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Topic: BLOW OutWell

GlenBax

24/9/2020 at 9:48pm
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Am I expecting too much???
Purchased new in 2015 a Outwell Hornet XL
Used once a year every year for between 7 and 14 days...
Arrived at a campsite this month on a sunny Saturday, pumped up the tent and within 15 mins the whole site heard this massive “BANG”.
One of the airbeams exploded and ripped a 15” long hole in the roof of the tent...
Has anyone else experience this? I removed all the other beams and I am surprised that they have stayed up...the material used looks terrible, it has split and cracked in many places...
Always used the OutWell pump (when the top stays on!) and only ever pump to about 7psi!
To add insult to injury I have emailed OutWell on three occasions and have not received a reply in 10 days!
Angry, grumpy and feel I have wasted £1000 on a tent plus I purchased, carpet, groundsheet and the XL Awning that I only used twice for another £500!
I thought these tents were for the long term!

Any suggestions?

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Broadside

via mobile 25/9/2020 at 7:51am
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Sorry to see this, what a nightmare. You won’t want to hear this but that lot is ready for the bin. The last time I checked you cannot buy singles of those beams as you have got the single inflation point system, you have to buy the lot and on a 2015 tent I expect you won’t find spares now. Yours has also burst through the outer tent so you will never achieve an acceptable repair on it.

There are a few threads on here about exploding Outwell tents from that 2015-2017 generation, the technology has moved on a long way from 2019 onwards.

I had two Outwell air tents myself in 2018 with nightmarish build quality issues that was spoiling holidays so we moved to Kampa air last year and have never looked back.

chadder

via mobile 25/9/2020 at 8:16am
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Certainly not expecting too much. Looks shocking, must have been pretty disastrous for your camping trip

If you have not already seen threads on air beam issues, google outwell hornet xl air beam failure and exploding air tents to get some links

I imagine you will eventually hear from Outwell, although 10 days quite a time. It took some time to come back to me on a mundane info query, but thought they might have prioritised such an important catastrophic failure as yours. If they try to wriggle out on age if tent, I would push them on other failures documented in newish tents and an obvious underlying quality issue. Presumably the sunny day was the straw that broke the camels back, but the state of those tubes, looks as if they were just waiting to go.

I cannot speak from experience because all my Outwell tents are primarily old school steel or aluminium poles and have all been brilliant. My one air tent is a little Karsten, and touch wood it’s 2 cross beams are like bike tyres and seem as tough as old boots.

Good luck with Outwell, although I imagine primary legal responsibility to you would probably be through the retailer.

GlenBax

25/9/2020 at 11:03am
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Thanks for responding...
I will let you know if I hear from OutWell...
It’s funny coz I used a tarp over the tent to keep water out and manipulated a spare beam from the correct fitting Awning I had, although it was slightly longer it did the job to keep us camping.
However when I took the two beams out of the awning which I purchased in 2016, I have only used it twice so far....It had a different material for the beam but looks like it had been made by someone who used the needle and cotton that they had got from a Christmas cracker!

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GlenBax

25/9/2020 at 11:05am
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The zip on the beam was no longer part of it as all the stitching Han come undone...
I’ve used it for about 20 days total!😨

Jim1977

25/9/2020 at 8:53pm
Location: Leicestershire
Outfit: Karsten 380 Veranda

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The outer beam fabric is not good quality and in time fails. The inner beam (the air bladder) is so thin it requires the outer beam to keep its integrity, so when the outer fails, the inner one goes bang. This happens whether the flysheet is polyester or polycotton. Basically, I’d say they are rubbish! We had a Harrier XL of similar age to yours but flogged it after a year for a Karsten. There were too many burst beam stories I didn’t trust the Outwell. Shame as their poled Bear Lake we had before that was superb.

We were told by the dealer that spares were kept by Outwell for 2 years once a model was discontinued. But a full set of beams was several hundred pounds. We had a free replacement front beam in the first year as it was twisted, and bought a few spare valves where the beams connect just in case.

