Why are Roof Top Tents so Cool?

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JasonM

JasonM

10 Year 15 Year
Joined
Jul 19, 2006
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27
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Location
SLC, UT
So, i'm looking to get a RTT, and when my wife asked, "why not just get a good tent for the ground at a fraction of the price" I was not sure what to tell her?

I told her it offers some animal protection.... but does it?
Are they really easier to set up than a floor tent?

Help me convince my wife!
 
JasonM said:
So, i'm looking to get a RTT, and when my wife asked, "why not just get a good tent for the ground at a fraction of the price" I was not sure what to tell her?

I told her it offers some animal protection.... but does it?
Are they really easier to set up than a floor tent?

Help me convince my wife!
Click to expand...


I have done my fair share of sleeping in tents: Big and not so big tents for car-camping and many different brands/models for backpacking. Now having had my Overland Autohome king size TTT the past year I would never go back to a ground tent (even with the design short-comings of most RTT's). Far more comfortable and quickness of set-up/teardown, level sleeping surface are a few of my main "likes". I can set-up level anywhere...regardless of how rocky, weedy, wet, etc. the ground is...I sleep better in my TTT than I do at home!

I have mine mounted atop my trailer...don't know how I would like it if it was mounted atop my LC...that might not work so well for me given I would need to remove it to get the rig into the garage, makes the rig more top heavy, and other than a Maggiolina the wind drag and noise has to be pronounced.

FYI: I have not heard of anyone wanting to go back to a ground type tent after using an RTT/TTT. That might be the best testimonial of all.
 
Roof top tents setup easy. They offer a smooth, dry and easily leveled surface. You can usually leave your bedding and whatnot inside. At the end of a long day, especially in the rain, this is pretty nice. Your "campsite" can be a lot smaller with a roof top tent. Even nonexistent. You can simply stop in the brush as you cross country over the tundra/savanna/whatever. This can be real nice.
In extremely hot environs getting up off of the ground can keep things a little cooler to. You tend to track less sand and dirt and other debris into a roof top tent than one on the ground.

To me, these are really the only advantages. Lack of a full rain fly on most roof tops is a concern to me. You want to make sure that the material used is heavy duty and very waterproof. If you are into large tents and cots to sleep on, then you'll be loosing that approach. For a longer term camp instead of an overnight stop, a regular tent can have advantages of greater size and also of not keeping the rig tied to camp (or taking half of camp down every day to use the rig).

IMHO pitching any sort of safety from animals appeal is silly. Simply zipping your tent will keep snakes and creepy crawling things out if you are in an area where that's a problem. Bears, wolf packs, dragons and other monsters are not a real concern for 99.9999999% of the folks who are really getting out there. And the roof top will a pretty minor deterrent to any of those in any case.


Mark...
 
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I have been on the fence about buying one. There are 2 dealers here in the Seattle area in where I can choose from so shipping isn't a issue which is nice.

Now being a father of 2 children under 10 the idea of quick set up. I also like the idea of being able to virtually pop the tent anywhere we can park. For the most part we will probably own a ground tent and a RTT for the sake of flexibility. When it is just me and or the wife we will take the ground tent in the 40, etc. When it is the whole fam Damily we will take the 80 or Troopy with the roof top tent.

I guess for us it comes down to convienience of use for the family and long trips, but to each his own
 
JasonM said:
So, i'm looking to get a RTT, and when my wife asked, "why not just get a good tent for the ground at a fraction of the price" I was not sure what to tell her?

I told her it offers some animal protection.... but does it?
Are they really easier to set up than a floor tent?

Help me convince my wife!
Click to expand...
1. Your off the dirty dusty, sometimes wet & soggy ground.
2. Your sleeping bags & pillows are always clean, dry, dirt free.
3. Lots of air circulation being off the ground.
4. No bugs/critters/snakes/scorpions sneaking their way inside.
5. When it's windy, no chance of tent blowing away, or down, or worries about if you staked it good enough while away from camp.
6. Set up within 4 minutes and everything's already inside.
7. set up anywhere, even in your driveway. I know from my baja travels that often times there is no "camp site" so you just make your own.
8. When it rains, snows, or other "bad" weather, you actually enjoy going camping and arent running for the nearest shelter, or holiday inn.
9. The cool factor outweighs everything else, and you become the absolute envy of all the "ground tenters".

This is of course my experience with my Eezi Awn Roof Tent.

Ive become so used to my roof tent that i wont go camping unless my tent's on the roof, that is unless its backpacking.
 
