Ripstop Vs. Taffeta Tent Floor

[Lawson Kline]

As the topic suggestions which floor is "BETTER"?

Ripstop Vs. Taffeta???

[Paul McLaughlin]

In the old days, the reasoning was that the taffeta floor would be more durably waterproof, as the ripstop threads created tiny ridges where abrasion could concentrate wear on the coating, thus leading to leaks faster than you'd get under the same conditions with a smooth taffeta. Whether this is really significant is a good question, and whether it would matter with an impregnated fabric like silnylon, as opposed to a fabric coated on one side is another good question, although probably moot since there may be noe silicone impregnated taffeta.

[Sam Farrington]

Roger Caffin has commented that when Suter testing ripstop fabric, the reinforcement grid intersections appear to be the first points of leakage. Not so with taffetas.

However, the elasticity of nylon fabrics also helps to limit abrasion and punctures, and this, along with the quality of the coating, may be more important factors than the type of weave.

[Lawson Kline]

I have always heard the whole ripstop floor will leak faster piece but I wasn't sure if this was just a marketing thing or not. It appears that this question is still unknown due to the lack of forum reply's so this morning I conducted a few tests using various materials. My results could be very subjective since they were not conducted in a lab but heres my results.

I tested 3 materials:
70D PU Coated Taffeta
70D PU Coated Ripstop
70D Sil/PU blend Coated Ripstop.

How I tested the materials:
I used 400 grit sandpaper with a orbital sander. I placed the piece of material down on a piece of wood and clamped it so it wouldn't move. I tested each piece of material for a duration of 15 seconds since I didn't want to completely remove the coatings.

How I determined a winner:
I don't own a Microscope so I used a magnifying glass to see which one was missing more of it's coating and where.

The Results:
The winner was the 70D PU/Silicone blend coated ripstop material. It almost looked untouched and I am sure it had to with the low friction of the silicone in the coating.

The runner up was the 70D PU coated taffeta. Wear was evenly distributed throughout the entire piece.

The looser was the 70D PU coated ripstop. Wear was concentrated at the ripstop grids were not only was the PU layer missing but the ripstop grids were frayed a bit.

Conclusion:
A silicone/pu blend coated taffeta would be the perfect floor material but I don't believe they make such a material.

Cheers,
Lawson

[Roger Caffin]

> Roger Caffin has commented that when Suter testing ripstop fabric, the reinforcement
> grid intersections appear to be the first points of leakage. Not so with taffetas.

And even better is plain weave nylon – the same as ripstop but without the thicker threads.

Cheers

[Lawson Kline]

Hey Roger,

I have heard that too but I was unaware it came in a 70D. If you have a source please share.

Thanks,
Lawson

[Sam Farrington]

Lawson,
Even the manufacturers who use ripstop fabric with silicone coated on one side and polyurethane or polyether on the other for their canopies don't generally do this for their taffeta floors. I think this is because silicone is not in much demand for floors and/or they think more polyurethane alone will be more water resistant than silicone. Wildequipment.com.au
Have seen other manufacturers' products also with the poly and silicone coatings; but again, on the ripstop canopies, not the floors. If you search enough though, you might find a product with such a two-sided coating used on a taffeta floor.
For myself, I think silicone is great for floor bottoms, and so posted my reasons on MYOG 8/25/10. The thread was entitled "silnylon tent floor."
Sam

[Roger Caffin]

> I was unaware it came in a 70D. If you have a source please share.
PLEASE! This is Backpacking LIGHT. 70 denier indeed!
:-)

Cheers

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