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Tent Packing - Just Stuff It?

ChrisF

Long Gone
For years, I've been packing my tent just like the manufacturers did - fold, pack poles in the center, and roll to fit in the tent bag. I just downloaded the instructions for the Helen Twowheels Super Packing System, which tell you to put the poles in the bag, then the fly, and finally stuff in the tent. According to the instructions, it's better for the tent and faster. I sure believe the faster part, not to mention being easier on old knees!

Do your fold and roll, or just stuff it?
 
tent packing

I just stuff mine. I have a medium sized duffle bag that sits crossways across the saddle bags. Poles go diagonally in the bottom, sleeping bag into an Aqua Seal stuff sack goes in next, and the tent and fly just get stuffed in, with lots of room left over.

If I'm backpacking, the tent and fly get stuffed into a stuff sack first, then into the pack.

But if bulk is a problem, you can always stuff the tent / fly into a compression stuff sack, and then crank it down.
 
my tent comes with a separate bag for the poles, as they won't fit in the tent's storage bag.

but the poles for my parawing do fit in the same bag. while it is slower, i lay the wing out flat, fold it to the same width as the storage bag, then place the poles in the center, and then roll it all up. fits nicely that way.

if you have the poles on the exterior of your tent's storage bag and you don't follow helen's "tight is right" packing advice, you might find that the poles can wear small holes in the storage bag from vibrating/rubbing against the sides of the saddlebag or the rack..

my tent's storage bag has an integrated compression system. i do roll up my tent, too... laying out the ground sheet, then the tent, then the rain fly and roll it up from head to toe. this makes it easier to set up, as i pick a spot and roll it out, pretty much ready to put the poles in and stake down.

ian
 
Stuff It

It's better to stuff your tent. Folding will in time weaken the fabric where it has been repeatedly folded and stored. The same with sleeping bags, but that has more to do with insulation compression.

They call them stuff sacks for a reason.
 
I still fold and roll mine, it doesn't come out looking all wrinkled up and since I use a ground cloth, I can fold and roll it so the dirt (and sometimes mud) does not come in contact with the actual tent. I don't find that its any more work to fold and roll it up.
 
Wrinkles

At the last rally I lost out on the neatest campsite award when the inspectors issued several demerits for excessive tent wrinkling. Oh the shame of it!!


Watch out for the metal pieces often found at the corner of the tent that the suspension poles slip over. These can easily puncture the tent if jammed in willy-nilly

I believe that the tent repetitive creasing-weakening matter was more critical in the day of canvas tents than today.
 
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It's better to stuff your tent. Folding will in time weaken the fabric where it has been repeatedly folded and stored. The same with sleeping bags, but that has more to do with insulation compression.

They call them stuff sacks for a reason.


+1
 
I think the main thing is that neither the tent nor fly be packed in such a way that hard and / or sharp objects can chafe or puncture the material. Everybody packs different, but that's not hard to assess.

One of our local outfitters sells long, padded bags for tent poles, that are pretty slick.
 
I think both techiniques seem to work fine.....comes down to personal preference. I have always rolled my tents and have had no problems whatsoever. I currently still use a circa 1989 Eureka Wind River Geodome and it is still in excellent condition.

I have switched to stuffing my sleeping bags though. All of my bags are H2W and the compression stuff sack I use for sleeping gear allows me to really cinch things down nicely.
 
Stuff!

A few years ago in Backpacker Magazine's annual "Gear Guide" an article about tents mentioned that most manufacturers recommend stuffing tents into bags so as to not create creases. Creases=weakened fabric and waterproofing (as someone mentioned above).
 
Tent packing

I too have the Helen 2 Wheels bags. I'll have to try that method for the tent. The length of the poles is what always annoy me. If I didn't already have both an REI and a Eureka tent that I don't use enough, I would spend $395 for the Nemo tent that uses air bladders instead of tent poles, and packs much smaller, at least according to their website http://www.nemoequipment.com
 
I'm using the same Eastern Mountain tent I have for four years now and I roll it not stuff it. Waterproof every fall use a ground Blue tarp under it. I average 33-44 nights a year in that tent and it still looks new. Stakes and poles are in with the tent but in their own bags all works perfect with no signs of wear in 154 average uses and I seem to always find rain here in the North east.

Brett Endress
Altoona Pa
 
Stuffing for 30+ years

as it was described to me.... think of an old piece of paper that has been folded over and over again.....

same thing happens to your tent.



It's better to stuff your tent. Folding will in time weaken the fabric where it has been repeatedly folded and stored. The same with sleeping bags, but that has more to do with insulation compression.

They call them stuff sacks for a reason.
 
The length of the poles is what always annoy me.

There are 3 or 4 tents out there that have poles that pack shorter than 18 inches. It took me a long time to find them. I hate strapping things on the bike. If it doesn't fit in the luggage it stays home.
 
I understand the creasing that happens when you fold up a tent. Regarding rolling a tent up - don't ya have to fold it up a bit before you roll it up? I have a 2 man tent I take and it's too big to roll up without folding it in half once or twice.

Regarding stuffing a tent - do ya'll mean to merely stuff it into the bag as one would do with a rag? I'm trying to picture stuffing a tent that has a stiff floor and several reinforced seams and it doesn't seem to work in my head.
 
That's why they call them stuff sacks.

Take a corner of the tent, stick it in the bottom of the stuff sack, and keep stuffing material into the stuff sack until there is no more tent to insert.

I stuff things into the stuff sack in the reverse order I'll need them when I un-stuff the tent. The fly goes in first, followed by the tent body, followed by the ground cloth, followed by the stakes on top. That way, if it's windy or rainy, I can stake out the ground sheet and use it as a dry/clean place to take out the tent body, get that set up and staked out, and then put on the fly. Nothing blows away and everything is where you expect it to be when you need it.
 
A few years ago in Backpacker Magazine's annual "Gear Guide" an article about tents mentioned that most manufacturers recommend stuffing tents into bags so as to not create creases. Creases=weakened fabric and waterproofing (as someone mentioned above).

I don't know what your definition of creases is, but I don't know how to stuff a tent into it's sack or fold and roll it without creating creases. I think the advantage of stuffing versus folding and rolling is that the creases do not occur over and over again in the same place.
 
I understand the creasing that happens when you fold up a tent. Regarding rolling a tent up - don't ya have to fold it up a bit before you roll it up? I have a 2 man tent I take and it's too big to roll up without folding it in half once or twice.

Regarding stuffing a tent - do ya'll mean to merely stuff it into the bag as one would do with a rag? I'm trying to picture stuffing a tent that has a stiff floor and several reinforced seams and it doesn't seem to work in my head.

Yup. Just stuff it. First, slide poles down the side (carefully), then... Stuff the tent, etc. in reverse order to the way you'll put it up: Fly in first (if there is one), then tent, then ground cloth/footprint. We usually use a Noah's tarp over the tent, etc. so that goes in last... we can set up the tent under the shelter of the NT in case of rain.

P
 
I don't care for wadding up my tent.... errr, sorry, I mean 'stuffing';)

I quickly and loosely fold it over 2 or 3 times until it is about the right width and then roll it up with my tent poles in the middle. It is never folded the same way so repeated creasing is not a worry. I have found it packs quicker and smaller than stuffing.

Oh, and while we are at it - great taste, Michelin tires, Castrol Dino oil, BMW gel battery - my 'Swiss Army' answer to the other great mysteries of the universe.
 
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