How To Keep A Tent Cool At Night?

Most people prefer camping during summer since the days are long and sunny. However, during summer, many campers have to endure long, hot, and restless nights in their tent. The rise in temperature inside the tent is caused by a number of reasons. One of the main reasons is the sunlight that gets absorbed into the tent and traps the heat inside the tent. Once your tent gets hot, it stays that way all night and makes it challenging to spend the night inside. Besides, sleeping in a hot tent is a major downside of summer camping.

In this article, we’ll be covering everything from how to pick the finest tent for summer to additional accessories that you’ll need, so you don’t have to sleep in a hot tent at night.

8 Ways To Keep A Tent Cool At Night

Fortunately, there’re many things you can do to avoid spending the night in a heated tent. Thus, we have come up with 8 ways to keep your tent cool at night.

1. Buying The Right Tent

While shopping for tents in summer, look for bigger ones that are often known as cabin-style tents. These tents are pretty spacious, which allows excellent air circulation within the tent. However, if you want to buy regular-sized tents, make sure they come with several mesh windows. Windows with mesh are very important to stop the bugs from entering your tent. Double-doored design tents are also great to boost the ventilation system of your tent.

Another important thing you need to consider while buying a tent is the material. The material of your tent should be breathable and lightweight. Cotton canvas tents are pretty popular during summertime since they don’t retain much heat. Other than cotton, you can choose polyester or nylon material, both of which are extremely breathable. Moreover, light-colored tents are ideal in the summer since dark-colored tents absorb more light and heat. 

2. Setting Up The Tent In A Perfect Time 

As we know the primary reason behind your tent getting hot is the sun, you can take the tent down during the day as soon as the temperature rises and set it up again when the sun goes down. This is the most effective way for avoiding having to sleep in a hot tent at night. When your tent is exposed to sunlight for a longer period, it not only wears out the material of the tent but also makes the interior atmosphere of your tent extremely hot and humid.

If your tent stays up all day long, it absorbs a huge amount of heat and it’s really difficult to cool it down at night. Setting up and taking down tents may appear to be a lot of work, but it will be worth it at night. Thereby, if you don’t want to sleep in a hot tent at night, simply set up your tent around dusk or at night. 

3. Camp Location

If you don’t want to take down your tent in the daytime then you need to choose a camping spot where the tent will stay in the shade for the majority of the day. It will block direct sunlight away from your tent, allowing it to warm up more slowly. So, what could be better than pitching your tent underneath trees? The optimum location is one with several trees to block the sun from all directions.

Setting up the tent near a water source is another great way to keep the tent cool at night. Temperatures around water sources like lakes, streams, and rivers are usually lower than the temperature in dry, water-free areas. The entrance of your tent should face toward the river, so the calming breeze can help to cool down the tent at night. 

4. Carrying Fan 

When the weather turns really dry and there’s no wind, a camping fan will go a long way to keep your tent cool at night. You can easily set up your camping fan with the help of an extension cord. You can also go for the battery-operated fan if your campsite doesn’t have any power source. However, while placing your fan make sure it doesn’t blow directly into the tent wall, place the fan at the entrance or in the back corner of the tent. In order to circulate cool air inside your tent, you can fill up a cup or bowl with ice and keep it in front of the fan. 

5. Air Conditioner or Cooler

In case, a portable fan is not enough for your tent, you can opt for an air conditioner or cooler for your tent. However, your tent will need some extra insulation for that. There are several ways to insulate your tent for AC. For starters, you can cover your tent with a reflective tarp. A reflecting tarp does not absorb heat; rather, it reflects heat away from the tent. Using reflective tarps will make the tent cooler and darker to sleep in. Another way to insulate your tent for AC is to use duct tape and pool noodles. You can use either duct tape or pool noodles to fully seal the tent and ensure there is no leak.

6. Ventilation

To keep the tent cool at night, you need to ensure there’s enough ventilation system inside the tent. Opening all the windows, doors and vents will provide enough air circulation inside the tent. That’s why it’s recommended to buy a tent with mesh windows. So you can open all the vents without worrying about the bugs. To improve the air circulation inside your tent don’t forget to remove the rain fly from your tent.

7. Digging A Tent Pit

Another way to keep your tent cooler is by digging up a tent pit. Pick up a shovel and dig up a 2 or 3 feet deep trench. Make sure the pit you’re digging is wide enough to fit your tent. Setting up your tent in a trench rather than on the hard ground will help to keep your tent clean smelly and cool at night. You can clearly differentiate the temperature between the hard ground and the trench. 

8. Ditch The Sleeping Bag

A sleeping bag or sleeping pad may not be the best choice for summer camping. A sleeping bag is designed to retain and trap the heat inside itself. Thus, sleeping in a sleeping bag during summer would be a nightmare for you. Instead of a sleeping bag, it’s better to bring a thin blanket or a cotton cloth.

Else you can just lay on top of the sleeping bag and use the sheets for a cover-up. In case you don’t want to sleep without a sleeping bag, there’s another trick you can use. Bring a freezing water bottle from home and store it in a cooler. Simply place the freezing bottle under your sleeping bag for some cooling effects. 

Finally, you have aced in knowing some of the best ways to keep your tent cool at night. Implementing these techniques will make sure your tent doesn’t turn into a toaster oven. Now, you can go camping in summer without worrying about spending your night in a hot tent. We hope this article has benefited you in some way.