Has anyone used a 10-foot tarp while hammocking?

[IK_]

Please, share your experiences.

[SilvrSurfr]

What type of hammock and tarp are you using? Does the hammock have a structural ridgeline?

I have a 10 x 10 GT Funky Forest tarp which I first bought as an improvement over the Hennessy Expedition postage stamp tarp. A 10 x 10 tarp is no fun - too big and acts like a giant windsail. I quickly stopped using it in an A-Frame configuration and switched to a diamond configuration (15 ft. ridgeline). Not much of an improvement.

Eventually I moved to 11 ft. simple, gathered end hammocks, and decided I needed to move up to tarps with an 11 ft. ridgeline. I didn't like the end coverage (or lack thereof) of a 10 ft. tarp over an 11 ft. hammock:

10 ft. tarp - 11 ft. hammock ridgeline. Tarp ridgeline 120 inches. Hammock ridgeline 110 inches. I also had to factor in coverage for the continuous loops at each end of the hammock (using Whoopie Hook suspension), so it's 110 inches plus 4.5 inches on each end or a total of 119 inches of tarp ridgeline I would need. The 10 ft. (120") tarp ridgeline wouldn't cut it, even with doors. The water breaks need to be under the tarp. Of course, a shorter hammock (10 or even 9 ft.) would solve the coverage problem, but 11 ft. hammocks provide a noticeable improvement in comfort for me, so an 11 ft. tarp ridgeline was the way for me to go.

The rules of tarp coverage are pretty much the same no matter what the length of the hammock. You basically want enough overlap on each end to cover the water break (in my case, Whoopie Hooks). A structural ridgeline on the hammock provides predictability in this area. If you're using the 83% ridgeline rule, then you always know that your tarp will cover the ends. I've never tried a hammock without a ridgeline, so I'm under the impression that end coverage could vary depending on hang angle, height of anchor point, etc.

So now I'm sporting an HG Winter Palace with doors.

11 ft. tarp - 11 ft. hammock ridgeline. Tarp ridgeline 132 inches. Hammock ridgeline 109.56 inches plus 4.5 inches on each end for the continuous loops (118.56" total). That gives me 13.44" divided by 2 equals 6.72 inches on each end. I consider this adequate coverage since I have doors.

The Warbonnet Blackbird is a 10 ft. hammock, and Brandon used to sell a Warbonnet Edge tarp with 10 ft. ridgeline since that was the minimum acceptable coverage for a 10 ft. hammock. However, he discontinued the 10 ft. Edge and now sells only an 11 ft. ridgeline Edge.

In summary, a 10 ft. tarp ridgeline will work fine for 10 ft. hammocks or shorter using a predictable 83% ridgeline. I'm not sure if it would provide enough coverage for a hammock without a ridgeline.

[IK_]

/snip

A 10 x 10 tarp is no fun - too big and acts like a giant windsail.
.....
So now I'm sporting an HG Winter Palace with doors.

// snip

Huh?

Not that this is too relevant to the thread subject, but I'm curious: a 10 x 10 tarp in A-frame configuration acted as a sail, but now a HG Winter Palace with doors does not?
How come?
These two tarps are pretty much equal size-wise, and their lateral footprint is just about the same when you fold the "doors" (partially or fully).
Care to explain?

[IK_]

C'mon, folks!
No one has ever used a 10-foot tarp?
There's no shame in this, come out now and 'fess up....
I know you are lurking out there.
I won't bite. Promise.

[SilvrSurfr]

Huh?

Not that this is too relevant to the thread subject, but I'm curious: a 10 x 10 tarp in A-frame configuration acted as a sail, but now a HG Winter Palace with doors does not?
How come?
These two tarps are pretty much equal size-wise, and their lateral footprint is just about the same when you fold the "doors" (partially or fully).
Care to explain?

The 10 x 10 GT Funky Forest Tarp can't be configured with doors (at least I never figured it out). It's not designed for that (though I suppose mods are possible). The guy-outs just aren't in the proper position. However, the HG Winter Palace is specifically designed for the ends to be closed off. It's essentially the same dimensions as the Warbonnet Superfly. When you shut those doors, the wind can't get under it enough to turn it into a windsail. The doors are really important in not allowing wind to get underneath the tarp, lifting it to the heavens.

[SilvrSurfr]

What kind of tarp and hammock are you using? People can provide more specific feedback if they know what you're using, rather than generic 10 ft. tarp.

