Bug nets for hanging out under too, (not just for sleeping).

I first posted this to the Hammock forums at white blaze. I thought I would post it here too to see if I could get some additional feedback Thanks pc



Hello Hammockers. I have a bug net question.

To preface, I often camp where there are many bugs, low lying areas where one tends to find more standing water. I don't always have the luxury of finding that perfect spot high up with a a good breeze . More often I am back in the brush, somewhere low lying with a swamp near by.

So here is what I want to see if you have any thoughts on. I would like to have a bug net system that not only protects me while In the hammock but also one that i can hang out under comfortably while cooking and doing general camp chores. Here are some requirements. I like to hang my tarp high enough so I don't have to stoop to move around underneath it. I am currently using a Speer 8x10 but plan on getting a 10x10 or better so I can get the tarp edges closer to the ground with my high setup. I set the hammock and tarp independently. I also anticipate the need to go to the ground on a regular basis this summer, (western locations), so I need the rig to be flexible enough to accomodate this.

I have been thinking that perhaps the lightest solution would be to build a tarp with netting sewn to the edges. The drawback I see with this is that I am locked into having the netting with me all the time, also, and more importantly, I often set the tarp in odd configurations depending on conditions and it seems that a intergral net system may not be flexible enough for these different setups.

This makes me think that a large net, close to the size of the tarp that can be hung from a ridgeline and reaches to the ground might be the solution.

Has anyone used a setup like this?
Does anyone know where something like this could be bought?
How hard would it be to make one my self and am I more likely to have a lighter finished product with a homemade rig then with a store bought one, providing a premade one could be found?
Would I be able to find someone to sew something up for me that would be affordable?

Thats' it for now, thanks for your ideas and thoughts. Popcrn.
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if you click on "forums" at the top of the home page, then go to "home made gear discussion", then go to the 3rd page, you will see a thread titled "DIY hammock bug bivy".
hammock engineer is at least going in the right direction for what you have in mind.
but i would imagine having it a little bigger yet so it would go to the ground, but maybe have a small floor area that's more durable for standing, cooking etc. just a thought. ...tim

Let me kow if you have any questions on it. Definitly make the opening bigger on yours. Also my first attempt did not account for the girth of the hammock. Something to keep in mind.

Whatever you come up with, post pics for the rest of us.

What you are talking about sounds similar to what the military calls an "insect bar":

http://www.galleria-e.com/cgi-bin/Co...Product/103801


These suspend easily, but are very heavy! I have made something similar out of a lightweight noseeum mesh, but not as tall.

Mine came out around 7 oz. I think you could make something big out of noseeum for around a pound.

Check here and see if you can adapt something: http://www.tothewoods.net/HammockCampingBugFree.html

And look at the JRB protoype tents here and make the sides out of netting.
http://www.tothewoods.net/HikingPicturesMtRogers.html

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Just Jeff

And look at the JRB protoype tents here and make the sides out of netting.
http://www.tothewoods.net/HikingPicturesMtRogers.html

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That's a good idea. Check out the rayway bug tarp thingy. A larger version of that and the JRB tarp with more netting would serve as your tarp and bugnetting. You really don't need a floor.

Thank you for all the informative and interesting replies and apologies for my tardy response. I think that the Hammock Engineers bug bivy looks great. I think though, if I could control the weight, the insect bar that Chazmo linked to is on the track that I am thinking of.

It seems to me that if there where some loops or ties sewn into the insect bar in the correct locations, sixteen to twenty four inches from the bottom, they could be hooked to the tie outs on the tarp which would give the netting some shape and hold it up and out, thus following the drape of the tarp.

I am really intrigued by the links to the prototype J r J hammock tent tarp. This fall in cold weather I often pulled the ends of my tarp together to cut the wind. My tarp just wasn't big enough to cut it though, the bottom was always to far off the ground to make pulling the ends together particularly effective. In driving rain however it was nice. It looks like the jacks Have added a separate panel of material to the outer edge of their tarp which will hang straight down, this is what I was thinking of doing with netting. I would think that this panel could be made from a lighter weight material then the tarp proper. Does anyone know if the panels are removable? I wonder how their setup would work when one has no trees and thus must set up with poles causing the tarp to be much closer to the ground. If anyone has more information on the Jacks hammock tarp tent I would love to know more.

What kind of netting material do folks suggest would be the best to use for a project like this? Are there pros and cons to different types of netting. I would want one fine enough to keep noseeums out for sure. Are the lightest weight netting materials substantially weaker then the heavier ones, do they tear if they get tangled in briers for instance? I wonder if putting a zipper at the end would be worth the weight penalty? Just thinking out loud here, any thought or comments appreciated.

i believe the tarp sides are made of 1.1oz ripstop, but i can't remember if the jacks said it was silnylon or a DWR treated rip stop.
the side panels are permanently sewn on, but they can be rolled up & secured out of the way when not needed. that's what you would probably do w/ them if you needed to go to the ground.

noseeum isn't much lighter than ripstop. There's only 2 types of netting for noseeums, noseeum netting and nanoseeum, everything else has bigger hole sizes AFAIK. If you did use netting on the side, I'd sew in some tarp material along the bottom, maybe even actual plastic tarp material, so you don't have your netting dragging on the ground. My netting always gets pine needles and junk stuck in it. You could velcro netting on, but it can be a pain in the butt, zippers could work.

I'd just go with a tent ;)

Otherwise, I'd put real fabric along the sides, unless you're keen on having some mesh windows. Almost the same weight, and it'll help block wind. Although my netting over my hammock seems to block some wind on it's own, so... >shrugs<