For me it's seeing how much my little girl loves playing in it that is the best. You're also safe from camp pirates. The drunken idiot, or his dog, in the next campsite may come over and piss on your tire, but he won't get the tent. :)
 
to me, the biggest advantage to the RTT is that when I crawl up there with my wife we have one mattress, with real sheets on it (and blankets when needed). It is a much more "civilized" sleeping experience and much better for not sleeping.

where I camp, it is either hot or wet. Always. Sometimes both. having a nice, dry, tent with air circulation is a big bonus. Also having a solid roof over our heads is nice too-- less chance of falling coconuts or branches doing any damage to us (the RTT has two major spider-web cracks where it has taken hits from coconuts, I don't think plain nylon would have protected us).

I do regret the fact that the truck is attached to my camp, but we can set-up/stow the RTT in less than 5 minutes, moving very slowly. If we only need to move the truck a little ways, and not too fast, the tent can be lowered but not fully packed. Works fine. I haven't found a great way to put my longboard and my RTT on the roof rack. :( But I can just strap the board onto the tent if I want - it just looks funny- or I can just surf a shortboard and throw it inside the truck.

At the end of the day- I'd say that if you camp near your vehicle very frequently, you'll probably love a roof top tent for the comfort, safety, and ease.
 
By far being able to setup camp anyware was one of my biggest attractions. I have traveled all over the western US and Canada since I got mine and it has made all of my travels that much more enjoyable.

I've got mine mounted on my trailer giving me the best of both worlds and don't think I will be going back to my gound tent anytime soon.
 
I didnt notice if it had already been said, But the RTT has a 2" foam padding which is nicer than the typical pad you use in a tent.
There are quite a few of us in SLC that have them, If you need to have a look first hand.
Good luck
 
Get a Maggiolina. Spend the money - it's less in the long run. Over the past 10 years with the weather/conditions/places I've camped, I would have worn out and/or ruined at least two (or more) traditional tents by now.

Rain/snow/sleet/wind/fog/dust/freezing/baking. Works fantastic with sleeping bags, kids love it or sleeping with actual bedding is really nice. Mine is set up with reading lights. It's easy to run a 12v extension cord to run the lap top (yeah I actually did this once: watched a movie while camping - not something I normally associate with camping).

The greatest advantage: dark/sideways sleet/rocky ground cow pasture somewhere in the middle of Nevada = bed is ready in 2-3 minutes. After 3-4 days of rain/fog the interior is still dry (my down bag is still warm). The Rubicon is the only place I chickened out as my tent is 2-3" wider than the roof of the 60. Bob
 
Roof Top Tent Hall of Fame...

BlueHZT60 said:
Get a Maggiolina. Spend the money - it's less in the long run. Over the past 10 years with the weather/conditions/places I've camped, I would have worn out and/or ruined at least two (or more) traditional tents by now.

Rain/snow/sleet/wind/fog/dust/freezing/baking. Works fantastic with sleeping bags, kids love it or sleeping with actual bedding is really nice. Mine is set up with reading lights. It's easy to run a 12v extension cord to run the lap top (yeah I actually did this once: watched a movie while camping - not something I normally associate with camping).

The greatest advantage: dark/sideways sleet/rocky ground cow pasture somewhere in the middle of Nevada = bed is ready in 2-3 minutes. After 3-4 days of rain/fog the interior is still dry (my down bag is still warm). The Rubicon is the only place I chickened out as my tent is 2-3" wider than the roof of the 60. Bob
Click to expand...

Your tent belongs in the Hall of Fame, Bob! I have seen a few older tents, but none with the kind of service that yours has seen. Thanks.

I put a halogen marine gooseneck chart light and a folding 12V fan in my Maggiolina Extreme. Planning a 12V oulet for the Macbook.
 
BlueHZT60 said:
It's easy to run a 12v extension cord to run the lap top (yeah I actually did this once: watched a movie while camping - not something I normally associate with camping).
Click to expand...

That's too funny cause my other half will watch PSP movies in the roof top tent when we go out. Whatever makes them happy.
 
a fan is a must. I think that life would have been veeeeeery different for us if we didn't have the fan.

one of these days I'll install a few LED's in the tent as well-- just some dim "night" lighting, maybe green or red, that we can switch on to get in/out. Using a headlamp is fine for the wearer, but too bright for the other person.
 
we got a 2 speed Hella "Turbo Fan" from westmarine. I think it was about $50 and pulls about 350 milliamps.

Sounds expensive.... but worth it if you camp in warm places.

I wouldn't bother with the 2 speed, we ran it on high every single time. But then, we were also in the tropics. I guess in a cooler, but still warm setting, the low speed might have been handy.

Incidentally- we found that perching it in the window, drawing air in and pointed towards the roof of the tent, was actually cooler and better than pointing it downward directly at ourselves. Seems that the radiant heat from hot air at the top of the tent heats you more than the evaporative cooling of air directly on your skin. Besides, in such a small space, the air moves around pretty well regardless of where you point the fan.
 
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