what are the pros and cons of using a footprint under a tent please?
Our old tent had a zip out ground sheet which made cleaning it easy.
Our new tent is an inflatable all in one [outwell mountain lake 5 ATC]so decided to invest in a foot print to keep base of ground sheet clean. We have just packed it away after trying it for a few days in our garden and found puddles of water between the foot print and ground sheet? Surely this cannot be good? The tent did seem very humid.
Any way of preventing this please? Have I just wasted my money? What are other campers experiences please?
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Hi, one thing to think about is if a bit of the footprint was poking out beyond the edge of the tent. If so, and it rains, the sticky out bit will channel water between the footprint and under the tent ... it might also just be condensation ... doing a similar thing.
Footprints do protect the tent bottom from mud and damage from stones etc (but not failsafe) I would always use one, or a tarp, if possible. Much easier to clean or mend than a tent complete with SIG.
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I always thought, what was the use of footprints...they just add an extra annoyance when erecting a tent especially in windy conditions. However, after sustaining a hole in my sewn in groundsheet from a thorn or a stone on the pitch, and getting fed up with having to clean off the muddy bottom of the tent after every trip, I decided to invest in a footprint and have never looked back.
Now... there is an old saying that a bad workman always blames his tools - lol. A footprint is only useful if it is positioned correctly and pegged down properly (or not pegged at all).
Firstly, if any part of the footprint sticks out beyond the walls of the tent then it is going to collect not only rain, but dew running down the sides of the tent, which will run back underneath and create a 'lake' between the footprint and the tent and cause more problems than not having a footprint at all.
Secondly, if you secure the footprint with mushroom pegs (as recommended) it is quite easy to hammer them in too heavily so that they cause an indentation in the footprint at the location of the pegs. That can allow any surface water to pour into the 'dimples' and 'channels' created, and that water trickles through on top of the footprint between the tent's groundsheet.
So... yes, a footprint in my opinion is a necessity and protects the tent's groundsheet from 'sharps', water and mud. Providing water access inlets are not created by hammering the retaining pegs in too hard, and the footprint is well hidden underneath the tent so that water cannot get underneath, then they are a definite necessity.
Quote: Originally posted by SallyBailey on 14/8/2021
thanks for the advice, will try not pegging the footprint next time we get it out, and making sure it is all well covered.
If it is windy you may need to peg the 4 corners but try not to create 'channels' with the pegs that water can flow into.
Footprints are definately great at protecting the underside of the tent from damage and eliminates all the tedious cleaning of the SIG before packing away (just throw the footprint in a seperate bag and worry about it when you get home...or even 2 weeks later...)
However, I'm not convinced they handle water very well. The assumption seems to be that as long as the footprint isn't poking out from under the tent then rain can't land on it and everything is fine. The issue though is that water flows either downhill under the force of gravity or maybe even uphill by force of wind and if you're camped on anything other than a billiard table, or on ground that is already fully saturated (i.e. you're camping in the UK!) then it's likely that water is going to flow under the tent at some point. At that stage it's a question of does all of the water flow under the footprint, or does any of it manage to flow over the top and between the footprint and the tent? Once it's between the layers, then it's going to pool in any dips in the surface and probably sit there for the rest of your holiday. Depending on the quality of your SIG this may then be an issue for you.
As posted above, pegging the footprint down tightly will make it more likely that in heavy rain with flowing surface water you will end up with some water between the footprint and SIG. Maybe a breathable footprint is better in this situation as it lets the water soak back through?
I don't think that using a footprint will make the tent humid per se, although obviously if you're in a situation where you have water under your tent then the whole external environment must have been pretty wet to start with and therefore you're going to see some condensation in the tent etc.
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Topic: footprints
via mobile 10/8/2021 at 9:14pm
If it is windy you may need to peg the 4 corners but try not to create 'channels' with the pegs that water can flow into.
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