Problems Arise With Tent Leaking

Q. Hello there - hope your day reading e-mail is going well. I’ve appreciated your advice in the past, and was wondering if you could please shed some advice/wisdom on a situation with my Sierra Designs Tiros Guide tent I just recently purchased.

While I’ve been generally really happy with it, I noticed two problems on a recent wilderness canoe trip with it: 1) During some heavy rains, we noticed that water starts wicking into the inner tent from where the “Interlocs” attach the inner tent to the fly - and dripping right onto us and our down bags. Bummer.

I seam-sealed the hell out of all the seams prior to this trip, but it didn’t seem to help: The Interlocs seem to be this natural watercourse from the fly into the inner tent and onto us. In my mind, a dripping inner tent seems unacceptable for a $600 tent. Is this just a natural consequence of Interlocs I have to live with? Or, something I need to further address with either seam-sealer and/or the warranty department?

2) Second, even with the fly securely anchored, guyed and pulled tight, the bottom of the fly was still flapping around a lot during high winds, creating a lot of noise and allowing a bit of water in along the sides. Is a “flap-free” tent in high winds a pipe-dream, or should I have Sierra Designs take a look at it?

Brad Hagen

Gear Guy: Interesting problem. One thing you don’t say is how severe the drippage gets. Is it a drop every half hour or so, or one a minute? I don’t think ANY tent can be realistically expected to be totally waterproof in all conditions. If the problem isn’t severe, it may just be something you need to deal with by taking a small pack towel and mopping up occasionally.

My view always has been that people are apt to drag more water inside with them than most tents can leak. Still, the Sierra Designs folks say there are two possible explanations for this problem. One is that in very high winds and heavy rain, water pressure might be forcing moisture through a seam and onto the webbing that goes to the Interloc (a SD system of tying the poles and tent canopy together). From there it wicks into the tent.

Alternatively, in damp, cold conditions, it’s possible for water to condence on the poles. It then runs down to the Interloc, and once again follows the webbing through to your tent.This was the first time SD has heard a complaint like this about the Tiros Guide, so they’re interested in helping you out.

Call their warranty line at (800) 736-8551 and chat with them; if need be, they’ll be glad to take a look at the tent and pressure-test the seams. As for the flapping, tents would have to be made of concrete sheeting for that problem to end. Particularly seeing as most makers use a nylon fly sheet, and nylon can stretch a little when wet, it’s very hard to keep a tent as taut as one would like it to be. I agree it’s a nuisance. I HATE the sound of a tent flapping around me. Anyway, good luck on future trips.

Q. When is Gore Industries patent for Gore-Tex going to run out? I hear soon. Will this mean Gore-Tex products will get cheaper?

Jake Thamann

Gear Guy: The fact is, Gore-Tex’s patent on so-called “second generation” Gore-Tex ran out in March. So it’s possible that some garment makers will try manufacturing some clothing using that material. But second-generation Gore-Tex has not been used for some time, and is not the stuff you find in current Gore-Tex clothing. Still, it opens some intriguing possibilities. I’ll ask around at the Outdoor Retailers show in August to see if anyone is planning to take a stab at marketing this material.

Q. More on the Peak 1 Xtreme … does their new fuel delivery system really eliminate the performance fade that other butane/propane stoves (e.g. GAZ Turbo 270) have as the fuel runs low? That’s the last barrier to my switching from white gas to butane/propane.

Tom Chesterman

Gear Guy: Well, I wish I could offer a firsthand report on the Xtreme, but I haven’t been able to get one in hand yet for a test. I know that it is said to have good low-fuel burning ability, and that the Peak 1 folks definitely wanted to make that a feature of the stove. I’ve actually had good luck with their earlier stoves, such as the Backpacker Deluxe, with that issue. Not quite as good as white gas, but very close. Primus also has done some things with its fuel mix to help improve low-fuel performance, so you might take a look at their Attack or Adventure stoves.

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