How much paracord do you need for Tarps?

[Grendel]

May sound an odd question but now I have a bivi bag and DD tarp (and one man tent for when I cant be bothered) how much Paracord do I need to be carrying with me to make a tarp shelter for a large chap like myself?

Also where is the cheapest place to buy Paracord at present?

 

[Maggot]

You can but green 'utility cord' from 99pLand. It's basically 4mm green paracord, I think it was 20m for 99p (obviously), or 5 x 3m lengths, sold as guy ropes. I'll let you work out which is the better value.

 

[Mesquite]

For the ridgeline it all depends on how far apart the trees and how big they are that you pitch between

A good rule of thumb is 2.5 times the length of your tarp ridge so for a 3x3 pitched square rather than diamond you'd need about 7.5mt.

Guy lines, mine are about 3mtrs long.

 

[Ogri the trog]

Its all up to you,

The less you have to carry....

The more you have the greater flexibility you have...

7m ridge and 3m guys should be pretty near the average!

ATB

Ogri the trog

 

[bilmo-p5]

Get a 20m hank from the poundshop, cut it in half, then cut one half into 4 and heat-seal all the ends.

Rig your tarp in the various set-ups you think you might use and see how you get on - @ 5p/m it's cheap enough to get more if you need it.

I hardly ever use a ridge line but might use anything from a single guy of perhaps 3m to a couple of guys and a couple of lifters which may take 20m or more.

 

[Scottishwanderer]

You could get away with as little as 1 foot. The more you have the more configurations you can utilise.

 

[Teepee]

I like 12m for the ridgeline and at least 1.5m for each of the guys.

 

[EastSussexScout]

i have 2x 8m lengths, one for the reidgeline and the other strung under the tarp to hold my smalls and things i'll need in the night. (glasses, lamp, bag with phone, keys etc in) then 4x 3m guy lines for the corners. i bought a 100m spool of trac-pac cord for £10 online. gave me more that enough to rig up for me and some mates then used the rest to make rope woggles for my beavers for christmas.

 

[rik_uk3]

Guyline cord is easily strong enough for a tarp, don't bother with paracord these days.

 

[BobvanVelzen]

6 x 3 meter guylines, 5 meters for the ridge. I use 3mm cord for this, paracord is way to heavy. I have 10 meters of paracord somewhere in my pack already.

 

[Graham_S]

I use reflective guylines that I bought for a couple of quid from millets.

 

[bmh9716]

I use bungee cords there easier than doing lots of knots and hitches. I always carry paracord just in case