How to check that my tent is in good condition before going camping - title

How to check that your tent is in good condition before going camping

To ensure that your arrival at the camp site isn’t ruined by any nasty surprises, don’t forget to check your tent before leaving home!

The first day of the adventure! It’s time to set up your home for the night. Take out the biscuits (always start with some comfort, however the sayings may go), then the canvas, the bedroom, the pegs... before you realise that there’s a little problem.

To avoid any last minute problems (something missing, the tent needed repairing, etc.), we advise you to anticipate and always check the condition of your tent before leaving.

Here’s a checklist of the key points from our tent product managers so that you can leave with complete peace of mind!

➡️ Before leaving: take the tent out of its cover, wash it and clean off the mould

The most important step before you go camping is to take your tent out of its cover and pitch it. Whether it’s in your lounge, garage, garden, or even in a public park if you don’t have enough space, it’s the best way to check it’s overall general condition. Check every corner of your tent, as well as the proper condition of your pegs, poles and guy lines. Take the opportunity to count them to ensure none are missing. ⛺️

You’ll be able to take the opportunity to revise the tent’s assembly and disassembly, all at leisure and if necessary, by watching the dedicated video. Don’t deprive yourself of this help before you depart, especially since you may not have a network at your camp site.

If your tent has been stored a little damp, bad odours may have developed. 🤢
If this is the case, the trick is to open the tent, then air it out well before washing it with soapy water. 🫧
Finally, the last step is just to leave it to dry properly.

Your tent may also present stains from mould. In this case, you can clean it off with a bit of water and soap before rinsing well.

How to check that my tent is in good condition before going camping?

➡️ Check the poles, pegs and guy ropes

To make sure you don’t find that you’re missing anything once you arrive at the camp site, check your poles as well.

- If you have a 2 Seconds tent, have a look to make sure that the poles haven’t broken during storage.

- If you have a traditional tent, count the number of poles and check that none of the sections are broken. 
If needed, order your pole rod or your replacement pole from your DECATHLON shop.

- If you have an inflatable tent, remember to take your pump along with you.
So that your tent can be securely anchored to the ground, also check the pegs.

- If you plan to camp on stony or very hard ground, invest in “hard ground” (impossible to twist) pegs.

- If the ground at the camp site is sandy, invest in more suitable angled pegs.

Finally, check your guy ropes as well as the strings that stabilise the tent in the wind, and the tensioners used to adjust the tension of the guy rope. They are available as spare parts in Decathlon stores. ⛺️

If you notice that a pole needs to be repaired, see our tips for doing so in our article: How do you repair a broken tent pole yourself?

➡️ Examine the groundsheet of your tent and check the zips

- For the groundsheet, make sure there are no holes in it. If there are, you can repair them with patches or using adhesive tape that you can find in your local DECATHLON shop.

- Also check the door zips and other openings: they need to work correctly. If this is not the case, rub them with a bar of soap, after having brushed them to remove any rough spots which could prevent them from working.

Download Decathlon Camp

If you follow all of these steps and everything’s okay, you’re good to go! And for a really optimal preparation, you can also refer to our article: Equipment checklist for a camping trip!

Enjoy your night spent as close to nature as possible!

How to check that your tent is in good condition before going camping

Manon

Journalist & sports writer

A runner at heart, I'm always up for trying out new sports with you !
My objective? To pass on my tips and my passion for sport through my content.