The beginners guide
Part 1
Choosing your tent Choosing a new tent for the first time can be daunting, there are so many different brands, models, styles and sizes on the market. However, our simple guide will help you make this choice by knowing what to look for to make the right choice for you.
Size
If you are looking for a family tent, then you need the right size capacity tent to accommodate your family depending on the number of member in your family, as an example a 600XL would comfortably accommodate 6 people (600 meaning 6 people). Research your tent before purchasing it (especially , brands such as Vango provide a floor plan for each model in their tent range so you know the exact dimensions of what you are buying. Think about the pack size also for transportation. Pole or Airbeam© Tent?
This is clearly a matter of choice. When choosing a tent you have the option of traditional pole tents or Inflatable Airbeam© tents. We have a big Vango Edoras 600XL Airbeam© tent and a Vango Rosewood pole tent. If you have smaller children a good option for you would be an Airbeam© tent as these are quicker to pitch and less hassle when on the campsite, just peg all 4 corners of the tent then pump up the beams and peg out the guy lines, these tents can be pitched in half of the time with little effort. We believe the best range of tents available can be found here: https://www.vango.co.uk/gb/241-tents
Waterproof rating
All good tents now come with a waterproof rating and this is normally in “HH” (Hydrostatic Head), our tent has a waterproof rating of 5000HH, meaning ours is very waterproof and can withstand any downpour the UK weather can throw at it. So you do need to consider the waterproof rating on your tent before making a purchase. Cheap tents often come with a low HH rating, so at first glance the tent looks the part but when you get a downpour of rain the poor quality really shows.
Ventilation
A good airflow throughout your tent is absolutely vital in terms of preventing a build-up of condensation. Often people mistake condensation build up with a leaking tent, this is not the case. When condensation builds up in your tent it has the appearance that the roof is leaking, please don’t mistake one for the other. Condensation can be minimised by opening all ventilation points on your tent. Vango tents have Airzone© ventilation points under each window and on some models have vents situated at the front and rear of the tent and above the sleeping pods to the rear. All these should be open continuously especially when sleeping. Most Vango tents have inner mesh doors too, so as well as Airzone© ventilation points you have mesh doors which can be used to allow and constant airflow on hot days without worrying about critters and bugs getting into your tent. Use all your ventilation features – this will pre-long the life of your tent and make for a more comfortable sleep. So be mindful when choosing your tent that it has adequate ventilation throughout, you’ll be glad that you had.
Our Independent Opinion - We have owned and tested many brands of tents over the years and we cannot find better ventilated tents than what Vango produce, this is based on multi ventilation points all around their tents.
Polycotton or Polyester tent?
When choosing your tent, you will see two main types of flysheet, Polycotton and Polyester. Pollycotton or technical cotton tents are usually more expensive, these tents are a lot cooler in the hot weather and are warmer in the cold weather, and the material will last longer than polyester if looked after, the slight downside to these tents is that they are heavier in carry weight than their polyester counterparts. Polyester tents seem to be the common choice with campers as they are cheaper to buy and lighter to carry. However the material on these tents is not as strong as technical cotton and can become uncomfortable in hot weather (although we have a hack for this – just place silver foil blankets on the roof of your tent with the silver side up, this will deflect heat away from your tent on a hot day!
We hope you enjoyed this knowledge guide, Watch out for our other knowledge based blogs coming soon - we will be covering everything from must have accessories to advice on repairs on both pole and fabric!
Paula & Darren
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