Making a tent on the roof of the car with your own hands. Car roof tent: which one to choose

Your car can be a truly universal object, which is suitable for movement, getting maximum comfort on long trips, as well as relaxation. We are not talking about a dream in the passenger compartment of a car that has a rather small enclosed space - in tourist trips this option will cease to suit you on the second day.

To get the optimal level of comfort, you will need additional accessories, which are tents on the roof of the car. Their cost is relatively small, but thanks to them you can get many advantages.

The only remark is that you must carefully approach the choice of a tent so as not to get into an uncomfortable position.

First of all, carefully study the characteristics of your car - this is necessary so as not to damage its power structure. The tent will rest on the roof - therefore, it will be the most loaded part of the machine, and it should be determined what maximum weight this structural element can take.

Check the permissible load ratings - the roof can withstand about 35-40% of this value. Therefore, if the payload of the car cannot exceed 500 kg, then the tent, together with the people in it, should weigh no more than 500 * 0.35 \u003d 175 kg. It will be possible to get together only if both people have a slender complexion.

The exception is models that have additional supports - however, they will be discussed later.

Experts have identified several classes of cars that correspond to various indicators of the mass of the tent - they should be taken into account when choosing a model for the roof:

However, it is better not to take risks and find the exact value on the Internet or in the car manual — it is indicated for all modern cars. The consequences of overloading can be sad - a bent roof and expensive repairs that can cause significant damage to the family budget.

An important physical characteristic is the overall dimensions that a tent on the roof has. Pay attention to this parameter for the selected model - if the product protrudes beyond the roof of the car, you will have to use special extension cords.

You should not choose too high tents - you are unlikely to want to stand in them, but in the forest they will cling to tree branches, which will increase the risk of damage and the inability to move the car even a couple of meters with the tent open.

What should you pay attention to when considering in detail?

It is worth remembering that the tent is a rather complex object, which is produced using modern technologies - this applies even to ordinary tourist models.

If we talk about models on the roof of the car, then the approach to production should be even more complicated in order to fully satisfy all the needs of a person, without creating an additional load and not increasing excessively the cost. Therefore, when choosing, you need to pay attention to many parameters that seem to most people overly detailed.

Design

The simplest tent is a pyramidal tent, the walls of which have a shape close to a triangle. Such models are quite inconvenient, since at high heights they provide minimal internal dimensions and often do not even allow two people to sit. An improved option is the dome, in which the tent looks like half a ball. It is much more spacious, but it requires more space and does not always fit on the roof of the car.

The ideal option is a complex structure with vertical walls and a sloping roof, which requires the use of a powerful frame, but it has the best ratio of internal volume to base area or height.

The tent is usually limited to a small building on the roof of the car - however, such a product is vulnerable to strong winds and other negative external factors.

An improved version - a model with a kind of "skirt" on the sides, which covers the car to the windows or even door handles. An additional strip of fabric protects against wind, and also significantly reduces the likelihood of moisture getting inside and retains heat much better.

The most expensive tent modifications have walls installed next to the car, which allows you to organize berths for the entire crew.

If the size of the car or the permissible load on the roof does not allow the installation of large tents, you can use special extensions. Any tent is placed on the mountings for the upper trunk - the so-called rails, and in this case, the area covered by them must be significantly increased. You can buy such devices in a tourist store - it is advisable to choose models made of durable steel, which does not deform after 3-4 uses.

To reduce the mass pressing on the roof of the car, you can use external fasteners, like construction piles. They rest on the ground, and take on part of the mass of the tent, however, the dimensions of its base should be larger than the dimensions of the machine by at least 15-20 cm.

the cloth

The question that always arises when buying a tent is what material it is made of.

The cheapest models on the travel market are made from nylon   - A popular synthetic fabric with excellent moisture resistance. The main disadvantage that a tent made of nylon has is its extremely low stiffness. After every night, it will have to be tightened, as changes in temperature and humidity can lead to some weakening of the mounts. A similar disadvantage is expressed in low strength.

However, these modifications are widespread due to their ability to fold to a small size and fit in the pocket of a car seat.

Much better strength in their models polyester   - a tent of a similar synthetic fabric will have to pay a round sum, but the costs will be fully justified. Mounted on the roof of the car, it can maintain an unchanged position for several days without the need for adjustment and additional tension.

In addition, the tent made of polyester is quite difficult to damage - for this you will have to use a sharp object, and not a branch that accidentally hits the wall. The only minus in addition to the high cost is the complexity of the deployment, due to the high density of the synthetic material.

Talk about tarpaulin   models do not have to - such a tent will be very difficult for a compact car, difficult to use and short-lived.

