Bathtub ground sheet for bashering?

[Toddy]

How about that when you create the corners you don't cut off the excess fabric but stitch it into a channel lying parallel to the seam. Simply slip in a long tent peg and use that the hold the groundsheet stable and pull out the corners/ sides too.

The IPK sounds ideal.
However, you could try it out first with a dirt cheap super lightweight waterproof fabric by visiting poundland and acquiring one of their plain dark green garden bench covers. Cut off the side panels and it opens out into a groundsheet big enough to fill the inner area of my three man tent For a quid, you could dump it if it doesn't work and not fret.

cheers,
M

 

[tombear]

Cheers for all the ideas folks!

I particularly like one PMed to me to use the issue single person mosquito tent

or more to the point the cut down bottom part of it.

I happen to have one, a minter picked up for £5 at Chipping Steam Fair last year so I have had a good look at it. The only problem is dealing with the bottom of the big inverted T shaped entry zip but thats surmountable.

I'm loathe to chop this one up but I've seen them cheep at other surplus places/fairs. The sides are too high as I don't want to restrict my vision when laying down but it seems to be a good way of doing it.

ATB

Tom

 

[bailout]

Some ideas here

http://www.backpacking-lite.co.uk/diy/make-an-ultralight-tent-bathtub-floor.html

 

[wentworth]

Great picture! Was there no higher ground that remained unflooded in the area? I've never had this happen to me, but I do live in a different country and camp on higher absorbent ground if possible.
I also like the pink dish brush

I wonder whether a bathtub floor would remain completely watertight when sitting in a puddle like that with weight ontop of it. Makes me think even that might eventually wick water through.

 

[tombear]

all i want is something to keep a little bit of the water and muck off me sleeping bag, not go white water rafting in, sniff....

 

[wentworth]

I'd recommend getting some 3 mil plastic sheet, maybe 2m long and make a knot in each corner. These could be propped up with a stick, one on each corner. You'd only have to prop up the corners to form a bathtub in heavy rain.

Or if you can sew, it'd be easy to fold the corners into the right shape and put in a few stitches to keep them in place.

 

[Paul_B]

Take a look at this site.

http://www.teamio.co.uk/shop/category_9/Groundsheets-_-footprints.html?shop_param=cid=&

The groundsheet stuff seems quite cheap to me. Their main page says something about made to order. Perhaps a word to them and you could get what you need made for you. I keep meaning to sign up to paypal so I can get stuff from them. Heard good things about them.

I do think you were unlucky and perhaps it was just the area you went to. I know of a place on a raised, flat area above the nearby river by several metres. It is in the Lakes near Eskdale. Whilst most of the time it is a relaatively dry pitch (even when raining it had never got waterlogged). Anyway one wet night (not excessively wet I thought) I woke up to water filling the downhill part of my tent up to where thee mesh allowed it to get out. I got dressed into dry clothes (I often put my day clothes into dry bags just in case) and opened up my tent and put my boots on with the laces tucked in to relieve myself as it had stopped raining. I sunk dpown into the waterlogged graass so the inch of surface water was an inch below my high cuff boots. Turns out the hill forming two sides of the relatively rectangular site funnelled the water directly at my tent and away to the opposite corner and thee river.

That was bad luck and the bathtub inner didnt help.

With hindsight it was obvious that rain could cause problems there. Perhaaps it is thee case in that area thaat a bad weather forecast should have sent you somewhere higher up. If not then try team io they might help you.

 

[tombear]

Cheers for that, just ordered a 2.25 M lenght of the superlightweight stuff from teamio.

I'll see how I do with that while I work on something more elaborate.

ATB

Tom

 

[Nat]

all i want is something to keep a little bit of the water and muck off me sleeping bag, not go white water rafting in, sniff....

Get a hammock fella

 

[Celt_Ginger]

How about a cheap tent from Argos or Lidl and cut the bathtub ground sheet out of it.

 

[tombear]

Get a hammock fella

I'm 18 stone +, habitually sleep on my side/front (the belly wedges me up) and I mainly go on the moors so a hammocks a non starter really...

Cheers for all the input folks!

Tom

 

[tombear]

We are still waiting on some of that light weight material from teamio but in the meantime I picked up a new IPK for 3 quid and I've cut off a piece 7 foot 6 inches by 3 foot . It weighs about 10oz (310gm) and folds down about as big as a paperback book (say the Colour of Magic). It will do for sitting on to brew up etc as well.

ATB

Tom