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Thread: tyvek

  1. #1
    Senior Member Splinter's Avatar
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    tyvek

    Anyone have any experience using tyvek as a tarp? I have read the articles in the article forum and I have looked on BPL.com Before I ordered some off of ebay, I wanted to see if anyone could offer any personal advice about using the stuff as a tarp. Thanks
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    Senior Member kayak karl's Avatar
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    Tarp

    Quote Originally Posted by Splinter View Post
    Anyone have any experience using tyvek as a tarp? I have read the articles in the article forum and I have looked on BPL.com Before I ordered some off of ebay, I wanted to see if anyone could offer any personal advice about using the stuff as a tarp. Thanks
    its noisy, hard to dye, hard to sew and unforgiving in the wind. i use tyvek tape for corners and tie offs. i made a 10-11 tarp, liked it so much i bought a JRB 10-11. my son made a tarp tent out of a piece, he liked it and we bought a golite tarp tent. i pack a 3'-3' piece for sitting on and under hammock to set boots on. IMO it doesn't make a good dependable tarp.

    at work we made a tyvek hot air balloon, we learned it works and that TYVEK BURNS LIKE CRAZY and hard to put out.

  3. #3
    Senior Member tight-wad's Avatar
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    My 1st 2 multiday hammock hiking trips were with a tyvek tarp. As Kayak said, its NOISY. And its stiff, but it can be packed relatively small. My tarp was of a single piece, so no seams, etc. I used small, rounded, wooden "screw covers" in the corners to create a bulb that I could then tie a slip knot around to hold tie outs. When I saved up a few pennies I traded it for lighter weight, and much easier to handle syl.

    Say what you will about tyvek, but two things cannot be denied, its waterproof and windproof. No misty splash thrus in a pouring rain, and you'd better have good stakes/roots/shrubs on a windy day.

    I too carry a 2x4 foot piece on every trip for a sitting surface (no more ticks for this boy) and a "floor mat".

    I also made a G4 pack of tyvek. This used a combo of tyvek tape and stitching. 8 ounces for a huge pack! But, it was not adjustable and I did not get it just exactly right. Also, one of the seams tore due to the postage stamp effect.

    If costs are driving you to use tyvek versus syl then check out the article about making your own silnylon. $1 per yard ripstop from Wally's dollar bin, plus ~$4 for a tube of sil caulk, plus ~$4 for a gallon of mineral spirits and you're in business.

    If you want to use cheap tyvek to find out if this is the camping style you want to follow, then do it, but you will upgrade later as time and funds allow.

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    Senior Member Splinter's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by tight-wad View Post
    If costs are driving you to use tyvek versus syl then check out the article about making your own silnylon. $1 per yard ripstop from Wally's dollar bin, plus ~$4 for a tube of sil caulk, plus ~$4 for a gallon of mineral spirits and you're in business.

    If you want to use cheap tyvek to find out if this is the camping style you want to follow, then do it, but you will upgrade later as time and funds allow.
    Its a combination of spending the money and having materials that are comparable in weight and ability that are cheaper. I have tried the diy sil, but due to manufacture/operator error on my part, it didn't work out the right way .

    I'm sure one of these days I'll step up and spend the money, but I want to improve my power thread injector useage skills before I attempt a real piece of sil.

    Right now I want something that is durable and water/weather proof (or at least very resistant)and somewhat financially forgiving if I screw it up. There is a seller on ebay that is selling 9' wide pieces for 1.50.
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    Senior Member whitefoot_hp's Avatar
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    i have heard that tyvek is not completely waterproof.

    my friend, however, has used a very ghetto tyvek bivy as his only form of shelter on a two nights of rain backpack trip and did not complain. it was light rain, however.

  6. #6
    Senior Member tight-wad's Avatar
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    Tyvek is as waterproof as sil when used as a tarp.

    Don't know about making a tyvek bucket for carting water. Do know that I gave up on making a sil "bucket" for a gravity feed water filter system because water under only a few inches of pressure would bead up on the outside. And this was 1st quality mail order sil.

    Tyvek is durable and weather proof and forgiving of a lot of abuse. It will get "hairy" after a while...

  7. #7
    Senior Member Cannibal's Avatar
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    Even the Shires site says that their tarptent made with tyvex is not a good choice for a long heavy rain. It can't be too waterproof, maybe resistant, but not proof.

    Can't believe I'm posting a link to a dang tent. I must be running low on meds.
    Trust nobody!

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    The term waterproof doesn't always mean what people think it means. Our tendency is to think in absolute terms... that waterproof means it is waterproof no matter what. Turns out, that whether or not something is waterproof often does depend on something(s). That something in this case is pressure (could be temperature, soak-time related, etc as well).

    One simple way to get a rough idea on the pressure issue is to take a clue from what tight-wad said about the water bucket. Put a piece of the material under a faucet and try to make a water balloon out of it. If water doesn't seep through, try rubbing the bottom or squeezing the balloon some. You will see a difference in tyvek, silnyon, rip-stop nylon with and without DWR, various rain gear, pack covers, plastic drop cloth, etc. in how easily, if at all, water seeps through.

    If it seeps through a bit on that test, then it will be an issue as a tent floor if water is under the tent because your body weight, especially when you are on your knees and concentrate you weight in a smaller area, will generate a lot of pressure that is trying to force the water through the tent floor. Tent floors by the very nature of how they are used, need to be waterproof at a higher pressure than the top of the tent.

    If this waterproof versus pressure seems odd, it isn't and most of us have dealt with it with watches for many years where they specify at what depth various watches are waterproof. Water has weight and the deeper you go, the higher the pressure because of the weight of the water on top of you.
    Youngblood AT2000

  9. #9
    Senior Member animalcontrol's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Youngblood View Post
    The term waterproof doesn't always mean what people think it means. Our tendency is to think in absolute terms... that waterproof means it is waterproof no matter what. Turns out, that whether or not something is waterproof often does depend on something(s). That something in this case is pressure (could be temperature, soak-time related, etc as well).

    One simple way to get a rough idea on the pressure issue is to take a clue from what tight-wad said about the water bucket. Put a piece of the material under a faucet and try to make a water balloon out of it. If water doesn't seep through, try rubbing the bottom or squeezing the balloon some. You will see a difference in tyvek, silnyon, rip-stop nylon with and without DWR, various rain gear, pack covers, plastic drop cloth, etc. in how easily, if at all, water seeps through.

    If it seeps through a bit on that test, then it will be an issue as a tent floor if water is under the tent because your body weight, especially when you are on your knees and concentrate you weight in a smaller area, will generate a lot of pressure that is trying to force the water through the tent floor. Tent floors by the very nature of how they are used, need to be waterproof at a higher pressure than the top of the tent.

    If this waterproof versus pressure seems odd, it isn't and most of us have dealt with it with watches for many years where they specify at what depth various watches are waterproof. Water has weight and the deeper you go, the higher the pressure because of the weight of the water on top of you.
    Dave are you a teacher or something?
    You have a way of explaining things that even people of my limit mental capacity can follow along. Thanks!
    "Every day is a new day to a better future"
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    Quote Originally Posted by animalcontrol View Post
    Dave are you a teacher or something?
    You have a way of explaining things that even people of my limit mental capacity can follow along. Thanks!
    I have never been a teacher by profession but thanks for the compliment.
    Youngblood AT2000

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