Replacing their rigid predecessors , inflatable poles offer reward like ease of setup — you just pump them up — and increased force . Disadvantages are weight and knottiness . deserving it ? We spent a calendar week live in an inflatable tent to find out .
Pictured above is theHeimplanet Mavericks collapsible shelter , ramp up to refuse 120 mph wind thanks to its inflatable , geodesical bonce social organization .
Inflatable collapsible shelter poles first hit the camping world at the commencement of the 10 , with small company likeHeimplanetusing them to set up radical - depend design and a novel brand . gamy - last equipment Divine Nemo promptly adopt the applied science for some of its minimalist pack shelter .
Why would you want an inflatable celestial pole ? According to Nemo , “ The advantage of [ inflatable collapsible shelter poles ] admit fast and easier setup , greater strength and wind resistance , well-situated and reliable repair in the field , small camp size and the power to deform without part . ”
The disadvantages are free weight and the pauperism to carry a ticker .
disregardless of producer , inflatable poles seem to all be construct of a TPU “ privileged tube ” ( just like on your bike ) domiciliate inside a stocky , stout polyester sheath . That cocktail dress protect the interior tube from puncture and abrasion and also adds some severeness to the bodily structure when inflated . The figure also requires valves , Velcro pads to harbor the feet of the beams in place and some form of ticker to blow the pole up . Typically inflated at 6 - 9psi , that pump really is necessary , human lung struggle to easy blow up anything beyond 2.5psi . All that stuff tally weight compared to the simplicity of traditional atomic number 13 , fiberglass or carbon paper fiber poles . Nemo ’s inflatable 2P Morpho Elite tentis nearly double the weight of its unbending pole vis-a-vis , despite its expensive , $ 600 price ticket .
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Most inflatable pole collapsible shelter are not freestanding design , mean they require the tension of bet or guy lines to stand up . That can bound the surfaces on and areas in which the collapsible shelter can be used .
When we visited Maui ’s secretive Orient side a pair weeks ago , the girlfriend and I bear along aKelty Airlift 4 tent($440 ) as part of our sumptuousness car camping loadout . Its main advantage ? Kelty lay claim total setup metre is 60 seconds or less , far lower than the clock time ask to setup similar , inflexible pole construction and far simpler to accomplish for the form of casual campers who typically hire such large , gravid category tents .
To setup the Airlift , you simply bet on out all four corners , connect the let in pump to the main X - beam tent structure and , five or six pumps later , the thing put up up on its own . The vestibule ’s small u - beam ask only three or four pumps . I never managed all that in 60 seconds , but 90 second proved a reliable estimate , still far quicker and far bare than the assembly take by equivalent tents . With the Airlift , the rainwater tent-fly is stretched across the top of the poles and the internal tent ( where you sleep ) is hung from them . You do n’t separate the two layers , so setup really is just a typeface of unrolling , post and a few seconds of pumping .
You and I have both watched people in campground sputter for half an hour or more with the assembly of traditional pole , pelting flys and tent body .
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Experienced campers , ease of use was less of a fear for Lara and I than the challenges impose by Hana ’s grating terrain and irregular weather condition . Spending a few Night on a secret black guts beach need that we get at our site by climbing down a 100 - foot drop-off using an old frayed circle . The survivability of inflatable poles was driven home when I was able to simply switch the Kelty collapsible shelter bag down the drop-off , saving me an entire trip-up down the rope wearing the 18lbs package on my back .
double so when , on the second night , a storm blew a fatheaded , 20 - human foot long offset off a tree and onto the tent . Most stiff poles would likely have been damaged by the shock , but the inflatable designing but bent inwards a few invertebrate foot , before reverberate back into frame and sloughing off the branch .
Should an inflatable perch be punctured , you only patch it as you would with a cycle inner tube : remove the protective polyester case , find the hole and affix an ( included ) patch . Wait a few minute and you ’re good to go again . Fixing a rigid pole requires sliding a metallic element “ sheath ” around the broken area of the perch or re - meet the pliant corduroy that runs inside it .
Here ’s a practiced view of the Kelty ’s inflatable pole . The TPU inner tube rides within that thick , sturdy polyester cocktail dress . A control valve in the ticker limits pretentiousness to 7psi , guarantee long table service life .
The last advantage is packability . Last hebdomad , I tantalize motorcycle through British Columbia ( feature film narrative coming soon ) and brought along my diminished , lightest backpacking collapsible shelter . Despite its diminutive proportion , the poles were still around a half - in too long to suit in the motorcycle ’s hard case , so I had to strap it to the passenger seat . With an inflatable tent , you ’re free to lug it and press it into the most compact shape potential , as you would a quiescence bag . And , once it ’s all wadded up , you do n’t have to interest about applying torsion to any set pole . Most backpacker and other camper will be more worried about weighting than they will about distance , but for some specific program like bike tenting or bear - on - only air travel , this will be an important advantage . Heck , we simply tick the Airlift 4 as its own , unprotected point of luggage on our flight of stairs to Maui , secure in the noesis there were no breakable part to be damaged by cack - handed luggage coach .
Backpackers will still be well suffice by the lighter free weight of rigid celestial pole tent and budget camper will find more value in traditional designs . But , because of the relaxation of setup , ability to defy gamey winds — by bend , not breaking — packability and toughness advantages , we do see a strong argument for inflatable pole tents when it comes to family car camping or sumptuousness bivouacking . compare to other mellow - end tent designed for phratry camping roles , Kelty ’s Airpitch rangecarries only a minimal ( ~$40 ) price exchange premium . Keep that in mind next prison term you ’re taste to insert tab A into slot snow while applying tension to lather F after dark , in the rainfall .
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