Alright, everyone laugh, I left food in my tent, and now there is a hole in the no-see-um mesh body. Anybody know how to fix something like this? It seems like sewing into no-see-um mesh wouldn't work. Any ideas?

Edited by splproductions on 08/29/2007 16:43:49 MDT.

no-see-um can be sewn, but the repair will likely depend on how many rows of the fabric's weave have been damaged. to be on the safest side, you'll need to get a small square of no-see-um mesh. you can get small pieces from REI, or order a yard from thru-hiker.com. the thru-hiker mesh will be substantially lighter.

cut the square so that it is larger than the tear by roughly 2", and then either hand-sew the patch or glue it in place. most kind of glue should work, but using something like thinned silicone caulk (or silicon seam sealer) will be more flexible than something like super glue, which will be stiff.

anyway, that's what i would do. looking forward to seeing others' suggestions.

Isn't that why they invented duct tape?

Actually, Colleen's advice sounds just right.

>"Anybody know how to fix something like this?"

A small patch of squirrel pelt works well.

Yeah, I know the problem. I use a very light mesh, much more fragile than the heavy no-see-um, and holes happen - snags or animals.

> cut the square so that it is larger than the tear by roughly 2", and then either hand-sew the patch
That's what I do, although I probably only allow 1" of overlap. I pitch the tent (actually, I often do the repair in the field anyhow), pin the patch to the fabric, then use a long needle. I run the needle in and out of the material several times before pulling the thread through - makes sewing fairly fast. I usually do a loop or two at the corners so the thread does not get pulled tighter than the mesh.

I tried glue and double-sided tape: they didn't work that well for me.

Sam Francis said...."A small patch of squirrel pelt works well."

For some stupid reason this made me laugh out loud.

Thank you for an excellent start to a Sunday morning.

Steve

;-)

Edited by samurai on 09/11/2007 21:21:05 MDT.