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Ground Sheet Materials, What do you use.

PostPosted: Wed 14 Mar, 2012 12:15 pm
by John Sheridan
I was thinking of using some packing foam, 1mmor 2mm, it's not that tough puncture wise, but should fold up nice and should give a bit more thermal protection from the ground, probably a bad idea, but hey you never know :)

I think the foam is really thin close cell foam, I just have some small peices, but a roll is like 70 bucks.

http://www.officeworks.com.au/retail/pr ... PPFOAM1200

Cheers.

Ground Sheet Materials, What do you use.

PostPosted: Wed 14 Mar, 2012 12:37 pm
by ULWalkingPhil
I use Tyvek. A sheet of about a Metre by a Metre and a half, only weighs 80grams. I place this under my hammock on the ground and sit my pack on it.


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Re: Ground Sheet Materials, What do you use.

PostPosted: Wed 14 Mar, 2012 1:05 pm
by Bluegum Mic
I also use tyvek (the soft 1443r type). In fact I ordered 3 meters yesterday and it was on my doorstep this morning. Time to sew now :-)

Ground Sheet Materials, What do you use.

PostPosted: Wed 14 Mar, 2012 1:20 pm
by ULWalkingPhil
Actually the piece of tyvek I have, was sent to me for free. I could be wrong but I thought it was you, Bluegum mic that sent me the tyvek sheet. It was a while back.


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Re: Ground Sheet Materials, What do you use.

PostPosted: Wed 14 Mar, 2012 4:21 pm
by tasadam
We use a piece of Tyvek under the tent to protect its base. No padding protection, that's what the sleeping mat is for.

Re: Ground Sheet Materials, What do you use.

PostPosted: Wed 14 Mar, 2012 6:41 pm
by Snowzone
Another vote for Tyvek. Put it through the washing machine first to ease the noise factor.

Re: Ground Sheet Materials, What do you use.

PostPosted: Wed 14 Mar, 2012 10:27 pm
by John Sheridan
I ordered some Tyvec with my Gatewood cape.

This footprint is made from hard surface Tyvek. This ground cloth is extremely durable and will protect your shelter floor from sticks and rocks.

This ground cloth works well with the Lunar Solo, Gatewood Cape, Vamp or Wild Oasis shelters.

Weight: 4.5 ounces
Size: 36" X 84"
Colors: White

Notes: For a softer feel, prewash your Tyvek in a washing machine. It will make the material softer and easier to fold.


Sounds like it's pretty good, not sure what type it is though sounds tough enough :)

Cheers.

Re: Ground Sheet Materials, What do you use.

PostPosted: Thu 15 Mar, 2012 6:58 am
by Capt DropBear
Washing machine aye? Never would've thought of that - I use a piece for my Scarp 1 footprint - thanks for the tip.

Re: Ground Sheet Materials, What do you use.

PostPosted: Thu 15 Mar, 2012 7:46 am
by Son of a Beach
I use the ground. It's fairly robust, but doesn't add anything to my pack weight. I've been using it since I was little kid and have never needed to replace it. I expect it will probably last longer than me and certainly longer than my tent.

In all that time, I've only ever had one hole in the floor of my tent, and that was by a large piece of pointy broken glass which would have gone through several layers of anything.

Re: Ground Sheet Materials, What do you use.

PostPosted: Sun 18 Mar, 2012 7:37 pm
by John Sheridan
Any tips on washing the tyvec will be nice, never done it, I just on opened it enough so its like 1 foot high and 4 feet long and folded like maybe 8 times thick, will that be ok to put in the washing machine, I don't need to open it up and more, just wrap it around the washing machines middle !!!!

The washing time, how long, just a regular or something special, Do I let it do a spin was on low or take it out before then and let it air dry ?


Whats the tyvec like when it's was, softer and or rougher, rougher would be nice, it's a bit smooth and slippery.

Cheers for any info for this tyvec noobs.

/pS I take it I just wash it in water, not detergent or washing powder right, how about some fabric softener :)

Re: Ground Sheet Materials, What do you use.

PostPosted: Mon 19 Mar, 2012 8:07 am
by Snowzone
Hi John, I would open it out as much as you can first. I did not use any detergent but did use warm water and went through one wash cycle. I let it spin but there was still some water caught in the layers. Then just hung it on the clothes line. It does loose some of its smoothness, comes out a bit more like a fabric but is still just as tough.

A large piece would be difficult to handle so I cut mine to size first before I washed it.

Re: Ground Sheet Materials, What do you use.

PostPosted: Mon 19 Mar, 2012 8:36 am
by tasadam
John Sheridan wrote:Any tips on washing the tyvec will be nice,

You could have a read HERE.

Re: Ground Sheet Materials, What do you use.

PostPosted: Mon 19 Mar, 2012 8:53 pm
by Tortoise
Bluegum Mic wrote:I also use tyvek (the soft 1443r type). In fact I ordered 3 meters yesterday and it was on my doorstep this morning. Time to sew now :-)

Hey Bluegum Mic. Where did you order it from? Have been keen to get hold of some for a while with no success.

Re: Ground Sheet Materials, What do you use.

PostPosted: Sun 25 Mar, 2012 12:13 pm
by John Sheridan
I wash going to wash the tyvec, but my fold and crumple and roll technique seems to be working fine, a few more days and it will be perfect, after one day it's a lot quieter and feels much softer.

Might wash it if it gets too dirty though, but I think a wash down with a wet cloth will be all it really needs :)

Do you think all you need is the tyvec directly under your sleeping mat and no where else in the tent, my gatewood cape has a floor, well the serenity net tent does.

Cheers.

Re: Ground Sheet Materials, What do you use.

PostPosted: Mon 26 Mar, 2012 11:41 am
by Aushiker
I use Tyvek which I ordered with my Tarptent Scarp 1. Yet to wash it but.

Andrew