There’s nothing more adventurous than to sleep outdoors and explore the wonders of nature. But the sad fact is, you might get a terrible experience if you don’t choose the best tent brands for the task. A good tent should be able to protect you from the freezing temperature, terrible winds, and bugs.
Selecting the best tent may come down to personal preference that’s why what I’m going to share are the brands that worked well for me. I’ll be suggesting five tent brands and select one brand that I think is the best among the rest. If you like to get started, continue reading.
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How To Assemble A Tent
There are three basic tools you need when setting any tent- stakes, metal rake, and a mallet. The first step that you need to do is search for a smooth area to set up your tent, Next, unroll the tent and assemble the poles.
Secure the base of the tent and attach the poles. Stake down the tent, add the cover, and tie down with extra stakes, if necessary. For more detailed steps, watch this video
Things To Consider When Buying The Best Tent
The Number Of People On Your Camping Group
You should know the number of people in your group so you can have an idea on what tent size you’ll choose. You might also want to consider adding an extra space for your pets and gear. When assessing the tent capacity, I suggest that you upsize the tent by one person.
The Season You’ll Plan To Camp
Tents are also differentiated in terms of seasonality. If you usually camp during the spring, fall, and summer, then the 3-season tent is the best fit for you. This 3-season tent protects you from bugs, offer privacy, and shelters you from light snow or rain.
A 3-4 season tent, on the other hand, is more suitable for extended 3-season usage. It offers protection during early spring, late fall, and summer. Because of its fewer mesh panels and more poles, it’s sturdier and warmer than its 3-season counterparts.
The 4-season tent suits any season and can endure fierce winds and sizable snow loads. It uses heavier fabrics, more poles, and a rainfly to provide maximum weather protection.
Brand Reputation
When choosing the best tent brand, determine its reputation among consumers. Brand reputation pertains to how a customer views a specific brand. Does it favors greatly to consumers or it leaves a bad experience?
You can check the brand reputation of a product by reading some consumer feedbacks online. You can also gauge the sentiment of people by typing some keywords in the text box on any social media sites, like Facebook and Twitter. From there, you can assess how the product delivers in terms of quality and customer service.
What Features To Look For On A Good Tent
Design
If you want to enjoy the comfort of a high ceiling, choose a tent with a tall peak height. Cabin-style tents maximize total peak height much better than dome-style tents. If you’re tall, select a tent with a floor length of 90 inches.
You might consider a lot of doors if you’re camping with many people. Multiple doors help you bump against each other when going out for a walk. Again, cabin-style tents provide more doors than other tent styles.
For ventilation, look for mesh panels. Larger mesh panels are much preferred if you want to camp during the humid climates.
Tent Fabric
You might have come across a variety of tent fabrics but the most common are nylon, polyester, and canvas. Nylon, especially the cheap ones, are thin and rips easily. But they’re lightweight, quick to dry, and affordable.
A better alternative to cheaper man-made fabrics is rip-stop nylon which can endure harsh weather conditions. Canvas, on the other hand, is a breathable fabric that can last a long time, but it can be bulky and heavy.
When looking at tent fabrics, make sure that they’re reinforced. A higher-denier fabric is more rugged than its lower-denier counterpart. To minimize the odds of leakage, look for a seam tape on the tent floor.
Tent Poles
Tent poles are responsible for the structure of your tent. If you want your tent to hold nicely against high winds, choose aluminum tent poles. As compared to fiberglass or carbon composite, aluminum is much stronger.
However, the price of tents with aluminum poles may be more expensive. They can also be slightly heavier which might be a little inconvenient if you’re backpacking. But if you’re taking a shorter hike, the heaviness of the aluminum poles may not matter with the durability they provide.
Rainfly
A rainfly is a waterproof outer layer that provides extra warmth and protection from rain or dew. There are two types of rainfly you can choose- roof-only or full-coverage. While the roof-only rainfly offers a more light view, the full-coverage type provides full protection from harsh winds and rain.
Accessories
The best tent brand should offer accessories that aid for easy assembly and comfort.A good tent should have many straps to aid for assembly and comfort. Loop straps, hold back straps, and guy lines secure the whole structure of your tent.
Most tents offer stakes to aid for assembly and a carry bag for portability. Look for extra pockets if you want more storage. Vestibules, for example, can keep our dusty or muddy boots.
Warranty
The best tent brands should provide a long warranty. This will indicate how confident the manufacturer is in the quality of its product. Other manufacturers may even provide a money back guarantee to offer refunds in case you bought a defective one.
The 5 Best Tent Brands
1. Kodiak Canvas
Via: Amazon.com
If you want durability, then the Kodiak Canvas is a great brand to invest. I say this because I have purchased a Kodiak Canvas Flexbow a few years ago and until now, it’s still in good condition.
The material itself is made with 100% cotton duck canvas, which they call Hydra-Shield Canvas. It’s pre-treated with a waterproofing agent so you can expect the tents to perform well in the wind and rain. Interestingly, this canvas doesn’t wick moisture so your tent stays dry.
