Quechua T4.1 Tent Reviews and Details

Tent Reviews: Quechua T4.1

Tent and Awning Reviews Index > Quechua > T4.1 Reviews

Current Model?
Berths:
Weight:
RRP on date added:
Bedroom inners:
Living area groundsheet:
Pitching Style:

Yes
4 (more 4 berth tents)
10.70 KG
Ł79.00
1
N/A
Fly first

Average User Rating:

8.67/10 from 6 reviews

Viewed: 69981 times

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6 Reviews of the T4.1

By: IOWKite Reason: I own(ed) one Made in: 2011 Rating: 10 from 10

Camped with tents for 30 years. Work away from home and needed accommodation. Expected a short period of work. Got a Quechua 4,1TB Dec 2011 first pitched it mid Jan 2012 - still going as I write June 2013.

That is continuous camping for 15 months. For my uses you cannot get a better tent.

In the early days I would strike the tent on the weekends to rest it, dry it and to ensure it was still there when I returned, due to the high winter wind speeds.

But I have found I can leave her up now as this little beauty can take everything the UK can throw at it. I was planning on binning it when I finished.

It is easy to assemble in normal conditions but darkness, rain and high winds on winter nights make assembly harder, the canopy of the tent will act as a parachute as you try to get the first pegs in. Peg down the two bedding end hoops first and then start inserting your poles in high winds. Point the ramped bedding area into the direction most of the wind comes from.

It uses 3 glass fibre poles. The 2 main 10mm diameter poles match so are interchangeable which makes things easier. The third smaller pole is 8mm in diameter is colour coded red and matches to the red material hoop over the bedding area.

The others are unmarked and it is assumed that you will reason they match to the two material hoops with black material markings.

One bad feature is that the metal ferrules on all the poles are not flush. The raised edges of the main pole ferrules regularly snag as they pass through the material hoops at the crest of the canopy. I think it is the sewing around the roof vent panel that snags. But with patience and care they will eventually find their way through. Also note the ferrules on standard supplied poles are half covered, half protruding when finished so before you tighten down the canopy just check that they are not caught on a ferrule edge, they can cut into the material.

Now, if this tent is hit from the side or 45 degrees by winds stronger than 50 mph approx the poles will flex downwards. Caught without having set extra rigging the gale force winds on a very exposed hill face broke my poles. So not a tent fault. The splintered pole section tore up through the hoop. Decathlon, without a quibble, exchanged my tent. As can be seen from my white patch in the pictures section this tent is easily repairable.

I now run with two 8mm poles in the bedding area hoop and 11mm poles on the mains.

One of the other contributors mentions that the tent canopy is designed for more moderate climates and therefore has a large gap at the base of the tent canopy.

I agree that the easiest way to deal with this is to shorten the polls to bring the canopy down to the ground producing an excellent seal. Alternatively I have found that constructing a 6in. Tall wind break around the base of the tent seals it and also buffers the wind on to the main canopy thus increasing its resistance to strong wind by stopping the wind getting under the canopy and lifting it.

Internally you can rig ropes from the internal bedroom room area hanging points on the main pole to the ground and add a great amount of rigidity, though it restricts the living space.

Two extra guy ropes are supplied for the entrance porch and these can be added externally at any of the mounting points to add another layer of rigidity.

I can vouch for the canopy and the build quality of this product in saying that in this configuration it has successfully withstood this extra tension and remained stitched and water tight during high winds, torrential rain and hours, weeks and months of buffeting.

The gap around the base of the tent is a real boon in summertime producing excellent ventilation. In summer I can easily remove my wind break whereas cutting the poles down will restrict your options.

Obviously experienced campers will know that camping without a sown in ground sheet in summer you will experience a degree of insect infestation but this is easily dealt with by a can of fly spray.

The proportions of the tent are excellent giving lots of room in the living area and lots of room in the bedroom for a single person. Not having a partition in the sleeping quarter’s means four people would have to be good friends to share the sleeping accommodation. The living area has a full length 600mm wide, front to back, vent in the roof covered with gauze. I’m not recommending either but cooking fumes and gas lighting monoxide have not been a problem thanks to this vent.

