Green Outdoors Bell Tent

[Silverhill]

Hopefully I can draw on the collective knowledge of you folks out there who have the pleasure of owning either a bell tent of any manufacturer, or one specifically from Green Outdoors.

My criteria for looking/choosing have so far been;

1) 4 or 5 metre diameter
2) Under £800
3) decent fire-retardant fabric of good thickness/quality
4) A sewn in or zipped in groundsheet
5) The ability to vent a stove through the roof
6) UK made



Green outdoors seem to tick all of the boxes, as well as including an inner tent, but I've seen few reviews and I've not been to any of the shows or festivals they've been at.

Can anyone help with any pointers please?

Thanks in advance,
Steve

 

[Reddo]

Hey Steve,

If your shopping around take a look at www.belltent.co.uk - we got ours from here, stove - weatherproof ultamate 5m tent with zipped ground sheet and ventalated.. approx £650 - prices have gone up slightly but unfortunatly i dont know by how much.

Its done us proud so far, including in a horrific thunder storm with masses of rain!

Heres some photos of ours in action

Unzipped

With stove

 

[Silverhill]

That looks really good Reddo. I like the concept of being able to gather up the sides, but I also think having the base of the tent as a 'bathtub' may lend itself better to our British 'summer'. How do you get on with the chimney hole when you're not using your stove? Do you tie it off in some way?

 

[Reddo]

That looks really good Reddo. I like the concept of being able to gather up the sides, but I also think having the base of the tent as a 'bathtub' may lend itself better to our British 'summer'. How do you get on with the chimney hole when you're not using your stove? Do you tie it off in some way?

The zipped bottem is handy - not that we have used it in that way much - infact that is the only time and that was just to see what it looked like! Weather pfft!

Well we simply cut the edge off a carrier bag and place it over the top with an elastic band to hold it in place - stops the rain getting in. Having a stove in there is a good idea if your going to be using it often as when it rains the canvas kind of soaks it up (but doesnt seep through), Having the fire on for an hour or so completly dries the canvas out ready for packing it up.

I would say the ONLY downside to any belltents with this type of canvas is that it has to be dry when packed up otherwise it just goes moldy- as I say we just dry it out with a fire, bring a small brush along and at the end of the trip i go around the tent brushing off any left over rain drops, then we towel dry the underside of the groundsheet while rolling it up.

You get the hang of it quickly and once you have you can unpack and pack it within minutes.

 

[Silverhill]

Excellent info! Sounds like you have it down to a fine art! Thanks for the details.

 

[Reddo]

No Problem - I would recommend these tents to anyone - they are incredibly spacious, relaxing , easy and just plain great! Fantastic investment for any campers !

Zoe

 

[mountainm]

What kind of space does the tent + stove take up in the car (or do you take a trailer)? And do you cook on the stove? I've been tempted by going down this route for a while - but for family camping the practicalities of a trailer tent also appeal.

 

[Shewie]

I've not seen their bell tent yet but I had one of the G.O Bush Shelters a few years ago, really well put together and recycled materials too.

I keep looking at the tipi but not pulled the trigger yet

 

[Silverhill]

I keep looking at the tipi but not pulled the trigger yet

Just out of interest mate; why the tipi and not the bell tent? Is it personal preference, or is it to do with the simplicity/speed of assembly?

Also....Have you seen the porch extension for the tipi? It's Mahoooosive!

 

[Shewie]

Just out of interest mate; why the tipi and not the bell tent? Is it personal preference, or is it to do with the simplicity/speed of assembly?

Also....Have you seen the porch extension for the tipi? It's Mahoooosive!

Not too sure, I've just always fancied a tipi pitched up on a misty Scottish beach, log burner chugging away on a cold winters day, canoe parked outside the door. I guess a bell tent would be exactly the same though.

 

[Silverhill]

Fair point. I know a few folks with tipis, but none with Bell tents. I guess there's not much between the two though really.

 

[Davidn]

Hi silverhill,
i have a canvas and cast bell tent, the 4m one and it's great, but the canvas is heavier/thicker than the soulpad and belltent.co ones so weighs quite a bit. The 5 metre version comes in a wooden box its so heavy! It also has a much thicker groundsheet and a vent in the side ready for a woodburner. I also have a 2m x 2m tarp of the same thick canvas which is great for when its raining etc. I saw the green outdoors 5m bell tent at the Weald Wood Fair last year and instantly wanted one! they look great and with the extra size is still a lot lighter than mine.
In all my tent sleeping compartment and tarp take up quite a bit of room and are VERY heavy but when set up on a campsite we always get people coming over and commenting on how nice it looks, and as already raised above, the only real downside is when its wet when you want to pack up.
I also think you get slightly more overall headroom in a bell tent than in a tipi.

The G.O. one ticks all your boxes and the two lads that sell them seem like genuine chaps, so basicly what im saying is go for it!
No connection etc.

David.
David.

 

[Reddo]

What kind of space does the tent + stove take up in the car (or do you take a trailer)? And do you cook on the stove? I've been tempted by going down this route for a while - but for family camping the practicalities of a trailer tent also appeal.

The tent takes up alot of room in the car - our stove packs up into itself so takes up little room. We tend to take the trailer when we can but have managed it with two big dogs and a child, but that is in a reno scenic.

We most definatly do cook on the stove Its very good for cooking meals and heating water - although we have been known to take a single camping gas hob along for quicker cups of teas! But perfectly dooable without.

The one thing i will say is that it weights a tonne!

 

[ged]

Steve, you should talk to Cliff (twodogs on this forum).

 

[Prawnster]

I had a good look at the Green Outdoors Bell Tent at a show one summer.

To my eye the tent was built to a very high standard and looked absolutely fantastic especially with the winged tarp they had over the front. I spoke with one of the chaps who owns the company and he seemed very helpful and accommodating.

 

[spiritwalker]

when they do them in olive green i may be interested

 

[Silverhill]

Many thanks for the feedback folks, that's just what I'm after. I think going down the bell tent route seems to tick all of the boxes as opposed to the tipi (although I wouldn't pass one up for the right price). I think the green outdoors ones seem to fit the bill, but the others look equally good options. I shall keep saving the pennies and wait until later in the year before buying.

 

[HillBill]

More room in a bell tent than a tipi. More useable head room, the ability to raise the skirts on a hot day to cool it down ( now now gentlemen ), cheaper iirc. The only thing the tipi has going for it is that its green. But you could probably dye a bell tent.

All in all the bell tent wins hands down for me.

Fair point. I know a few folks with tipis, but none with Bell tents. I guess there's not much between the two though really.

 

[Silverhill]

More room in a bell tent than a tipi. More useable head room, the ability to raise the skirts on a hot day to cool it down ( now now gentlemen ), cheaper iirc. The only thing the tipi has going for it is that its green. But you could probably dye a bell tent.

All in all the bell tent wins hands down for me.

Glad I'm not alone in my thinking
I've always been given the impression that the bushy crowd favour Tipis, but this thread tells me otherwise!

Colour is not overly important to me to be honest. A shade of green would be nice, but I'm not the kind to get hung up on that. It kinda limits the options too as well!

 

[HillBill]

I think the "green" thing is just based on whats best for stealth camps and blending in. Its human eyes that folk try keep away from.. You certainly wouldnt take the bell tent out for a quick over nighter. They are for fixed camps/winter camping or touring really, but thats no different than the larger tipis. The bell tent is a better design imo, but the tipi is easier to erect. Both have advantages and disadvantages.