Overall, these poles—all of them aluminum—contribute to a particularly sturdy structure, with or without the rain fly. During our testing, our Base Camp shrugged off both a rainstorm and a desert windstorm as if they were nothing. Despite losing some headroom in comparison with the Kelty Wireless 6 and The North Face Wawona 6, both of which measure six-foot-four in height, the Base Camp 6 offers a substantial six-foot-two.
Check the items delivery info at point of purchase. If so, we’ll tell you a estimated delivery date on the product page and at checkout. There are circumstances that are out of control (natural disasters, holidays, weather, etc) that may cause shipping postponements. While most packages will arrive on time, there may be circumstances and delays that our carriers may experience. For this reason, we do not guarantee the exact delivery time; the delivery issue is the responsibility of the shipping company. Now and then I walk into a store, it tends to be named ___Mart, and buy something I know is going to bring nothing but grief and heartbreak.
Items may be display models or not exactly as shown and may not be available in all stores. The item may be missing the original packaging or protective wrapping, or might be in the original packaging but not sealed. This tent is only $47 at Walmart, however that is not the point.
A full rain cover, two vestibules, and an extra-sturdy pole structure make this the best choice for couples who want to get outside in any weather. It’s pricey, though, and unless the other couples’ tents we recommend, it doesn’t include a footprint. Its walls are 75-denier polyester fabric (tougher than the Wireless 6’s 68-denier polyester and the same as the REI Co-op Base Camp’s) that extends about two-thirds up the tent’s sides, and then is topped with mesh. The partial fly does a great job of keeping rain out of the upper, mesh areas, and cleverly placed vents maintain airflow so it never feels too stuffy.
I had to use every knot I’ve learned from rock climbing. There’s shade, and fewer bugs than outside the screenhouse. I wonder what will happen when the wind comes. Will I come home and just find the screenhouse gone, or will I see it blowing around in the street, trailing pipe segments? What about the rain, or the potential for 120-degree heat? For the moment, my dream of an extra room in the back yard has come true.
She covers outdoor gear for Wirecutter and worked on the most recent update of this guide, testing couples’ tents and family tents. This dome-style tent has nearly vertical walls, high ceilings, and a single vestibule the size of an actual mudroom. It’s also straightforward to set up, and it is made with sturdy, light materials.
We then rotated the tents looking for structural weaknesses, and we tested their guy lines and tabs to see which tents had the best and most intuitive design for withstanding wind. It’s natural to focus on the quality of a tent’s rain fly—you need that piece to work when the skies open up. But according to our experts, the durability of the floor of your tent is actually more important. If the tent you buy doesn’t come with a footprint (two of our recommended tents, the Mountain Hardwear Mineral King 3 and the Marmot Tungsten 4, do), we recommend purchasing a companion footprint, if one is available. A footprint doesn’t take up much space, is relatively inexpensive, and is much easier to repair or replace than a tent bottom if it tears.
We have a love-hate relationship with this screen tent. But, the slightest wind or rain and the whole thing comes down because of flimsy roof design. After multiple storms/fall downs, the screen portion has suffered some massive wounds. It is ozark trail screen house of poor design, in that this could be avoided using 2 more yellow, curved roof poles which would not allow the rain to puddle on the roof. My husband and I were in the screen room, keeping the rain from puddling for more than a half hour.
Setting up the screenhouse you need an army of people to hold the frame in place to put the screen over. Then the hooks don’t even reach the holes at the bottom of the poles. Then if you can manage to get that far, you have to run like crazy to get it tied down before if falls over. Bottom of screen doesn’t even tough the ground. Trailspace’s community of gear reviewers has field-tested and rated the top tents and shelters.
The screening and roof are all in excellent condition, along with all the poles, etc. With two more roof poles, I’m sure this could be prevented. My experience with Ozark Trail equipment has been to reinforce the old adage “you get what you pay for”. I highly recommend that anyone looking for a good screen house spend the additional money and get a Swiss Gear. Don’t try to save a few dollars and end up with a POS like this one.