Making a light-weight tent.

[domonic]

I've been looking around at Bivy bags and have decided that they are just way overpriced for what you get. I' like the fact that they are waterproof and relatively small, but the prices I just can't justify. There seems to be only a very small range of bivies available in Australia anyway and anything worth a look is quiet expensive.

So, I have decided to make my own tent and am wondering if anyone can advise on a good lightweight and waterproof material to make one with?

I bought a stack of lightweight nylon recently, but unfortunately it's too thin. It will need to resist heavy rain.
Hopefully there is something which is somewhat breathable too.

I've looked at Tyvek but it's not so easy to get your hands on in Australia and it is expensive to buy where you can. It's only white too which is a big turn-off.

Any suggestions on materials to use?
Thanks

[ChrisJHC]

You might want to explore a DIY tarp as a step up from a bivvy bag. Have a look at Tier Gear in Tas for materials and "how to" guides.


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[Franco]

There are many types of Tyvek.
The HomeWrap family (several styles ) are too stiff to make a tent out of them. You can soften them but then they are less waterproof.
(mostly used as groundsheet)
The soft type, sometime called clothing Tyvek ( typically 1443R) is light and breathes very well but it isn't all that water proof, more water resistant (light showers but not prolonged heavy rain)

If you don't get hold of some end of line/close out bargain, be prepared , by the time you get nets/zips/cordage/ribbons/toggles as well as the nylon for the body , to end up paying more than at least what you can get an entry level tent for.
Often the problem is that the first or second attempt don't work out so costs add up.

BTW, tarps are different, much simpler and don't need lots of extras to make them work.

[andrewa]

Nuts made a ripper some years ago from cuben. It's somewhere in the forum archives ....?DIY tent perhaps

A

[domonic]

Nuts made a ripper some years ago from cuben. It's somewhere in the forum archives ....?DIY tent perhaps

A

It would be a ripper for the price. Here's the title of a webpage explaining what cuben fibre is:
'WHAT IS CUBEN FIBER? AN INCREDIBLY LIGHT, STRONG, WATERPROOF, AND OUTRAGEOUSLY EXPENSIVE OUTDOOR FABRIC'
http://www.outdoors.org/articles/amc-outdoors/what-is-cuben-fiber-an-incredibly-light-strong-waterproof-and-outrageously-expensive-outdoor-fabric/

[domonic]

There are many types of Tyvek.
The HomeWrap family (several styles ) are too stiff to make a tent out of them. You can soften them but then they are less waterproof.
(mostly used as groundsheet)
The soft type, sometime called clothing Tyvek ( typically 1443R) is light and breathes very well but it isn't all that water proof, more water resistant (light showers but not prolonged heavy rain)

If you don't get hold of some end of line/close out bargain, be prepared , by the time you get nets/zips/cordage/ribbons/toggles as well as the nylon for the body , to end up paying more than at least what you can get an entry level tent for.
Often the problem is that the first or second attempt don't work out so costs add up.

BTW, tarps are different, much simpler and don't need lots of extras to make them work.

Yep, Tyvek is out for sure. In the U.S you can pick up left over rolls of this but in Australia it's less common.
Sourcing the rest of what I need is not a problem.
Yes, Tarp's are simpler, but if I wanted a tarp I would just bring a hutchie (military surplus). They work fine.

[domonic]

What I'm considering is using 40D ripstop nylon. It's strong and thick enough to possibly keep me dry. It's not overly expensive either.
Does anyone know whether this would be suitable?
Is 40D to heavy and would I be better of with 20D?

[Franco]

As a guess , in a solo tent the difference between 20d and 40d would be less than 150g.
Mostly ignored but I commented before that the difference in weight between Cuben and 30D silnylon in the same design, on a solo tent, is also about 150g.

[domonic]

I think I'm going to go with the ripstop nylon. Maybe higher than 40d. Do you recommend a safe rating in this regard?
What rating are tent waterproof covers made of?
Thanks

[Franco]

denier is :
a unit of measure for the linear mass density of fibres, is the mass in grams per 9000 meters of the fibre.
So there is no direct correlation between denier and water head.
How waterproof or not a cloth is, has a lot to do with the coating or impregnation used on the fabric.
With silnylon ,is silicone however it isn't just pure silicone.
Others use polyurethane (PU) and some use both.
So you need to know the water head rating of a fabric/laminate , the dernier rating is not enough.
Generally a 1200mm rating is waterproof enough, the EN (European standard) is 1500mm.

[andrewa]

Nuts made a ripper some years ago from cuben. It's somewhere in the forum archives ....?DIY tent perhaps

A

It would be a ripper for the price. Here's the title of a webpage explaining what cuben fibre is:
'WHAT IS CUBEN FIBER? AN INCREDIBLY LIGHT, STRONG, WATERPROOF, AND OUTRAGEOUSLY EXPENSIVE OUTDOOR FABRIC'
http://www.outdoors.org/articles/amc-outdoors/what-is-cuben-fiber-an-incredibly-light-strong-waterproof-and-outrageously-expensive-outdoor-fabric/

Umm. You missed my point. Nuts made an amazing tent some years ago, albeit out of cuben fiber. I'm not suggesting you necessarily do the same, but maybe have a bit of a search of the forums for how he did it. It's the process I was referring to - all designed by Nuts, and made to suit. If you can design yourself a similar shelter out of whatever nylon you can get, or hession, or Lycra, or polar fleece, then just do it.

