Fieldcraft Long Term Fabric Gear Storage

[pmclaine]

I recently took my North Face Roadrunner 2 tent off the shelf it has sat on for a good 10 years to prep for a camping trip with my son.

Setting it up at home to make sure it was good to go I found the plastic clear view windows had broke down/dry rotted and became two big holes in the fly. The waterproof coating of the fly now has a sticky gooey feel to it and is starting to peel from the fabric.

The tent itself appears fine all seems were strong.

I noted also that the water repellent bag my Thermarest was in has the sticky, gooey, feel on its interior like its water proof backing is breaking down. Getting the bag off the pad was a chore as it wanted to stick to the sleep pad.

So I taped up the holes where the clear view windows were on my tent fly with 90 mile per hour tape, vowed to never buy a tent with plastic windows again, and lucked out with no rain so my son and I totally enjoyed our days in the woods



So I guess going forward Ill store my tent loose and folded on a shelf rather than rolled in its bag.

Is this just the nature of coated nylon products that over time the water repellent coating becomes a gooey sticky deteriorating membrane or is it mitigated by proper storage?

My gear is in a cedar closet in the basement stored on a wire shelf. The basement is dry enough there is no mold or rust issues. It is a northeast climate within ten miles of the ocean - moist but not tropical certainly not desert dry.

What special measures do others take for long term storage of gear used infrequently?

 

[Strykervet]

I keep my shit put away and covered from rain and sun and too much temp. swings. Generally works fine that way.

Some materials just break down over time though, research what you buy to ensure it'll last.

 

[pmclaine]

My cedar closet is pretty stable environmentally and North Face/Thermarest generally make good gear.

The biggest issue is shame on me for not going to the woods for ten years.

I think the issue is the keeping it rolled as if ready to pack in storage.

Guess Im going to have to find space to lay my shit out folded.

Too late for my North Face but Ill save a beautiful LightFighter tent I bought back in the spring.

 

[Dougie308]

I keep my shit put away and covered from rain and sun and too much temp. swings. Generally works fine that way.

Some materials just break down over time though, research what you buy to ensure it'll last.

I do the same thing. However, older materials, even from ten years ago have been improved on. I also make a point of yanking thngs out and checking them randomly a couple of times a year. Those checks have saved me some aggrevation from time to time.

 

[powdahound76]

Pmclaine
I do a lot of camping. last count I had 5 tents for different tents, a bivy sack, and a couple light packing tarps, so a lot of practice cleaning and storing them. Make sure the bags you store them in aren't coated. that crap breaks down and makes a mess, no matter temp or humidity. This goes for any nylon bag you store anything in, Any of the trendy crap like windows break down so you need to be able to sew in new nylon or patch them like you did. The tent I just packed up for hunting next week has them, they seem to hold up well and have been well cared for and used every year since new.
If you want a bag to store it in, use Sil nylon, I haven't had it break down in 15 years. My favorite is granite gear compression sacks. also the Kifaru ultralight ditty bags are pretty sweet

 

[pmclaine]

Thanks for the detailed response Powdahound.

Yes the coated bags given time. The Thermarest bag being the gooiest but easily replaceable.

The NorthFace tent fly though not so easy.At some point Ill be tent shopping.

My new storage method is to leave the fabric stuff unpacked, folded on a wire shelf, hoping extra air flow will help some.

Best advice is to use the stuff more, ten plus years in the cedar closet isn't good practice.

 

[powdahound76]

Yes on using it more!

for the tent fly, look into self adhesive water proof ripstop nylon. Remove the busted part, the apply a piece to each side. If its bigger, just overlap like lasagne noodles... I then use seam grip sealer for tent seams on all seams on both sides.
I have repairs over a decade old holding up well.
You can also find sil impregnated ripstop and just seam grip it in place for a bigger repair.

I always fix stuff. I buy quality to start and when it has an issue I fix it.

 

[pmclaine]

Ill work on scheduling more use. My son really enjoyed his first trip into the woods.

 

[softcock]

Pmclaine
I do a lot of camping. last count I had 5 tents for different tents, a bivy sack, and a couple light packing tarps, so a lot of practice cleaning and storing them. Make sure the bags you store them in aren't coated. that crap breaks down and makes a mess, no matter temp or humidity. This goes for any nylon bag you store anything in, Any of the trendy crap like windows break down so you need to be able to sew in new nylon or patch them like you did. The tent I just packed up for hunting next week has them, they seem to hold up well and have been well cared for and used every year since new.
If you want a bag to store it in, use Sil nylon, I haven't had it break down in 15 years. My favorite is granite gear compression sacks. also the Kifaru ultralight ditty bags are pretty sweet

Yes.. like your saying ..
for storage I would ' most definitely ' just get bags that are non-Urethane back coated . Storage bags, just use a light denier weight that has a little porosity for breathing . Then for packing/hiking in the outdoors, I would move to your outdoor Gear Bags that are back-coated fabrics for weather and durability when on the move .
There are a LOT of skull-Xbone chemicals used in back-coat of fabric, and there a lot of difference of mix formula used in them by different Mills .

Also the under coatings on a lot of the import fabrics and not as good as some of the domestic mill . I have really noticed this on the urethane coatings of the Poly's and Nylons . It is really obvious on comparing the high-end to import with the smell and the flex/pliability . The imports are scrimping on the chemicals for quality on the backing coating and there stiffer and thinner . Whereas you can always get a Big Wiff of formaldehyde to the nose with buying a new roll of US cordura in the urethane backing, and it's way more flexible and better quality bond to the weave .
.

 

[Strykervet]

If you store a lot of this stuff indoors at approx. 70deg. @50% humidity (my house goes from 64-74 depending on time of year, but never above or below) and some is kept out on shelves, some is kept rolled up, it can last indefinitely. Occasionally, it's good to open stuff up and inspect it from time to time. But I have waterproof bags still in good shape that are 17 years old and actually a bunch of T&E that's 17 years old. Pro masks still like new. Clothing can be cleaned and dried and put in plastic bags with dessicant packs and vacuumed flat with a vacuum cleaner and sealed shut. Bugs can't get into it. You can stack a lot in Rubbermaid containers this way. My wife does this and has blankets and materials that are as new, some stored in the shed where there can be huge temp swings and long hot summers. Lots of stuff is hanging in a dark closet, mostly clothes.

SUNLIGHT is the number one destroyer of gear, period. Keep anything you care about out of sunlight, especially rubber, coated rubber, rubber glued or coated nylons... It ruins soft Kevlar too and can break it down faster (it'll last indefinitely if you have plain Kevlar or Dyneema and keep it out of the sunlight). Some of the clear windows just go bad with time, usually they harden or get stiff. Thread and mosquito netting and maybe some patch material and Velcro would be good to have in a repair kit.

And of course, the better the quality, the better it'll keep in general.

Rubber(?) military tents can last quite a while with all the abuse provided they are cleaned and thoroughly dried before folding up and storing.