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We finally got our inner of our Diablo 600 up today which we were checking prior to camping this summer. We thought that it had been dry when it went away last year...well it had almost.. we have two separate foot square patches on the tent of mildew staining, in each sleeping area. There is no discernible smell and the patch is dry and hasn't spread. Is it worth attempting to treat or should we just leave it alone?

However we have two odd brown circles on one of the window covers (so it is going to be covered by a PVC window. The centre is completely clear but the brown circle is about 3/4 inch wide and feels almost like a burn to the fabric. Does anyone have any idea what this is as we have seen nothing like it before and don't remember it being there before.

Other than the inevitable grass stains and slightly muddy floor it fared well given how awful the weather was in july last year!

Mamee

Sorry if this is a dumb question but does mildew actually damage the polyester material of modern tents or just leave a stain and/or smell?

And how dry does a tent have to be before packing - totally or is a little moisture ok?

Quote: Originally posted by dambuilder on 29/4/2008

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Thanks. And now for dumb question number 2; How long can a damp/wet tent be left packed without causing damage? Basically for example if we were away last weekend (and we were) and the tent was wet when packed away due to the weather but we are going away again in 2 weeks will it be ok left packed or not?

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To be safe? No longer than 48 hours...and I'd be concerned even with that if it was warm. Get it out the bag in a loose heap and keep turning it, as has been said. It's won't get dry that way, not easily anyway, but it will slow the mould growth down.

Two weeks damp and you might as well throw it away on the campsite and save yourself the trouble of taking it home.

Quote: Originally posted by underthestars on 30/4/2008

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hi mamee, i've washed inner tents in the washing machine at 30 using a bit of non bio detergent that my son left damp and musty and they came up brilliantly. the had the crunchy polypropylene type ground sheet and were completely waterproof afterwards - probably wouldn't be a good idea to do it more than once, but it will get rid of the mildew which is like the kiss of death for a tent! good luck!

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If you do this you should run the inners through the rinse cycle again twice, with no additive of any sort. Detergent is the kiss of death to flysheets and all it would need is for a sweaty flysheet to blow against a detergent-contaminated inner and it will pick up detergent residue. Rinse it well!

If anyone feels compelled to use cleaners on their tent then there are proprietory brands availible, or use pure soap flakes, NOT detergent of any sort. Then rinse the area as many times as you can bear to do so, then once more. Yeah, fiddly and boring but how much does a new tent cost after all? Better still, dry off your tent properly and if you're going to have it in storage long term, consider getting it out the nylon bag, rolling it more loosely in sections and storing it in a couple of old duvet covers or something, for ventilation.

Remember to dry the poles and pegs off as well, btw. Basically take them out the bag and let them air dry for a couple of hours.