The canopy above this vent though has its moments. You can never get it taught and so you will be listening to it flapping away all night even in moderate wind. It cannot be closed down which is good from the point of view of gassing yourself but bad when the wind and rain combination hits you from the side. Water will be blown underneath and end up dripping from the gauze onto the floor in the middle of the living area.

Sleep with your head to the bedroom door otherwise the canopy flexing in the wind will continually tap you on the head during the night.

The external tent canopy fixes at four points to the internal sleeping accommodation ground sheet at the front. Often when erecting the tent the angle of the tent canopy over the bedding area is such that it makes contact with the internal tent wall. This can occur because of setup issues and the environment, such as the wind. The result is that condensation or dampness on the internal face of the canopy tacks the inner to the outer and care must be taken to prevent human contact when this occurs otherwise water will transfer onto you.

The waterproof membrane(ground sheet) in the bedding area has remained completely intact through two winters of continuous camping. I have had a river of water passing under the tent and it has remained dry. All zips in the tent remain functional after 15months with no problems and the external door zips have never leaked.

The protective cover for the door zip on my second tent is partially crumpled which means that when you zip the door closed you have to ensure with your spare hand, that this cover peels back over the zip as you close it.

The door to the tent is vertical enough to prevent the vast majority of rain, during heavy downpours, from entering the living space when you exit. This is a benefit of not having a sewn in ground sheet which will often fill with water in these situations.

When the door zips have been under great tension there is a tendency for them to unzip bit by bit. I use 250mm long pegs through the plastic rings provided for the porch to lock down the door at both ends. The rope ends on the zips will also reach to the peg, rotate the peg and it locks the door and the extra tension across the door way provides rigidity and directs water away from the inside.

There are two shock chord mounting points along the bottom lip of the canopy at the bedding area end. One of these broke in gale force winds, replacing it took seconds with some of the supplied shock chord. Not as good as the original but it works. After this I made the mistake of adding pegs through the connections between ground sheet and bottom tent edge in these two shock chord positions. It placed the load through the double stitched mounting points but the lack of elasticity meant there was too much stress and the canopy tore. My fault entirely I must add, the shock chord is there for a reason. I have since sown up this area to repair the rip it created and it is still going strong (pegs removed).

I regularly replace poles and it is hard to replicate the crown pole when doing so because you need two new ferrules. I have taken to simply shortening the last pole to the ground. This again has been unfair on the tent canopy as it places ferrules in the wrong place and 11mm poles are unforgiving when being forced into an arch they don’t like. But it means at the worst of times you can simply leave the rest of the tent up and slip out a pole and replace a section without having to cut up a pole in the dark, wind and wet and slip it back and re-rig without much hassle once you have done it a few times.

You will hear the poles fail when they go if you are in the tent and you will see the arch deform as an indication. I would deal with these immediately if you can.

This tent has withstood all these actions.

The instructions for erecting the tent are handily sewn into the bag in which the tent is supplied. Hidden behind the erection instructions are a set of diagrams illustrating the pole lengths so that in the case of breakage you can easily identify the length of pole required to repair the tent which is a nice touch.

When striking the tent you can easily fit it back into the bag from which you extracted it with room to spare. Not many manufacturers do this but striking the tent over 100 times per year it is a real plus.

Always make sure when you’re erecting the tent to ensure that the canopy is pulled tight and is taut enough to prevent slack areas or ripples in the canopy surface. Failure to do this will result in the canopy flapping around more than necessary all night and probably keep you awake and prevents pools of water against seams which is your way of helping prevent moisture ingress.

The supplied tent pegs are excellent quality with more than you will need. Able to be hammered into the hardest of ground without breaking. I have ground points onto mine as the original flat bottoms hit stones and stop.

Condensation in the spring and summer months will drip onto the inner and leave rings. Don’t think that it is leaking. I have reproofed a couple of times as I was concerned about ultraviolet degradation rather than moisture ingress. There are three red hooks internally which are excellent for hanging clothes from and rigging internal washing lines when you need to dry clothing. The bedroom has multiple pockets of various sizes along its bottom edge. I don’t use any of them so I cannot verify their retention properties but I cannot see there being any problem knowing how good the external stitching is.

