Khyam Igloo

[tankosl]

Ok,

I couldn't hold off any more.....

In between rain storms I put it up!!!


I bought a genuine Khyam footprint for £21. This seems much better quality than your normal tarps .
You can see from the photo that the floorplan is an unusual shape and this footprint fits great!!!
It's pegged down with tapes, not eyelets which I feel are better and stronger.
The tape measure in the photo is at 1m.



To get the tent out of the bag, spread out and put up took about 5 minutes and remember this was the first attempt, so I will get quicker.
It matches up well to the footprint, and was very stable even with no guy's attached, just pegged down. The hardest bit I found was clipping the top cap on, as only being 5ft3" I had to stretch to reach it as the wind kept blowing it away from me

Here it is modelled by my soon to be 11 years old Son, who's 1m42cm....apparently???

Unzipping the front door you see the sleeping pod already attached......
One of the first things that you notice is good quality zips are used
There is a dual inner door of mesh and normal, this rolls up and is held with toggles. There is quite a high step into the pod which should help to keep unwanted things out....
There's good mesh ventilation in the roof and a very handy and strong hanging point for a small light, etc. There's lots of small pockets sewn in as well, handy for small/light bits and pieces but I wouldn't want to stuff too much weight in it.

You can see at the far end there is another entry point/storage area (the door is un-zipped but hanging down).

Once in the pod you realise what a good size it is......It will fit 3 ok but like most, 2 in absolute comfort. Ideally side by side, with more than enough room for kit by your side, and space at either end in the porches for wet gear. I can kneel upright inside with no problems.
The floorplan is unusual as it's hexagonal, but this works very well and gives good floor space.

The tape is at 1m again...

You've got a choice of entrances, but I think I will use the obvious end with the other being used for storage that you can get at from inside and out.
On those less than perfect days, you can have the front door down but a side unzipped away from the wind to allow great ventilation when needed. I suppose you could get in and out here if you were a bit trimmer and more flexible than yours truly...



The storm clouds arrived again so I quickly took it down, this took about 2 mins!!!!!! I think it took longer to fold the footprint away actually.......

Looking at my photos I notice that the top cap isn't straight....don't worry, it's just me, the clips need twisting a bit!

Just sat there, with no guy's, and on a windy day it hardly moved and seems very stable.......and I'm sure the creases will soon come out with use

All in all, I'm very pleased with my purchase so far and look forward to trying it out...... but that might not be until next year now, unless I'm feeling particularly hardy

Oh well, roll on the Spring..........Watch this space!!!

[winxp-master]

Nice review

[tankosl]

Thanks very much......

I hope it's useful for people thinking of buying one!!!

[davsato]

roll the tent in the footprint at the end and it'll fit in the tent bag nicely. khyam bags have space for this and it makes putting the tent away loads easier

[tankosl]

Thanks for the tip but I wanted to try and keep a possably dirty/wet footprint away from the tent, but if the weathers good............

[davsato]

fold it in on itself so the downside is covered up

[Jenna]

just wanted to say after being a long time colman fan (20 odd years) I have bought an Khyam Igloo to take on rallies....

I'm still not convinced as to the reliability of the pole system but its better than i expected (well it couldnt have been worse!)

Pack size is a monster compared to the colemans i'm used to, largely down to those poles again i suspect, its also proportionally heavier ( so much so I wont be using for backpacking which is a bit of a dissapointment).

One thing that i do like is the quality, its well put together and the fabric is way better weight than coleman use.

All in all a good tent.

[tankosl]

Yeah, my feelings as well.......

I certainly wouldn't want to carry it too far due to size and weight, but as that's not the plan, I went for the quality and speed/ease in putting it up.

Hopefully when I use it it'll tick all the boxes for me....

[tankosl]

Well it's finally been used in anger
I went along to help out on my sons Scout camp last weekend and the Igloo did well.....
Plus- Quick and easy to set up and get down again.
Loads of internal space for just little old me.
No leaks at all, even in the heavy rain we had.
Negatives- The side acess doors not practical for somebody my size.
When you open up the main door to get in, due to the steep angle, rain does come in but not as far as the sleeping pod.

All in all, very pleased at how it performed with only very minor negs. I'm thinking about perhaps getting some sort of awning to attach to the front if need be ........ This would make it even better!!!!!

[steveR]

When you open up the main door to get in, due to the steep angle, rain does come in but not as far as the sleeping pod.

All in all, very pleased at how it performed with only very minor negs. I'm thinking about perhaps getting some sort of awning to attach to the front if need be ........ This would make it even better!!!!!

IKWYM, I too have suffered with rain getting in, but only for a moment or two before pulling the zip down. The Biker and Ranger (I think it is the Ranger) have a proper porch area. Not quite as instant to erect though.

Mine is up at present waiting for 14 yo son to have a couple of nights in it before going off on DofE a week on saturday. I suggested he try out sleep mats etc before leaving....