Published on: February 12, 2022
Written by Camila Avery / Fact-checked by David Rowan
Tents got wet. Now putting a tent in the washing machine for easy washing and putting it in later in the dryer to get dry, both are prohibited in a sense of prolonging its life by preventing funky smells, not by washing away its DWR coating.
Many of the campers, on their beginner level, search for the easiest and coziest way to clean their tents as they have tiring trail passes while camping in the rain. If your trips are very short, like enjoying a day or night under a full moonlit sky and driving out there by car with your lovely pet, no need to make it pomp for further application.
Else, after 3 or 4 days of night leave from home, the tent is a vital camp item, especially in winter and rainy season, so do call it a rainfly.
Even to dry clothes when camping, waterproof tent’s above and hammock stand plans ropes are well enough. Though washing a tent is a sudden alarm, laying out a tent on the ground at any time can be subject to dust, mud, and dirt.
To nurture your tent and enhance its longevity, never put a tent in the dryer after hand washes. How is it possible? Scroll for details with similar questions and their modified answers on what to do or not with a tent-like an inexperienced one.
Putting Tents in the Dryer, Is It Possible?
What is a tent or a rainfly? Most of the answers from campers will form like a portable shelter of a wide range of fabrics made, like Canvas, Nylon or Polyester, and more. That may not be waterproof, or the tarps may not too. Even get supported by a single or more pole pulled tightly and fixed by sturdy cords or loops from a perfect height of the ground. And available in 4 types, in-wall, breathable, dome, and ridge.
However, the thickness of tents, especially the waterproof ones which are new or you want to make once much more water-resistant before stepping forward for trips. In terms of tent durability, washing machine compatibility, or putting in the dryer, all you need is having tent maintenance acknowledgment.
Though skilled campers, we do not suggest putting tents in the dryer. New owners of their tents and rookies of camping almost ask whether the tent’s maintenance. Simply going ahead answers to such questions is almost no. why? Before answering that, let us have a detailed brief on the basic cleaning of used tents.
Tips for Cleaning Your Tent
Use Proper Cleaning Materials
The first thing your tent demands is cold water. If you have managed that, get a non-detergent soap and a non-abrasive sponge. Instead of such cleaning stuff, applying an abrasive scrubber or scrub pads can leave your tent after damaging it. At the same time, instead of cold water, never go ahead for hot water, as if it is rough. Not only invalid the waterproofness of fabric, but it can also create holes.
Be Gentle
This is a thumb rule that you cannot ignore. Even if you have bought a tent without sides, for instance, a canopy never washes it rough ways with a scrubber. Be gentle and let your hands follow your hands with sponges at ease and natural to remove stains, as well as dirt.
No Harsh Chemicals
Harsh chemicals, for instance, household cleaners for glass, furniture or to make brighter ones, like Bleach. Other strong chemical power cans, like pre-soak laundry products, dish soaps, you have to ignore while cleaning tents.
If you buy a tent cleaner with absolute perfume, nothing can save it from insect attack because good smells have magnetic power to call rodents, pests, and bigger animals from inside or outside of the home. Even these chemicals are a big reason for spoiling the tent’s water repellent, in particular, DWR coating.
From the basic cleaning tips, it is now clear why the smooth, polished, and thick tent fabric must not be put in the dryer. But for further acknowledgment, so far the excessive temperature of the dryer can weaken the tent materials. In fact, it leads to easy rips and tears. If the tent material is thin enough, means similar to non-waterproofed, like mesh windows, a risk to increase spin pretty fast.
The mesh is often responsible for accurate air circulation to keep bugs away. Also, we have noticed metal stakes attached poles to let the tent stand and could end up making tears and rips at ease. Yet, the stakes also stand with waterproof materials in construction, like the iron horse or sturdy rust-proof S.S.
However, a flipped matter is noticeable too. When you have a thick and sturdy constructed tent, often your dryer seems like warps or distorted from the overheating or by the tent parts.
Possible to Wash in the Washing Machine?
Similar to dryers, washing machines can damage your new tent even. Instead of hands, avoid throwing or washing it in the washing machine even if it is a branded one or not. Using a hose outside or inside your bathroom like in a bathtub can ease up this job. Only a common thing like a soft sponge will make it done to crack dirt and grime.
A good thing is, a rainfly does not need to wash off entirely or externally after it becomes dirty at all to appear like a new one from a camping store. It is natural for all camping or hiking needed tents like being a little dirty, not wet yet because these remain outside purpose usage and in constant contact also. Though we prefer to depend on the user’s level, not to get attacked by pests to create holes, rather after getting wet, go for washing before storage in the corner.
Possible things happen by putting a tent in the dryer or the washing machine before letting it on the dryer. Let’s have a short checkout.
| Putting Tents in the Washing Machine | Putting Tents in the Dryer |
| The washing machine can get distorted | Massive heat up blows itself with tent |
| Wash off every mesh in the tent’s construction | Extort waterproofness entirely |
| Create exterior holes | Increase insects attacking approaches |
| Wash off DWR coating, as well as weaken stands | Create rusts on S.S. stands |
Want a visual acknowledgment over this topic? Press on what happens whether putting a tent in the dryer or the washing machine
Both Wash and Dry a Tent?
