Our lovely Coleman Mackenzie Cabin 6 has suffered. It blew upside down before fully secure a couple of weeks ago. The coolbox and suitcase placed inside to weigh it down went through the back wall. It has ripped from top to bottom and also along the seam on the same wall. There is also a small ttear in the sewn in groundsheet.
We've not used it much: maybe 10 days in 2 years. Can anyone offer advice on whether it is worth repairing and who might do the work? Based in Suffolk.
Thank you in advance.
Thats such a shame to rip so badly after such little use :( i don't know much about tents as I'm a newbie but hope you can get it fixed. Cant believe it ripped like that. :( x
I'm sorry, but I'm going to be harsh here. Nothing personal!
You say it blew before it was secure, and yet you had time to put a cool box and suitcase in there, "to weigh it down"?
It's a bag of air!! Pegs hold it down! Guy lines hold it down! Tent's are not designed to be held down by coolboxes and suitcases!!
I'd suggest, before next time, you do some research into how to pitch a tent. There are no guarantees, of course, when the winds pick up, but at least give yourself a fighting chance... which you appear not to have done, on this occasion.
You're in the right place, of course. You'll get all the help and advice you need, from these forums. I just thought, on this occasion, you needed a little ar5e kicking first!!
In an attempt to redress the balance a little, I would say that many rips and tears can be sorted... fairly easily, and reasonably cheaply.
Gorilla tape (thick, black, strong... ideal for groundsheets etc).
Tenacious tape (and/or a similar tape, the name of which escapes me?) Thin, strong, see through, and ideal for polyester and similar flysheets.
However, from your description, I fear it may be a write off.
Might be worth a word with professionals, but from my limited experience, it will probably prove more economical to replace, than pay for the repairs.
You don't say where you are. I can recommend professional repairers in Burton on Trent, Staffs. If you think you might like a quote at least, they are called Canvas Repair Centre
Apologies for the rap on the knuckles... but someone had to do it... You've been very naughty!!!
...and besides, you don't know where I live, so you can't come round and punch my lights in!!
Try Brian Parks Camping 0773 638 4001 www.brianparkcamping.co.uk based in Chattisham. Were the poles damaged as this will be an extra expense as well, the fabric part sounds like it can be repaired but as others have implied the cost of repair etc might not be worth it...
------------- Gary Cross - The masked camping guru.
One suggestion is to buy an identical tent, assuming you like the model of course. Then at least you'll have a nice collection of spare parts for any future problems.
Mucker is right though, as soon as humanly possible you get the four big corner pegs in and then, starting from the windward end, get all the other main pegging points done too. Little things like vent lines can wait but you need to get the tent nailed down asap. Putting heavy items inside only means that the tent will writhe around these as it blows away causing even more damage. As you've found.
If despites all this it lifts btw be careful about hanging onto a tent in this state, you can get wrapped up in it and dragged along, possibly over the neighbouring barbed wire fence etc. One good reason NEVER to allow lightweight kids to assist with pitching in windy conditions. A tent is only money after all.
There is an awning repair company based in Newmarket that advertise on Ebay, I was considering getting my draw string tent bag adjusted to open up along one side and zip along the side and top to make it easier to pack and got a quote of £20 which I though reasonable however found a large vango tent bag with wheels (which is what swung it for me) for £25 so bought that instead.
Feel bad for you, with so little use!
The suggestion to buy identical is a good one, maybe pack the damaged one away and claim it was like that when it arrived!!!
If not, you still have a selection of spares.
When we put up our tent, my husband always makes sure we have a handful of pegs each before we unpack the canvas and tack it down, even if they are pulled up and the tent re-adjusted to make it square. Even still, a strong gust of wind can blow your tent up like a carrier bag.
It's one of those things where you learn by your mistakes and that makes you a better camper.
Our Revolution Awning blew down in a gale and it ripped from one side to the other.
It was a case of a new awning (£300)or try to repair it myself.
Fortunately the area that ripped was below the guy line ridge and is black.
I laid the ripped part on a board and tacked the material down so that the tear was as close together as possible and I then taped the inside with 3" wide Gorilla Tape. I then removed the tacks and turned the awning over and repeated the taping on the outside.
Because of the colour of both the tape and the awning, it does not show too much and if this holds, which it looks like it will, my repair will have cost me less than 10 quid and I have plenty of tape left over for other jobs.
Okay, it will always look like a repaired awning, but who cares?
We're in suffolk too and tent repairs are few and far between! Brian park won't touch anything that isn't a frame tent or awning, the nearest I've found is newmarket which, depending where you are in suffolk, might be a bit of a journey!
Quote: The suggestion to buy identical is a good one, maybe pack the damaged one away and claim it was like that when it arrived!!!
That is a very naughty thought and if you did it then you'd pretty well be guaranteed bad camping karma for the rest of your days. Not to mention trying to defraud the innocent and unsuspecting supplier and that's illegal. Possibly not the best of suggestions to make on a public forum?
Quote: Originally posted by Valk_scot on 21/8/2014
Quote: The suggestion to buy identical is a good one, maybe pack the damaged one away and claim it was like that when it arrived!!!
That is a very naughty thought and if you did it then you'd pretty well be guaranteed bad camping karma for the rest of your days. Not to mention trying to defraud the innocent and unsuspecting supplier and that's illegal. Possibly not the best of suggestions to make on a public forum?
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Topic: Repair or replace
