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projectkamp
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Making a sturdy single person tent
Project Kamp will stay in pretty basic conditions for a few years in the beginning until we setup enough housing for everyone. And likely in the long term the project will expand in the summer and shrink in the winter. In order to give people a good place to sleep in summer but not build too many things we need structures that we can take down. Tents are great for this, but we cant find excactly what we need. In this topic we will try to make the perfect tent for us! And we share the drawings so others can replicate :)Building
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Problem with existing tents
created over 1 year agoedited over 1 year ago
Most tents are not made to stay and live in for many months. They are often low and have a large surface area, this often because the design needs to be strong for winds but light enough to pack and travel. This often also results in thin (plastic) canvas material. We like to think there is a tent that fits our needs better. Since we don’t need to travel with it, so the size and weight is not a limitation. We would also like to have it higher that you can properly stand in it, have space for a bed and little storage area and setup on a deck. Turns out tents like this don’t really exist. We found these three examples that somewhat fit our needs.
1. This one is custom made, you can’t buy it and drawings are not available.
2. This one is for children indoors.
3. Bell tents are commonly available. But the surface area is to big for one person and you often can't stand in it.
All are a good inspiration and have nice elements, but not what we need. So we will try to make one..
Starting tent prototype #1
created over 1 year agoedited over 1 year ago
Our first prototype will be made by Kaegh and Eva that live close by. It will be a very basic model of 2 x 2m. We will make a frame and sew the canvas. It will be setup on a wooden deck of about 2 x 2.5m. In this way you still have some space in front. Here a first sketch.
Final design tent prototype #1
created over 1 year ago
The aim of the tent is to make it simple to reproduce with readily available materials and tools. The design is made to be easy to break down and store.
THE CANVAS
- Tent canvas is broken down into 3 separate pieces. This made sewing and storage easier and the whole process less complicated.
- The outer canvas has to be made of 2 pieces sewn together with a ‘semi flat felled seam’ which is waterproof.
- The canvas is made from 100% Cotton
- Velcro is used to open the door and window
- The front canvas is made of 2 separate ‘door’ pieces.
THE STRUCTURE
- The structure is made from pine beams from the hardware store and sheet material (this can be planks or board, depending on what is available.
- Special attention must be placed to the angles of the joining pieces. These will depend on the final dimension of the tent.
- The main structure pieces are screwed and glued together - the joining structure is bolted together.
- The connection points are made from wooden triangles (but these can be replaced by metal joining plates and L brackets)
Making tent prototype #1
created over 1 year ago
We started making the tent.
CANVAS
This is not an easy job to do. Some sewing experience is required, however if you are eager to learn, then it could be a really cool project. Have patience and think things through well, before you cut and sew. Important to have, is a good and big floorspace to measure/cut/sew the big pieces of canvas. What made this project intense for me is not having an industrial sewing machine with a big ‘arm’ for enough space for big pieces of canvas and not a big table to work . Having this would make it much nicer. This project was the first tent of this specific model, so that always requires some thinking through the whole process. But it is very fulfilling when you see it coming together, working well, and looking nice :)
STRUCTURE
The structure is fairly simple. The angles for the beams that make up the front and back face of the tent must be cut accurately, but the rest are simple straight cuts.
The most time was spent in coming up with a strong and fully wooden connection. I tried using pine boards which I had left over from a previous project. The main issue is that pine splits easily along the grain, so special attention had to be made with pre-drilling the board or they had a tendency to split. These could be replaced with steel connections, but I preferred the wooden aesthetic and it was what I had available (I also think that these are ultimately stronger as steel tends to flex quite a lot)
Building the deck
created over 1 year ago
We made the deck for the tent. It is made from local red cedar that we got from our local sawmill. The main beams are 80 x 160 and 2500mm long. We added a chamfer to the beams’ end to prevent water from being sucked into the beam.
The main beams were leveled on top of the granite rocks that we found on the land. Natural rocks are good footing for decks, or in any situation where you need to connect wood with the rock. There are almost always different sizes of rock laying on the ground that can be easily collected and placed under the beams of the build. Different sizes of rocks help also the amount of groundwork that needs to be done. For the places where the ground is lover, you can add larger rocks and smaller ones where raising is not needed that much.
