How To Attach A Groundsheet To A Tent

Camping is a great past time and so fun for everyone in the family to enjoy but there is one thing that can often be a bit of a pain, the groundsheet. It can often be the place you want to keep clean, keep dry and keep it from moving under movement.

The most common way to attach a groundsheet to a tent is by using tent clips from the sides to the groundsheet itself or by tent pegs which run through both the tent corners and groundsheet corners to hold both structures together in one place.

In this article, we are going to go through some of the questions you might be asking about groundsheets and how to attach them to a tent including the different methods and tools used.

What Do I Need To Attach A Groundsheet To A Tent?

There are several ways campers can keep their groundsheet secured to a spot when using their tent. Some methods are less secure than others, so it depends on what the camper prefers to do. The tools needed to attach a groundsheet to a tent are:

• Groundsheet Pegs
• Mallet Or Hammer
• Guide Ropes
• Groundsheet Clips

Here are some of the methods or equipment campers use to attach groundsheets

How To Attach A Groundsheet To A Tent

There are a couple of ways in which you can attach your groundsheet to your tent. As there are still many tents which come with both the groundsheet and tent separate it is handy to know how to attach the two if you need to. There are a couple of things you will need to make sure of before you go ahead on lay your groundsheet and your tent.

Firstly, the groundsheet must not be larger than the base of the tent. This is because when rain falls, the exposed part of the groundsheet will collect rainwater and channel it into your tent. This defeats the purpose of the groundsheet in the first place because instead of it to keep water out, it acts as a pathway for water to find its way into your resting place. Under no circumstance should any part of the groundsheet be visible after you attach it to the tent.

Before laying the groundsheet on the campsite, remove anything on the ground that would make laying on it uncomfortable. After clearing, placing the groundsheet on the ground and mounting the tent on top of it, spend time to make sure there is no part of it is exposed to the naked eye when looking from outside. If it is exposed, fold it and tuck it underneath the tent. If you are mounting a large family-sized tent, make sure people are assisting you so they can keep an eye on the groundsheet, making sure it stays in one place as you set up the tent.

Groundsheet Pegs

There are plastic pegs that can be gotten at online stores suitable for attaching groundsheets to tents. Since the pegs are made from plastic, they are less likely to injure you when setting up or when they are already in place. Most pegs are metallic though, and these metallic pegs should be used with more caution.

To use these pegs, spread the groundsheet out in the spot where you want the tent to be and drive the peg into the ground through all four corners of the tent. Use a mallet or hammer if necessary, but your hands might be sufficient if the ground is soft.

If camping on hard ground in rough terrain, it would help to use two layers of groundsheets and peg them together. This is because there might be small sticks, twigs, and stones underneath the groundsheet, which may move around as you use the tent. These foreign bodies can get into awkward positions and be inconvenient to you. 

Use The Tent To Pin The Groundsheet Down

To do this, lay the groundsheet out and stand the tent above it. At every point where you want to anchor the tent on the ground, you would link the anchor through the corner of the tent and fasten it to the base. This way, the tent and groundsheet are unified and cannot move independently.

However, do this only when you will attach the tent to the ground precisely at its corners because if extended, the groundsheet would be exposed to raindrops if rain falls, which is undesirable. 

You would be essentially connecting the two pieces together and putting the into the ground to secure in place. You may find you require and extra peg within the loop to hold both layers more firmly, especially in windier conditions.

The Weight of Camping Gear

This is not a popular method, but some campers still use it, especially those that camp alone. They make sure the groundsheet is smaller than their tent, then they lay the groundsheet and use the tent pegs to hold it in place at first. As they set up the tent, they slowly remove the pegs from the groundsheet and use it on the tent.

They then load the tent with their gear and supplies; the gear’s weight helps keep the groundsheet down and in one place. It is not the most reliable method; that is why it is mostly used when there is just one camper involved.

Why You Should Attach A Groundsheet to Your Tent

Even though it is possible to set up a tent without using a groundsheet, it is not recommended and is the fastest way to ruin the bottom of your tent. The rough ground would damage the base of the tent over time, leading you to replace the whole tent. It is better to put the groundsheet in harm’s way instead, since it will cost significantly less to replace compared to the tent.

The groundsheet is for your own convenience since you would like to feel stones and other things under you while you lay down.

Groundsheets also act as waterproof for your tent floor. When you camp on grass, dew falls on the grass every morning, leaving everything wet, but with a groundsheet, you do not have to worry about moisture coming through your tent floor. Additionally, groundsheets help keep your campsite tidy since it will pick up anything that manages to slip under your tent.

It also makes packing your tent easier, especially in muddy conditions, since it will be in direct contact with the ground instead of your tent. The ground below the groundsheet would also benefit from it since it will be able to breathe, and there would not be condensation under the tent. If the tent were placed directly above the ground, air would not flow well to the grass beneath it.