Unusual Gear Advice Question… Living in a Tent full time

No need for a fancy MLD quilt. For car camping (literally sleeping in my car at trailheads), I love a big ol’ fashioned sleeping bag with a flannel liner. I got a Wenzel 25 degree and it’s very comfortable, and way cheaper. Super bulky though, not great if you have to carry it a lot of places. But if it stays in one spot for a long time, no problem.

I would be looking at canvass tents for that purpose.
You can get the Ex Army 11’x11′ types for $700 or so.

How much time are you going to be spending in the tent? Sleeping only?

The more time you spend in it, the bigger you’ll want it to be.

Also, will you have electricity? I have no idea what the weather is like down there, but it’s supposed to get down in the mid to low 40s this weekend. That’s a bit chilly.

A canvas tent is something I hadn’t considered…What is the benefit?

I will only be sleeping in the tent, not doing much hanging out unless I want to instead of the living room. I was only thinking synthetic sleeping bag in case it’s dewy. I am not sure what the dew is like in Palo Alto. I’ll have electricity in the house and can bring a battery outside.

It doesn’t get dewy inside a tent, at least not a large tent.  Cots make a big difference. You up out the coldest air and they have a bit of give. Or got a piece of plywood, cut to 78-84″ X 32-36″. Support it on milk crates or some other standardized storage containers for you stuff.

I second the flannel-lined SlumberJack / Coleman bag.

The thicker and darker the tent fabric, the more privacy.

If this were me, I’d build a 4′ X 8′ or 6′ X 8′ “garden shed” on pressure-treated runners, a plywood ( maybe with linoleum) floor, 2×4 framing and T-111 siding. $300 of materials on the cheap, $600 with a half-lite door, two windows for ventilation and R-11 insulation. It would moderate the temperatures and be so much nicer on the occasionally stormy night. When you leave, they’ll have a garden shed.

That’s a great idea about the garden shed, maybe something to think about down the road since it would have to be approved by the landlord and would take more time

I’ll look into the flannel-lined bags!

Last time I priced out a Hexayurt I think it would cost about $250 for the H13 model. Gives you a wall tent sized living space but with real insulation.

A garden shed sounds great but no way the city would allow it and busy body neighbors might end that real quick. You are talking about California here. I think the canvas tent might fly under the radar and would be much better than tents made with other fabrics. I hope you can make it work!

Wow – pitching a tent in a Palo Alto backyard has come back again. We had an interesting character living in our (rented) backyard in the early 1980s, just a few blocks from Stanford. Sometimes he slept in the garden shed, sometimes he cowboy-camped on the lawn. Also used to joke about renting out my old VW van as a spare bedroom, but never did.

Palo Alto climate is pretty mild – winter night temperatures rarely below freezing, summers usually cool off late at night, but you’ll want a lot of ventilation. For several years I rented a small cabin in Palo Alto that required a box fan in the window to sleep comfortably on summer nights. That cabin (and it’s neighbor) were replaced by a multi-million dollar monster house a few years later.

You aren’t really camping – more like sleeping in a nylon- or canvas-walled bedroom. Go for comfort. Cot or platform bed as suggested. Maybe a futon, foam slab, or regular mattress beneath you, real sheets and blankets or comforter on top. Run an extension cord for lights and a small space heater (winter) and fan (summer).

The neighbors will complain if you build a “garden shed” without a permit. That’s the Palo Alto Way™. You might even get complaints about the tent. Consider your options to prevent those complaints: temporarily striking camp every few weeks, moving around the yard, maybe setting up and striking camp in the darkness. “Stealth camping” in a suburban backyard?

We had two young trailworkers sleeping in backpacking tents & sleeping bags in a coastal Marin County backyard a couple of summers ago. They didn’t complain much after a long day of hard work and a couple of beers.

Good luck.

— Rex

Why don’t you just throw a cheap mattress down in the tent? That sounds like the most comfortable.

Thanks for the feedback everyone! It’s possible neighbors will notice but it’s pretty well hidden / off main roads. I was thinking of avoiding mattresses because of moisture… If it rains and the mattress gets wet it will be wet forever :/

nylon would start to weaken after a summer of sunlight, so you might have to replace it once a year.

interesting how housing is so short in the bay area

I did that in the ADK’s for 8 months while I was working on a housing project for the Olympics in Lake Placid.
1) Peak height – Get a tent that is tall enough to stand up in.
2) Cot-yes. Additional racks for any clothing storage.
3) Power-yes. Small heater (around 1000BTU) to help with drying.
4) Lots of ventilation! It will quickly get stuffy/smelly with anything semi-permanent.
5) Have a cooler for drinks, food storage. Old food will attract all sorts of animals.
6) Have a dedicated, LARGE sponge for any spills. Mason jars for quick storage.
6) In a back yard, setting up more than a week will kill the lawn, you need to move it at least once per week, preferably twice.
7) Any steel or metal items WILL rust. Do not store them on the floor.
8) Use a second opaque tarp over it. UV will ruin a tent in about 6 months unless you keep it covered. Other benefits: prevents direct sunlight on the tent (heat), adds a bit of insulation (cold.) DO NOT use bungies, they deteriorate fast.
9) Recoat the floor, under, with caulk/mineral spirits (around 7-10 to 1.) It will save abrasion.
10) Chair. Sometimes you will want to sit with something against your back.
11) lots more, as above.

It is a chore, but certainly doable.

Interesting, but most municipalities allow “outbuildings” less than 100sqft or 1000cu feet, or (up to 10’x10’x10′-peak.) Technically, you cannot live in them.

I worked about 12hr/day plus 10hr on Sat. Your job (student, or whatever) will likely differ.

Canvas will eventually soak through. Cheap nylon tent from the local box box store, with a secondary common poly tarp ( a brown one will be nicer than the standard blue) over top to protect the tent from the sun. Replace tarp as needed, instead of tent.

You’ll want a cheap tarp for beneath the tent too, a bigger one you can fold to get more layers out of would work better, just make sure it does not stick out past the tent.

Line the floor with 2 layers of that puzzle piece gym floor mats from walmart.

A decent cot, with some foam padding or extra blankets on top for comfort, blankets or big cheap sleeping bag from the local store.

You’ll want to run an extension cord for a fan and light.

Kodak canvas flex bow tents are very roomy and affordable…you could tarp over it for more protection as mentioned above, and they have a lot of options and sizes, including screened in porches

I’d choose a van.