but the tent door is where we draw the line. A vestibule is to a tent as the covered porch is to your house – it’s a protective awning to stow your gear and kick off your muddy boots. It’s a space-saving addition that’s worth considering when making a purchase.

In-Tent Storage

The last thing you want to do en route to a midnight bio break is to fumble for your headlamp. Pockets and lofts are a great way to keep small sundries and personal items organized and within reach. Many tents come with internal loops to string a clothesline to dry out wet clothes.

Doors

If there’s a chink in the armor of a tent, it’s the door. A good one will have a smooth zipper, providing ample room to wiggle out while sealing out the elements. One door can work fine if it exits the front. But a pair of hikers might appreciate having separate ports of entry instead of crawling over one another to get out a single side door.

Guylines

Tents often come with a knot of cord. These are your guylines and help draw the tent taut. Some tent shapes, like dome tents, don’t need guylines to keep them pitched. Other designs require guylines.

Either way, it’s a good idea to sling the tent prior to hitting the trail to ensure your tent will be camp ready.

Pro tip: Reflective guylines are easy to spot when hit with a light at night, preventing an accidental fall. If the tent doesn’t come with them, they can be purchased aftermarket.

Tent Rainfly

We’ve all seen it – the dome tent at the campground with the blue tarp draped over the top. Don’t be like that guy. The basic function of a tent is to protect you from the elements. Many rainflies can be peeled back for a night view.

Pro tip: If you expect to spend several days in a tent, consider the color. Sunflower yellows will be more cheery on the disposition than blues.

Tent Height & Wall Shape

Tents are built around the physical forces of tension and compression of fabric and poles. Like most things, tent form follows function, so consider your needs and the designs will follow suit.

Family tents, with their vertical walls, allow campers to stand up and change. While a low-profile backpacking tent will sling low to the ground to deflect wind and rain.

Some unique designs have explored buying more air real estate, either by flipping the traditional wedge upside down or using bent pole configuration to loft more internal space.

Tent Trail Weight

Turn over a tent label and you’ll often see two listed weights. The packaged weight is the off-the-shelf weight – cords, repair kit, extra stakes, and all. The trail weight refers to the minimum weight to erect the tent: the tent body, fly, poles, and minimum stakes.

Ground Cloth

This is the one aftermarket item that you should seriously consider purchasing. A ground cloth serves as a buffer between the tent and the underlying rocks and roots. It saves wear and tear on the tent floor.

Pro tip: Don’t want to shell out for the brand-name drop cloth? DIY with a sheet of Dupont Tyvek from your local hardware store.

How to Care For Your New Tent

So, you pulled the trigger and bought the tent. Congratulations! Here are a few tips to ensure it has a long life.

Many tents will come with “taped” seams. That means the holes caused by sewing are sealed at the factory. But some tents still come with unsealed seams from the store. If yours is unsealed, apply seam sealer to the floor and inside the fly stitching before use.

Rig the guylines and practice setting up the tent in a park or your yard. Figure out how to stake it out for both fair and foul weather. Check for any manufacturing flaws.

During your trip, stake it down. An empty tent is a box kite in disguise. Try to keep debris out of the tent. Remove the fly after each night and let it dry out. Before breaking camp, shake the tent out and dry it out.

At home, continue to dry the tent out and store it loose (not rolled up tight).

After a season, give it a once-over. Repair any small holes with seam sealer. Use mild soap and water to remove any stains. Check the poles and guylines for any damage. Store the tent in a dry area.

A tent is your home away from home. A good one will enhance your outdoor experience. And a great one will become a dependable travel partner. Happy shopping!

What are Tent Fabric Specifications and Coatings?

Tents specifications and coatings can be confusing. What is Denier, Thread count and Hydrostatic Head? Understanding tent specifications and terms will help you choose the best tent for your needs.

When looking at tents for sale reputable brands and retailers should provide tent fabric specs so you can work out a tent’s performance capabilities and suitability to handle different conditions. Here's an introduction to different tent fabric specifications. For more on fabrics check out fabric pros and cons. 

What is Denier?

Denier (D) is the unit measuring the weight and thickness of the individual threads used in the fabric. Fabric with a higher Denier will be thicker, stronger and more durable than the same fabric with a lower Denier – 40D Nylon will be stronger than 15D Nylon and 150D Polyester stronger than 75D Polyester. Remember that different fabrics have different strengths. Lower Denier is common in ultralight nylon tents and tarps where low weight is paramount. Polyester camping tents typically have higher 68D, 75D, 150D fabrics, while for camping and event shelters something around 150D would be recommended to deal with the greater stresses and longer exposure to the sun and elements.

What is Thread count?

