Hi all. I've had my Wild Country duolite tourer for about 18 months. In that time I have used it no more than 10 times; however on my last trip we had pretty torrential rain and I got a leak, though thankfully not in the sleeping area, just the 'porch'.
Anyhow, after emailing Wild Country and getting no reply, I am just after some advice. I have never 're-proofed' a tent before, so not sure how or even if I can go about it?
I like the tent, just want to get it sorted, cheers.
Hi, it was dark unfortunately but it didn't seem to be coming from a seam. Just a general area over the top of the porch where water was dripping through slowly, but enough to gather an unpleasant puddle of water after some time.
Questions, questions. Pitch your tent nearby in daylight and water it with a hose or whatever. Find out where the water is coming from and then report back. And I'm not able to find out if the outer is a PU coated or silicon coated fly, but my bet is, it is PU coated.
If it's PU coated, seams should be taped. The tape can let loose, which is very hard to repair yourslef IMHO, seamssealing the tape of a PU-fly isn't really a durable repair.
I think you may just have some windblow - possibly through the door vent, so you'll never find the leak (cos there isnt one and replicating the exact circumstances will be next to impossible).
Examine the seam tapes very closely - very very closely - in case there is the slightest of edge lift indicating a a microscopic leak. Other than that, unless you can identify the ingress point, think you'll be struggling.
I used to run a DoE equipment library and the number of times we got tents coming back with a leak...never to be found...and sent out again with no subsequent complaint.
edit: just a thought. You could try Nikwax tent and gearproof I have never used it, but it is from the Nikwax stable which usually does what it says on the side of the tin. Personally, I'd wait to see what happens next time out.
Ok, thanks for the advice all, much appreciated. I'll see how it fairs on my next trip this weekend, though to be quite honest I'd really rather it doesn't rain
Forget nikwax the Fabsil rangeis the closest to the original treatment on a lot of tents. The best product in the range is Fabsil Gold. Mop it on with something like a spontext sponge dishes moppit thingy or paint it on. At least that is a method I got recommended once.
Another tip is to go to a farm shop or a place selling horse saddlery and other horsey stuff. I've heard they are often the cheapest place to get it and you can get the Fabsil Gold in a larger container for a cheaper price than normal outdoors shops. If there is a leak issue it is quite possible that you will need to regularly re-proof like you do with your waterproof jacket.
