Tent floor design... Posted by: jlockard on Sep-14-11 9:26 PM (EST)
I'm curious about the design of tent floors in North America. We have the same material on the floor as we do on the walls. We put a footprint under the tent which appears to be basically the same material impregnated with something like rubber. Since the footprint is a touch smaller than the tent, water will still soak through the edges of the tent (eventually). Traveling Europe, my wife and I borrowed a tent from friends (in Europe). The tent had what I might best describe as a "bucket floor". The floor of the tent was a waterproof material and thicker than the walls of the tent. The floor material came up the sides of the tent about 3 inches (7.5cm) to stave off those little runoff streams you always see when it rains and your campsite isn't perfectly flat. Other than a tiny bit of added weight I just don't see a downside to this tent design. Why aren't N.A. tents designed in a similar manner? -John