Campers, as beginners often ask, if they can wash and dry their borrowed or newly purchased tent before camping day at once. How? In this approach at the same time, there should be ample sunlight and washing by hand stuff like a soft sponge or gentle scrubber. Not under direct sunlight, you can dry it after washing by the procedures that we have mentioned and give details before.
However, this approach also depends on how often and distances you make your trips. If you are habituated to shorter trips at a few distances, then give a gentle wash at least once per season. Never go for a dry machine and machine washer because top-loaders with separate agitators can tear or stretch your tent fabric, even if we have experienced the first washing time in a hurry.
The seam-seals are also very sensitive in case of such approaches. Because seam-sealed rain flies get strength from enough seaming, in fact, some get particular tarp strength too to space up inside to have enough sharing air mattresses. Besides, its spoiling may leave the tent set up under direct busk for a longer campaign enjoyment, which is great exposure to UV rays. If you know the proper tent care during use, it is a plus point. As well, in detailed information, step by step you can follow.
Maintenance of Tents During Use
Be gentle with its zippers without forcing. You can hold the zipper track with your right hand, and pull up the runner back, as well as wiggling the rainfly from side to side. If the ziplock splits, until it reengages, back it up. If it continues the same way, squeeze the zipper with a pair of pliers and provide a tight sliding to get on the zipper track again. Now the stuck fabric is free.
Leave boots outside. Dirt, pebbles, and grit keep falling onto the floor where you set up your tent. So, clean up space wherever you have fixed the position to avoid abrading and puncture your tent.
In times of hiking or camping in the wet forest, especially in bear country, secure fragrant personal usage items and foods together far from the tent. You can pack it all together in a hard lock container and leave it in a car while camping in bear country.
Remember your dog is an animal, rather than being in a dog kennel, never proceed with an unsupervised dog inside the rainfly. While searching for food, if securing food inside a plastic container, dogs can chew through plastic only.
Storing Your Tent
Thoroughly air-drying your one after short or long trips cleaning is important. After washing your tent with both hands without putting it in the washing machine and then the dryer, now it is time for the manual process to dry it for the next hike. It is a crucial process because it requires no direct sunlight drying, rather the washing effort is in waste. Does your tent drying need to follow methods? Well, it does and you can follow us.
Air-dry Only
How will you air-dry only? In this approach, you have to wash first, which does not mean later leaving it facing itself to direct sunlight. This is very good in winter because that time humidity capacity even though not having sunlight is much better than other seasons. You can do it even in summer, it may be home indoors or in a shaded outdoor area.
No tent care rule is kind of mandatory to follow down, whether 100% dry out the thick and damp fabric mildews, that can create bad smell along with harming polyurethane waterproof coatings too.
Avoid Storing If It Is Still Damp
Never store your rainfly when it has not dried properly, it still means damp. Before tucking the wet one in a safe place, give the shelter, as well as leading to the effective damp smell with Polyurethane waterproof coatings. This is the moisture only that can break down the DWR.
This will become a big irony, if it turns to get tacky, flaky, that may even lead you to repair.
Store Loose
Means to store inside a single compact carrying box, not for separate staying without hampering itself, but also for enough portability on a rush hour for hiking. Yet these boxes are no longer good stuff to lock a tent inside.
The best place is a big mesh bag or an old pillowcase that will let itself all feel like being in space. And obviously, the overall relaxation systems to let the tent breathe, as well as the room matters too. So, never place it in a damp or hot area that may neither get dry nor let itself breathe and relax till the next hiking plans you are up to.
Wrap Up
Tents have been invented to provide hiking shelter at ease with a tarp and a few other things. But it becomes unfortunate that tent users or campers after their weekend hiking or camping in the jungle, forget to place in a cool and big place, like in a sunlight-avoidable room rather than in a man-made heat box.
If it gets wet by the storm and rains together, nothing is special except for taking it into the bathroom rather than throwing it in a washing machine. Washing by hand is prominent in this case to increase the tent’s longevity through the waterproof coating and maintaining proper seam seals of each point.
But nothing to worry about if you have done summer or little winter weather, except for after short trips in between rainy seasons. Because the drying method is not a piece of cake. Humidity soaking is the main fact here, yet the unavailability of this capacity cannot soak, even can ruin tent coating and points’ seals, as well as with the tarps. So, carry a delay on drying time, yet you cannot put a tent in the dryer.
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About This Writer
Guys, I am Camila Avery and I love to help my mom to do indoor & outdoor activities. As a lady, I have passed my time on gardening, home improvement, and personal or self-care. I have acquired some degrees in outdoor recreation, beauty, and hair care. It is not easy to work with top-level professional beauty experts. But, I got that opportunity and experimented with different hair extensions, hair colors, and cuts.
