Camping Guru - all your camping questions answered

I once had this dilemma… we turned up in France and were given a pitch right by the toilet/shower block. The site was fully booked so there was nothing we could do.

Luckily, the site standards were superb and in the end we found it very convenient as our kids were pretty young at the time.

Since then I have always found the Goldilocks rule tends to work best, not too close, not too far away, just in the middle is right for us.

I understand you may feel this way but for safety reasons I would advise not to lock the tent in any way while you are inside, just in case.

I have been camping for many years and I have never had an issue or heard of someone trying to get into another camper’s tent while they are in the tent.

Getting to know your neighbours is one of the best things you can do, we all look out for each other, I find, when camping.

There are so many fixes for this. It's easy just to say “get a warmer sleeping bag” which is a start, but let's talk about the next best option. An airbed is the option that most campers start out with to get you off the ground, but they offer next to no insulation. A self-inflating mat (thicker the better) will give you so much more insulation.

A camp bed and self-inflating mat is a combination many experienced campers use… this raises you off the ground as well as giving you the insulation from the SIM. If all else fails, a nice woolly hat and a hot water bottle is a traditional fix. 

Luckily, 99% of “branded” tents sold in the UK over the last 25 years are actually fire retardant; this means you could melt a hole in the tent but it wouldn’t catch fire.

As for cooking inside the tent, well, it’s best not to for many reasons. One, if you are using gas it gives off moisture, as does the food you are cooking, and this can cause condensation. Is it safe to cook in the same area where kids might be hanging out? And then there is the danger of carbon monoxide build-up in unventilated areas.

After saying that, we are all adults here and we all need to take responsibility for our own actions, so if you decide to do it, make sure you take all the appropriate precautions.

Yes, yes and yes. I have found campers to be the most helpful people I’ve ever met while on holiday.

There’s always one person nearby (usually me!) who loves to pass on their experience and help out. If you use Facebook, there are groups for single campers. SPOT – Single Parents On Tour – is great.

There tend to be three methods when cooking on a gas stove. The obvious one is if you have a grill on your cooker, use that. If the stove has no grill then your only option is to use the cooking burners with a fitment. There tend to be two styles of toaster, one cooks four slices of bread in an upright method. I’m not a fan… this method, I find, dries the bread out.

The version I prefer is a piece of kit that lays flat on top of the gas ring. Yes, you can only toast one slice at a time on each ring, but you end up with a perfectly toasted outside and that nice soft inner that us toast fans love.

I am going to assume we are talking about a flat pitch first of all. Recently I took a poll on this very subject on my Camping Guru UK Facebook group and the outcome surprised me.

It found that about 70% of campers sleep with their feet closest to the inner tent door and their head at the back wall. The reason this surprised me is that most inner tents have a sloping wall towards the back of the tent and a vertical wall for the inner tent door area.

So, controversially it seems, I'm going to go for the head at the inner tent door end and feet at the back of the tent.

New polyester tents are ready to go, there's no need to weather them. That's something you may want to do to a new polycotton tent (and we will cover this elsewhere).

However, polyester tents will be affected by the sun's UV rays which can break down the fabric in a surprisingly fast period of time, especially tents that have a low denier (thickness of fabric).

So to prolong the life of your tent you could treat it to a coating of Nikwax Tent & Gear Solarproof, which I know from experience will extend the life of the fabric by up to twice as long. 

There are two ways, one is to set your tent up – it must be fully pegged out as if you were camping – then put the rain setting on your garden hose and give the tent a good soaking.

But the best method is using Mother Nature – again, pitch your tent and let her do her thing.

Most modern polycotton tents can be weathered while away camping. You may get a fine mist coming through the fabric the first time it rains but this will only be for a short time while the fibres swell and seal themselves.

(Photo courtesy of Iain Duff)

Yes and no, he may well be a grumpy old killjoy… the older I get the more I can see myself falling into that category!

He did have a point, though; the solution (detergent) in the bubbles can settle on the tent and affect the surface tension, allowing the outer layer of the fabric to "wet out".

If the internal factory-applied waterproofing is still working, I doubt the tent would actually leak but it's still not something I would want landing on my tent. All this can be made even worse if you have a polycotton tent as they rely mostly on the natural way fibres swell when wet to keep the water out, and soaps can definitely affect natural fibres.

(Photo courtesy of Pixabay)

Wow, it sounds like you have got lucky. Hopefully, you’ve caught the tent just before the dreaded mildew has taken hold as the garage must have been damp at some point.

Pitch the tent as soon as possible, let it air out fully, allow it to totally dry and the smell should quickly disperse.

If you notice the bird poo straight away (fresh) then lots of clean water will wash it away.

If the poo has dried then a stiff brush or even a credit card will scrape it away – then soak the area with clean water to remove the last residue.

The most important thing is to not use any soap/chemicals as these can affect the durable water repellency.

(Photo courtesy of Iain Duff)

This is normally on the underside of the sewn-in groundsheet; you will find directly on the inside of the tent a clip or section that needs to be reinforced at this point.

This is part of the manufacturing process, it’s not always the prettiest finish but it is required.

It's easy to get confused with all the numbers that are advertised to make one tent sound better than another, so let's try and make this simple. Denier is a way of describing the thickness of a fabric, Hydrostatic head (HH) is a measurement of water resistance. The higher the better generally for family-sized tents.

Which is more important for keeping a tent dry? I'd have to say HH but as with most things there are other issues to consider, such as the design and quality of the manufacturing.

Most probably not. This sounds like the dreaded condensation, which you will suffer from at some point, especially if your tent is polyester.

There is a myth (I used to promote this) that an adult gives off about a litre of moisture a night but, in fact, after researching, I discovered it’s only about a fifth of that.

