Can You Put a Tent in the Washing Machine?

Tents are your closest ally while exploring the wilderness. But it tends to get dirty from time to time, like any other fabric.

But the good news is you can easily clean it. However, if you’re thinking about cleaning the tent in a washing machine, then you’re wrong.

It would be best if you never wash your tent in the washing machine, no matter how dirty it gets. If you do, then your tent’s synthetic fabric will tear and be unusable.

It’s because most of the tents are built with water-resistant synthetic fabrics, which can’t withstand the continuous rotations of a washing machine.

There is a different method of cleaning a tent. If you don’t know what it is, then make sure you follow us through the given segments to find out.

Why Do You Need to Keep Your Tent Clean?

Tents are bound to get dirt and grime over while being used in the wild. 

As you know, It has a protective coating that helps prevent water from getting inside the tent.

Every time you use your tent, it gets dirty for obvious reasons, but if you don’t clean the dirt before reuse, the protective coating layer will get weakened and won’t be able to prevent water from getting inside.

So, keeping the tents clean is quite essential to help preserve its integrity.

Can You Put a Tent in the Washing Machine?

No,  according to a tent expert, you shouldn’t put your tent inside a washing machine.

There are different types of washing machines available but they all have one thing in common, they use a rotating force, that smashes the clothes to clean it properly.

The tent’s fabrics are made from water-protective synthetic layers, which prevent water from getting inside the tent while using it.

The synthetic fabric can’t withstand the continuous smashing of a washing machine.

What will you Need to Clean Your Tent?

As we mentioned earlier, there’s a proper process for cleaning a tent at home, but before you start the cleaning process you must gather the following materials:

• Cloth/Sponge.
• Mild dish soap
• Rubbing Alcohol
• Tech wash (for Besic Cleaning)
• Mirazym (for Bad odors)
• A tub

After gathering all the necessary materials for the cleaning, we can get started with the cleaning process.

How to Clean Your Tent Properly?

Cleaning a tent by hand might seem like a daunting task, but it’s not. With the right guidelines, you can clean your dirty tent with ease. We assume you’ve collected all the necessary elements already.

So, without further ado, here’s a step-by-step process of cleaning a tent:

Step-1: Spot Clean The Dirty Areas

First, you need to spot-clean any extra dirty areas with a cloth/sponge and mild dish soap.

If you find any SAP on your tent, then use rubbing alcohol and clean it gently with it.

Step-2: Fill Your Tub With Cool to Lukewarm Water

After spot-cleaning the tent, it’s time to fill up the tub that you’re going to use to clean the tent with cool to lukewarm water.

Then add tech wash or Mirazym into the water, follow the instructions on the bottle to find out how much should you use.

Step-3: Soak the Tent in the Water

Now unzip the tent’s doors and windows and turn the tent inside out.

After that soak it in the water. Make sure you follow the given instruction for soaking the tent.

Step-4: Rinse The Tent

Then it’s time to rinse the water and remove the tent from the tub. Make sure you follow the instruction on the bottle.

How to Dry Your Tent?

Now that you’ve cleaned your tent, it’s time to dry it. There are two methods of drying your tent:

• Outdoor Drying
• Indoor Drying

Outdoor Drying

Drying your tent outdoors is probably the best possible method. As outside air has a better chance of reducing the moisture of the wet tent.

However, while drying your tent outdoors make sure the tent is not directly under the sun. If it’s not UV ray protected the sun will ruin the tent.

Indoor Drying

Indoor drying is a less likely option when you can’t dry the tent outside because of natural disasters like rain or storm.

While drying indoors make sure you place the tent in a well-ventilated space, where the tent can get an ample amount of air to get dry properly.

How Often Should You Clean Your Tent?

Cleaning your tent is crucial for long-lasting use.

Needless to say, if you don’t keep it clean the dirt and grime tend to build up over the tent and ruin the protective layer of water and heat-resistant coating over time.

So how often should you clean your tent?

Well, there’s no fixed answer for it, as it completely depends on your use. Yes, you can clean the tent after every use, however, if it’s a short trip then it’s unnecessary.

But on a long trip, your tents are more likely to get dirty and surely in need of proper cleaning.

So although there’s no fixed time for cleaning your tent, if you’re a regular camper then it’s a good idea to clean your tent once every season.

Tips To Maintain Your Tent

For a camping lover it’s important to keep your tent in mint condition. But it’s not always easy.

If you want to sure your tent is in a good condition, then we’ve some tips prepared for you. 

By following them you can make sure your tent will provide you with all the necessary support for several years to come.

Here are the tips:

• Don’t store your tent while it’s in a wet condition. Before storing it make sure it’s dry. Make sure you store it in a cool environment.
• Make sure you use a footprint inside the tent, it helps to keep your tent dry, clean, and protected from the wet ground.
• Use caution while closing down and opening the zippers of your tent, make sure you use two hands while doing so. It’ll put less pressure on the zippers and reduces its wear and tear of it.
• While using the tent make sure you keep it out of the sunlight. Direct exposure to the sun’s UV rays will harm the tent’s materials and ruin it.
• Never ever use a washing machine or dryer to clean your tents. If you do then it’ll ruin it. Clean your tent with water or mild hand soap.
• Tent poles are the most important part, so while you set up the tent make sure you go slow, as most damage occurs while setting up the tent.

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Bottom Lines

Cleaning your tent in a washing machine is never a good idea, and now you know why.

To tell you the truth it’s never a good idea to wash your tent, especially not with detergent soaps. It weakens the tent’s protective coating and increases its wear and tear.

All you can do to keep your tent safe is make sure to keep it dry and clean. Also, follow the maintenance tips we’ve mentioned in our earlier segments. It’ll definitely help you maintain your tent.