Tents are used outdoors where mother nature, you, fellow campers, animals, and others can throw or rub anything on them. A tree branch may fall on it and cause some damage — you may slide a sharp edge upon it — or it can fall a victim of camping fire and cause damage, too.
Either way, it gets torn or ripped, and this shouldn’t throw you into a panic.
In fact, you should be grateful that the whole tent wasn’t affected, and that you can always repair such damages.
Also, feel lucky for having met this blog that will guide you through how to repair different damages in your tent. I have partitioned the blog into various sections, each that has a different type of damage and repair explained.
Note: Always make sure that the tent is ripped and leaking. Leaks are not only judged by seeing water droplets but also set your eyes on the rent surface. There are cases of condensation, too, that can cause water droplets within your tent.
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How To Repair A Small Hole:
When the ripped surface isn’t large, the fix won’t be complicated. Here are the comprehensive steps.
Trim All Protruding Fibers and Threads.
The ripstop nylon often encloses some fiber and threads within. When it’s torn, these threads remain exposed, and they are always vulnerable to further tearing. Trimming them off will prevent this. A pair of sharp scissors will do the trick best.
Cut Two Equal Pieces Of Patching Tapes
Here, you can use a tenacious tape. Meanwhile, the patching tapes should be large enough to seal the entire hole (both from inside and outside) and extend a bit.
It is recommended that the pieces seal a half an inch (all round) past the hole from both sides. Also to take keen note of is the seals’ shapes. Trim them such that all their edges are rounded well. This is going to make them resistant to peeling off.
Remember that the two tapes should be equal in size and similar in shape because the hole you’ll be dealing with is the same — only sides will differ.
Clean The Area Around The Rip
This should be done both from the inside and outside the tent, whether your tent is clean or not. You’ll be patching one side before the other, but the first cleaning should be done on both sides.
If the tent is too dirty, use something to scrub it, making sure that all dirt is cleaned off without the scrubbing being too harsh.
If the tent is quite clean, you can wipe around the hole with a piece of clean cloth and rubbing alcohol.
Gently Steam The Cleaned Area
Steaming is done to make the surface flat and smooth. This is especially true if the surface has creases. If it doesn’t have any, you can skip this step. Please do this on both sides, though we’ll start with the outside part first.
Apply One Patching tape Over The Hole From Outside
Slowly and carefully apply one patching tape on the outside, making sure that it covers the hole as you measured it (i.e., a half an inch past all the sides of the hole).
Also, make sure that as you apply the tape, you leave no bubbles or creases. Apply pressure on it such that it firmly adheres to the tent’s surface.
Apply Seam Grip At The Edges Of The Seal
Seam grip is applied here to add to the adhesion and strengthen the water-resistance of your seal. Make sure that you buy the right one, based on customer reviews, brand, and other considerations.
Give It 12 Hours To Dry Up And Repeat For The Inside
After drying for 12 hours, the patched surface on the outside of your tent is both strong and waterproof. You should now do the same for the inside part.
You’ll start by cleaning the inside part with rubbing alcohol and then repeating the steps from #4 as you did with the outside. You’ll also leave the inside part to dry for 12 hours.
After this process, your tent is back to normal — waterproof and robust!
Let’s now see how to repair a larger rip below.
How To Repair A Large Hole:
Applying a seal tape alone to a larger hole won’t do the trick here, as the adhesion may not be as strong as with a smaller hole. Here are the steps.
Sew The Torn Area
Larger rips should be sewed first before anything else. So get a sewing awl and a waxed thread to sew. Make sure that before sewing, you clean inches past the torn edge, because you’ll again waterproof this area. Sew closely together.
Repeat The Steps Of How To Repair Small Holes — To Waterproof The Sewed Surface
Repeat the steps, ignoring some of them like steaming, cleaning (you had done this before sewing), and others that aren’t necessary. Please seal on both sides.
Broken Or Bent Tent Legs
Bent tent legs are easy to push back to shape, except for fragile materials and for if the bend is too much. In case the leg gets broken, the best course of action is taking it to a metal worker or replacing it.
Always Remember To Be Safe Than Sorry
Unless it’s an accident, you should keep an eye on all the things that can cause the damages above. Here are a few precautionary measures to keep in mind all the time.
- Don’t use detergent on your tent’s surface or around it. DETERGENT CAN DESTROY THE WATERPROOF SURFACE OF YOUR TENT!
- Don’t cook inside the tent
- Don’t keep your tent in the sunlight all the time
- Be cautious while using sharp materials around or inside the tent
- Do repairs as soon as damages happen
- Don’t store wet tents
- Don’t rush while assembling or disassembling the tent
The Bottom Line
Always keep in mind that all repairs should be done in time. Before you go camping, set up the tent and check it for any damages to be safe than sorry. Remember to carry with you all the gears mentioned above for the repair, and more, that the seller or experienced campers can recommend to you. Please remember to use the precautionary measures above, too. Meanwhile, have a good luck camping!
