Review: Grand Trunk Hammock Mosquito Net

[HoosierGuy]

This is taken from my review at www.hoosierbushcraft.com. I had a great time with this Grand Trunk Mosquito Net and it's really nice that you can use it with virtually any hammock model.

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When you're in the woods and the weather is nice and hot, you can typically be sure of one thing, you will get to deal with bugs at some point in your trekking. One of the worst times for the little nuisances to come around and start pestering you is when you are trying to rest and relax

There are several ways to deal with the little critters and it's entirely up to you. You can hose yourself down with sprays, which will usually work well, but leave you with smelling like a chemical factory and all sticky. You can light citronella candles or other brand name chemical candles and take care of some bugs, but you never really thwart all of them that way. One thing I like to do is to keep a fire smoldering throughout the night and while that usually works great, you can't keep all of the little biting critters away.

http://i172.photobucket.com/albums/w3/Treadshooter/bushcraft/P1010350.jpg

http://i172.photobucket.com/albums/w3/Treadshooter/bushcraft/P1010351.jpg

Enter the Grand Trunk Mosquito Net. I have been a big fan of Grand Trunk when I first got my single wide hammock from them a few years back and have become a devoted "hanger" when camping, or just on the trail. At night, I find it relaxing to sleep in my hammock and found that I can get a very good nights sleep while hanging from some trees. I've been pretty lucky with the crazy bugs here in Indiana, but there are always a few that like to get a snack while I'm sleeping or taking a nap in my hammock. For more about Grand Trunk Good, check out their site here and take a look at their selection.

The GT Mosquito Net is a lot like the military models that many of you have probably seen, either in person or in several catalogs. The night thing about this net is that you get a few modern additions that make it easy and enjoyable to use. The first thing that caught my eye was the carry bag it comes with ( a rather standard thing that GT attaches to their hammocks and like items) and the fact that the entire thing was able to fit into a fairly small pouch that is kept closed by a drawstring closure and a cord lock. It also comes with a handle on the side, which I found handy since I stood the pouch on end in my pack to save on space.

http://i172.photobucket.com/albums/w3/Treadshooter/bushcraft/P1010352.jpg

http://i172.photobucket.com/albums/w3/Treadshooter/bushcraft/P1010353.jpg

Once pulled out of the carry bag, you notice that the entire net is rolled up very tight and the first thing you think to yourself is "Man, I sure hope I can roll this up the same way and fit it back in that sack!" Unrolling it reviled the two 32" Spreader poles that break down much like most collapsible tent poles. The poles are meant to spread the top of the net out on both corners to give you more room, a task that they handled without any issue. There is also a long length of cord that runs along the top of the hammock for hanging purposes.

The first step was to unroll the netting, find of the the ends, make sure you have the right side up and slide it on over your hammock. I already had my hammock set up so I could rest in it throughout the day. It was a simple matter of unhooking one of the ends of the hammock from the tree straps and just slide the netting over until the other end reaches the other side. On the net was in place, I got out the two spreader poles and put them together. Both poles fit just right in the provided fabric slots that are sewn into the netting itself.

http://i172.photobucket.com/albums/w3/Treadshooter/bushcraft/P1010358.jpg

http://i172.photobucket.com/albums/w3/Treadshooter/bushcraft/P1010359.jpg

http://i172.photobucket.com/albums/w3/Treadshooter/bushcraft/P1010357.jpg

http://i172.photobucket.com/albums/w3/Treadshooter/bushcraft/P1010361.jpg

http://i172.photobucket.com/albums/w3/Treadshooter/bushcraft/P1010365.jpg

With the hammock spread out, I hung up the cordage that was attached to the top of the hammock via some eye-lets to the same two trees that the hammock was hanging from. I found that hanging the net about 2-2.5 feet above the tree straps seemed to provide distance between the hammock and the top of the net.

http://i172.photobucket.com/albums/w3/Treadshooter/bushcraft/P1010363.jpg

http://i172.photobucket.com/albums/w3/Treadshooter/bushcraft/P1010367.jpg

With the top taking shape, it was time to add spread out the floor and add the aluminum tent stakes that I brought along. Note that the GT Mosquito Net does not come with stakes, BUT it does give you the ability to stake down the four corners of the floor, which made for an excellent place to store my gear!

http://i172.photobucket.com/albums/w3/Treadshooter/bushcraft/P1010364.jpg

http://i172.photobucket.com/albums/w3/Treadshooter/bushcraft/P1010366.jpg

http://i172.photobucket.com/albums/w3/Treadshooter/bushcraft/P1010370.jpg

Two more nice features that the GT Mosquito Net has is a two sided zipper door to get in and out of the net easily. I found that the zipper was easy to work (a comfort for that 4AM bathroom break). Another nice thing is that the opening for the hammock tree straps has a pull cord so you can tighten the holes completely and use the provided cord lock to keep everything closed up all the time leaving no holes at all for those uninvited guests. I slept through the night very well and also had a peace of mind that I wouldn't wake up in the morning with bugs using me as a pin cushion.

