Storage: The 3 Worst Things That Can Happen to a Bell Tent
Having spent 15 years manufacturing and supplying bell tents, we’ve spoken with many upset customers over the years – disappointed with the condition of their tent when it comes out of storage.
Here we share with you the 3 most common bell tent storage issues.
What Do We Mean By ‘Poor Storage?’
During down time, you will need to store your bell tent properly. Individuals with just one tent will find it easier to store their tent properly, compared with glampsite owners who will have a multitude of tents.
For individuals, we found the best place to store a bell tent is in a secondary sack, under the bed (if there’s room)! But this just isn’t possible for glampsite owners, which can lead to poor storage solutions based on the lack of available space and storage options.
We’ve touched on poor storage when considering the issue of mildew, but other problems can occur as a result of poor storage.
At the end of the season, you may feel that your tents are in good enough condition to reuse again next season. However, if the tent is stored badly you could be in for a shock when you come to reuse it.
The 3 Main Issues to Look Out For
If stored poorly, once pristine tents can come out of storage in a really bad way. Here are the three main issues to look out for:
Birds & Rodents
Take a good look at the proposed storage area. Are there any tell-tale signs that rodents or birds are frequenting the same area? Look for droppings, urine stains, discarded nuts, nests, holes or gnaw marks, chewed wires or materials and foot/claw prints in dust to name some. If you find any such evidence, reconsider your storage area as birds and rodents can write-off a tent while it’s in storage.
Rodents particularly like to hide their treasures in the folds of packed tents, and to chew on the tent’s materials. Of course while they’re busy doing this they’re also pooping and peeing on the tent as they go along. This combined effort will lead to holes in the tent’s canvas which can be so extensive that the tent is not worthy of repair.
Heavy Loading
The ideal way to store a bell tent in it’s packed, rolled up and bagged cylindrical form, is to lay it flat. This way tents can be stored one on top of the other without too much danger. If stored upright, poles can bend out of shape over time, and water can enter the tent bag where it is fastened closed at the top.
Try not to store more than five tents on top of each other. A 5m bell tent can weigh as much as 40kg in some instances, so the tent at the very bottom will have 160kg on top of it.
If you are storing multiple tents in this way then consider removing the pegs and poles from the main bag. Not only because they can become distorted under a heavy load, but also because they can damage the canvas and groundsheet when stored under pressure in this way.
Make certain that nothing else is stored on top of the tents, and make this clear to others on site with a simple sign to remind.
Damp
Canvas tents must be stored in dry, well ventilated conditions. If you’re unable to ensure this, consider alternative storage solutions such as warehousing (for very cheap pallet rates) or a self storage unit near to you. The price you pay for this additional service could pay off in the long run if it ensures your tents are reusable following a long period of winter storage.