Scottish Mountain Gear were the supplier of spares at the time, you could try them for spare beam stock.

A repair may not be cost effective sadly, sorry to see what has happened. Hope Outwell offer you something

GlenBax

25/9/2020 at 9:47pm
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Thanks for the info....
I have found the airbeams and bladders but they are 70 each plus vat. The tent repair is around 100-130. I really need minimum 5 beams inc the awning, may as well do all six. However that will be the thick end of 600 total. It’s not worth spending that and I would rather buy a new tent...definitely not a OutWell and in fact I am a stubborn old git and if OutWell do nothing then I will make a point of never buying anything OutWell again...😒

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Bob61

26/9/2020 at 9:48am
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The more I hear about blow up tents the less I want to buy one

Caligula

26/9/2020 at 10:52am
Location: Suffolk
Outfit: Very variable

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Quote: Originally posted by Bob61 on 26/9/2020
The more I hear about blow up tents the less I want to buy one

Plus 1...........

dk168

26/9/2020 at 10:53am
Location: Devizes Wiltshire
Outfit: MWB VW Crafter PVC

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Quote: Originally posted by Caligula on 26/9/2020

Quote: Originally posted by Bob61 on 26/9/2020
The more I hear about blow up tents the less I want to buy one

Plus 1...........

There is only one air tent that I would consider if I were to get one, which is a Karsten.

DK

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chadder

via mobile 26/9/2020 at 1:20pm
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Be interesting to hear what Outwell say. Good to hear you managed a nice bit of improvisation to save the day.

It is a shame they seem to have fallen short on the air tents, I absolutely love my poled Yellowstone falls.

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Mucker1884

26/9/2020 at 4:28pm
Location: Derby.
Outfit: Karsten 350+Awnings

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Quote: Originally posted by Caligula on 26/9/2020

Quote: Originally posted by Bob61 on 26/9/2020
The more I hear about blow up tents the less I want to buy one

Plus 1...........

Yes, I doubt I'll ever buy another.

*The one I have should see me through to the end of my camping days.

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NewToTenting

27/9/2020 at 12:08pm
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When I was looking to acquire a tent (for my first camping outing in decades) I did look at tents that incorporate "new" airbeams, as opposed to traditional poles, but I could see too many reasons not to go there.

It wasn't just about the convenience factor (which I think falls into the same category as new car "keyless entry" as far as progress goes - nice but a completely unnecessary level of convenience that only really benefits car thieves), but about how and why they can fail; as indicated by someone above, wear in other parts of the tent's structure that can have an adverse effect on the airbeams, the risk of damage/deterioration during storage (including visits from Mr Mouse) and the risk of damage during transit - accidentally stick something sharp through the side of the tent's fabric and you have a hole which might let some water if it rains but which usually can be repaired. Stick something sharp through an airbeam and you've got a problem. And then there's the issue of acquiring spares should you need to and the costs of doing so where you can. It all added up to something to be avoided.

I've yet to hear any convincing arguments against sticking with steel/ali poles (preferably with some sort of cross-member arrangement - which was the thing that swung it for me when selecting my secondhand tent of choice, an Outwell Norfolk Lake).

Broadside

via mobile 27/9/2020 at 1:13pm
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Times have moved on, the issue reported here is on a 2015 technology tent. From 2018 tents onwards the issues are few and far between.

On the point of piercing an air beam with a sharp object, this weakness is present on every tent because they are all covered in fabric, it is not unique to air tents. I am sure we have all seen snapped fibreglass and bent steel poles when camping in storms, I know I certainly have.

NewToTenting

27/9/2020 at 3:56pm
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Quote: Originally posted by Broadside on 27/9/2020
Times have moved on, the issue reported here is on a 2015 technology tent. From 2018 tents onwards the issues are few and far between.

Do the mice know?

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