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sorry to be so vague but can someone explain these HH values

ive been told 2000+ is min to have

HELLLPPP

As you can see you have been given the correct info, 2000+ is the least you should go for as takisawa says the high end quality tents have around 6000hh which is great, at 2000+ you should be OK, I have a 2000+hh tent from Lidl and it has been tested by me with a hose at full pelt, withheld a 20 minute downpour with no problems, and the downpour would probably be equal to thundery type rain so i will be happy to use the tent for an average summertimes weeks holiday.

All the best and a very warm welcome to ukcampsite.co.uk I hope you enjoy the camping and the website. We are all here to help!

yep 2000+ my tent a peakland bamford held up superbly on its first trip out with us over the bank holiday it piddled it down all night and we got up dry as a bone and its 2000 HH i think

many thanks for your input

a tent hunting i will go ;)

1000HH is what is known as fully waterproof, but that doesn't mean under extreme conditions, that means that if water was put on it, it wouldn't penetrate.  When you consider British weather, the rain is not just put on the fabric, it is powered onto the fabric.  I have used 1500HH without problems but always worried during heavy rain.  2000HH should really be the minimum consideration for the British climate.  For long term use I like to go a lot higher than that just for peace of mind.  All my Outwell tents are 5000HH ( even the Day Tent is 3000HH ).

Also remember that some tent manufacturers give 2 values for HH.  One is for the fabric and one is for the groundsheet.  The groundsheet is usually a lot higher HH mainly due to the toughness of the material used because it is walked on.  If you see a standard tent that says 6000HH always question it as it is likely to be the groundsheet rating.  Most tents available ( branded ) offer between 2000HH and 5000HH ( some cheaper ones from places like Tescos etc are 1500HH ).  Its only really the high end mountain tents that go beyond this.  A lot of the Ebay ones go down to 800HH which is a real risk to take.

We used to have an easycamp cozenza that had a 2000HH and it kept us dry in appalling prolonged rain in Derbyshire (usual British summer).We now have an Outwell Montana with 5000HH but bought it for the style rather than the extra waterproofing.

Tony

Hydrostatic Head

Tracey