Tents with a vestibule: features, types and recommendations for selection

Tent in hiking trips plays an important role. She shelters us from wind, cold and rain. And if the shelter is equipped with a vestibule, the comfort zone is doubled, things also remain dry and clean.

The platform is an extra room. The tent at once gets multifunctional value. Without a waiting room, she is just a bed, and with his participation - a pantry, kitchen, day shelter from the shower. Not having a vestibule, things every night you have to hide in the car. In the dressing room they can not just be located throughout the rest, but also conveniently located, which facilitates the search for the necessary items.

Tambour is separated from the main room by a wall, it has a single-layer coating with well-glued seams, treated with water-repellent and fire-resistant impregnation. It is possible to locate a kitchen in it, but it is better to use the stove inside the tent only during bad weather, in other cases all actions with fire should be carried out in the open air, away from highly inflammable objects.

Approximately half of the industry-made tents come with a vestibule because they are in high demand. Let's try to figure out what the pros and cons of such tents.

Having an extra room in your tent is a very tangible convenience, it will never be empty during a hike. The advantages are as follows.

• In the vestibule, you can store things that can not be left without shelter, as they can get wet during a sudden rain. Things will not occupy the bedroom, clothes and shoes will remain dry.
• In the dressing room you can sit out the weather.
• The kitchen is well equipped in a large vestibule.
• The tent with a waiting room has a higher level of ventilation.

There are very few disadvantages of this design compared to the acquired comfort:

• the weight and dimensions of the tent increase slightly;
• cost increases with volume.

Before buying a tent, you should know how it will be used. Tents with a vestibule can be for hiking, autotourism (camping), professional (trekking, extreme, expeditionary), for fishing, summer or winter. If tasks are defined, you can proceed to the choice of purchase. Tents are of various kinds. They can be divided into 3 large groups:

• assault - the most weightless and compact;
• raid - for living with the relative comfort of a small group of people;
• basic - for a long stay in nature in comfortable conditions, designed for a large group of people.

All 3 areas are also divided by purpose, shape, number of layers, material, frame equipment. Fishermen, climbers, geologists and tourists just need different types of tents.

These tents are professional equipment, they have a special quality and durability. They are not afraid of rain, strong wind, cold, a significant height above sea level, as they are designed for extreme conditions. High mountain models are divided into expeditionary and assault.

Expeditionary tents are designed to form a base camp during the ascent, for solid stops for several days. The designs of such models should be heavy-duty, tough, warm, resistant to snow pressure, strong wind and rain.

Assault tents are taken by climbers who do not break base camps for a long time, but rest in them as they are tired. Requirements for such models are somewhat different from previous ones. The emphasis is on lightness and minimum capacity, as the tent has to be worn on itself. At the same time, it should be warm, durable, not blown and moisture resistant.

These tents are often used by non-professional tourists traveling in the highlands. Their equipment absorbed the qualities of expeditionary and assault models. They are not as bulky as the first, and not as light as the second. These are more comfortable options, but as resistant to bad weather as high altitude.

Flat tents are pitched in the forest and on open flat areas. There is a large selection of such products, as they are of different sizes, seasonal, intended for hiking or on cars. Below we consider the options for plain models.

These tents have to be carried for a long time. They should be very light and durable. Triple tent usually does not exceed the weight of 1.1 kg, 5-seater - 1.5 kg, 8-seater - 2.5 kg. They can be used for spending the night in the woods, on the plains, along any tourist paths. They are not too comfortable and do not reliably protect from rain and wind like professional tents.

This type of equipment can be large in size, since it does not have to be borne by yourself. This is a tent superior and designed for a long stay in nature. They can be two-room, three-room, family or just for a large company. For example, 2-room with a dressing room in the center or 3-room with two vestibules, a stove and a shed. Berths are designed for different numbers of people, and vestibules hold a large amount of things.

Camping models have windows, good ventilation, they are high, they can be in full growth. The weight of such equipment reaches more than 7 kilograms. Collecting and disassembling a stationary tent is more difficult than an assault model. But she can have a large vestibule, which is really used in rainy weather as a kitchen.

Universal tents are quite comfortable, they are unstable with strong wind, but waterproof, made of “breathing” fabrics, have good ventilation, do not collect condensate. Special tents are made for special purposes, for example, military, for fishing, hunting or for children. The specificity of each type requires a certain equipment.