The thread count (T) is the number of threads used horizontally and vertically per square inch of fabric ... 210T means a total of 210 threads. A higher thread count represents a greater density and tighter weave in the fabric. For this reason you will often find lower Denier fabrics (with a ‘thinner’ thread) have a higher thread count.

What is Ripstop?

Ripstop tent fabrics are those with a special reinforcement to increase resistance to tearing and ripping. When weaving, a stronger thread is used at regular intervals to form a crosshatching, grid pattern visible in the fabric. This improves strength of the fabric and makes any tears or holes less likely to spread and become bigger.

What is gsm?

GSM (grams per square meter), refers to the weight in grams of one square meter of raw woven canvas or polycotton canvas. (Also still measured in ounces per square yard as well.) A higher gsm means a higher fabric weight and thickness. Most tents range from around 280gsm to 380gsm with more modern polycotton canvas closer to the lower end.

What are fabric coatings?

Chemical coatings are applied to tent fabrics to increase their performance, especially resistance to water. 

What is a silicone coating? What is silnylon?

A silicone coating is usually applied to nylon, hence silnylon. The coating ‘permeates’ the nylon fabric creating a stronger silicon ‘reinforced’, waterproof nylon fabric with better stretch and tear strength. Silicone repels water and so it’s easy to shake off excess water and dries quickly. On the down side silicone coatings are more expensive, stop ‘breathing’ in the fabric which may lead to greater condensation, and result in a very slick and slippery surface meaning that tent seams cannot be taped - Silnylon seams require manual application of a liquid seam sealant. And note that brand logos cannot be printed onto silicone coatings. 

What is a Polyurethane (PU) coating?

Polyurethane or PU coatings applied to polyester and nylon fabrics are more like a layer that sticks to the surface of the tent fabric. It creates a waterproof barrier, is more affordable, has greater breathability than silicone and has a surface which allows the application of tape on tent seams. But it doesn’t reinforce a fabric’s strength in the same way as silicone, requires some care to be kept clean and dry for storage, and will affected by UV exposure and break down over time. Branding can be printed directly onto PU coatings.

What is a SIL/PU coating?

Some tent fabrics have a silicone coating on the outer side and PU coating on the inner side as a compromise, balancing the benefits of both coatings and allowing tape to be applied to seams making tents ‘ready to go’ for end users. Branding will be printed on the underside of the fabric but not on the outer side.

Hydrostatic Head (HH), water column or ‘waterproof’ ratings (measured in mm)

Polyester and nylon fabrics are not waterproof and so silicone or PU coatings are applied to give waterproof properties. The amount of water that they can ‘hold out’ is tested using a high column of water which is measured in mm. Ratings range from 800mm up to a max of 10,000mm with ratings of 1500mm and higher generally considered ‘waterproof’. See our article on how to choose a waterproof tent for a better explanation of waterproof tents and ratings. DCF (Cuben fiber) is waterproof and canvas has a natural waterproof performance so these typically do not have mm ratings.

What other fabric coatings are there?

A number of other coatings can be applied to tent fabrics to improve UV resistance, water resistance (allowing water to bead and roll off), rot and mildew resistance and to add fire retardant properties to fabrics.

What is Oxford?

Oxford is a different type of weave which provides better strength and durability than standard plain weaves. Often used for heavier duty fabrics.

What to look for in your next tent fabric specs?

Generally, the higher the denier count the stronger and heavier the fabric will be, and the higher the mm rating the more ‘waterproof’ it will be. Have a look at the following ...

75D 185T Polyester PU1000mm – a standard polyester tent fabric suitable for camping tents but has a lower waterproof rating of 1000mm suitable for light rain only so probably more suitable for casual camping in fairly good conditions.

20D 330T Ripstop Nylon Sil/PU 3000mm – a light 20 Denier nylon fabric suitable for ultralight tents, ripstop so has better tear resistance, silicone coating topside and polyurethane coating underside so can have taped seams, good waterproof rating at 3000mm should be able to deal with most rain.

380gsm Polycotton Ripstop – a heavier, durable modified polyester and canvas blend suitable for swags, and family cabin tents reinforced with Ripstop ‘grid’ threads, it's canvas so has natural waterproof properties

150D Oxford Polyester PU 3000mm UV – a heavier, thicker polyester with a stronger weave, more suitable to event shelters and tent floors, waterproof with 3000mm HH rating and coated for greater resistance to UV.

As well as identifying your preferred tent design, you’ll need a tent fabric with the right balance of strength, durability, waterproofness, weight and budget to meet your needs. Knowing more about tent specifications will help you get the right tent. At Intents Outdoors we put careful consideration into these factors to create tents fit for purpose with the right combination of specs and features at affordable price points.