So I purchased this tent from target...

[bYuPride]

It's a Greatland?! I was just wasting time on my lunch break and saw this 7-8 man tent and thought it would fit the HUGE air matress I bought at Cabela's over the weekend. I bought the tent because it has a cool enclosed porch area and a pretty big 1-2 room enclosed portion (I guess it has a divider making it 2 rooms). After I got back to work, I started reading the reviews on it (Yes, I know I'm doing the research and purchase thing backwards). Some said it was a VERY good tent, loved all the room and storage area, the ability to stand up and get dressed, etc. etc. Others said that it can't hold out any rain period. Some said they sealed the seams and waterproofed the fly and they still got wet.

So here's my question, I only paid less than $130 after tax. My wife will NOT camp in rain (she will make me give her a 100% no rain guarantee), and we'll most likely only camp over night. So given that there's not going to be a lot of wear and tear on the tent, no rain, etc. Is it worth just keeping the tent or should I take it back and shell out the extra flow for a higher quality tent?

[creekster]

Originally Posted by bYuPride

It's a Greatland?! I was just wasting time on my lunch break and saw this 7-8 man tent and thought it would fit the HUGE air matress I bought at Cabela's over the weekend. I bought the tent because it has a cool enclosed porch area and a pretty big 1-2 room enclosed portion (I guess it has a divider making it 2 rooms). After I got back to work, I started reading the reviews on it (Yes, I know I'm doing the research and purchase thing backwards). Some said it was a VERY good tent, loved all the room and storage area, the ability to stand up and get dressed, etc. etc. Others said that it can't hold out any rain period. Some said they sealed the seams and waterproofed the fly and they still got wet.

So here's my question, I only paid less than $130 after tax. My wife will NOT camp in rain (she will make me give her a 100% no rain guarantee), and we'll most likely only camp over night. So given that there's not going to be a lot of wear and tear on the tent, no rain, etc. Is it worth just keeping the tent or should I take it back and shell out the extra flow for a higher quality tent?

We have a couple of different tents. One of them is a Greatland family size. We use it all the time. It is greta for car cmaping in non-rainy weather. It does not keep out the rain very well at all. If you are cmaping somewhere and it starts to rain, simply pack up and leave. That is what we have done as my wife, likje yours, refuses to camp in the rain. (Once at Yosemite it started to rain hard and I went outside with my shovel to trench around the tent and do a little site improvement. when I came back in everything in the tent was packed up and ready to load. My wife does not mess around.)

We also have an REI tent, which is supposed to fit 6 people but, as it turns out, this is only true if the 6 people are rain forest pygmies. It is very good at keeping bad weather out, however. It also cost more than twice as much.

[bigpiney]

Buying a tent from Target = a crappy tent. That is all there is to it. It will probably be fine for most of what you want to do though, but won't keep out the rain. Just don't go when it is raining. Problem solved.

[bYuPride]

Originally Posted by bigpiney

Buying a tent from Target = a crappy tent. That is all there is to it. It will probably be fine for most of what you want to do though, but won't keep out the rain. Just don't go when it is raining. Problem solved.

I think that's just what we'll have to do... stay out of the rain.. that sucks though that we won't even have the option of waiting it out. I actually love sleeping in my tent in the rain.. there's something about beating the elements for me. I don't know. I have a $50 4 man tent I got a Costco a couple years ago and it was fine in the rain. It's just this huge air mattress that won't fit. Oh well, I have 90 days to try it out I guess. We'll see how it goes.

[MikeWaters]

I have a cheap Eureka tent that I bought off of Amazon. it was on sale.

I read that it leaks in rain, but not if you seal it.

Haven't been in the rain yet. If you hunt around you can find a deal on a better tent.

[bYuPride]

Originally Posted by MikeWaters

I have a cheap Eureka tent that I bought off of Amazon. it was on sale.

I read that it leaks in rain, but not if you seal it.

Haven't been in the rain yet. If you hunt around you can find a deal on a better tent.

How do you seal a tent? Do I just apply some of the sealant and rub it in? Does it take long? I really suck at doing my own research I guess.

[MikeWaters]

You buy tent sealer, and apply it like chapstick to the seams.

[bYuPride]

Originally Posted by MikeWaters

You buy tent sealer, and apply it like chapstick to the seams.

Awesome... Thanks.

[creekster]

I can still recall the REI salesman dazzling me with tales of the very model of tent i was considering being used with success in the Gobi Desert. Wow! The Gobi Desert! "That's the one I need," I think to myself. Guess how many times I have been to the Gobi desert? Guess how many times I have needed the fmaily tent for inclement weather? REI makes a very nice tent but the Target tent has served us well, with more size and less cost for about 8 years. It iwll leak, and it is not the most rugged tent, but it is a decent package.

Bottom line, try to figure out what you need. Going to the Gobi? REI has a tent for you. Backing the car into a campsite in state parks and staying unless it rains, snows or is too cold? Target's tent will probably work for you.

Btw, a tent heater has worked wonders at extending my wife's camping season. My kids like it too.

[creekster]

Originally Posted by MikeWaters

You buy tent sealer, and apply it like chapstick to the seams.

But remeber it is a sealer and not caulking. Sometimes the Target seams are a little more porous than the sealer is designed to staunch.