How should I store my tent or tarp? (storage at home, transport in a backpack or on a bike)

Long-term storage

Tents and tarps from all brands come with stuff or compression sacks, which are designed to protect the shelter while it’s being transported. However, a tent or tarp should not be stored in its stuff sack for longer periods.

Even if your shelter is completely dry when you pack it away, and whether it’s rolled or stuffed, moisture vapour from the air stays trapped between the layers of fabric. That moisture remains in contact with the fabric coatings, and over time, it can lead to a process known as hydrolysis. Its effects can include:

• reduced waterproof performance
• a softening of the coating, which can become sticky, and may peel off when the tent is unrolled

Heat speeds this process up, so avoid storing shelters in hot garages or sheds.

The best way to store a tent or tarp for longer periods is to make sure it’s completely dry, then fold it loosely and place it on a shelf, or in a large mesh storage sack, in a cool, well-ventilated space. 

If the tent was packed away wet during a trip, dry it out as soon as possible afterwards.

Even on dry trips, condensation forms inside tents, so it’s always worth airing your tent out when you get home. 

Carrying your tent while backpacking

We generally recommend against carrying a tent on the outside of a backpack. Sharp foliage and abrasive surfaces can snag or wear through an externally carried shelter, without you even knowing it has happened.

We suggest packing the tent canopy in a stuff sack or dry bag inside your pack. The poles can then be carried externally, secured under the side compression straps.

Carrying your tent while bike or motorcycle touring

For bike or motorcycle touring, a dry bag is a good way to carry your tent. Because of the length of most tent pole segments, packing the whole tent together often requires a dry bag with a much larger girth than you would otherwise need. For example: 51 cm (20") pole segments need a 35 L dry bag to fit their length. (For comparison, the stuff sack supplied with a 2-person lightweight tent is around 10 L).

Packing the canopy and poles separately reduces the size of dry bag you need. Most lightweight tent rainflies / inner tents will fit into a 13 L dry bag. Some bikepacking tents, such as the Telos Evo Bikepack, also come with shorter pole segments, specifically to make packing on a bike easier.