Condensation tips?

[LA Hunter]

I like the candle lantern idea. I'm in the market for a tent with a hot stove capability to eliminate condensation first and add heat second. From what I understand, it increases airflow and draws moisture out of your tent.

What is your experience with the impact of lightweight stoves to curb condensation? How do the candles compare?

This is for the backcountry without horses or llamas.

 

[Kevin Dill]

I'm not familiar with using any type of candle to help with condensation mitigation in a single wall shelter. I will just say that it seems logical to test this out in conditions that produce plenty of condensation...before betting on it to work for you in your particular shelter and setup.

 

[live2huntelk]

Five Tips for Avoiding Condensation with a Single Wall Shelter

Any single wall tent or shelter, regardless or material or manufacturer, will be prone to condensation. Even a flat tarp with no one under it will collect some moisture in the right conditions. Luckily, there are a handful of easy steps to help avoid condensation issues. 1) The first one is to...

zpacks.com

 

[LA Hunter]

Those Zpacks are intriguing and I like their write-up.

I found another article from SeekOutside. They elaborate on the benefit of a wood stove. SO's large, ultralight wood stove with the 8' pipe weighs only 41 oz or 2.6 pounds.

An excerpt from their condensation article helps explain the benefit of a candle that was mentioned earlier in this thread:

Tent wood stoves provide a dry heat that changes the dynamics of the condensation equation. Warming the air inside allows it to hold more water, which allows liquid condensation to vaporize. Once vaporized, opening a door to let the warm humid air escape dries out the interior. Even relatively soggy ground can be dried over time using this method.

Portable wood stoves help dry out wet gear as well, removing another source of water vapor. In cold weather, the inside canopy is often frosted in the morning from water vapor expelled through breathing. Firing up the stove will quickly melt and vaporize this frost so that it can be moved out of the tent.

 

[Mansfield Outdoors]

Some options to consider here - first, you can eliminate condensation issues altogether by going with a breathable cotton/poly canvas tent instead of a non-breathable single wall coated nylon tent. Tentipi's Olivin 2 cp is an excellent option (video below).

Or, Tentipi's Olivin 2 Light is a lighter, silicone coated ripstop nylon version has the ability to be used in it's most lightweight version by taking out it's inner-tent, and, when it's inner-tent is left in place, the inner-tent creates a breathable liner with full sewn-in bathtub floor that eliminates the condensation problems in the nylon versions.
Checkout the full Tentipi Adventure Products lineup at www.mansfieldoutdoors.com. And feel free to give us a call at 425-501-7512 with any questions or concerns.