If you want an exceptionally strong sleeping place, pay attention to the modification covered with an additional protective layer of transparent silicone. It increases strength and rigidity, and also guarantees dryness and the absence of drafts inside. In addition, make sure that all the seams of the tent are carefully glued with sealant or the same silicone - this is also necessary to increase comfort.

Extra options

The best tents consist of two parts - a dense external awning and an internal "room", which is created from soft, pleasant to the touch material.

Inspect the selected product for the quality of the coating and feel it with your hands. An ideal option is the presence of an additional layer of thermal insulation, consisting of a soft filler and metal foil. This will help not freeze at night and not die from the heat during the day. In addition, in the base, which is installed on the roof of the car, in addition to the hard frame, a soft mattress must also be present - otherwise sleep will only bring you pain in the whole body instead of a normal rest.

In a good tent, inside pockets should also be present - it is convenient to store the most important things, washing accessories and clothes in them. There are also models where such a pocket can open outward, turning into a kind of dormer window at home.

An alternative is to expand the internal space by further expanding the tent outside the vehicle. Both of them help increase psychological comfort and cope with claustrophobia.

If you plan to travel in the offseason, you can not avoid heavy rains, thunderstorms and other troubles. To protect you, the tent should have not only a side skirt, but also a valve through which the entrance will be carried out.

The design of such a device resembles an air lock - between the outer and inner spaces there is a small “dressing room” that protects people from poor climatic conditions. It is best if both entrances are closed with a zipper protected by special strips of waterproof fabric.

It seems that tourism lovers got one of the best tents that are attached to cars. Now, outdoor recreation will become really comfortable - because, in fact, tourists received a two-story tourist house.

Hinge systems, tent frames, holders - all made of stainless steel or aluminum, so the parts are not affected by rust and are not toxic.

A great addition to the Treeline Outdoors hybrid tent will be.

“If people knew how nice it is to walk on the roofs, they would have long ceased to walk on the streets,” Carlson once said, and yet this folly was clearly “in the subject”. Most people not only didn’t walk on the roof, but also did not see the world from the height of the roof ... of their car, although auto-travelers certainly looked more than once at the tourist tents that were opened up there.

Roof life has obvious pros and cons. Let's start with the installation features. Unfortunately, the manufacturers have not yet figured out how to quickly and without extra dancing with a tambourine set up a tent on the roof. To set up a tent, you will need at least strong crossbars, and preferably a good expeditionary trunk. To fix the tent on the roof will take some time and effort.

“Why did you lie that you are 7 years old? You weigh on all 8 "...

Do not forget that the crossbars (roof rails) or the trunk must support not only the weight of the tent, but also the weight of its inhabitants, and the tent itself will occupy most of the space.

For example, two universal luggage racks from the auto parts store are clearly not enough for even load distribution and with a high probability the tent will collapse with the whole mass on the roof when fully loaded.

“- Well, flew? Asked Carlson. The kid once again weighed everything.
“What if you drop me?” He said anxiously. This sentence did not bother Carlson.
- Great trouble! He exclaimed. - After all, there are so many children in the world. One boy more, one less - nonsense, an everyday matter! ”...

Among the minuses of the exploitation of above-ground dwellings are both methods of lodging in a den, and options for its abandonment. Do not forget that the tent is set 1.5-2.5 meters above the ground and just like that, stretching out it will not work, or it will be accompanied by an acrobatic sketch.

“- From the roof, of course, the stars are visible better than from the windows, and therefore one can only be surprised that so few people live on the roofs” ...

In the list of positive moments of life on the roof, in addition to stars, I note the relatively constant combat readiness of the home and the soft mattress in it, as well as the comfort of placing it on an uneven or water-flooded surface. In some cases, it may turn out that it is simply not possible to put up an ordinary tent and you will have to sleep half-sitting in chairs.

For an individual layer of the population, it will be an important positive factor - excellent protection against crawling, jumping and running uninvited guests from the world of wild animals and insects. Many of them obviously will not be eager to learn to climb stairs or slippery surfaces of a car.

“-Well, tell me, please, but is it possible to do without a fight at all? Any dispute can be resolved in words! ”...

In order to decide which of the tent options on the market is better, you need to know what is generally available, but there are not many available - a total of only three types of roof houses.

1.   Book Tent. When folded, the tent is covered with a special awning and during transportation it looks like a rectangular object covered with an awning.

In the working position is given by folding the floor halfway to the side or back of the car and rests on the standard ladder-stop attached to the edge of the reclining half. The roof of such a tent rises automatically, and the "awnings" of windows and entrances are fixed manually using special stops.

In the minuses: less protection from external influences and the inability to close the casing (cover) of the tent with a lock.

2. Tent with a hard (plastic), fully raised top. When transporting such a tent is more like a plastic box-trunk. When preparing a berth, the roof rises up manually using a special handle. Together with the roof, soft side walls with doorways and windows also rise.

