Off-Season Storage for Roof Top Tents
There are various options when it comes to storing a roof top tent. Below we will discuss the do's and don'ts of storing your tent.
Although you are welcome to leave your tent on your vehicle for the Winter season, a lot of our customers decide to remove it from their vehicle for the Winter until Spring when camping season starts up again.
We advise against storing your tent outdoors if not on your vehicle and not being used. The elements can have damaging effects if not in use as moisture can build up with changing temperatures. Mold or rotting can ensue.
Tents do best when stored in a building with a consistent temperature – it can be cold or warm (most customers store their tents in their garage). We don’t worry about this when your tent is on your vehicle because you are using it and giving everything a chance to air out!
The main thing to keep in mind when storing a Hard Shell Rooftop Tent is the struts and hinges; we don’t want to add too much lateral stress and cause issues when opening.
Leaving your tent on your vehicle:
If you are going to leave your tent on your vehicle for the winter but don’t plan on using it, we suggest taking the mattress out, minimizing the risk of moisture build up.
Storing the tent upright against a wall:
*Regardless of your tent model - if you choose this storage option, to avoid injury or damages to valuables you must place a strap or two of good quality around the tent (one in the middle or two 12”/30cm from the edges) and attach that to your wall. This will prevent the tent from tipping over and falling on top of a person, pet or valuable.
Summit Suite:
You can store the Summit Suite by leaning it against the wall, but to keep all the hardware intact, you must put two blocks of wood underneath the tent before you lean it. You need to make sure you aren’t putting pressure on your gas struts, hinges or latches. This means any blocks or wood you place should be resting against the tent body and not be in contact with any of the hardware. This is what will provide the space between the ground and any hardware, avoiding any potentially damage causing stress on the hardware. We recommend putting the side with the latches face down, where you can place the chunk of wood/block.
Sky Loft:
Use a piece card board, a towel, your Ex’s T-Shirt (or any cushioning), and put it on the floor under the bottom edge of the tent as to not scratch the outer shell. You want the bottom of the tent (where the mounting hardware goes) to be facing the wall. You can put any side of the tent on the floor to lean it, except the side with your straps where you open your tent.
Storing the tent on the floor or a shelf:
You might have the floorspace or shelf space to store your tent in it’s normal, bottom down position. If you’re going to do this, make sure you do not put the tent directly on the ground or shelf.
Get a Pallet or Two Pieces of Wood (to mimic cross rails) and set the tent on top. This keeps airflow and prevents any water from creeping into the tent from the floor, as well as creepy crawlies.
Storing the tent with a hoist system:
If you have an overhead hoist or an at home strap system, you can hoist your tent up to the roof of your garage and have it sit above your vehicle. To do this, you can simply drive in to your garage, lower the hoist, secure the straps, and unmount it from your car. Now you just pull it up! Make sure you have a secure, legitimate system suitable for the weight and size fo the tent! A falling tent from above could cause serious injury or death or significant damage to any valuables underneath or nearby, and SMRT Tent is not liable.
Some customers find this to be a handy system because to re-install the tent they simply need to lower it back onto the vehicle instead of lifting it from the ground! Great for those who need to take their tent on and off often.