New Tent Information Sheet for Poled Tents.
`Using & Caring For Your New Tent or Awning’
Thank you for purchasing your new tent from OBI. We hope we have helped you to pick a tent or awning that will suit your needs and give you many years of Service.
To help you enjoy your purchase we ask you follow these few simple instructions.
It is important that you familiarise yourself with your tent and therefore advise you to erect your tent as soon as possible. We can only accept a tent for exchange as new within 14 days of Purchase. The tent must be returned in a clean, dry and unused condition in its original packaging.
As soon as possible check you tent is complete by unpacking it on a clean, dry and dust free surface. You should check that all the components are supplied and that they are undamaged. Again tents returned as damaged should be returned in a clean and dry condition.
Once you are happy the tent is complete, fully pitch your tent following the manufacturer’s instructions supplied with the tent. You should always practice pitching your tent before you 1st camping Trip. There is nothing worse than struggling to pitch an unfamiliar tent under the gaze of fellow campers.
Take care with fibreglass poles. These should be inserted through the pole sleeves on the tents flysheet. The poles are often colour coded -take care to match the colour on the poles to the correct coloured pole sleeve. The poles should be inserted centrally through the flysheet before being tensioned using the ring and pin system. Never force the poles into the pins. Loosen any adjustable straps (If fitted) and gently ease the pole into the pin, easing to canvas along the pole will help. The fibreglass poles will be under considerable tension so take care.
NOTE: TENT MANUFACTURERS DO NOT WARRANTY BROKEN POLES. Damaged poles are considered as fair wear & tear. Fibreglass poles are easily replaced and should be readily available from all good camping shops. We recommend you carry some spare poles as part of your camping equipment. We have compiled a guide to changing broken fibreglass poles on our website, under the heading ‘Caring for your tent.’ It is available to our customers who register on our website.
Once pitched for the 1st time your tent needs to be weathered. This involves wetting the flysheet of the tent. This can be by wetting the tents flysheet using a fine spray from a hosepipe or just letting nature do its work. Weathering tightens the fibres of the tents flysheet and is especially important with a Canvas or Polycotton tent. With Polyester tents it also allows you to check there are no leaks along the seams .All seams on a polyester tent need to be sealed. This is because polyester is a manmade material and the Fibres do not expand when wet. Therefore most seams will have been sealed by the manufacturer with a heat sealed plastic strip applied over the seams. It is often not possible for the manufacturers to seal all seams and you should apply a proprietary seam sealant over any seams not sealed (We recommend Stormsure or Stormgrip). It is also possible for the manufacturer’s heat sealed tape to come away from the seams and again these should be repaired by applying seam sealant.
Ensure your tent is fully dried before packing it away; you are now ready to enjoy many holidays in your tent.
Polyester tents WILL experience condensation in use and this should not be confused for a leaking tent. Always ensure adequate ventilation especially overnight by using the vents incorporated into your tent. You should not use naked flames or cooking appliances in a Polyester tent .
NOTE: Due to nature of the product Tents are temporary structures and care should be exercised that they are erected following the manufacturer instructions. Most damage is caused by the Weather and incorrect pitching. This damage is NOT covered by the manufacturer warranty and it is recommended you take out adequate insurance to cover damage caused to your tent and Camping Equipment. (Try Towergate Bakers 0800 4961516 quoting “OBI Camping & Leisure Promotion” for a 10% discount on new policies)
- Take care to pitch your tent on a soft flat surface. Do not pitch on rocky ground as this will damage the groundsheet. (A Footprint Groundsheet or SPS will help protect your tents Sewn in Groundsheet)
- Use all the pegging points and make sure to peg out all the guy lines even in fine conditions. Use the correct pegs for the ground. Manufacturers only supply basic steel pegs. We recommend you purchase a variety of pegs to suit the different ground type you will encounter. (Hard Ground Pegs etc. Again any good camping shop will advise)
- Take care when pitching especially during windy conditions. (Peg it down!)
- Always ensure your tent is packed away Clean and dry.
Tent 1st Aid
Any Tears to a Canvas tent can easily repaired using the most rudimentary patch of canvas sewn over the tear. Proof the repaired area using a proprietary proofer. (Fabsil or Storm is recommended. Storm make water based proofer which can be applied to wet canvas, this is especially useful for emergency reproofing). (DO NOT USE GAFFA or DUCT TAPE,)
Tears to Polyester tents can be repaired using a seam sealer/adhesive (we recommend Stormsure) for smaller holes/tears. Larger holes/tears can be repaired using a piece of polyester glued in place using a seam sealer/adhesive. You can also purchase self adhesive repair patches.
Broken Fibreglass poles are by far the biggest problems reported. It is a sensible precaution to carry 1 or 2 spare poles as part of your camping equipment. Take care when dealing with a broken Fibreglass pole as the edges will be sharp and can splinter. Broken poles can be temporarily repaired by making a splint out of a tent peg (If necessary cut of the top of the tent peg to prevent it damaging the tent fabric) which is bound to the fibreglass pole using insulation tape.
It is advisable to carry a tent 1st Aid Kit consisting of:-
- · Reproofer (Spray can or a small trigger spray).
- · Seam Sealer/Adhesive (Stormsure or similar)
- · Some canvas or polyester repair patches.
- · Needle and cotton.
- · Roll of Adhesive Tape (Gaffa Tape (Do Not use on Canvas) or Electical Insulation Tape)
- · Spare Fibreglass Pole(s)
- · Spare Pegs and guy line
We hope that be following these few simple guidelines you will get maximum pleasure from your tent and enjoy many years of camping.