Nylon VS Polyester Tents

August 04, 2017

Camp tents are made from different fabrics and each of these fabrics has its benefit as well as its demerit. For instance, cotton tents are very good for making quality tents and they also help to retain coolness even in the summer heat but their weight is a great disadvantage. Other materials like polyvinyl chloride and polycotton do have their pros & cons too. However, this article will be projected towards examining the two (2) most commonly used materials- nylon and polyester.

Nylon

Nylon is used in making most of the cheapest tents as well as some expensive ones. Nylon tents are usually coated with silicone, polyurethane or acrylic in order to make them durable.

Pros

• Nylon tents are easy to carry because of their lightweight. Considering this, nylon tents should serve a great purpose for campers who love to go hiking.
• They are waterproof. So, there is no cause for concerns over your shelter getting soaked.
• This set of tents are relatively inexpensive.

Cons

• Ordinarily, nylon tents are not very durable. This is why they are usually coated with either polyurethane or silicone. The ones with silicone coating are generally more expensive.
• A nylon tent can easily heat up when it is directly under the sun. This could eventually reduce the tent's shelf life.
• Nylon tents have a high tendency to slacken since they can take up some amount of water vapour.

Polyester

Polyester is another common material used in tent making, and it does have some similarities with nylon.

Pros

• Polyester tents are very durable. They last longer than nylon although they are often coated.
• Unlike nylon, polyester tents are heat resistant.
• Polyester tents are water resistant, and they get dry quickly.

Polyester is more workable than nylon. Consequent upon thus fact, tent manufacturers tend to prefer polyester to nylon.

Cons

• There are concerns over the breathability of polyester. It is hardly permeable to water vapour.
• Polyester tents can get oil stained.

From the foregoing, one would see that a polyester tent has an edge over the nylon tent. However, this is not to conclude that polyester is the overall best fabric for tent making.

 

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