Page 1 of 1

Wind Proof Tent...less noise...is there such a thing?

PostPosted: Mon Sep 21, 2009 12:42 am
by madeintahoe
Most of the time while sleeping in a tent when the winds whip up It does not bother me to much...For some reason this last time it seemed to really bother me especially because it kept me awake a good part of the night..with the flapping of the tent going like crazy!

I am just wondering if someone knows of a tent that is going to be less noisy in high winds?

PostPosted: Mon Sep 21, 2009 1:42 am
by jvarholak
ear plugs :wink:

PostPosted: Mon Sep 21, 2009 8:21 am
by Bootboy
Single wall tents (Bibler and others) are generally much quieter. I have a Bibler Ahwahnee and it keeps silent in moderate to high winds up to 30mph or so) although I haven't had it in a good gale yet.

PostPosted: Mon Sep 21, 2009 8:49 am
by Day Hiker
This isn't going to answer your question about type of tent, but I will tell what worked for me.

As my profile name suggests, I don't often do overnights, but on Aconcagua I spent 12 consecutive nights. There, I uses an MP3 player with earbuds and had music playing all night, every night. On normal nights, I just had the music loud enough to block out the sound of others snoring in nearby tents.

We had one really windy night at high camp, and the winds were 30-35 mph all night, with probably higher gusts. The tents were secured, but the walls were flapping all to hell, and I even got some cool video of it with the haunting sound of the wind. My partners in their tent didn't sleep much all night, I think. But I just turned up the music to full volume, and that blocked out the noise of the flapping tent. So even though I don't normally sleep to loud music, it was much better than the nerve-wracking sound of the constant wind on the tent.

So, while my buddies didn't sleep much at all, I got just as much (just as little) sleep that night as I did every other night at 18300 feet and 0 degrees F.

My partners and I both had the same type of tent: (single-walled) Mountain Hardwear EV2.

less wind noise

PostPosted: Mon Sep 21, 2009 7:57 pm
by Snowy
Bootboy wrote:Single wall tents (Bibler and others) are generally much quieter. I have a Bibler Ahwahnee and it keeps silent in moderate to high winds up to 30mph or so) although I haven't had it in a good gale yet.


Ditto. I have tried ear plugs, but then I can't hear an alarm. I've used the ipod method too, and found it quite effective.

PostPosted: Mon Sep 21, 2009 9:44 pm
by divnamite
Are you saying double wall tents tend to have more noise? Maybe because the two layers constantly rubbing against each other? I never really noticed them, but I did see a trick used by some guides. They would put two spongees, those yellow thick ones between the rainfly and inner layer. They are great, because you can also use them to wipe down the tent when you take the tent down.

PostPosted: Tue Sep 22, 2009 12:18 am
by Day Hiker
ear plugs


I meant to add earlier: I always disliked trying to sleep with ear plugs because, while they block outside noise, they intensify internal noise -- not the voices in my head, but my breathing. I have trouble sleeping to the sound of Darth Vader.

PostPosted: Wed Sep 23, 2009 6:41 am
by BLong
They would put two spongees, those yellow thick ones between the rain fly and inner layer.


Yeah I have seen this too. They even make some tents with this built in.

PostPosted: Wed Sep 23, 2009 4:42 pm
by SpiderSavage
Depending on where you are, just upgrading to a 4-season tent can help alot. 3-season tents don't handle wind worth a darn.

PostPosted: Wed Sep 23, 2009 5:06 pm
by madeintahoe
Thank you everyone for all the comments! Yeah the single wall tent makes sense..also the 4 season tent....we should have just went outside and slept! would have been less noisy.

Maybe one day either a good single wall or 4 season tent we will purchase....It is also all part of the experience of being out there...the night before it was as quite and still as can be :D

4 season

PostPosted: Fri Sep 25, 2009 5:15 am
by Hotfeet
4 season for sure! I love the Marmot Alpinist!