new member - storm covers

[peet]

G'day - Ime new here , hope ime in the right place for my question. Just bought a new Mario offroad (i know its a cheapy but its all we could afford !). Looking forward to many great weekends & holidays with the wife & kids here on the the mid North Coast of NSW.
   Apparently there is a storm cover available for this tent for around $200 & I was wondering if anyone has one (mario or otherwise) & if they are any good.There are clips already on the tent to accomodate the cover so ime guessing it would be easy to put on (i suppose its like a tent fly) . I really dont like the idea of setting up a tarp over the whole thing !
Any advice would be greatly appreciated, thanks.
PS - how do I post a photo for my profile ?

[HEM19X]

Hi mate,

1stly, welcome to the forum - there's more & more swaggers in our area, we are in Maclean along with a few other so keep an eye out for local trips in the future..

Haven't really had any need for a storm cover as such but when we do need a bit more protection from sun [or rain] we have found a tarp works well. Also has the added flexability to increase under cover area etc.

Regards

Hem

[WaituiRob]

Hi Peet,

         Welcome to MySwag from another couple of Mid North Coasters, hope you enjoy your time on here.
      There is plenty of info. on here to add to the enjoyment of camping.

         Our camper had a storm cover included in the price, but they are available to purchase for $299.
      We have found it makes a difference in the hot weather and last trip it kept a very heavy dew off,
         saving us from waiting for the roof to dry before packing up.

            The covers are beige, 5.5m x 5.0m and come from QLD. If you need more info. just ask.
Robyn.
               

[speewa158]

Peet  Welcome to MySwag  . Storm covers /flys , if its that bad go home . At a weekend in Whroo reacently we had rain of Biblical proprtions oner night . Most CTs leaked a bit somewhere .  Best idea is a plastic tarp as a heat/rain cover a pool noodle to stop it touching the top of the tent 4 poles . Bingo your sleeping area is cooler & dryer 

[jclures]

I brought a storm cover of this guy, austrackcampers@bigpond.com for $185 including postage, from memory.
I don't know if it even fits yet, but I think it will, I will know after the weekend, I am hoping I won't need it but it is not looking good with all the rain we are getting.

[duggie]

Hi Peet, welcome to the wonderful world of C/T camping, profile photos access is rewarded to you after you become a trusted sleeping bag user, 25 posts i think it is . Cheers duggie

[robsjack]

Welcome to the forum. You'll find lots of great information from the wealth of experienced campers on this site. For similar money you can get a decent sized tarp for the tent. The bonus is that a tarp larger than the tent will provide additional protection to the sides of the tent (you aren't walking straight out of the tent into the rain.) Our tarp keeps most of the water off the sides of the tent as well which helps in packing up if it's been wet.

rob

[Trish59au]

We use a big tarp...as we seem to make it rain most times we go camping (we were going to hire ourselves out as drought breakers lol) this keeps us nice and dry.  It is also great for hot weather as it is up off the tent and lets the air circulate.  We have survived Brisbane thunderstorms with this setup and kept dry.

[Racer]

G'day and welcome to Myswag Peet.

I too have a Mario Trailer, yeah they are cheapy but it serves us well. I have the exact storm cover you speak of mate, it was thrown in as a freebie when I purchased the trailer. I was a little unsure of this so called "Storm Cover" however it has proven itself. Last December we went to Crescent Head Holiday Park for 10 nights or so. About 6 of those we had heavy rains and not one drop of water made its way in, especially being on the coast line with high winds and rains from all directions. The cover is moulded to suit the complete tent/annexe and can only go on one way. It looks much better than a tarp and does just a good a job if not better...

It fits straight over the tent poles and is secured by guy ropes. Let me know if you want any other tips on setting it (tent) up correctly, it can be a little tricky if you don't speak the cross language the instructions come in 

[dingo 001]

picked one up for $90 from aussie jays in williamstown melb he sells austrack tents yet to use

[peet]

Thanks for all the replies. Thanks Racer, its great to hear from someone with a similar setup. I will definately be buying the storm cover, sounds like your happy with it.Your right about the instructions , they are pretty basic ! Very happy with the camper trailer though. Its setup in the back yard at the moment for weathering. I may need some tips on setup in the near future - first time wasnt so smooth , the roof seems a bit saggy in places but I think we have it sussed (will pull down & erect again on the weekend). We are only half hour from Crescent Head so should have plenty of weekends there.
This is a great forum & I really appreciate all the replies , thanks again.
Peet.

[Heiny]

Hi Peet and welcome to My Swag 

[Racer]

No worries Peet, let me know. I learnt a few things when putting my own up last year from a mate who has a Tru Blu Camper, sometimes you just look and go "Oh Yeah, that makes sense now".

Mario Trailers being Mario Trailers, its like Phuket, you can barter with them mate...I wouldn't expect to pay the full price...

Cheers and good luck. 

[peet]

Actually I do have a couple of questions about the tent. Ive had it up for about a week & its had a fair bit of rain on it , as well as some hosing down (targeting the seams),its dried out a few times but there hasnt really been any really hot days. Problem is theres still a fair bit of water getting in around the seams. Is this likely to sort itself out when the tent gets a good couple of days sun on it ? I know the storm cover should solve it but ide still like to think the tent was waterproof without it. Also , in what "order" should it be erected - eg ; peg out base first then start at the bed end or the other end  or the middle etc etc.... ?  Any advice greatly appreciated.