Most often, tents are a frame covered with a cloth. Frameworks model designs of different geometric shapes, which are responsible not only for the aesthetic appearance, but also the practicality of the product.

The most popular type of tent, very easy to install. Visually looks like half a ball. This form is often used for professional and tourist models. It is streamlined, good protection from rain and wind. Tambour suit at the entrance.

Externally, the tent resembles a side to side barrel cut in half along the entire length. This is a very roomy shape, which is able to have several rooms, with a waiting room in the center. Although the tambour of this design can be from the end. The downside of the model is the impossibility of its analysis without an assistant and the transfer of the assembled form to another place. But for a stationary camp, this is not considered a problem.

Tents resemble a yurt. They keep on one central rack and on extensions from it, but there are also other variations. Tents are large, without floor, with windows or small, expeditionary, designed for hiking. Their advantages are that no need to carry disassembled frames. This type of tent used in Soviet times.Large tents can be divided into the vestibule and residential part.

Today you can find comfortable tents in the form of a house with a vestibule. But classically, this view also applies to the Soviet models. Often it is a small, single-layer, backpack destination. Of the benefits - has low weight, miniature form, lack of frame equipment, budget cost. Of the minuses - Such models are difficult to install, they are poorly kept in the wind, suitable for perfectly flat terrain.

For different seasons, weather conditions, temperature indicators need their own special tents.

• Summer They are not provided for extreme weather conditions - thunderstorms, frost, hurricane wind. The tents are comfortable, made of breathable fabrics, have good ventilation, and a reasonable price.
• Winter. Made of warm refractory materials, as they assume in their design the presence of a heating element in the form of a furnace.
• Three-season. In addition to winter, suitable for all seasons. Durable, tough, windproof. Can withstand heavy rain.
• All-season. According to the requirements they are the same as three-season ones, but they have sloping shapes so that precipitation does not linger, as well as a snow protection skirt.

By construction, tents are single-layer or double-layer, with frame or frameless. Consider each view separately.

The most common type of tents. The design is assembled from a frame and two types of coatings. The interior consists of a lightweight, breathable fabric, so light that it has no slots for windows. This layer is necessary to retain heat in the tent, with its help in the design does not collect condensate. The second layer - the outer, is made of fabric that can withstand rain, wind and other weather troubles. The seams of this layer are processed, rubberized, do not pass moisture.

Single-layer versions are not equipped with a thin inner layer of fabric, so they keep heat worse, they have poor ventilation. Such models retain condensate, as the tent’s fabric does not allow wind and moisture to pass through, and therefore does not release evaporation to the outside. The industry is working to create a fabric that could protect the tent from drafts and rain, but would let moisture into the external environment.

Such membrane fabrics already exist on expensive products intended for extreme or sports tourism. Conventional single-layer tents have their advantages, They are lightweight, compact, easy to install and inexpensive.

These are the lightest and most compact types of tents, they can weigh less than a kilogram. But one should not expect comfort from them, they can be partially blown by the wind, they are laid out a little more difficult than self-adjusting ones. Such products solve certain problems when the campaign is associated with heavy traffic or high speed, and every extra gram matters. Frameless tents can also be taken on short trips, just in case.

For such tents, in addition to the fabric covering, they take a collapsible frame, on which the covering is stretched, on a hike. The frame increases the weight of equipment, but increases the comfort zone. Double-layer tents do not let in moisture and wind, have good ventilation, sleeping places and are often equipped with a vestibule. Frameworks consist of small sticks, inserted one into another and connected by a common internal rubber band.

Arcs are assembled from stacked sticks and stitch tent loops are strung on them. When disassembled and packed, the frames take up little space, it all depends on the size of the tent and the material from which they are made.

The choice of a tent depends on the tasks that are set for it. For climbers fit models for extreme climbing - AlexikaMirage 4 and Matrix 3. As a backpack option you should choose Scout 3 or Rondo 4. For water or cycling trips, you need tents with a large vestibule, for example, a “half a man” where you can store sports equipment. For hunting and fishing are suitable shelters with camouflage pattern type Tengu. For a comfortable rest, choose the model series Tengu MK1.08T3. Tent-tents will be ideal for kitchens, they are also equipped with a tambour.

In the next video you will find a review of a two-room tent with a large vestibule Alexika Maxima 6 Luxe.