Plastic tarps?

**Riverpirate** · 03-04-2010, 16:58

Is it just the weight that keep you guys away from the cheap plastice tarps at the hardware store?

**SuperTramp** · 03-04-2010, 17:03

weight certainly is an issue but noise is a bigger one for me,also plastic tarps are cheap because they are cheap!they wear and the grommets tear out.those are my main reasons but...if i had nothing else than i wouldn't hesitate to use one if that was the only factor keeping me home

**Trooper** · 03-04-2010, 17:13

Weight and the amount of size it consumes in a backpack are the negatives for me. I'll bet that most other members have the same considerations. Then there is the intrinsic value of how cool a silnylon tarp is when pulled taught.

When I was in high school, I backpacked with a large ALICE pack and a brown tarp from Wal-Mart and 550 paracord. Now I use a brown silnylon tarp with Type 1 paracord and a lighter pack. At my young age I can handle the extra weight easily, but why should I?

**Hetairoi** · 03-04-2010, 17:22

I've used one before on a canoe trip when I had nothing else and it worked just fine.

No way I would carry one in my pack on a hike though, too heavy and WAAAY too bulky.

I imagine, like supertramp said, they would wear out pretty quickly also.

WV · 03-04-2010, 17:33

When you need them, plastic tarps work great. Long ago I went tent camping with a group of six people. We had 3 small Walmart tents with dubious, tiny rainflies, so I took along a sheet of 4 mil plastic about 10' x 20' just in case. Camped next to the High Falls of the Cheat River. As we were setting up, it started to rain, so out came the plastic. We tied pebbles into the edges (precursor of Grip Clips) and strung that plastic every which way from Tuesday, covering all 3 tents. Then it rained for 20 hours, the hardest rain I have ever been in, and the tarp held.

The Cheat River was brown and churning, up 6 feet from the day before - scary!

But, yeah, they're heavy. Better not to need them.

**oldgringo** · 03-04-2010, 18:07

I've got one I'm playing with right now. I thought that I would sew some webbing into the grommets Hawk-eye style, but having done it, I'm having second thoughts...I suspect the stitching just perforated the plastic. That may be the ultimate limitation: you can't do anything to them to work around their shortcomings.

For an el cheapo tarp, Tyvek is prolly a better choice.

**JohnSawyer** · 03-05-2010, 00:56

x2 on the tyvek. I have a nylon tarp I made, but before that I had a 9x12 piece of tyvek.

(run it through the washing machine for 5 minutes, no soap) Still really noisy, bulkier than nylon...

**Trout** · 03-05-2010, 06:46

I used the plastic tarps when I was a kid camping with a YMCA group - car camping. Backpacking it's a last option.

**Riverpirate** · 03-05-2010, 11:10

I have used them alot to make my cheap tent waterproof. Most (actually all to this point) of my kamping is eiter car or kayaks so weight is not a problem. I understand the desire to be lite when hiking. To me cheap and very water proof are a good thing about the plastics.

**opie984** · 03-05-2010, 11:36

It is certainly something I would suggest to someone who was still on the fence with hammock camping. rather than trying to convince them that they need a silnylon tarp or purchase an expensive prefab, just buy one of the plastic tarps from Wal-Mart or local hardware and try that. Of course, with a loaner or DIY hammock for the ultimate low cost "to convince them that hammock camping is the way to go" set up.