Roof top tent for a family of four which one?

[cvanhook]

Box Rocket, Thanks I appreciate it! I am just north of Cincinnati Ohio. Hey I have been following your trailer build for some time and am eventually planning on building something very similar to mount the tent on. Would you see any issues with mounting a large tent on a trailer the size of yours or would it need to be larger?
Thank You for your input!

I know it can be tricky to make a decision when you don't have a dealer close by to see them in person. Feel free to contact me and I can talk you through any of your questions and do my best to make up for not having one to check out in person. BTW, where are you located? Maybe I can find a customer near you that can show you their tent.
.
Here's my cell number if you have any questions 801-710-8110 and remember 10% discount on Tepui for forum members.
Adam

 

[Hoghead]

Because you said you are looking for a 4 person tent, one thing that CVT offers that nobody else does ( I think at least), is the largest tent. Their Denali tent is huge with 2 ladders and 2 doors. I have the Rainer and have been happy with it. It was between the Tepui Gran Sabana and it. I was able to get the CVT at a greater discount and that helped me with the decision. We've been happy with it so far (2 years).

 

[cvanhook]

Thanks for the suggestion I have been looking at that one also.

Because you said you are looking for a 4 person tent, one thing that CVT offers that nobody else does ( I think at least), is the largest tent. Their Denali tent is huge with 2 ladders and 2 doors. I have the Rainer and have been happy with it. It was between the Tepui Gran Sabana and it. I was able to get the CVT at a greater discount and that helped me with the decision. We've been happy with it so far (2 years).

 

[rickc]

cvanhook: double check your Tahoe roof load capability; the shipping weight of the CVT Denali is 320lbs! Some of that is cardboard but most is tent; over twice the weight of some two man tents; most of which are around 150lbs. Hannibal also make massive family tents up to 2m wide and 2.4m long with twin ladders, no doubt also heavy. Having this much weight on your roof will affect your handling when driving.

Unless you are planning serious abuse, I would not go with a big, heavy metal plate style floor; this will also need at least three cross bars, maybe four (if bars are your plan). The suggestion of tent and annex is a good one; I was surprised how big the annex room of the ARB Simpson III is; it hangs narrow at the top, the width of the tent at 55" but splays wider as it goes to ground; I haven't measured it but there was room for a cot or two, each side of the ladder. Mine, the new style, does not have a floor.

 

[Box Rocket]

Box Rocket, Thanks I appreciate it! I am just north of Cincinnati Ohio. Hey I have been following your trailer build for some time and am eventually planning on building something very similar to mount the tent on. Would you see any issues with mounting a large tent on a trailer the size of yours or would it need to be larger?
Thank You for your input!

No issues that I can see. I have one of the 4-person tents on my trailer semi-fulltime now.

 

[Box Rocket]

Just want to give one more thing to consider. The extra large 2-ladder tents that some brands offer can have some long-term downsides. Besides the weight of a larger tent, the long length of the tent can become a problem. Tepui also briefly had this style of tent a few years back and decided not to continue selling it. Here's what Tepui found that led to the decision not to sell them. While the two ladders supports the cantilevered edge well, the hinge-side seam between the two halves of the tent can fatigue. You have a much longer span between the two sides of the tent and since the reason for having such a large tent is generally to fit more people, you also have a lot of weight inside the tent putting pressure in the center of that seam. The center part of that seam can fatigue and sag over time which can be uncomfortable, affect the functionality of the tent and could also be unsafe.

The TEPUI XL size of 6x8' open sleeping area has shown to be the comfortable limit in terms of size without a big change in the engineering of the tent base that would add a lot more weight to an already heavy tent. The XL size Tepui can sleep 4 in the main area (very comfortable with 3) and easily another 3 in the annex if more space is needed. If that doesn't work, I've even seen two smaller tents be used together.

 

[cvanhook]

Guys thanks your input is very helpful and I am taking all this into consideration as we plan out this purchase. any way you slice it its a lot of money and I want to make an educated decision. You all have been a big help! Wish I could see some of these in person it would definitely make it easier. Box Rocket awesome thats good to know as I plan my trailer build.

 

[Box Rocket]

Two adults and two kids is pretty simple and there are several options. The 2-3 person Tepui Autana would work. It will comfortably sleep you and your wife in the top and a full size cot can fit on either side of the ladder inside the annex (which includes a floor). Room for the kids and still some room behind the ladder for gear. That's the exact setup I started with when I purchased my first Tepui tent and it worked great and we put 4 kids in the annex! (my twins were small and fit behind the ladder).

.

.

.

.

 

[cvanhook]

Yes thats great info thanks. I have read about some people having trouble with the sagging on the larger tents. Thats one thing we are trying to decide on is how big do we need to go the kids are 6 and 9 so I think going smaller with room to grow into the annex might be better than going huge on the tent.