The flooring is created from polyester reinforced vinyl and all the seams are welded. I love its thick floor because it reduces the odds of ripping a hole when setting up on a ground of rocks and sticks. The tents are 4-season, meaning that it can endure some light snow accumulation and during winter time.
The tent poles are made of heavy-duty steel and they don’t bend easily. The frame is sturdy and simple, yet it can endure decent blasts of wind. The biggest drawback of the tents might be the weight so you should skip them if you’re looking for a backpacking tent.
Kodiak Canvas offers a limited lifetime warranty. If your purchased tent is found defective, they replace or repair it for free. Charges for shipping is your responsibility, though.
SEE ALSO : The 5 Best Waterproofing Sprays 2017
2. The North Face
Via: Amazon.com
The North Face might be known for its outdoor apparel but to complete their outdoor gear product line, they’re offering tents. Their tents offer various sizes from one-person to 8-person. Their tents have two types of design- dome and hoop.
This American brand was originally established in San Francisco in the 1960s. Two years later, the company was sold but its mission stays the same: to offer gear for the north face of a mountain. As you already know, the north face is the coldest part of a mountain
Stormbreak 2, Triarch 2, and O2 are among the models providing a 3-season style.The Summit Series Series, Stormbreak 3P, and Triarch 3 are suited for 4-seasons. The best looking model might be the Homestead Domey 3 which is printed with Tibetan orange heat map.
Many of its models, like the Mountain 25, is made of rip-stop nylon making themmore durable than their tent counterparts. The tent poles are also made of aluminummaking the tents stronger against fierce wind. Their single-wall design tents are fully waterproof because of the small rainfly covers.
3. Alps Mountaineering
As reflected by its name, the Alps Mountaineering brand is suitable for mountaineers. However, the size of the tents may not be ideal for large groups. The small size range may only fit smaller mobile groups.
The freestanding tents are made for a simple setup with less flimsy poles. The tent models made of strong aluminum poles are the Zephyr, Extreme, And Aries. With the mesh walls and two doors, you’ll get a nice ventilation. Included in the tent package are the guy ropes, mesh storage pocket and stakes.
I have actually used its Extreme 3 Outfitter and I must say that the aluminum poles give the tent so much strength against terrible winds. The pole clips make the assembly very easy.
4. Coleman
Via: Amazon.com
Coleman is one of the popular brands when you think about family camping tents. It’s known as a producer of reliable, affordable tents that provide the best value for your money. However, with some parts and camping equipment manufactured in China, the quality has been affected remarkably.
What I love about Coleman is its great ventilation. Nearly each of their tent comes with a rainfly for weather protection. It’s interesting that Coleman has determined the most difficult part of camping and that is the assembly.
One of its flag-bearers is the Coleman Weathermaster which offers three rooms. This family tent is significantly popular for its affordable price, size, and magnificent features. It’s available in three sizes- 4-man, 6-person, and 8-person.
While Coleman is known for its family tent, it also fairs well in the backpacking scene. Its Coleman Exponent models are lightweight, well-built, and more affordable than more famous brands. However, its major drawback is their size.
The Sundome, on the other hand, fails to impress me. The rain seems to leak through the windows despite the covering and the zipper breaks easily. On the good side, this model is built with a remote controlled light and good ventilation.
5. Eureka
Via: Amazon.com
Eureka has a reputation of providing quality expedition tents for professional and amateur climbers. In fact, the Draw-Tite tent was used by Sir Edmund Hillary on his journey to Mt. Everest in 1960. Over the years, this brand has become popular among the recreational camping community.
If you’re looking for a tent to use in the winter, try the Alpenlite 2X, High Camp, and Outfitter. All these tents have something in common and that is their Stormshield polyester ripstop fly. This heavy-duty rainfly protects your tent from extreme weather conditions.
Aside from expedition tents, Eureka also offers several types of tents, such as backpacking, family recreation, and outfitter. You can select a variety of styles including A-frame, dome, and hoop. While this brand offers an easy assembly with just a few poles, it’s peak height may not be favorable for tall people.
Final Thought
Did you enjoy reading the reviews for the best tent brands? If I must choose, I should say that the Kodiak Canvas is the best tent brand because it offers a very durable construction. All their tents are 4-season meaning that they can withstand extreme weather conditions. They have most of the features that we’re looking for on a good tent including a reinforced tent fabric, sturdy poles, waterproof, and offers a limited lifetime warranty.
If you’ve tried any of these brands or want to suggest a better tent brand, don’t be shy to share them with us in the comment section. Please don’t forget to share this article with your friends if you like it.
Learn more about how to choose the 5 Best Tent Stakes – Reviews and other Tips , The Best Tent Seam Sealer Review – bonus Tent Seam Sealing Tips . By the way, have a look at our A Complete Guide To Buy The Best Pop Up Canopy .
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