Has anyone used this?

“Has any one ever used one of the products to recoat a tent fly and if so did it work? I have a 17 year old North Face VE-24 which is in excellent shape, but I tested the fly for waterproofness recently since I haven't used the tent in a few years and it seeped some water through the coating. The coating is not peeled and fly is supple and doesn't appear to be UV damaged and the floor is still waterproof. Anyone have any ideas how I can fix this?”

“Ihave used Camp Dry brand silicone to treat ponchos and rain gear. It stinks like hell but works great costs about $4 per can (aerosol). Always test it in a small area first, never know if it'll wreck the whole deal.”

“Nikwax has had pretty good reviews, but I haven't had to use it yet.

I still don't know enough to come in out of the rain.”

“I'll second that on Camp Dry. I spray it on everything that might get wet. Tent, Tarp, Pack, Stuff sacks, Boots, Gaitors, parks, etc.”

“I use Camp Dry too and it works well. I'm wondering if it would keep out prolonged rain on a tent. I suppose if nothing else works I could use it on the fly and use the tent in winter only to shed snow.”

“I use Camp Dry too and it works well. I'm wondering if it would keep out prolonged rain on a tent. I suppose if nothing else works I could use it on the fly and use the tent in winter only to shed snow.”

“RichB I sprayed a nylon pull-over windbreaker with 3 coats. After ample dry time I held the sleeve under my faucet for 5 min,not a drop.”

“Rich, what hyperpacker said about Camp Dry being stinky made me curious - I too have an old TNF tent and it smells REALLY BAD even without the Camp Dry. Does your tent smell funny, and have you been able to do anything about it? I have heard this complaint about old tents before but nothing I have tried has fixed the problem. I have tried washing, airing it out in the sun, setting it up with a box of baking soda in it for several days, so far no success. When it's being used regularly it's not such a problem but a couple of months in the stuff sack and the aroma, similar to cat doo-doo or puke, becomes almost overpowering.”

“Maybe a wash (by hand) in a solution of water and baking soda. Mix it up in a large washtub or bathtub and let it soak. Air dry. Who knows?”

“OmaHiker, the problem lies in your storage. By storing your tent in it's stuffsack, even dry, the smallest amount of humidity will grow funk and stink like a dickens. When I get home after my hike, if need be I hose it off outside and let it dry really good on the porch or on the grass. Then I take it down and during the day when the bed ain't in use, I spread it out on my bed topside, upside-down, inside out, footprint off ----------> I do this for several days. Where I'm at the least humid place is inside. Then I fold it up loosely like a blanket and store it (none of it in the stuffsack) under our bed. I've had great numbers of months wifh no tent use (unfortunately) and have never had a prollem with my tent mildewing and/or smelling.

Camp Dry is pretty good, I'd coat that fly with about 3 coats tho. But I'd trust NikWax for longevity, prolly 2 coats of this.”

“OmaHiker,
Does the tent smell something like vomit?
I have had two TNF tents that have had this problem. The problem was not fungus but one of polyurethane coating degradation. If you have ever stored your tent in an area warmer than about 75F degrees then if can happen.
You might also notice that the polyurethane coating feels slightly tacky to the touch. There is nothing you can do. Washing with baking soda will not really help. If you are the original owner of the tent you can call TNF. They will authorize you to ship the tent to them for inspection. After inspection, if they agree that it is a manufacturing defect
(and this is), they will cut you a check that can be spent on another TNF tent. I've done this twice. They had to replace both my Sierra and Westwind tents. I now have a three person Starship Extreme that has never been set up. Anyone interested?”

“Omahiker, I was going to suggest your problem might be in the stuff sack, but it sounds like these other guys know more than I do. Personally, I don't store anything in its stuff sack after I wrecked a 0 degree bag from doing it.”

“Guys, Thanks for the help and I've heard about tents that smell bad and coating degradation being the cause. The funny thing is the fly doesn't smell bad and that's the part that seeps water. The waterproof coating on the floor and sidewalls does have a sour smell, but is still holding back water. I also have a TNF Westwind tent that I bought in 1987 and it's still in great shape, doesn't smell and keeps water out. It's the tent I use most often because it's light. I've never stored my tents in stuff sacks and always had them loosely folded in a laundry bag after hanging for a few days after use, placed on a shelf. I also have a tarp that's about 15 years old and has the same smell and seeps water also. I'm going to replace it with a new sil tarp from a company from California called Owareusa.com They make nice looking Sil tarps and do custom work. It looks to be better made than the Campmor tarp.”

“I just went to a website called the Outdoor Gear Page where you can ask all kinds of questions about camping gear. I saw an archive under tents where someone asked about recoating a tent and they said it can be done. They said they used Kenyon K-Kote Recoat and it worked good. The original coating on my tent is on the outside of the fly so I was thinking about coating the inside with Recoat and then spraying the outside with Camp Dry. If it works as well as he says it does I think that should solve my problem. If I decide to do it this way I'll keep everyone posted on if it worked in case anyone else has to do it someday.”

“Hey good info there solitary, I've a TNF Tadpole, and I'll keep that lil tidbit in this goop between my ears. Thanx!”

“It`s from the old materials breaking down, iv`e had this problem.
Campmore sells a deoaderizer for it,it works.
NCR.”

“Gweed has a smelly tarp...maybe it wasn't a critter that marked it as its own afterall!

I keep my tent semi-unscrunched in a large sleeping bag stuff sack. Hope that works!”

“Hey Solitary, thanks for the advice. I got this tent at a garage sale but the person I got it from still had the original receipt in the stuff sack. Did you have to show that the tent warranty was "registered" in your name or anything like that? I probably shouldn't complain, since I only spent 40 bucks, but yes it does smell like vomit and when it's all zipped up it can be pretty unpleasant. If my conscience won't allow me to deceive TNF maybe I'll try the deoderizer from Campmor that NC suggested.”