New Quechua "Fresh & Black" Tents

[FrankieX]

My current tent is a 3 man Quechua 2 Seconds tent and it's coming up to 7 years old, so I was looking around for a replacement and saw they have a new range this year which (on paper at least) seems ideal for me. The "Fresh & Black" range has a white reflective flysheet to keep the inside of the tent cool and 'fresh', whilst the 'black' inner tent blocks out sunlight. In the two Fresh & Black popup tents, they also have side vents to help cool down the tent, like the old 2 Seconds 'Air' tent range.

It seems to be a £15 mark up from the regular popup tents with the 3 man version at £70 and the 2 man one at £60. The main thing holding me back from buying one now is that there aren't any reviews saying how well they work, which I suppose isn't surprising considering how new they are. I'm also considering waiting for the two budget tents in the range, the Arpenaz 2 & 3 men since I think they might be half the price of the popups and whilst I hate putting up tents, I also hate carrying popup discs.

[sloseph]

I think this looks like a great idea

I have last years iteration that was pretty much the same design but without the black and I absolutely love it

I always wake up roasting at festivals but this did a great job at keeping me a cooler so I could sleep for longer, the only problem was when the sun came it was quite bright in there because everything was white

giving it a black inner is a really good way of fixing that problem

the tent itself is really well made and easy to put up/pack away, plus really roomy

[Avalon_Fields]

Any tent that can maintain a 'freshness' after 5 nights at Glastonbury must be miraculous.

But, to be fair to my old Quechua a few years back, it was only when I got out one morning to the sad realisation the smell went with me and the tent was blameless. 

[jparx]

Early morning brightness in tents is the bane of our generation. I took a sleeping mask and ear plugs last year and it was, by quite some distance, the best sleep I've ever had at a festival.

This tent could be a great investment! Thanks for the heads up. 

[stuartbert two hats]

Good God, this could be a game changer! My tent is over 15 years old now, this sounds excellent.

[slash's hat]

I bought one of their other pop ups just after xmas, wish I had waited now - this seems ideal. 

Think there was a thread somewhere last year about how people kept their tent cool, have to look it up.

[stuartbert two hats]

2 minutes ago, slash's hat said:

I bought one of their other pop ups just after xmas, wish I had waited now - this seems ideal. 

Think there was a thread somewhere last year about how people kept their tent cool, have to look it up.

I think sleeping bag on your tent in the morning was one of the top tips.

[slash's hat]

http://www.efestivals.co.uk/forums/topic/193211-keeping-tent-cool/#comment-4702564

[sloseph]

40 minutes ago, slash's hat said:

I bought one of their other pop ups just after xmas, wish I had waited now - this seems ideal. 

Think there was a thread somewhere last year about how people kept their tent cool, have to look it up.

you might be able to return it, from what I remember Decathlon have a pretty good returns policy

[slash's hat]

Will take a look, cheers

[Lubic]

The Quechua 2 seconds air xl 2 man I bought a couple of years ago is great - loads of adjustable vents which give you extra time in the morning compared to standard tents. Good floorspace too (xl range).

So am sure the newer models are good too. I like the sound of the reflective sheet keeping things even cooler, but not sure about the black interior. I like how my tent is light and airy inside (never had blackout curtains in my bedroom at home).

[kerplunk]

Here's another 'cool' one (and more my size):

http://outbacklogic.com/

Besides the reflective outer I like that it has a door at each end - the best tent I ever had for sunny mornings was one you could open up at each end to enable a through draft.

 

 

 

[stuartbert two hats]

7 minutes ago, kerplunk said:

Here's another 'cool' one (and more my size):

http://outbacklogic.com/

Besides the reflective outer I like that it has a door at each end - the best tent I ever had for sunny mornings was one you could open up at each end to enable a through draft.

 

 

 

"Pre-order now to be part of the first production run and receive your Siesta⁴ in May 2016!"

https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/siesta4-heat-light-blocking-tent-with-fans#/

For an IndieGoGo project, that is far too close to the festival for my liking!

[FrankieX]

40 minutes ago, kerplunk said:

Here's another 'cool' one (and more my size):

http://outbacklogic.com/

Besides the reflective outer I like that it has a door at each end - the best tent I ever had for sunny mornings was one you could open up at each end to enable a through draft.