Condensation is mostly caused by weather conditions – but lots of campers in a tent and wet towels, etc, will add to the dampness.

Keep all your vents open when camping as this may help reduce the amount of condensation. I always say the only time they should be shut is when packing away.

(Photo courtesy of Gary Cross)

Absolutely not. Depending on the size of the hole and how nice you want the repair to look, there are a few fixes.

If the hole is not much bigger than a 50p piece then a patch of Tear-Aid inside and out will give a semi-permanent fix.

You will hardly see the fix, especially if the hole is more of a split. Tear-Aid tape should be in every camper’s kit. If the hole is the size of a cooking pot then a roll of duck/gaffa tape inside and out will do the job. Again, I never camp without a roll of this type of tape.

I'm not so sure there is and I say that because of safety reasons – most family tents are now made from fire-resistant materials and that includes the fitted carpets that brands make available for their tent ranges.

You could look for a discontinued tent that has a similar size living area as your tent, then search out the carpet for that tent as it may be reduced to clear.

You will find this hole in the groundsheet near the centre. It will line up with a pegging point at the front of the inner tent, and this is where you peg the inner to the ground.

I personally never bother pegging the inner tent down here, though, as I like the base of the inner tent to have some give in case I’ve had a glass or two of red wine… the fewer trip hazards the better as it doesn’t take much for me to get a bit wobbly!

(Photo courtesy of Gary Cross)

No, you don’t have to buy either, but I would highly recommend the first and strongly suggest the other.

A footprint will keep the underside of your tent nice and clean and it will give you a clean surface to pitch and pack your tent away on, so, yes, highly recommended.

Tent carpets? Well, I wouldn’t camp without one these days – pure luxury but not a necessity.

(Photo courtesy of Gary Cross)

Buying a used tent is like buying a used car – you want to take it for a test drive first.

That’s not so easy with a tent, but you must at least see it pitched. You need to know what you are looking at with a tent. If it’s polyester, does the fabric feel like a crisp packet? Has it faded a lot? Is there a musty smell? These are all warning signs for you to run a mile.

So if you are an experienced camper and know what you are looking at then, yes, a used tent may get you a much higher spec than you thought you could afford… but it may also open a can of worms, often with no comeback.

As for buying new, the main benefit is the warranty. You should also get some great advice from the retailer, and this alone can save you hundreds of pounds by getting you the right tent for you and your family.

Polycotton… BUT. There are always advantages and disadvantages for both fabrics. I jumped in with polycotton because the fabric lasts longer and is breathable and therefore more comfortable to camp in.

The disadvantages are the cost to buy, weight and pack size. If you can overcome those three downsides to polycotton then it’s the way to go.

(Photo courtesy of Gary Cross)

That is not such an easy question to answer these days. Pre-Covid I would have said to visit a quality camping retailer with a large tent display.

That’s still my first suggestion, but it may not be possible at the moment.

Walking around a display of tents is by far the best way to choose the right tent for your family.

You should be asked many questions by the staff so they can fine-tune which tents will work for you; this will often save you time and money. It’s hard to visualise the actual size of a tent online and it’s also nice to see the tent packed up in the shop.

No, I’m afraid there isn’t one single peg I would suggest. I would recommend as many different types of peg as you can find.

If I had to choose two different types of pegs for your tent I would use 9in rock pegs for hard-baked or very stony ground.

If the ground is soft-to-medium firmness, then tough, wide 9in to 12in plastic pegs would be ideal… not ones you can bend easily by hand, though.

When it comes to family-sized tents I’m convinced inflatable is the way to go. Saying that, if all you want is a cheap/budget tent, then poles are your only option, as the words “cheap”, “budget” and “inflatable” don’t sit well together.

You will be looking at around £1,000+ for a good family-sized inflatable tent; a similar-sized pole tent will cost half that, especially with fibreglass poles, and with practice it will pitch relatively easily.

A steel-framed tent will cost a similar amount to a good inflatable tent and most people would prefer the ease of an inflatable tent over a poled tent.

The way you roll your tent up will depend on the type and design of your tent but there are a few things you need to do.

If the tent has a fully sewn-in groundsheet (most modern family tents), leave all the doors open, as it’s all about getting the trapped air out of the tent.

Try to roll towards an open door. If you have an inflatable tent, open all the doors again but fold it in a way so you roll towards the open valves.

(Photo courtesy of Gary Cross)

Yes, always, especially on family tents. Some tents need the webbing straps and guylines to help form the structure of the tent.

I suppose the main reason, though, is because we generally camp in the UK and we all know we can have four seasons in one day on this beautiful island of ours.

(Photo courtesy of Iain Duff)

This all depends on the tent. Many years ago it was nearly always out, to aid water run-off, then frame tents started having the flaps inside so you could lay a heavy PVC groundsheet on top of the flaps to make a seal.

These days mud flaps are not really needed… the reason for this is the majority of family tents have a sewn-in groundsheet in the main living and sleeping area. Where they are still used is in the front enclosed porch areas of modern tents.

Some brands have designed their tents so the flaps peg down on the outside and some so they lay in the inside similar to the old frame tents.

I personally would do away with them fully in these front porch areas of modern tents as I like to have good ventilation around the base of these porch areas where I would keep my fridge or cooking equipment.

Firstly, inflate the tent to the recommended pressure the brand suggests. Temperatures can affect the pressure in the beams, but you need a huge swing in temperature and most beams are tested to a far higher pressure than the suggested range.

If you pitch up and its 30°C then inflate the tent to the recommended pressure but, if in a day or two, the temperature drops to, say, 15°C, you will see the beams start to soften so a little adjustment may be required.

The same may happen the other way, so if the temperature increases greatly since you pitched up, the beams may feel a bit too hard, so letting a little air out would be a good idea.

(Photo courtesy of Gary Cross)