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I have just waterproofed my  cotton force 10 with Fabsil liquid. Took me 3 n a half hours to paint it on but the results are fab...

I bought this 2nd hand in April and have been told that it is about 20 years old, but seen minimal use.  Not sure if it has been waterproofed before... Any ideas about when I should waterproof it again?

Thanks Nigel

It will get tested bank hol week .. off to Snowdonia for a baptism of fire (or water if its anything like the last few days)

Hi Is it worth - I have just bought a brand new tent spaying some fabasil on to keep it in good condition.

Jase

Its a vango diablo not a canvas tent but can you still use fabasil.

Jase

Man made tents do not need proofing - they get their waterproofness from the PU coating on the inside, so spraying stuff on the outside does not increase the water resistance - it all depends on the state of the PU coating. Once the PU coating is degraded and starts peeling away from the fabric no amount of spraying will restore the waterproofness and it is time to get a new tent!  the UV spectrum in sunlight is the main cause of this degradation - this is why man made tents have a much shorter life than cotton ones.

The only benefit you get from using a water proofing treatment on a man made tent is that in heavy rain the water will sit in little beads on the outside and run off,  which may slightly reduce the likelihood of water wicking in through weak points.

What you do need to do is to check the seams on a manmade tent as these are the vulnerable points. Man made fabric does not expand when wet so it does not seal the stitch holes like cotton canvas does. That is why there is heat welded tape on the seams in order to seal the stitch holes. However, at points where there are multiple stitches, (typically the toggle points that you attach the bedrooms too, or roll up window covers too etc) it is likely that the seal is incomplete. Therefore rain on the outside with be able to soak through (called "wicking").

So when you get a new tent, stick it up and wait for rain or turn the hose on it - examine inside for wicking points like these, and when the tent is dry, treat them with seam sealant - this comes in a little bottle with a sponge applicator tip and is applied by running the tip slowly along the seam whilst squeezing the bottle, ensuring that coverage of the seam and stitching is even and soaks in. Seam sealant is very sticky, and needs 24 hours to dry so leave the tent up long enough for it to be completely dry otherwise you risk your tent getting glued together by the sealant. When treating dangling toggle loops, weight them with a tent peg to keep them hanging away from the tent walls whilst drying.

As Val says, cotton canvas is naturally waterproof because the fibres swell when wet and seal up the fabric- but once it gets a little worn, the application of a proofing treatment is needed. I used to have an old 2nd or 3rd hand frame tent and we treated it by painting on fabsil about every 5 years, which was all it needed.

i've just used waterseal on our TT, all i need is for it to rain next week when we are away, so i can see what it's like.

and the cost is 25% of fabsil too

Quote: Originally posted by PigletandTigger on 14/5/2007

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ekkl, what is your tent made of?

I don't think you need to waterproof "plastic" tents, it's canvas that needs to be waterproofed.

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ekkl that sounds more like either an erection  problem which proofing will not solve, so maybe you did not have it taut enough for the rain to run off. Also bear in mind that the fabric stretches when wet so that makes it more prone to sagging. IN the rain one needs to tighten the guy rope to compensate for this ( but remember to looseon then again when the sun comes out or else your tent can shrink and end up ripping if it is then under too much tension!)

On the other hand it could be a slight design flaw so your tent may always be prone to water gathering on any horizontal surface outside.

With an HH of 1500mm that means a column of water 1500mm high can sit on the fabirc without seeping through so you should be okay most of the time ( but that is in lab conditions not a blustery hillside with the rain coming at ya like horizontal stair rods!!)