Please recommend toughest material for winter tarp to be used in extreme conditions

[MrJames]

I want to make a large winter A-frame tarp with doors, not as cramped as my Superfly, and one with no snow or sleet or wind blowing in on the bottom anywhere --only the open slits for the hammock lines at the apices for ventilation.

I live in a severe winter area with most of the snowfall on my hilltop property blowing sideways, and am not concerned about the weight of the tarp fabric. (Local and car camping only for this one.) Anti-noise is also a consideration.

What is the strongest material you recommend for this?

BTW, I do have several 12 foot and 16 foot Kelty Noah's tarps like new that I could cut and alter and resew. Would that material be good for subfreezing strong winds and sleet?

Thanks in advance.

[Txscout]

You could always make a double layer tarp out of what you have if there is enough and it's not good enough by itself. Don't know if anyone's done it, but it would be interesting.

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[OutandBack]

I have no idea what material would be the toughest based on your requirement but I stumbled/watched this youtube vid today it might give you an idea or two.

[SilvrSurfr]

Why do you want the strongest material possible? I'm not sure I get that requirement. If weight is no object, canvas might be a consideration.

[syc]

Maybe the strongest in terms of tear and abrasion resistance, as well as waterproofing would be to pickup some of the heavyweight Cuben fiber like the 1.43oz/sqyd or the polyester faced version at 2.92oz/sqyd. The dyneema fibers will make them super tear resistant, and since its basically a grid of dyneema fiber sandwiched between thick plastic sheets, its pretty much totally waterproof. Putting a polyester face on it will make it more abrasion resistant.

It would cost you a small fortune to make a giant tarp like that out of cf.

A more reasonable option for a bomber winter tarp would probably the RSBTR HEX70 XL with the PU3000 coating. Burlier than that would probably be the RSBTR 420D Robic - that really gets into the epic zombie apocalypse prepper territory (imho).

[johnspenn]

Your Kelty 16 won't work for what you want it to do? Seems like you could rig it to do what your OP said.

[Boston]

I'd probably think about using something like this:
https://ripstopbytheroll.com/product...-hyperd-pu4000

If you get a lot of snow I would consider adding poles also.


You should be able to rig your Noah 12 or 16 to do what you want. May need to add your own tie outs.

[GreatBigDave]

I'm with SS here, no weight restriction, strong, deep winter (well below freezing), closed up tight to the weather - Canvas is the way to go. Add somewhat more resistant to heat and flame to the list of pros if you want to put a stove in it.

[MattK]

Personally, in snowy conditions, I always prefer a silicone coated fabric. Mostly, the slipperiness of the fabric is a huge plus for shedding snow. Other fabrics (cuben fiber, PU coated) can tend to be "stickier" in cold and snowy conditions, which might cause more snow build up.

In light of that, personally, I would probably built a tarp for extreme winter conditions of Xenon wide for the silicone coating and extra coverage of wide fabric. Add a couple internal pole mods and I would be set.

If you are looking for something a little more...abusable, and permanent, A coated canvas would be a good option. Though, you likely won't want to use that in liquid precipitation. From a simple standpoint of strength, you could use 1.43 cuben fiber or a 210D Dyneema ripstop. Those are backpack materials though, and will be expensive and serious overkill, even for serious winter weather.

[Pennsy Camp and Canoe]

I live in a severe winter area

this caught my attention so I looked at your location, lol yep I'm just west of you in Erie. Have you tried your Kelty in the snow yet? My first hang last winter i met a guy using his Kelty and it seemed fine with the ends closed up. I am playing with the idea of internal pole mod for my Kelty 12 footer for winter.

Also, I'd check out what Shug uses in the winter, they get a ton of snow up there. If I was making a semi permanent shelter (like leaving it up for week at a time) I would consider canvas, we used it in the Army up at Ft. Drum in the winter, it was water proof, had some insulation, and extremely durable, just heavy as heck.