The tent can be equipped with a standard ladder, but it is not convenient to use it on all types of cars and, in most cases, on SUVs and buses it is better to have a stationary (fixed to the car body) staircase to the roof.

The casing (roof) of the tent is attached to the lower part using ties that can be closed with a small lock, and the plastic case protects the tent material from external influences relatively reliably.

3. Tent with a hard (plastic) top of type 2, but with only one lifting part of the roof. In the transport state it differs little from type 2, but in the working position only one edge is raised, creating a side view with a “triangle”.

A distinctive feature of this type of tent is a different organization of the internal space, because the lifting part rises higher than that of a tent with a fully raised roof, and the other part remains in place. A higher rise in the edge of the roof can be useful for easy dressing, for example.

This type of tent is highly resistant to gusts of wind. In the case of installing the tent in a windy place, the car turns with a rigid bevel against the wind, thereby ensuring greater stability of the structure.

To choose the type of tent you need to consider not only the operating conditions, but also the method of fastening on the car. For example, on the roof of an ordinary pickup truck (not a North American monster), the plastic case of the tent may not fit and there will be nothing left to do except how to choose the option with a half folding sideways. Again, due to the convenience of climbing inside with the help of a standard ladder-stop.

“- You can have a little break for yourself and make me coffee.”
- Make coffee? - asked the Kid.
“Yes, please,” Carlson confirmed. “I don't want to bother you particularly.” You only have to make a fire under the taganka, bring water and make coffee. And I will drink it myself "...

Separately, it is worth mentioning that tents with a lifting roof are put on alert in a few seconds - just open the clamps and raise the roof and no other actions are required. Except for installing a staircase if it is not on the car.

Camping tents can be installed on the roof of any car: not only an SUV, but also a sedan, station wagon, minibus or truck.

Camping tents are mounted using special clamps on the transverse rails or mounted on the trunk.

The most famous tents are ORT, James Baroud and Autohome. Recently, IKamper tents have been added to their company. The list of manufacturers is much wider. There are also Russian tents. For example, Alex from Rosavtotourizm and Nikita from the Vladimir company ABC-design. I did not see them personally, competitors assure that it is better not to save.

The main question is probably why this is necessary. Personally, I would prefer a tent on the ground. Still, if you want to go out somewhere at night, to do this, going down the stairs in the forest, is not very interesting. However, in some cases, these tents compare favorably with the classic ones.

Advantages of roof tents:

a) do not take up space. Convenient in campsites, where a separate fee is charged for the car and for the tent.
b) there are no requirements for the earth's surface. You can install on a small patch and not be afraid of swamps.
I often see this option in illustrations of travels around Iceland.

We studied the option of a trouser-case at MIAS-2016, where tents from James Baroud were presented. The main plus is that it takes almost no time to decompose it, and the built-in mattress is a convenient thing.

Since there is only one principle of tents, I’ll tell you about two manufacturers that I personally like.

The founder of IKamper in his childhood dreamed of his own treehouse and read out Jack Kerouac's travel novels. Today, his "home" can be taken to any place that can only be reached by car. IKamper specializes in tents that are installed on the roofs of cars.

The creation of Park’s own tents was inspired by the novel by American writer Jack Kerouac, "On the Road." However, unlike his idol, who preferred to hike, Park went on his first trip by car with a trailer. Since 2004, when Sun Park crossed the path from Boston to Los Angeles, and his charm for camping began. The first prototype tent on the roof of the car went on sale in 2014. Prior to that, Sun Park had tried and tested 20 prototypes.

The choice of the buyer is offered two types of tents. The Hardtop One tent is unique in that it takes 1 minute to install, 3 minutes to remove. Built-in spacers automatically raise the tent roof. All you need to do for installation is to unfasten and fix the two internal stabilizers. The tent has a solid fiberglass roof, waterproof and breathable wall fabric and aluminum honeycomb floor. Retractable floor: with it, an awning and a ladder are installed. Hardtop One can accommodate up to 4 people, its smaller version - up to 3 people.

The second tent is called Road Trip and is suitable for longer camping in nature. Due to several tents descending to the ground, it is convenient to have a picnic in such a tent. The U-shape of the assembled structure allows the tent to maintain stability in the wind and prevent stagnation of raindrops.

James baroud

For more than twenty years of his life, James Barode has devoted himself to producing the world's best car roof tent. An experienced camper, he was simply not satisfied with the available options for car tents. James understood that most of them were not comfortable enough and poorly equipped. So there was a tent Evasion Evolution.

The tent is designed for installation on standard crossbeams. Two longitudinal aluminum guides are pressed into the bottom. Clamps that can be moved along the tent are inserted into the guides. Clips, with the help of nuts, fix the structure to the crossbars.

And this is the Horizon Vision model: