Selecting a tent - what's this hydrostatic mm?
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It's the height of a column of water before it'll leak,
They sandwich a piece of the fabric in a flanged tube and fill it up
The Hydrostatic head is how much it will resist before leaking.
Big numbers are good.
They sandwich a piece of the fabric in a flanged tube and fill it up
The Hydrostatic head is how much it will resist before leaking.
Big numbers are good.
widu13
Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
To be honest I would take it all with a pinch of salt. HH is an indicator which can suggest how waterproof a tent might be, but a lot depends on the shape and style of the tent too. Cotton Canvas has a low HH reading, but I would far sooner be in my Canvas Bell Tent in a storm, than in one of my more modern tents. Actually a good indicator is price! Expensive tents tend to be better made and therefore more waterproof. But it also depends on what the fabric is treated with as well. Keep your tent regularly reproofed and it will perform a lot better.
id second the above good taped seems and good quality rule but personally i wouldn't go less than 2000
indeed - for a modern tent I'd be looking above 2000mm but I read somewhere that Cotton Canvas is only about 400mm so hmm?
actually they don't usually quote HH for cotton because its a bit meaningless
Groundsheets often need a higher rating as they receive more pressure from feet etc (this can make them leak more than just rain falling on the roof)
The Hydrostatic Head rating of cloth is an unrealistic test, as it is only testing the water proofing agent and that in ideal conditions.
look for things like: Taped seems. Ultraviolet resistance you want it to last. The poles both carbon fiber and glass are suseptable to heat damage. A hot summer's day
and they can delaminate, stick to ali.
get the sales person to put it up for you if they cant do it avoid the tent like the plague they erect tents for a living if they cant do it what chance do we have?
or its an awfull shop and go to another shop.
look for things like: Taped seems. Ultraviolet resistance you want it to last. The poles both carbon fiber and glass are suseptable to heat damage. A hot summer's day
and they can delaminate, stick to ali.
get the sales person to put it up for you if they cant do it avoid the tent like the plague they erect tents for a living if they cant do it what chance do we have?
or its an awfull shop and go to another shop.
HH of 1500mm is officially "waterproof" according to the standards but it is not a dynamic test. You can get driving rain which will go through 1500mm HH. Personally I'd only consider 3000mm HH as waterproof.
As far as price goes then it can be a bit misleading indicator of quality. I have a sub £100 tent with a HH of 10000mm (10m) for the groundsheet and 8000mm for the fly. Now if anything gets through that in the next 10 years I'll be very surprised (UV will degradfe Nylons over time and even polyesters found on cheaper tents bur polyester is more UV reistant). My other sub £100 tent is about 5000mm HH with taped seams and all that. It is very good at shedding weather and has endured some very nasty storms with driving rain too.
In most things price is an indicator of quality but you are always best making your own judgement. I have a 1500mmHH tent bought from Argos for £5 for a canoeing festival weekend when I had left my main tent at home. The choice between sharing the back of a small van (think astravan sized) with a big Scot or sleeping under the van (a very old one with suspicious suspension) or spending £5 on the ARgos cheapy I know which I went for. I had a good night but due to alcohol I zipped every zip I could find up and passed out. Result was a bear with a sore head and a lot of condensation. Still broke my pints of guinness record which still stands at 11.5 pints plus some other Ale I cannot remember. Note guinness is very filling my pints of bitter or normal ale stands a lot higher.
BTW a £5 tent bought for one night and used for one night with a free campsite on one very cold November night is not too bad really. Although I haven't taken it out for the plastic bag it came in since (about 3.5 years). I reckon if I do it willl smell of mould/mildew and beer that was sweating out of my pores.
Anyhow, back on topic. I'd ignore HH and concetrate on the other features you are looking for myself. Any tent worth having will be sufficiently waterproof if it meets your other needs. I mean how many high mountain, geodesic tents do you know about with low HHs? I can answer that, NONE. It would not be suitable for that use if it had low HH. Probably the fabric would not be strong enough anyway for that application if it had 1500mm HH.
As far as price goes then it can be a bit misleading indicator of quality. I have a sub £100 tent with a HH of 10000mm (10m) for the groundsheet and 8000mm for the fly. Now if anything gets through that in the next 10 years I'll be very surprised (UV will degradfe Nylons over time and even polyesters found on cheaper tents bur polyester is more UV reistant). My other sub £100 tent is about 5000mm HH with taped seams and all that. It is very good at shedding weather and has endured some very nasty storms with driving rain too.
In most things price is an indicator of quality but you are always best making your own judgement. I have a 1500mmHH tent bought from Argos for £5 for a canoeing festival weekend when I had left my main tent at home. The choice between sharing the back of a small van (think astravan sized) with a big Scot or sleeping under the van (a very old one with suspicious suspension) or spending £5 on the ARgos cheapy I know which I went for. I had a good night but due to alcohol I zipped every zip I could find up and passed out. Result was a bear with a sore head and a lot of condensation. Still broke my pints of guinness record which still stands at 11.5 pints plus some other Ale I cannot remember. Note guinness is very filling my pints of bitter or normal ale stands a lot higher.
BTW a £5 tent bought for one night and used for one night with a free campsite on one very cold November night is not too bad really. Although I haven't taken it out for the plastic bag it came in since (about 3.5 years). I reckon if I do it willl smell of mould/mildew and beer that was sweating out of my pores.
Anyhow, back on topic. I'd ignore HH and concetrate on the other features you are looking for myself. Any tent worth having will be sufficiently waterproof if it meets your other needs. I mean how many high mountain, geodesic tents do you know about with low HHs? I can answer that, NONE. It would not be suitable for that use if it had low HH. Probably the fabric would not be strong enough anyway for that application if it had 1500mm HH.
