How to Care for Your Tent

Camping is a great experience for the whole family but there's nothing worse than arriving at your camp site and discovering that your tent has managed to suffer some damage, whether that's a torn flysheet or one of the tent poles has snapped, it's never a good experience. That's why it's so important to care for your tent!

Our guide will help you every step along the way to keep your tent protected and clean!

Protecting Your Tent

The first step to caring for your tent is knowing how you can keep it protected from any potential damage, here are our suggestions on how you can achieve this:

Use a ground sheet underneath your tent. This will protect your tent from the surface you're pitching on, which can include wet ground and stones.

Try and keep your tent away from direct sunlight. Of course, this isn’t always possible in summer months but the direct sunlight can often discolour your tent. UV protection spray is handy in combatting this.

Keeping the vents open in your tent helps to increase airflow and therefore keep condensation away.

Don’t wear shoes inside the tent as this will lead to unwanted dirt and stones ending up inside.

Take care with your tent poles, they can be easily bent so try not to apply too much force.

Cleaning Your Tent

Cleaning your tent is important if you want to make your tent stands the test of time, but it's important that you follow the correct instructions so you don't end up causing any lasting damage. When cleaning your tent, the first step you should take is to ensure there is no debris inside, you should then use lukewarm water and non-detergent soap to clean the outside of your tent with a cloth. It's important not to use detergent, washing up liquid and to never put your tent in the washing machine.

Don't forget - as well as cleaning the actual tent you'll also need to also clean the zippers. To clean your zips, we recommend using a brush to get rid of any dirt and debris and remember, if you get dirt stuck in between the zips then do not force the zip, simply clean first.

Once you have finished cleaning your tent, it's important that you either dry the tent yourself or if it's a dry day you can leave your tent to dry outside.

Repairing Your Tent

Repairing your tent is never the most fun task but it has to be done. Damage can happen when you least expect it, so you'll need to come prepared with either a temporary or permanent fix. There are simple steps you can take to repair your tent rather than buying a new one.

Seam Sealant - This puts back together seams that are coming apart to ensure your tent stays water-tight and durable.
Replacement Poles - As tent poles can be fragile and easily bend or snap you can simply buy replacement tent poles.
Duct Tape - If you need to fix any rips or tears in your tent or tent poles temporarily duct tape is strong enough to do the job therefore we recommend you always keep a roll in your camping kit
Repair Kit - Many tents will come with a repair kit however if your tent does not, there a many tent repair kits available to purchase that should include the most important tools you need.

Tent Repairing Essentials

Stock up on all the essential repair equipment you need for your camping trip!

Packing Away Your Tent

When packing away your tent there are several things you need to remember and steps you should take in order to care for your tent:

Ensure your tent is dry before packing away or your tent may develop mildew along with a musky smell.
Make sure there is nothing left inside your tent when packing away, we recommend brushing the inside as it only takes something small to pierce your tent when packing up.
Store your tent in a dry place as otherwise this again could lead to mould.
If it happens to start raining when packing away your tent and getting it wet is unavoidable then please dry your tent as soon as you get home

Waterproofing Your Tent

Once you have had your tent for a few years you may start to notice it is losing its waterproof capabilities but do not worry, this by no means is a sign you need a new tent as your tent may be able to be repaired by reproofing. Tents are usually made from waterproof material or coated in waterproof materials here at Regatta we use our Hydrafort waterproof technology fabrics to ensure the best protection.

Unfortunately as mentioned the waterproof material doesn't last forever, if you do notice that your tent is starting to let in water then you will need to find a good waterproofing spray that has Durable Water Repellency (DWR) properties. To apply a waterproof spray you will need to ensure that you set up your tent and that it is clean.