I'd start with the makers - have a good look through the instructions that came with it, next try an online search, then if no joy, give the makers a ring, if poss..
S
(on the look out for Armageddon, on board a Brompton nano & ever-changing Moultons)
In general...
Tents with PU-coated outers have taped seams.
Tents with silicone coated outers ("silnylon") have seams that are neither taped nor sealed*.
Silnylon tents don't have tape because the tape doesn't sick to the fabric, and the seams aren't sealed because it generally isn't a problem, and the manufacturer would have to do it the same way as you - put the tent up, spead the sealant, let dry, and pack it away. The associated labour costs, and the cost of the covered space required for a day's worth of erected tents, would add a non-trivial amount to the cost of the tent.
By way of it generally not being a problem, I've had my Akto since 2008, and still haven't got round to sealing the seams.
If it's raining hard enough, I get a slow drip from the corner of the cowl over the top of the door zip. This misses the inner, so if it is raining hard and I'm using a footprint, I put a J-cloth down to soak up the drip, in a pan if I'm not cooking. It rains hard enough to cause a drip about once in 8 or 10 weeks camping.
*
Vaude do bond or tape at least some of their silnylon outer seams, but they say both processes are exclusive to them.
Silnylon tents don't have tape because the tape doesn't sick to the fabric, and the seams aren't sealed because it generally isn't a problem,
andrew_s: are you saying that it isn't a really a problem for silnylon (just as well as the tape doesn't stick) but it is a problem for PU (just as well that the tape does stick) or that it isn't really a problem for PU either?
When the pestilence strikes from the East, go far and breathe the cold air deeply. Ignore the sage, stay not indoors. Ho Ri Zon 12th Century Chinese philosopher
It's not the case that a seam is a seam is a seam. They can be sewn in different ways.
Manufacturers of Silnylon tents take care to sew the seams in a (mostly) waterproof manner, since they know they can't tape the seams.
Makers of PU tents tape the seams because they can, and because the extra passes through the sewing machine required for (mostly) waterproof seams take longer, and therefore cost more, than taping the seams does.
In addition, the silicone coating is more elastic than PU coating, and "unstretches" after the needle comes out, gripping the thread in a tighter and more water resistant manner.
andrew_s wrote: ↑8 Sep 2021, 2:12am
By way of it generally not being a problem, I've had my Akto since 2008, and still haven't got round to sealing the seams.
But that's because the problem was in fact, as you say, largely fixed through the (much better IMV) method of (probably) folded seams etc. What I've seen of tape in any case is that it does come off and isn't a particularly elegant solution. Seam tape seems (excuse the pun) pretty cheap anyway so that's the solution they use for PU.
So what we need to know is the type and model of tent from the OP. They can see if it is taped and if not, a bit of further investigation to find out from the makers to see how they made the seams and how they intended the seams to be left. This is where the OP came in, but one still needs to know which tent.
When the pestilence strikes from the East, go far and breathe the cold air deeply. Ignore the sage, stay not indoors. Ho Ri Zon 12th Century Chinese philosopher
andrew_s wrote: ↑8 Sep 2021, 2:12am
In general...
Tents with PU-coated outers have taped seams.
Tents with silicone coated outers ("silnylon") have seams that are neither taped nor sealed*.
Though there is a large and growing number of tents with a silicone elastomer outer coat ('cause they're better) and a PU inner coat (so the seams can be taped). MSR, Terra Nova, Vango for example have all gone down this road.
andrew_s wrote: ↑8 Sep 2021, 2:12am
Silnylon tents don't have tape because the tape doesn't sick to the fabric
Though e.g. Vau De (as already noted) and Lightwave seem to have found a way round this and offer flys with silicone inner coats and seam taping. I don't know if those are hot-taped, which would heat-age the fabric as happens with PU coating/taping, and whether or not it does it still adds a smidge to weight and bulk for little discernible plus beyond a bullet point on the swing tag.
andrew_s wrote: ↑8 Sep 2021, 2:12am
and the seams aren't sealed because it generally isn't a problem
Not necessarily the case: needle holes will leak water whatever the coating. Having said that, the sort of upmarket brands who are willing to forego the seam taping generally pay the sort of attention to seaming that makes them less likely to leak in the first place.
horizon wrote: ↑9 Sep 2021, 11:03am
What I've seen of tape in any case is that it does come off and isn't a particularly elegant solution. Seam tape seems (excuse the pun) pretty cheap anyway so that's the solution they use for PU.
Taped seams are mainly there because the market expects it. I've seen plenty of reaction over the years to the tune of "why on earth would anyone buy a tent you can't guarantee off the shelf as being waterproof!?", and the fact that the seam taping adds weight and bulk and weakens the tent and can be by-passed with 10 minutes and a bit of goop doesn't seem to register.
That the likes of Terra Nova are entirely prepared to compromise their premium tents' tear strength with inside PU coatings just so they can use seam tape shows how powerful this perceived requirement is.
horizon wrote: ↑9 Sep 2021, 11:03amSo what we need to know is the type and model of tent from the OP. They can see if it is taped and if not, a bit of further investigation to find out from the makers to see how they made the seams and how they intended the seams to be left. This is where the OP came in, but one still needs to know which tent.
Or do it empirically, assuming there's space at home to pitch. Pitch it in the garden with rain coming overnight, see what the inside is like in the morning.
