Sierra Designs
HOW TO CARE FOR YOR TENT
Before You Go Camping, Weatherproofing Your Tent
The rainfly and center floor seam (if applicable) of your tent have been taped at the factory. While seam tape significantly increases the weatherproofness of your tent, additional seam sealing will improve the performance of your tent in rainy conditions. For additional weatherproofness , seal all places where attachments are sewn to the fly, including webbing, Velcro, snaps, guy-outs, and zipper tracks. The best way to seal your tent is to use urethane- based seam sealer and run a thin bead around the base of the attachment, where it is sewn to the fly. Do this to attachments both on the inside and outside of the tent. You have just purchased a tent with the "SuperSeal" (all tents except for the Omega, Alpha, Stretch Dome AST, Stretch Prelude AST) which means your perimeter seam has been factory seam sealed, and therefore requires no perimeter sealing. However, if you have NOT purchased a tent with the new "SuperSealer" floor the perimeter seam of your tent floor cannot be mechanically saeled. To complete the barrier against water sepage through the floor of your tent, seal this seam by running a bead of seam sealer around the inside perimeter of your tent floor. Make sure the seam sealer is completely dry before re-packing.
Caring for Your Tent on the Trail
Its important to select a site which has been cleared of any sharp objects such as rocks or sticks. Many people perfer to use Footprints or Floor savers under the tent for additional protection. If choose to do so, make sure the floor of the tent completely covers the floor saver, or else the floor saver will collect rain. Tent Footprints are now available for all current Sierra Designs tents.
Staking and Guying Out Your Tent
Most Sierra Designs tents are free-standing, not requiring the use of stakes in order to pitch the tent. This is a matter of convienence, allowing quick set-up and easy moving and cleaning of the tent. All tents, free-standing or not , must be staked out properly in order to achieve full structual integrity and prevent wind damage. No lightweight, backpacking style tent, whether rated 3 season or 4 season, is guyed properly. See the specific instructions for your tent for guidance on these procedures. Guying out your tent can increase rain protection and ventilation and greatly enhance wind resistance
Ultra-Fresh Tent Guard
The Rainfly and footprint of all Sierra Designs tents are treated with Ultra-Fresh Tent Guard. A fungistatic agent with built-in antimicrobial action that prevents the growth of a range of mircoorganism that can cause orders, staining, and deterioration. Ultra-Fresh Tent Guard helps extend the life of our tents by protecting against degradation from fungus, mildew, and bacteria that delovep when a tent is packed and stored wet.
What to Do When the Trip's Over
Even though the rainfly and floor of your Sierra Designs tent is treated with Ultra-Fresh Tent Guard it is important to dry your tent completely before returning it to its stuff sack. If you store wet, mildew will occur in untreated areas. Mildew damage is not covered under warranty.
Hand wash your tent with mild soap and a sponge. Do not use detergent, chemicals, or abrasive materails. Dirt particles left in the weave of the material speed up the deterioration of the fabric. Clean tents last longer. Over extended period, store your tent loosely, out of the bag in a cool, dry environment.
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