I just thoughts Nuts's design process was great.

A

[domonic]

Nuts made a ripper some years ago from cuben. It's somewhere in the forum archives ....?DIY tent perhaps

A

It would be a ripper for the price. Here's the title of a webpage explaining what cuben fibre is:
'WHAT IS CUBEN FIBER? AN INCREDIBLY LIGHT, STRONG, WATERPROOF, AND OUTRAGEOUSLY EXPENSIVE OUTDOOR FABRIC'
http://www.outdoors.org/articles/amc-outdoors/what-is-cuben-fiber-an-incredibly-light-strong-waterproof-and-outrageously-expensive-outdoor-fabric/

Umm. You missed my point. Nuts made an amazing tent some years ago, albeit out of cuben fiber. I'm not suggesting you necessarily do the same, but maybe have a bit of a search of the forums for how he did it. It's the process I was referring to - all designed by Nuts, and made to suit. If you can design yourself a similar shelter out of whatever nylon you can get, or hession, or Lycra, or polar fleece, then just do it.

I just thoughts Nuts's design process was great.

A

Thanks, no worries. I'll look it up.

[Moondog55]

There is a big difference between a good tarp and an army hootchie.
You need to figure out where and when and under what circumstances the tent will be used because what works in ne area may be the worst possible design for another.
I repair and modify a lot of tents but I've never bothered to make one from scratch ; well not so far anyway but if I was to do so I would probably start with a pyramid type tarp.
or a simple bell ended large A-frame
Roger Caffins pages have some very good information on the design of tunnel tents

[Franco]

Domonic,
you could take a look here :

https://www.tarptent.com/tarpdesign.html

that project was how Tarptent started.

[Orion]

I've been looking around at Bivy bags and have decided that they are just way overpriced for what you get. I' like the fact that they are waterproof and relatively small, but the prices I just can't justify. There seems to be only a very small range of bivies available in Australia anyway and anything worth a look is quiet expensive.

So, I have decided to make my own tent and am wondering if anyone can advise on a good lightweight and waterproof material to make one with?

I don't understand your logic: Bivy sacks are too expensive and limited in availability, therefore you plan to make a tent.

Why not make a bivy sack?

[domonic]

Yes, Bivy sack / small tent (one man). Ultimately it will be something I can lift off my face with some arrangement at the legs so the tent roof isn't touching me. That's it. So you could call it a tent / bivvy sack. It will be around that size anyway as I need it to be light weight I have a pretty good idea what I am making, it's just the materials I'm trying to sort out.

[Moondog55]

Way back "in the day" we called them "Monkey Coffins"
The taller the entrance the easier they are to use

[Franco]

There are several tripod bivy but mostly made with some sort of "breathable" and expensive material (Gortex/eVent/Epic) . Even so the inside can still get wet.
There are also bivy tents, these are done in nylon.
A well known type is the Eureka Solitaire :

a low A frame version (to avoid cost and complexity of the tent pole) would not have enogh clearance to avoid brushing against wet walls.
(just my opinion...)

[Orion]

I have a pretty good idea what I am making, it's just the materials I'm trying to sort out.

Half the battle is just figuring out what you want. So you're already half way there.
The second half is finding the materials, which is what you're working on now.
The biggest half is actually making it like you imagined it.

I'm curious as to what your idea is. Care to share it?

[Nuts]

I was oogling this design recently, a big bivy, it has two (delrin) poles together at the head cover so you can just flip the cover down:
http://www.milesgear.com/PicoBivy.html

Though i'd not personally use a breathable fabric and it may otherwise need a mattress cover.
I don't have a lot of experience but really, from that I did, would not build with a primary goal to save money (unless time is of little value) and if building, with time in mind, even the simplicity of using CF would make the material cost less of an issue (for me).

[domonic]

I have a pretty good idea what I am making, it's just the materials I'm trying to sort out.

Half the battle is just figuring out what you want. So you're already half way there.
The second half is finding the materials, which is what you're working on now.
The biggest half is actually making it like you imagined it.

I'm curious as to what your idea is. Care to share it?

It's basically something like the picture posted by Nuts. That's it.
Really, something simple and effective is all I want. I'm thinking to just us a light and waterproof material with breather holes. The breathable fabric thing is a little pricey or out of reach.

There's a thousand ways of making it but I will endeavor to create a hoop or raised section around the head for my head and my gear so it's inside the tent/bivy with me. The lighweight flexible aluminium poles can be bought cheaply on AliExpress or ebay. The material (maybe on ebay or any chinese site like AliExpress) understanding that it's not always clear what I'll end up with. I recently received a sample of 210d PU coated nylon but it's probably only 40D and it will leak if subject to enough abrasion.

Even a basic long triangular tent (Around 2 meters long would probably work quiet well. I carried something like this around Eastern Europe almost 20 years ago (it was made of some kind of vinyl) and it was light and effective against the rain. I think I could put together something lighter with some breather capabilities and half the length of poles I would need for a bivvy style tent. Probably less material too.

Thanks for the interest. I'm slow at making decisions but when I get there I'll certainly let you all know what I come up with.