Waterproofing a parachute

[mikethescout]

My scout troop has an old army paracute, that we use for a shelter over the campfire as well as sleeping in. The only problem is that it isnt waterproof...

I think its made out of silk, so is there anyway that you can suggest to waterproof it??

Here is a picture of it in action on our recent easter camp:

Thanks,
Mike

 

[Neumo]

I remember reading a thread on here before about doing this. Have a seach round BCUK & you should be able to find it. I am looking for a chute at the moment, so will want to do this fairly soon myself.

 

[Tony]

It would be hard to waterproof a chute due to the nature of the chute and the material, if it's tight and it's got a good slope then it can shed quite well, another alternative is to double layer it with a gap in between them but this is hard to set up.

If you cut the chute down it's length you've more chance of getting rid of the baggy belly of the chute that can act like a bowl for rain, it collects and just drips and drips.

you should play with different configurations as some work very well

Good luck with it

 

[rik_uk3]

Tar from the smoke will proof the chute over time.

 

[Nonsuch]

I used a brand new-old parachute last year on the caledonian canal - several days of rain. In heavy rain the parachute let a very fine mist through, but not really noticeable, and with the fire underneath no-one really noticed. Apart from that it seemed pretty waterproof, if pitched steeply and without huge "bags" to catch the rain.

If the chute is too big a diameter and therefore too baggy for your area then you can tie two of the cords together to reduce it.

Alternatively If you go for the half-tipi pitch, doubling the chute over into a giant semi-circle, then you have two layers and it is pretty well waterproof.

NS

 

[SMARTY]

Its hard to water proof a chute. An alternate method is to alter the angle ang taughtness of the chute to suit the weather conditions. This will increase and reduce the amount of room underneath it. I've tried all sorts of stuff to water proof chutes, none really work well.

 

[rik_uk3]

As you can see here, the weather was grim, but the chute was pretty much water tight. As I pointed out in an earlier thread, the tar in woodsmoke seems to proof the chute a lot. Nigel had hung the chute from a tree and it worked very well all weekend.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9-4xZWRx1HM