Learned the hard way about tent repair kits

Last summer at a campsite in Flagstaff, a guy next to me saw me struggling with a ripped rainfly and showed me how to patch it with just ten dollars worth of gear tape from Walmart. He said most people overthink tent repairs and just need to dry the area first. Has anyone else found a cheap fix that worked better than the expensive brands?

2 comments

2 Comments

eric_morgan599d ago

Just ten dollars worth of gear tape from Walmart" - wait, what? That's crazy cheap. I spent forty bucks on a name brand repair kit and it barely lasted one season. The tape got all crinkly and peeled off after a few rainy nights. Never thought to check Walmart for gear tape though, figured you had to order it special online.

uma_patel199d agoMost Upvoted

Hold on, "barely lasted one season"? That's wild to me. I have a roll of that cheap gear tape from Walmart that's been through THREE seasons and still holds on my rainfly. The trick is you GOTTA prep the surface right. You said the tape got crinkly and peeled off, but that happens when you don't fully dry the area and press it down firmly for like a full minute. Most expensive kits use the same basic adhesive, they just slap a fancy logo on it. I'd rather spend ten bucks and reapply it once a year than forty on something that also fails eventually.