The internal bedroom is white and could be better for night time being a darker material. Car lights and camp site lights will readily illuminate the interior at night. The colour of this tent is also well thought through. Bright yellow on the colour coded hoops makes spotting them easy when you unfurl the canopy from the second time onwards. A mass of canopy in a pile can be a challenge in winds without this help. The brown blends nicely with the countryside in all seasons with the possible exception of the snow. It also allows sunlight to penetrate into the tent so you are not living in a dark hole in the day time. I like the lack of windows from the privacy point of view, no blinds needed and less clutter to fuss over, you can always set up the porch if you wish to sit and admire your surroundings. The head height is 2 meters so most people can stand up in the central part of the tent to dress which I always like as lying down and wriggling into clothes when you don’t have too is a forgotten pleasure.

The current price of this tent makes it a triple winner. For a tent you don’t want to linger in this is the best quality workhorse you can find. I cannot recommend it enough.

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By: Tourer-dan Reason: I own(ed) one Made in: 2010 Rating: 8 from 10

Bought this after receiving a flyer from Decathlon and thought it looked like great value and a suitable upgrade from my 4 man dome tent too low to stand up in. Ł79 quid later and I took it camping in the lovely summer weather. Pitched really easily, bedroom is one single massive room and a living space big enough for a table with a cooker on and about 3 chairs. I can just about stand up comfortably at 5'8''. Great porch sheet which forms out of the side door. This tent would be perfect with a sewn in ground sheet, but I got a suitable one from Decathlon for a fiver and it is a nice compact tent when packed away.

This is ideal for us as just a couple offering plenty of space and this is the group I'd recommend it to the most. Exceptional value tent for me as a fair weather camper, even though it was fine in the couple of downpours we had.

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By: Joannehoward Reason: I own(ed) one Made in: 2010 Rating: 8 from 10

Very quick and easy to put up having only 3 poles and roomy sleeves no struggling/heaving needed, first pitch was 10 mins only with a 11 year old helping. The only downside is no groundsheet included you have to find your own one. I have seen them advertised on bay for Ł120- when they are only Ł79 direct from Decathlon. For a cheap first tent it is ideal. Yes there's a gap but the rain drips down to the ground. Its ideal for short trips and touring around.

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By: John ross on wye Reason: I own(ed) one Made in: 2009 Rating: 8 from 10

Could I please point out that this tent was designed for the mid/southern europe markets. The draughts are easy to fix for British use , just take 100-150mm or 4-6 inches off the length of the poles, you then have a very nice , inexpensive tent. The colour of the fabric is one of the best I have used, giving plenty of natural light also cooler in hot sun.

Still camping after 57 years. John Ross on Wye

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By: The-laughtons Reason: I own(ed) one Made in: 2006 Rating: 9 from 10

This is a great value tent, perfect for two people, with a huge living area for storage and living in if wet. I agree that a fitted ground sheet and skirt would make the tent perfect as it is quite draughty and yes the rain does leak in, but you can get quite creative and clever with your own ground sheet when it does! But for the money it is extremely well made and very stable in the wind. All in all, a good value for money tent.

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By: Daisybev Reason: I own(ed) one Made in: 2006 Rating: 9 from 10

A great value tent and what a buy, this tent has so much room you can live and cook in it simple to put up can be put up by one person.

Loads of room for a double hight queen sized air bed !

And a table two chairs and a kitchen in the living area.

Great in the wind.

The only draw back of this tent is that it feels like its missing a skirt as the gap under the sides are approx 3-4 ins from the ground and no fitted ground sheet.

I found that bunching my large ground sheet up at the edges did help lots.

I have used this tent since 2006 almost every weekend summer and winter it is a gem, If you can cope with the draughts.

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Manufacturer's Description

Capacity
4-person single bedroom tent with a large 6.5m˛ living area (185cm high).

Features
Living area: lined flysheet for ventilation & reduced condensation. Canopy.

Waterproof flysheet
Laboratory (shower test: 450L/hr/m˛!) and field tested.

Carry bag
Max. dimensions: 53 x 22 x 22cm.

Dimensions and weight
Living area L260 x D260 x H185cm. 1 bedroom L240 x D210 x H170cm. Weight: 10.7kg

... there may be more info on their website

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