Just back from a weekends camping in the rain. Bought my evo last autumn and have used it twice for 2 weekends in the dry, no problem. However, with heavy rain I found water was pooling on the roof just in front of the sleeping area. I had to get up in the night to check it and resorted to pushing the roof up with the top of a chair to clear the water. Why? I was on a flat pitch, nicely guyed out with the SIG flat to the floor, can't see it's a pitching problem?
Then water started to leach in from two areas exactly the same position both sides of the tent where there is a loop sewed in the seam. I lay awake most of the night listening to the disconcerting noise of water dropping onto the SIG.
The tent is still under warranty, does it need to be returned or do I douse the tent with sealant? I had three separate puddles this morning to deal with, a bit disappointed in the tent really, but the rain was heavy, am I expecting too much of a 3000HH?
Please help!
Post last edited on 12/07/2009 22:02:31
------------- Live gently upon this earth
Don't forget to leave a review of all tents you've used, for a chance to win fantastic prizes
Hi, Ive had my evo 600 DL up for a week in wind and rain with no major problems,prehaps you have a bad seal where the loops are? might be worth trying a drop of seam sealer?
The only trouble i really had was getting the tent pitched? broke 2 poles so far!! any tips would be good, thanks
Hi, thanks for your reply. With pitching,loosely peg the back of the tent in place, the knack is to thread all the poles through the sleeves with the ends still hanging out. Then get someone to go inside the tent and lift up where the poles cross over, this will then bend the poles in shape while you go around and slip the poles on the pins. Remember to loosen off the adjustment strap by each pin to make it easier to slip the pole on to the pins. Then tighten the straps.
My 11 year old son and myself(mum) can put the tent up unaided using this techinque. Hope this helps.
Hi, I have recently purchased a Sunncamp Evolution 600 DL. The tent includes a metal pole which can be adjusted in length. This pole should be inserted into the roof of the tent to give it support and therefore prevent getting pools of water. I found it strange that this pole isn't mentioned once in the instructions!
However, be warned, that as i have just returned from a wet weekend in Brean, the pole does touch the lining of the tent and therefore drips do appear. I also had a problem with leaky seams, mainly where the bungee cords are sewn into place. I have emailed Outdoor Megastores and im awaiting a reply.
My only thought was Fabsil or some other seam sealant but im disappointed that such an expensive tent leaks so much. I bought this specifically to keep dry in the typical British summer weather! I will keep you posted and if anyone else can offer advice i would appreciate it.
Thanks,
Dave
Don't forget to leave a review of all tents you've used, for a chance to win fantastic prizes
Hi DiverDave, I don't have any metal pole with my tent, I wonder if I should have one! Where does this pole attach? I have only the 4 main poles and one spare section should one bit break.
I have just emailed Highbridge caravans where I bought this tent last year. They phoned the next day and advised fabsil on the seams and also to the area where the water pools.
The trouble area for me is just outside the bedroom door in between the two poles that go across the tent. The roof is quite flat there but I am really worried about the pooling problem. The more water that rests on the roof, the more weight is on the fabric causing it to stretch, the more pooling it will suffer from next time it rains.
I don't want to have to keep getting up every hour throughout a rainy night to prod the tent roof. I was also advised to get the tent back up with haste, properly guyed out to stretch the tent back out into the proper shape and leave it to bake in the sun.
Umm, hasn't stopped raining since last rainy weekend, has it!
For what it's worth, we bought our Evo 600 DL last August. Didn't have the extra pole either (maybe SunnCamp's been listening to feedback?). We did have some pooling during pretty heavy rain, solid for 2 days, but only had to clear it once.
Pitching it the first time in the back garden, and on the first away, even in fairly high wind, hubby had no problems doing it by himself. However by the second away he must have lost the knack because it half killed him. So we decided to change it for a Kampa Filey 6, just about the only tent we could find that matched it for light and space. I still love the design of the Evo, it did everything we wanted - loads of light and room for those stuck-indoors days - but we don't seem to be getting on too well with tension rods these days ' gettin old!
Hello, sorry i haven't been on the internet for a while! Right, i spoke to Outdoor Megastores and they agreed my tent shouldn't leak, and they would contact Sunncamp to see if they want it returned for testing.
One hour later they called back. The first thing they stated was that tents should be erected at home and given a light soaking with the garden hose. Sometimes, when the fabric dries, it 'shrinks' and therefore there shouldn't be any leaks in the future. They have also sent me some Gelert Seam Sealer for free. The use of seam sealer is stated in the instructions so won't affect the warranty. I will give this a go when i can get the tent up in some drier weather!
Outdoor Megastore were very helpful on this occasion, but hopefully my leaky tent can be solved by me, i dont really want the hassle of sending it back etc.
Finally, i will try and take a picture of my tent with this mysterious metal pole that nobody else seems to have. As i stated earlier, the pole will prevent pooling but the fact it touches the fabric of the tent, it does cause small leaks itself. The pole is inserted into two small pockets in the roof lining in the section of roof outside the bedroom compartments. Hope this is of some help!
Amazing family weekend with old steam engines, classic car displays, market stalls, and full catering and bar. And camping on site - Save £25 by booking in advance.
Topic: Sunncamp evo 600DL - rain problems
