I have a Marmot tungsten tent that has worked well for me over the last few years, but I need to do a little maintenance on the rain fly. I ordered some Seam Grip WP for the seams (I think they are starting to leak a little bit) and I picked up some Shoe Gear heavy duty waterproof repellent at the hardware store, but I’m wondering if I should use Nikwax instead. The bottle says it will work on tents but I don’t want to get a product that will conflict with the seam sealer and I know there are tons of tent materials so I want to make sure I get the right thing.
by TryingToGrow11000
4 Comments
I do not know about that brand. But what i know is that i was never able to make nikwax work. My tents always leaked after the recommended treatments.
Now i go have it professionnally waterproofed at an workshop where they sew, and fix camping gear. Depending on where you live, i’m pretty sure you can find a similar services.
In the end, you have to be able to rely on your tent. Otherwise the trip can easily become an anxiety pain.
that stuff should be fine for rainfly, i’ve used similar products on tent fabric before. just make sure you do the seam sealing first and let it cure completely before applying any waterproof spray – usually takes like 24 hours in good weather. the silicone based sprays work pretty well but test it on small corner first to make sure it doesn’t change the fabric feel too much
Note that waterproofing spray is only part of waterproofing your tent. Far more important is to properly seam seal it.
I use silicone spray on everything. Beads up the water so it doesn’t soak in. Any brand. If it’s not beading water (and I want it to), it gets sprayed. Rain flys, hats, smooth hiking shirts, lightweight rain jackets, shoes, gloves, and so on. Although it won’t be a true seam sealer, it’s very rewarding to shake water off things when I’m packing up or just going inside. I also do all my winter clothes as it beads up the snow sleet rain stuff, too. I always let it dry in the sun.