Planking boards are 200 wide and 30mm thick. There are 100mm overhangs over both sides. I used a pencil for the assembly to make spacing even throughout the planking process. The wood wasn’t dried, and there will likely be some twisting, bending, and splitting caused by the drying. The top planking was screwed with 40mm screws. Two screws in both ends and two in the middle will probably keep the wood relatively straight. Preventing wood from splitting is a harder task after the assembly. After a few days, there was already some smaller splitting in the planking. We left the whole assembly untreated to try and see how it will last.
Assembling + Download Files
created over 1 year agoedited about 1 year ago
We assembled the tent! Took a few hours to setup and puzzle it together but it's here!
Everything is documented
💪 Watch the video here: https://youtu.be/Z150jt7AZXg
And download the files below
Download files
51 downloadsFeedback after 1 Season usage
created 11 months ago
After using the prototype tent for a season (few months) we've analized some problems to improve. It's many small little things but it all seems to be centered around shrinking. In the pictures below you can see it
1. Still standing! Funny fact: We used 2 different pieces of fabric (one was leftover) they looked almost identical when we set it up, but they colored quite different
2. Inside is still good. Only remark is coming in with velcro isnt ideal. Next time we would do a zipper.
3. Main issue. The canvas shrunk quite a lot. As you can see here, the fabric used to come until the bottom.
4. Due to the shrinkage many connectors dont really fit anymore or are under a lot of tension
5. Because the fabric got shorter rain can also come in. As you can see here water got on the floor
6. The velcro we put on also detached itself in a few areas because of shrinking.
Overal a pretty good start but needs improvement.
We will try to upgrade this one.
Upgrades in Season 4
created about 1 month ago
The tent received an upgrade in spring 2024 based on the issues mentioned by Dave in the previous update. First, to make the fabric meet the platform again, we added a piece of fabric to the bottom right edge of the outer canvas panel so that it reached the floor again (image 1). The outer canvas was also sewn to the back and door panels at the borders so that the buttons no longer had to be used (image 2 & 3). It is no longer as easily removable but it does almost keep the rain out (check next update for more details). To secure the fabric to the frame, wood was screwed to the platform from the outside to trap the canvas (image 1 & 4). Lastly, the velcro door was replaced with a zipper that closes at the top of the door, for easier access (image 5 & 6). Those were the main adjustments and how it was when I moved in in June.
Feedback after 2 Seasons usage + personal experience
created about 1 month ago
The wooden platform is doing very well. There are gaps between the floorboards (image 1), so the floor dries easily and provides valuable air flow for the fabric. It also allows insects to enter. I personally don't mind but whoever lives there next, might not want these visitors, and we should prepare for that. The second thing worth mentioning is the two “outside” planks in front of the door get slippery when wet.
The wooden tent structure is holding out, but some places are showing signs of moisture, and the bolts are rusting slightly (image 2 & 3), probably because of moisture from the fabric. It's still solid and has withstood 3 storms during my stay so far.
The fabric and the seams are still waterproof, but there is some mildew on the roof (image 4). I think this is due to a lack of ventilation because the gaps in the floor don’t provide enough airflow for the whole tent, even with the window left open. The only adequate ventilation is if the door and window are both left open, which is not ideal if the tent is empty beacause animals could try to move in. There is also one leak in the fabric in the back left corner. It seems that water drips down the outer canvas and behind the wood that secures it (image of wood in previous update). From there it seeps into the tent, wetting the floor (image 5). This will also keep both the wood and canvas wet and will shorten its life with us.
The door is much more convenient with the zipper. It is strange to have one that zips upwards (images in previous update) as most tents have downward zips, but it works. The problem with the door is that it is not attached to the frame at the bottom so animals can enter easily (frogs, lizards and a mouse so far) and if there is a storm, it can get blown in and wet the first "indoor" floor plank (image 6). My current solution is to leave something (like a water bottle or a yoga mat) behind the zip to stop it being blown behind the frame. It works, but is not the most permanent solution...
My overall experience has been amazing. I arrived in Project Kamp with a leaky 3-person tent. I used it for 2 months before I moved into this tent, where I have been for another 5. The comfort of being able to stand up fully and of trusting your belongings will stay dry in rain is invaluable. I enjoy the three minute walk to our living areas, and it is perfectly placed in the field to be protected from most winds. It doesn't bother me to not have electricity or wifi at the tent either. Overall, a great first design that is very usable and is already a big step up from your average camping tent. Feel free to leave any suggestions on how to imporve the design!