What to Check on a Camping Tent Spec Sheet

A tent spec sheet can look thorough and still hide the four things that decide whether the product comes back. Here is what to read first.

Fly and floor hydrostatic head.As a rule of thumb: fly 1,500–3,000 mm, floor 3,000–5,000 mm. A high fly figure with a thin floor is a common cost-cutting trick, and the floor is what fails first in the wet.

Pole material.Aluminium (7001 or 6061 alloy) is lighter, more repairable and does not splinter the way fibreglass does. Check the diameter too — a 7.9 mm pole on a four-person tunnel tent tells you where the money went.

Packed weight vs packed size.Both matter and they are not the same thing. Check as well whether the stated weight includes pegs, guy lines and the carry bag, which is where published figures are most often optimistic.

Then the details that give a tent away: a double-layer door with a mesh inner, taped seams at the pole sleeves, a vent at the apex, colour-coded poles, and whether the pegs supplied are actually fit for purpose. Specification sheets and test reports for our tent range: linda@reliableoutdoors.com.