Bugs, Mud, and Condensation

[Nathan C]

The three big fears surrounding floorless shelters seem to be bugs, mud (or water coming in under the sides), and condensation.

What are some tips to deal with the three?

Obviously a nest prevents all three, but what are some other ways?

Here in TN the ticks are AWFUL this time of year....I think I've had more than 20 on me already. So, in areas that I camp frequently I spread spectracide or some other bug b gone type product. It really seems to help. I imagine that a baggie of the stuff spread before you pitch your tipi or tent would have the same effect.

[liteisrite]

The problem with ticks is they can go inside with you. A nest will keep them out while you are inside. Here are a few things that work for other problems. A bivy provides pretty good protection from all of the above.

I've heard themacells work for flying insects. Campfires work sometimes but not all the time. Mud, a bathtub ground sheet should help to a certain degree

[Nathan C]

Thermacells do work well for flying insects. Honestly the skeeters don't bother me much. They seem to be bad before and just after sundown, then as it cools they leave me alone till the next morning.

The ticks I HATE. I see no purpose for a tick to be on this planet except to make life miserable. Here I use permethrin spray on my shoes, socks, and clothes, and a DEET spray on my legs to keep them away. This works very well unless you sweat so much it all comes off. I think a spray combo plus a Sevin/Spectracide spread at the campsite is the best solution for ticks.

I've used a 3' X 8' tyvek groundsheet in the past to protect from muddy ground and it works very well. To be honest in muddy conditions (which is at least 4 moths of the year here in TN) I'd rather be in a floorless shelter. You can walk right in and take your boots off without worrying about getting a floor dirty.

[muleman]

Site selection goes a long way in preventing problems with all three.

If possible pitch the shelter on a slight rise, away from water and in an area with a breeze.

The rise will help with drainage. While staying away from water and the breeze will help with bugs. The breeze will also help with condensation.

Yeah, I know it's easier said than done.

Three of my four floorless shelters have the the ability to ptich the fly high which helps a bunch with reducing condensation. The BCS is the exception and from my limited experience the fly is always pitched tight to the ground.

[soadmin]

The difference in location can be huge. We were camped probably 20 ft above an alpine marsh without much big issues but probably 200 yards away they were bad.

The BCS should be able to get low ventilation like this. Use the full length of the tie out and flip the sod skirt up. The easiest way to do this is to use the internal tie out patch for stake loops. I have not tried it on the BCS but on a tipi it works and creates an inch or two of ventilation space

[muleman]

I'll pitch the BCS using the inside stake loops the next time I have it out and see how that goes.

Thanks for the tip. I always wondered why the internal and external loops. Is this the only reason?

[sreekers]

A couple of times i have used the inside stake loops rather than outside when I hit a rock. Inside allowed me to miss it.

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[soadmin]

There are a few reasons for the internal / external loops. First, they are very robust. We have never had a failure in that design. Secondly, if there were a failure, it provides a backup since the integrity of the shelter is directly related to the stake outs. Third, in the instance, where you do have state out problems due to high winds or poor soils, you can res-take from inside the tent at least temporarily. Finally, it is a bit of a hold over from the tipi's where those loops are used for liner attachment.

[Nathan C]

Condensation- there are several ways to deal with this.

If you have a stove, burn it. It dries out the tent.

If the weather is good then vent by opening the door or propping a couple sides up.

If the weather is bad and you don't have a stove you just have to deal with it. Luckily the space/weight ratio floorless offers generally allows you enough real estate that you don't touch the sides.

[zuma]

Condensation is certainly no problem and I should know since i'm living in an area where a night without much condensation is as rare as running into a naked woman in the woods

The steep walls due to the pyramid design makes sure condensation really doesn't drip from the canopy on your groundsheet (as long as your ground sheet is removed some distance from the canopy). The condensation happily runs along the canopy downward to the ground. Ofcourse it helps that there are no horizontal seams anymore in the design of the versashelter. Vertical seams are a deal breaker for single wall tents with steep walls, I found out. Horizontal seams cause dripping of condensation.

A full ground cloth with a cut from the door to the pole should stay away from the canopy for about 10 - 12 inches. It leaves a clear next to the canopy open in which condensation can dissapear. Also this free space around your ground cloth helps preventing running water on your grond cloth when it rains. Ofcourse nothing helps if a flood has decide to run through your tent....

Bugs? Well everything that flies has the tendency to float around in the apex area, they don't bother me there. For the rest that crawls along at night I don't know because I'm sleeping

Ticks, well never had them in the tent, perhaps the full size ground cloth helps (it's a prerequisite for taking my wife along, this full ground cloth)