The Quechua 'Fresh' and 'Air XL' popups can lift the back part of their flysheets so they can more or less do this, and the basic Arpenaz Fresh tents have two doors. It's a little disappointing that none of the tents in Decathlon's Fresh & Black range have porches though apart from the most expensive blow-up tents. That isn't enough for me to consider spending £230 on a kickstarter tent which may or not arrive in time though.

[stuartbert two hats]

8 minutes ago, FrankieX said:

The Quechua 'Fresh' and 'Air XL' popups can lift the back part of their flysheets so they can more or less do this, and the basic Arpenaz Fresh tents have two doors. It's a little disappointing that none of the tents in Decathlon's Fresh & Black range have porches though apart from the most expensive blow-up tents. That isn't enough for me to consider spending £230 on a kickstarter tent which may or not arrive in time though.

I know, even a tiny one for muddy boots would make a massive difference.

[karaseen]

47 minutes ago, FrankieX said:

' popups can lift the back part of their flysheets so they can more or less do this, and the basic Arpenaz Fresh tents have two doors. It's a little disappointing that none of the tents in Decathlon's Fresh & Black range have porches though apart from the most expensive blow-up tents. That isn't enough for m

I am also in the market for a new tent, but I am also put off the quechua ones due to the lack of porch. My two-man air pop-up had the zipper break after my first use as well. Never had a problem with other quechuas. I think I am going to go with a Vango this time....

Those reflective tents look like they might blind someone!

[Woffy]

Judging by how excited you lot are about this tent my only suggestion would be that they also make the interior white to hide your excitement and maintain at least an appearence of freshness.

[Yoghurt on a Stick]

That one with two open ends - could be seen to double the entry point for a thief. Just thinking out loud.

[Thearg]

Seriously it's about flippin time tent manufactures bought out a proper festival tent that deal with the heat,a silver tent seems a no brainer

[FrankieX]

1 hour ago, Woffy said:

Judging by how excited you lot are about this tent my only suggestion would be that they also make the interior white to hide your excitement and maintain at least an appearence of freshness.

Without wanting to speak for anyone else, but every time I've been to Glastonbury I've felt a year older (and once, two years older) and a bit less able to deal with the 5 nights of sleep deprivation caused by the sun's heat and light burning through my tent three hours after I got into bed. I've mostly dealt with it OK by wearing an eyemask, opening my sleeping bag and having a bottle of water nearby, but if a tent which costs £5-15 more than the one I was looking to buy anyway solves this problem then I definitely want it.

On a related note, I thought you guys might like this Portuguese ad Decathlon have done for the range:

 

[Woffy]

All of you wearing your 'eyemasks'!

Really.

[Migraine]

I needed a new tent so I decided to order a https://www.decathlon.co.uk/air-seconds-xl-3-freshblack-inflatable-tent-3-man-id_8357351.html I've only managed to throw it up in the lounge so far but it seems pretty good. It was pitch black inside albeit it was only blacking out the lights in the room. The pump for the tent is huge pretty much as big as the tent itself. 

Once we get a bit of dry warmish weather I'll put it up in the garden and let you know how good it is at blocking the light out.

[stuartbert two hats]

I've made enquiries with my local Decathlon about the actual effect on temperature. And after a couple of weeks where they consulted with the designers, I got back the context free answer of 7 degrees. Now that's not a super cool tent at 11:00 by any means, but it is significant. 

To be clear, I was given no more information than 7 degrees reduction. No absolute temperatures or time frames involved, but anything to keep the light and heat down is good.

[sloseph]

I'd say 7 degrees is a pretty substantial difference, especially when you've got a killer hangover biting at your balls trying to destroy your sleep 

You'll need to keep some fabric conditioner bottles on hand though, having to leave is going to be difficult 

[stuartbert two hats]

5 minutes ago, sloseph said:

I'd say 7 degrees is a pretty substantial difference, especially when you've got a killer hangover biting at your balls trying to destroy your sleep 

You'll need to keep some fabric conditioner bottles on hand though, having to leave is going to be difficult 

Yeah, I'm definitely making a trip as soon as they have them in store. Will give my 3yr old something to do anyway, she loves trips to Decathlon.