Just want to give one more thing to consider. The extra large 2-ladder tents that some brands offer can have some long-term downsides. Besides the weight of a larger tent, the long length of the tent can become a problem. Tepui also briefly had this style of tent a few years back and decided not to continue selling it. Here's what Tepui found that led to the decision not to sell them. While the two ladders supports the cantilevered edge well, the hinge-side seam between the two halves of the tent can fatigue. You have a much longer span between the two sides of the tent and since the reason for having such a large tent is generally to fit more people, you also have a lot of weight inside the tent putting pressure in the center of that seam. The center part of that seam can fatigue and sag over time which can be uncomfortable, affect the functionality of the tent and could also be unsafe.

The TEPUI XL size of 6x8' open sleeping area has shown to be the comfortable limit in terms of size without a big change in the engineering of the tent base that would add a lot more weight to an already heavy tent. The XL size Tepui can sleep 4 in the main area (very comfortable with 3) and easily another 3 in the annex if more space is needed. If that doesn't work, I've even seen two smaller tents be used together.

 

[Box Rocket]

We still use the Tepui Autana but we've since upgraded to a Ruggedized model.

.
I've added a second tent the Kukenam XL (4-person) that is typically on my trailer. Now that my kids are a bit older (ages 9-16) the regular Autana wasn't enough. Our 4 kids sleep in the Kukenam XL and my wife and I get our own space in the Autana Ruggedized.
.
Set up in Moab as a vendor outside Gearheads.

.

.

.

.
Depending on the size of your kids, the Kukenam XL or Autana XL could work very well if you are wanting to keep your kids close to you and not in the annex etc.
In this pic from this past January we had 4 adult men in my Kukenam XL on my cruiser. It was *snug* but we fit and it probably helped us not freeze in the single digit temps.

.
Anyway, a few different options if you are considering a Tepui tent. Let me know if I can help

 

[cvanhook]

Love your setup thanks for sharing the photos we are talking about it right now and thinking a 3+ with annex is probably the best way to go for us we will keep kicking this around lots to think about. Thanks so much for your advice this is a huge help for us rookies!!!

Two adults and two kids is pretty simple and there are several options. The 2-3 person Tepui Autana would work. It will comfortably sleep you and your wife in the top and a full size cot can fit on either side of the ladder inside the annex (which includes a floor). Room for the kids and still some room behind the ladder for gear. That's the exact setup I started with when I purchased my first Tepui tent and it worked great and we put 4 kids in the annex! (my twins were small and fit behind the ladder).

.

.

.

.

 

[cvanhook]

So the Kukenam XL is a single ladder but still four person so it just doesnt have a huge span like the really large double ladder tents im assuming? I think we would like to keep the kids close for a bit until they get a little bigger but I love the idea of using the annex as they grow for more sleeping space. Those are great options thank you! Beautiful photos by the way!

We still use the Tepui Autana but we've since upgraded to a Ruggedized model.

.
I've added a second tent the Kukenam XL (4-person) that is typically on my trailer. Now that my kids are a bit older (ages 9-16) the regular Autana wasn't enough. Our 4 kids sleep in the Kukenam XL and my wife and I get our own space in the Autana Ruggedized.
.
Set up in Moab as a vendor outside Gearheads.

.

.

.

.
Depending on the size of your kids, the Kukenam XL or Autana XL could work very well if you are wanting to keep your kids close to you and not in the annex etc.
In this pic from this past January we had 4 adult men in my Kukenam XL on my cruiser. It was *snug* but we fit and it probably helped us not freeze in the single digit temps.

.
Anyway, a few different options if you are considering a Tepui tent. Let me know if I can help

 

[ghostshaper]

We just bought the CVT Rainier for our family of four. It's 6' x 8' open. We have two sons, 8 & 10. Luckily for us, we're short and able to sleep the length of the tent, so we have about 2' of width per person. The kids like sleeping w us, the wife likes them w us for security, but you know how kids are when they sleep. My sons were perpendicular, on top of us, each other, etc. Half way through the night.

We have the annex, but that's for our clothes and the two dogs.

We mounted it on our shell, using the Yakima tracks and three cross bars. We also have a foxwing awning up there.

 

[dlh62c]

I am looking to buy a RTT in the near future that will comfortably fit my wife and I and our two kids.

Have you considered a small pop up style camper?

 

[cvanhook]

Love your set up exactly what we are looking to do. Thanks for sharing your input!

We just bought the CVT Rainier for our family of four. It's 6' x 8' open. We have two sons, 8 & 10. Luckily for us, we're short and able to sleep the length of the tent, so we have about 2' of width per person. The kids like sleeping w us, the wife likes them w us for security, but you know how kids are when they sleep. My sons were perpendicular, on top of us, each other, etc. Half way through the night.

We have the annex, but that's for our clothes and the two dogs.

We mounted it on our shell, using the Yakima tracks and three cross bars. We also have a foxwing awning up there.