[IK_]

Silvr,
I (foolishly) assumed that you had the tieouts on your 10-foot Funky Forest tarp modified in a manner allowing you to use the corners as "doors" of sorts. It just never crossed my mind that someone would use a 10x10 without taking advantage of this built-in opportunity to deploy improvised doors.

What kind of tarp and hammock are you using? People can provide more specific feedback if they know what you're using, rather than generic 10 ft. tarp.

All my hammock tarps are 11-footers, and I don't need feedback about tarps I am already familiar with.
I am considering a 10-footer (which I may or may not make myself or modify a rectangular one) but I prefer to learn more before I commit. To be used with several 10-foot gathered end hammocks and maybe with a single 11' long thrown in the mix. All my current and future hammocks are having a structural ridgeline.

I am seeking input mostly on what other hammockers disliked about their 10-foot tarps.
Hence the thread title "Has anyone used a 10-foot tarp while hammocking?".

[Tendertoe]

If the length of your structural ridgeline of your hammock is less than the length of your tarp ridgeline. The tarp will work.

A 10 foot hammock has around a 99-103 inch structural ridgeline length based off the 80-85% rule (a WBBB has a 101 inch structural ridgeline). That would give you 19 total inches of wiggle room minus your suspension if you want to keep a waterbreak under the tarp. So call it maybe 10 total inches of wiggle room or 5 inches per side using a WBBB under a 10 foot RL tarp.

I see no reason why it wouldn't work for intermittent light showers. I think the reason many people opt for larger tarps is to be covered in more situations (the extra few ounces to have more coverage in blowing wind and rain is a big plus for many people).

Another plus is having to be less exact in your setup with a slightly larger tarp (only having 5 or so inches of wiggle room per side with a 10 foot RL tarp vs almost a foot of wiggle room per side with an 11 foot RL tarp).

I have a friend that only camps if there is a 0% chance of rain and went 2 seasons without even having a tarp.

I myself have not used a 10 foot tarp while hammocking but have another friend that has an ENO ProNest tarp that has a 10 foot ridgeline and it works great for him as he purposefully does not go out in blowing snow or torrential downpours.

Long and short of it - a 10 foot tarp will work for a hammock that has a SRL length of less than 10 feet in light to moderate showers. Any blowing rain or snow and you risk getting wet.

[IK_]

Long and short of it - a 10 foot tarp will work for a hammock that has a SRL length of less than 10 feet in light to moderate showers. Any blowing rain or snow and you risk getting wet.

Tendertoe, thanks!

Yep, you summed up the conventional wisdom of HF.

However, (and this is precisely why I started the thread) how do you know that in blowing rain or snow I'm risking getting wet?
And how can you judge the probability of this (for sure, very likely, somewhat likely, unlikely, etc.)?

I ask, because you have no facts to back your assumption. It is just a theory. Perhaps you heard accounts of people who got drowned while using short tarps, and you no longer recall the details... The fact is, you have no personal experiences with such a setup.
Please, don't get me wrong, I am quite happy that you replied, and am not pointing fingers at you. I am merely stating obvious facts.

I, and lots of others on HF, have chosen longer tarps despite our shortish hammocks just following this "common wisdom", and acting on our fears. We have no idea whether we were right or wrong.
The facts remains, this thread attracts no posters, which tells me that most on HF follow the same logic.

I still hope I will get a few posters to share their stories with a 10-foot tarp, so we could intelligently draw conclusion based on actual facts - as opposed to (wrong or right) assumptions. I also hope a few of these posters would be experienced hammockers, so we could filter out the negative experiences with shortish tarps caused by "rookie" errors in setup.
And then, perhaps I would be able to push the envelope a bit farther with my tarp setup.
Or not.

P.S. Many of my trips are week-long, meaning that I can not afford "to stay home" when the weather gets bad - I need to deal with it, whatever it is. So, a "nice weather" only 10-foot tarp is not an option for me.

[dakotaross]

I've got a 10' Maccat knockoff that I bought off someone several years ago. At that time, I was hanging a Hennessy Explorer. The Maccat was replacing the old stock HH diamond, but it always seemed a bit short - I think especially since my HH was the classic bottom entry so that I was immediate exposed at the entrance or exit. Went from that to a 12' Toxaway which was great for use with the HH. Its still great with my 11' gathered end hammocks now, but I could definitely go with an 11' tarp now since I also have doors. My Tox with doors is a veritable palace!

I recently let a friend borrow the Maccat for use with his new 11' hammock. He seemed very pleased with it. So its all preference.