A canopy tent is a brilliant shelter solution. With a canopy tent around, you can enjoy the great outdoors without worrying too much about the unpredictability of weather conditions.
- Is the summer sun beating down on you?
- Is the rain threatening to spoil your outdoor adventure?
Don’t worry. Your canopy tent is there to protect you from the harsh sun and the moody rain. But please don’t try to defy storms and blizzards with your tent. These accessories are great at what they are purpose-built to do – provide you a temporary shelter from the sun and the rain. But tents aren’t impenetrable fortresses!
Like every other accessory, printed canopy tents can last long with some care. In this article we will see how you can make your tent last long with some simple tips and tricks.
Set up your tent properly on firm ground
This is the crucial first step towards making your tent last long. Before venturing out in the open, practice setting up your tent at least once in your backyard or patio. Go through the tent’s manual to learn how to set up your canopy tent and other important things about the tent’s accessories. Modern pop up tents are easy to set up. So, learning to set one up won’t be like rocket science to you!
When it’s time to set up your canopy tent, choose level ground free of debris. Semi-firm soil with short grass growth serves as the perfect platform to secure a tent. But stay away from soggy ground as much as possible. Maintain a safe distance from prickly bushes and extruding tree branches if you are camping in the wilderness. Branches and twigs can rip through your tent fabric in no time. In an urban setting, you might have to set up a tent on asphalt or concrete surfaces. Make sure there are no potholes or large cracks in the ground.
Modern custom canopy tent manufacturers like Extreme Canopy, Australia, employ a simple no-assembly-required design for their custom pop up tents. These accessories come with pre-built frames that simply need to be expanded for the whole structure to stand up on their own. While setting up such a tent, follow these simple instructions:
- Take your tent out of the carrying case.
- Expand the frame a bit.
- Adjust the leg-heights.
- Make sure the canopy is attached to the frame.
- Expand the frame to its full size.
- Attach whatever accessories are there to attach.
- Check and recheck fasteners.
Is your tent stable enough?
Once you have chosen your ground and expanded your canopy tent, make sure that your temporary shelter is firmly fixed to the ground. You don’t want your tent to topple over! If you have setup your tent on semi-firm soil, use tent stakes to secure the foot plates to the ground. Tent stakes are metal spikes 6 inches to a foot long, and designed to attach to a tent’s foot plate on their blunt side. The pointy end goes into the ground to keep the tent from toppling.
If you are setting up your tent on hard ground, like asphalt or concrete, tent stakes won’t work. Use weights instead. Custom canopy tent manufacturers like Extreme Canopy sell instant canopy sand bags manufactured from high quality synthetic materials. You can fill these bags with sand and attach them to the tent’s legs with the help of Velcro fasteners. Now your tent is safe and secure even on hard ground.
Still not happy about your tent’s stability? Use anchors for reinforcement. Anchors are essentially nylon straps that can be fastened to the tent’s frame on one end, and to a stake or a weighted object on the other end. This lends extra stability to your canopy tent and keeps it in place even in windy conditions. But please don’t try your luck in a storm!
What to do about water damage?
Water can be a major cause for concern for everything from pop up tents, and outdoor party tents to promotional tents. Water accumulated on metal frames can corrode the metal surface, causing irreparable damage to the tent. That’s why we advise you to go for tents that employ powder coated steel or brushed aluminium frames. This is exactly where the X5, X6, X7 and Q8 ranges of canopy tents from Extreme Canopy shine. The frames of these tents are made from corrosion resistant steel, and Extreme Canopy offers a 5-year warranty on their metal frames. That’s what we call exceptional quality!
What to do in an exceptionally moist environment? Parts of the world that experience heavy precipitation can be challenging for canopy tents. Moisture tends to collect on the canopy fabric, attracting everything from mildew to dirt. This can not only affect the longevity or your tent but also affect your health. There are a couple of ways to tackle this problem.
- Make sure to wipe your tent canopy thoroughly before packing and storing it away. Clean the tent canopy using a piece of soft fabric. Never use abrasives to remove dirt and moisture. Do not attempt to wash your tent canopy in a machine. Only hands please!
- Use mildew removers like vinegar and other manmade solutions.
- Buy canopy tents from reliable manufacturers. Tent manufacturers like Extreme Canopy use PVC and PU coated polyester fabrics to manufacture their tent canopies. These materials are water proof, UV-resistant and fire repellent. That’s what we call value for money!
Conclusion
Outdoor tents don’t require a lot of care to last long. Basic things like the ones we described in this article can make them last for a very long time.
