Tent marking

[bilgerat]

Question:

 

We'd like to identify Troop Gear.

 

We are considering spray painting a 6-inch yellow number on the door of our Alps tents.

 

Any experience on this? Will it damage the tent?

 

Thanks...

[Eagle92]

Been a very long time, but I think we used Sharpies instead of paint to label tents.

[shortridge]

Sharpie the tent bag, not the tent itself.

[EagleJCS]

When my troop bought 5 new tents this year, I used a laundry marker instead of a Sharpie (Sharpies tend to fade/wash out over time) and marked all of the fabric bits with the same number. (Tent, fly, tent bag, pole bag, stake bag.)

[Cambridgeskip]

For tents with wooden poles we have a branding iron for marking the poles and use blobs of paint to mark which poles make up a set. We've never marked the canvas itself as I suspect it may damage it (I'm happy to be corrected on this though!)

 

On our more modern tents we just write on the labels on the various parts of it.

[CalicoPenn]

If you're going to use spray paint, make sure to use a spray paint specifically designed for fabrics. Many spray paints use solvents to help keep the paint liquid and flowable that aren't good for tents.

 

Even spray paint designed for fabric could compromise the water-proofing of the tent.

 

A laundry marker is a better option - but read the label first - make sure it won't damage the fabric of your tents.

 

Many tents, flys and tent bags have care of fabric instructions sewed into a seam somewhere (like pillows and mattresses). Consider leaving these in place and marking them instead of the tent, fly or bag. Pole and stake bags usually don't have these but there is no worries on damaging waterproofing for these bags.

 

Another option is not to make big markings (and 6" is pretty big). If the goal is just to be able to match tents with flys and bags, considere a small marking somewhere inconspicuous (do you really need to announce to someone wandering by your camp that this is Tent #1, etc.?), but uniform for each tent - for instance, maybe you mark the front left stake loop on each tent, or the tent fly right above the left side center grommet.

 

Marking the tent body, or fly, may or may not damage the tent, and may or may not damage the waterproofing, but do you really want to take that risk?

[CalicoPenn]

To answer Cambridge's quasi-query - if the tents are canvas, it's generally fine to paint them - but use a fabric paint, and hand paint it. Wander around a few rendezvouses (sp?) and you'll see canvas teepees and lodges that have been painted. And be creative with canvas - instead of a plain ole number, paint wolf paws on one, bear paws on another, or, if you have an artist in the group (or a really good stencil) paint a wolf head or bear head - or whatever else your imagination can come up with.

[Alabama Scouter]

I sewed troop patches on the crown of the fly.

[SSScout]

The creative Quartermaster will take each tent kit and write the inventory on the storage bag:

Troop 123, #5 Fly, tent, footprint, 2- 4' pole sets, 6- t/ps

 

Each piece will be match numbered. Maybe not the wire tent pegs.

I like the idea of stenciling on a down corner a fox paw or such, then write the inventory number on it.

 

Yes, true canvas will easily take paint or marker ink without ill effect. Plain Nylon will accept ink marker or latex paint, but the coated waterproofing material will be badly affected by any solvent based liquid, paint or ink. As they say, "try on a hidden corner first".

 

 

[shortridge]

Or use the patrol name or image, with numbers for each tent within that subset.

[Scoutfish]

Ok, maybe I am missing something, but how about getting a screen made and using ink to put the troop logo on the tent and individual number beneath that?

 

Can't be much different than how manufactureres stencil their logos on tents, canvas chairs, backpacks, etc....

 

Just go to a local t shirt shop and pay the $30 for the logo and buy some matching ink and wha lah. Might even make your troop stand out at the next camporee or Jambo event.

[IM_Kathy]

my son's troop just marks the tent and the bag - put duct tape on the zipper pulls and put the tent number on the tape with a marker - nothing fancy, but nothing that could mess up the tent

[alancar]

we sharpie the bag, the vestibule, the tent, and the fly. we are also thinking about putting a bear bag in each tent bag with the tent number in it also to make it easier at the cable for people to find their stuff. also we use tyvek for a ground cloth