Drying a Wet Tent

Have you ever been camping in wet weather, and had to roll up a wet tent when it was time to come home? It happens all the time, and we get a lot of questions about what to do when this happens. First and foremost, NEVER store your tent for any period time with it rolled up wet – save the time it takes you to get home. It doesn’t take long for mold to grow on wet canvas. As soon as you can when you return from camping, unroll your tent and start the drying process. Here’s a few ideas for you:

If it’s sunny out, setup your tent in your yard – direct sunlight will dry your tent in no time. Does it need to be setup? It will dry faster if you set it up, but just unrolling your tent flat on your lawn will eventually dry it out – it will just take longer than it does fully setup.

What if it’s raining still after you return home? Unroll and spread out your tent in a garage the best you can. Unzip all windows and doors, and if possible place 2 camp chairs inside your wet tent to let air circulate between your canvas and vinyl tent floor.

Use a carpet dryer! If you have the space, and you have a carpet dryer fan – you might give this a try. Close all your windows and doors except for a small area where the dryer fan will blow into your tent. Your tent will inflate like a balloon and dry out fairly quickly.