Ok, so it’s Ireland; we are famous for having four seasons in one day, which could always include winter. With our tips, you can sleep and relax in a warm tent without a struggle. If you want to go camping in the cold period of the year, you must know how to heat a tent. Of course, there will be cold in a tent during winter. Nevertheless, you can experience warm and comfortable travel. You just need to follow specific rules.
To avoid freezing in a tent in the wintertime, you must choose an outfit correctly. Do not expect a miracle if you want a comfortable winter overnight stay. Use high-quality gear with a sleeping bag.
Of course, choosing a sleeping bag and mattress plays an essential role in comfortable sleep. But even if the whole body is warm, you should care for the nose and ears most exposed to cold.
Children usually toss and turn during sleeping, so it is best to heat the whole tent to be calm and not to worry that children may catch a cold. This article will not discuss individual heaters, such as a heating pad, hot water bottle in a sleeping bag or other chemical heaters.
How to Heat a Tent without Electricity?
What are the best methods to heat a camping tent which don’t need an electrician? One of the most common methods is to heat your tent with the help of a well-heated fire cobblestone.
This method has one crucial trick. If the stone is simply heated in the fire and placed in the tent, then after an hour, the stone will gradually cool down, and the tent will be cold again. But you can set the stone in a pot with a lid; this will increase the time to 3 hours, but it is still not enough for a complete sleep.
It is necessary to increase the thermal inertia of the stone so it will be warm for 8-10 hours and gradually cool down. For this purpose, you can use a non-combustible, lightweight and compact thermal insulator – simple aluminium foil.
Wrapped in several layers of foil, the stone will cool down more slowly. It will not cause stuffiness in the tent in the first few hours. When the rock starts to cool, removing the foil layer by layer is best, and the tent will be warmer. The heat is retained due to the air between layers of foil.
To not burn the bottom of the tent with a hot rock, it should be placed in the pan (it would be better if the stone is the size of a human head and is firmly placed in the pan). You can put an inverted pan or a wooden board under the pan.
Important note
You need to heat the stone gradually to prevent its destruction because of the extreme temperatures on its surface and inside of it.
You can heat a 4-5 gallon canister with water and place it in a tent. The canister will grant the effect of the battery for 3-4 hours.
Use Burned-out Campfire Place
A burned-out campfire place is another way to heat a tent without electricity. It is a valuable tip for all campers. Another no less widespread variant is to install a tent on the spot where the campfire was burning. Ideally, the campfire should have the size of the tent, and it should be placed in a slight deepening. The campfire should burn for several hours.
The fireplace is poured with a layer of the earth when the large coals are burned. Spruce branches or dry grass is put on the top of the earth where the tent will stand.
But many people do not perform digging; they just remove the embers from the fireplace and put spruce branches on the hot ground. With this method, the tent will be warm until morning.
The more advanced method of heating a tent with the help of a campfire is to use a duralumin collapsible tube.
For such a heater, you need a 20-foot-long dural tube with a small diameter of 2 inches (the weight of this tool is not really big) and a small sheet of asbestos. A fire should be placed 15 feet from the tent. Click here to see an example of this exciting and functional heating system.
Where the pipe is contacted to the fire is wrapped in asbestos. One end of the tube is directed to the tent, and the second to the outside fire, so the smoke cannot escape. The incoming fresh air near the tube is heated and then passed through the tube into the tent.
The distance between the lower and upper pipe ends should be at least 6 feet. The steeper slope – the better air circulation. Entering air temperature depends on the level of pipe heat. If it is too hot, you can close the deducing end in the tent or decrease the fire.
There are a few more methods that can help you to warm the tent, but some of them are pretty complicated. It is often advised to clear the snow and make a campfire to warm the earth under the tent. If you have a kerosene stove, candles or dry alcohol, then it is possible to heat the tent with them. At the same time, you must be very careful; the tent can be burned in seconds.
Warming Your Tent with Heater
All these methods are time-consuming and inconvenient when you go camping with children or move from one place to another. Sometimes you need more time to make a large fireplace. Special tourist heaters can help you here. They can be of gasoline, kerosene or gas type.
Heaters are very popular in recent years among tourists, as everyone can choose what he or she wants from a wide range of specimens on the market. It is incredibly convenient for beginner campers.
Such a stove can combine a heater and a tile for cooking, and sometimes it can even illuminate the tent.
Such burners are usually compact, reliable and quiet. When using such heaters in the tent, you must take care of the fresh air inside. It is best to have an oxygen sensor in the heater. And, of course, your heater must be certified for residential use.
What Heating Method Will You Choose?
Now you know how to heat a tent without electricity. It is your choice which method you will try. If you are more adventurous, you can make natural choices and have fun during preparation. You can also bring a heater with you and just enjoy your staying. Try it and find out which method suits you well.