http://i172.photobucket.com/albums/w3/Treadshooter/bushcraft/P1010369.jpg

http://i172.photobucket.com/albums/w3/Treadshooter/bushcraft/P1010362.jpg

http://i172.photobucket.com/albums/w3/Treadshooter/bushcraft/P1010371.jpg

All in all, I'm very impressed with the GT Mosquito Net and would highly recommend it to anyone who already have a hammock and lives in an area where bugs thrive. The net worked flawlessly with my GT Single Wide hammock and all of the materials were top notch. I even managed to roll it back up nice and tight so that it fit back in the carry bag!

http://i172.photobucket.com/albums/w3/Treadshooter/bushcraft/P1010373.jpg

Let me know what you think about this review and if you would like to see more. Thanks for reading friend and thanks to Grand Trunk for making such a great product for us bug minded people :-)

- Bill

Company Site - www.grandtrunkgoods.com (http://www.grandtrunkgoods.com)
Mosquito Net - http://store.grandtrunkgoods.com/hammocks/hammock-mosquito-net

[Poppabear]

Nice review thanks for sharing with us.

[R00K]

Thanks!!! What's the weight on this guy?

[HoosierGuy]

Thanks!!! What's the weight on this guy?

Here's a few of the details. I can say that it's light and fits easily in a corner of your pack, or could clip to the outside easily.

Weight
22.5oz

Dimensions
144" x 32"

Floor Size
90" x 32"

Here are a few size comparison pics with a standard Nalgene bottle.

http://i172.photobucket.com/albums/w3/Treadshooter/bushcraft/P1010401.jpg

http://i172.photobucket.com/albums/w3/Treadshooter/bushcraft/P1010402.jpg

http://i172.photobucket.com/albums/w3/Treadshooter/bushcraft/P1010403.jpg

[Cannibal]

In my personal experience, I have found white bugnets to severely reduce visibility from inside the hammock. How is the visibility on this one when you're laying in the hammock looking around? Is your view clear, or does the white wash everything out and reduce clarity? It looks like a nice piece of gear. :cool:

[HoosierGuy]

In my personal experience, I have found white bugnets to severely reduce visibility from inside the hammock. How is the visibility on this one when you're laying in the hammock looking around? Is your view clear, or does the white wash everything out and reduce clarity? It looks like a nice piece of gear. :cool:

Cannibal, thanks for the question. I found that during the day, the white mesh did indeed make visibility more limited than your standard OD from the surplus store.

Nighttime was just the opposite, which I actually liked :) I would rather have a little more visability at night anyway...always good to see that bear strolling up to give you a sniff :thumbup:

I really like the ability to stake out the floor and have a dry (and semi-secure) place for your pack and/or gear. Something I just thought of, if you have a buddy with you and the bugs are heavy, he or she could sleep at the bottom and you hang above in your hammy..call it, wilderness bunk-beds :)

[Cali]

Looks pretty nice, I didn't realize they had spreader bars on them. That sure makes it nicer and keeps the net off of you.

[HoosierGuy]

Looks pretty nice, I didn't realize they had spreader bars on them. That sure makes it nicer and keeps the net off of you.

Heya Bajahanger, that is one of the nice features of this net setup. You get the feeling that you have plenty of room to move around and set up your gear. I'm very pleased with this setup :)

[Acer]

white bug nets also attract less mosquitos and crawlies as well..or so I am informed by what I have read and been instructed on in Jungle Warefare School training. lighter whiter clothing for jungles etc. etc.

[TomsBackwoods]

Nice review Thanks!

[taylo]

That's pretty interesting. Only issue I see is if it rains you got mud and debris all over the bottom of the net which you then have to pack up into the bag with the rest of the net. So then the whole net has mud and debris on it.

Not too bad though. I like it. I just dont like messy gear. The more 'off' the ground, the better.

[The Pooka MacPhellimey]

Cannibal, thanks for the question. I found that during the day, the white mesh did indeed make visibility more limited than your standard OD from the surplus store.

Nighttime was just the opposite, which I actually liked :) I would rather have a little more visability at night anyway...always good to see that bear strolling up to give you a sniff :thumbup:

I really like the ability to stake out the floor and have a dry (and semi-secure) place for your pack and/or gear. Something I just thought of, if you have a buddy with you and the bugs are heavy, he or she could sleep at the bottom and you hang above in your hammy..call it, wilderness bunk-beds :)

Thanks Hoosier Guy...

I needed that information. I found this review on your blog at www.hoosierbushcraft.com before I found it here.

Im in Australia and ordering this stuff from the US is a bit of a leap of faith sometimes and I really appreciate the reviews I get through the forum and blogs like yours!

I am interested in this net for a very specific reason and I would love to know if anyone has tried it. You mentioned it above.

I am looking for a solution to taking my boy camping in a very buggy environment: the Jungle in Far North Queensland, North Eastern Australia.

Can you comfortably hang a "Hammobunk" inside this huge net?

Have you tried it?

Has anyone tried it?

I'll need 30-40 cm of space between the suspension on the two hammocks and I see that I might need to do a little custom work to get the seal around the two suspension systems right.

Or has anyone got another suggestion?

Thanks.

Take Care.

Pooka