Nobody enjoys being cold, but winter camping is fantastic. This article will demonstrate how to safely heat a tent.
There is no one best way to heat a tent, but rather a number of tips and tricks that will all help a little to keep you warm even in the coldest of temperatures. The most helpful hints are listed below.
Prepping Your Tent for Absorbing Sufficient Heat
Before heating up your tent, it is very important to prep your tent first so that it can absorb and retain maximum heat from the sources.
Some useful tips for tenting preparation recommended by expert campers are shared below-
Set up your tent in a suitable spot
The location of your tent can have a big impact on how warm it stays at night. So, choosing a nice spot is an essential step if you want to keep your tent as warm as possible all night.
The wind will be your worst enemy if you want to keep your tent warm at night. Because these are windy zones, avoid camping on mountainsides or at the tops of slopes.
Do not camp in open areas for the same reason. If at all possible, seek out a location within trees that will provide shelter from the freezing wind.
Enclose your tent for camping
You can purchase a previously enclosed tent. Or you can make your own enclosed tent if you do not want to spend any extra bucks.
If you decide to enclose your tent yourself, make sure to leave enough ventilation so it doesn’t become too stuffy or even run out of oxygen while you sleep.
Enclosing a tent entails more than just plumping the walls and roof. You must also take into account the surface. Because the ground will be slurping heat away from your body all night, even a thin layer between your tent and the ground will help.
Leave some airflow
You must leave some airflow or risk having too much carbon dioxide build-up in the shelter, which can be hazardous.
To enclose your tent, you can use space duvets or even reflector bubble wrap. You’ll need to figure out how to secure it. To get decent shielding, try and cover quite as much area as possible, but keep in mind to leave enough room for inhaling.
Just in case, enclosing your tent is not enough, you must heat your tent. Some non-electrical and electrical ways of heating up your tent are explained below.
Place your tent on the campfire right after the fire ends
This is a great idea to keep your tent warm. Make sure there is no insulated sleeping pad on the tent floor if you do this.
They function by reflecting heat back to the source, causing you to heat the ground rather than your tent. Pit cooking inspired the concept. This has been done for quite some time.
They dig a hole in the floor, wait for the wood to burn out, then place the food inside and leave it to slowly cook for several hours. For several hours, the area should be exceptionally hot.
Some Drawbacks
Even though it’s a fantastic idea, I can already see some drawbacks. The first, and most vexing, is that you will have to wait until late at night to set up.
We’ve all experienced the frustration of erecting a tent in low light. The second disadvantage, at least for me, is that you must give up the fire.
The whole point of camping, in my opinion, is to have a campfire. It is not possible to go camping without it. So, if you want to initiate a different fire, I would look into other ways to stay humid.
If you include a big tent that needs to be kept warm during cold nights, you’ll most likely need to rely on modern technology to do so.
How to Heat Up a Tent Without Electric Power
I like the idea of camping in surroundings without using any power sources or devices that might deflect me from truly savoring my time there.
Yes, incorporating some technology may help you heat your tent faster, but is it worth the effort? When it comes to heating a tent without using electricity, I’ve discovered some simple solutions that are both effective and non-hazardous. But here’s the good news!
You can easily and safely heat up your tent with the help of thermal transfer. Thermal transfer is a material’s ability to absorb and store heat from a heat source, such as the sun or a campfire, and then gradually release it.
Materials with enough thermal transfer have the ability to warm a tent. Water, without a second thought, has the highest thermal mass of the three.
So, without any further discussion, let’s take a look at how we can heat our tents with moisture.
Heated stones
This hot stone technique heats the tent much faster, but there is a disadvantage. Stones do not trap heat for an extended period of time.
Locate some stones in and near your camping area. If you’re having trouble finding them, the best place to look is usually near a body of water. Start a fire and put the stones near to it. If you throw them in the fire, you’ll have a hard time getting them out.
And I’m certain that you don’t want scorched stones in your tent. Wrap the stones in fabric or textile material 30 minutes before going to bed.
Hot water bottles
This concept is widely used by farmers. You’ll need some hard plastic or metal bottles for this to work. Because the water must be heated to near-boiling temperatures, normal grocery store plastic water bottles will not suffice.
To heat the water, you’ll also need a boiling pan or something similar. The larger the bottle’s volume, the longer the water can store and release heat within the tent.
How to Safely Heat Up a Tent With Electric Devices
If you got a big tent that needs to be kept warm during cold nights, you’ll most likely need to rely on modern technology to do so. Here are some ideas for useful electronics equipment.
Candle heater
Candle heaters are an excellent way to add slightly better insulation to your tent. They can get quite warm and are pleasant to curl up around, but don’t expect them to add more than a few degrees to the temperature of your tent’s ambient air.
As with any candle, there is always the risk of it leaving a tip over and catching fire, so use caution. The best part is that they are inexpensive, compact and lightweight.
Electric blanket
This concept has a lot of potentials. Thin electromagnetic cables are usually built into the fabric of electric blankets. These wires will not come into direct contact with you, and most duvets have a fully automated shut method to protect against overheating.
If you can find one big enough to wrap around yourself. They typically operate at temperatures ranging from 24°C to 48°C.
The wires will lose some of their conductivity over time, and the maximum temperature may drop slightly, increasing power consumption at the same time.
There are many battery-powered rechargeable electric blankets on the market that you can easily purchase at a very low cost.
Electric heater
If you are setting up camp at a site with electricity and want to run an extension cord into your tent, there are numerous series of smaller electric heaters.
The small electric heating systems are safe for the tents, simple to use, and reasonably priced. Some of the most popular brands for electric heaters are Dreo, Honeywell etc.
BONUS:
- Lay down a tarp before erecting your tent. This is a slight layer, but it has the potential to be greatly helpful.
- Make a bed of leaves or soft pine branches, then cover it with a tarp for extra insulation. Make it as smooth as possible to avoid sleeping on a rough surface.
- Wrapping the space between your tent and the ground will help keep the draft at bay.
- Pack gear, leaves, or even moss around the outside of your tent to fill this space.
- The extra layer of a canopy will help to keep warm air in.
- Canopies trap air and do not breathe, so you should not completely cover a small tent with one.
Conclusion
Most tents aren’t designed to keep in a lot of heat, so if you want to stay warm during the winter, invest in a confined tent, a tent with a heating element jack, or gasoline or candle-powered tent heater. You should also place your tent in a strategic spot that isn’t too rough.
You can use hot water, stones, or pitch your tent over some entombed coals to keep your tent warm throughout the night. Also, make sure you have high-quality clothing and equipment to keep you warm. Enjoy your camping trip!
