Can Roof Top Tents Leak Or Not?

With the growth of the rooftop tent market it has become quite common for people that have never used one, or perhaps aren’t as experienced with camping to come up with valid questions during research. Two of the most common questions are related to how the elements affect your roof top tent:

If these are two questions you find yourself asking and researching for, then this short read is perfect for you.

• Do rooftop tents leak?
• Are roof top tents waterproof?

No, roof top tents don’t leak and shouldn’t leak. The outer shell of a hard top tent is fully impermeable, as well as the travel cover made out of PVC from soft shell tents. The canvas and rainfly of all roof top tents are fully waterproof too, and the tents even have interior waterproof taped seams, and there are no parts exposed to the elements which can leak.

If a tent is leaking, either the canvas is damaged, a zipper isn’t sealed properly, the outer shell broke or was pierced, or finally if there was some issue with the manufacturing process.

Let me expand on the above explanation: there are two types of roof top tents, hard shell and softshell. Hard shell tents tend to have an upper and bottom shell, both made either of aluminum, fiberglass or plastic, and they cover quite well any possible contact of the canvas with the water.

Some of these hardshell tents to have some of the canvas exposed to the sky, and essentially to water if it rains. The good news is, the canvas is waterproof and it has what we call a rainfly, essentially another layer of canvas to protect it further.

Soft shell tents have both: waterproof body canvas and a rainfly, even more waterproof, on top of the canvas.

Let us put this into even simpler terms:

Pop up and clam shell hard shell roof top tents have an outer shell that protects you from rain, wind or snow. Only the sides if the canvas of the tent are exposed to the elements, but the canvas is either made of ripstop poly-cotton fabric, fully waterproof, or of poly-oxford fabric, also waterproof.

The sides of the canvas of the tent, besides being waterproof, have more fabric, called window awnings, that protect the side windows and tent entrance from water coming into the tent from the sides.

Side opening hard shell tents have a portion of the canvas exposed to the sky or the rain in the upper side of the tent. Once again, this canvas is either poly-oxford or poly-cotton, fully waterproof, with no zippers on its roof exposed to the rain, and with a rainfly to cover it as an additional waterproofing layer, as well as covering windows and entrance.

Therefore, hard shell roof top tents don’t leak.

As to soft shell tents, they are all made of canvas on the exterior, they resemble the shape of a house. Their canvases are made of the same fabric materials: poly-cotton or poly-oxford, fully waterproof, with a rainfly that goes over the tent canvas as an additional layer of protection, and finally extra fabric to protect the windows and entrance.

Once again, soft shell tents don’t leak.

On top of all of this, all tents come with waterproof tape on the inner seams of the tent to protect from any water flowing through the seams.

When the tents are closed and you’re driving, soft shell tents come with a PVC tent cover which is not just waterproof, but literally impermeable, and hard shell tents shut tight with the plastic, aluminum or fiberglass being impermeable too.

This is why tents don’t leak:

• Waterproof shell
• Waterproof rainfly
• Waterproof canvas
• Interior waterproof seam tape
• PVC impermeable travel cover

What about if I leave a zipper open?

Zippers cannot be waterproofed, it’s a reality. If it rains too much and from the sides, and water starts flowing or running into the zippers, the tent might leak. It’s not a defect, it’s not an issue due to the canvas, it’s just the zipper.

What if it rains too much?

Accidents can always happen, meaning the wind and rain can suddenly make some water come through the windows if you didn’t close them properly, or less likely through the ventilation vents which are also covered, but you never really know.

The truth is these tents are all made of waterproof or impermeable materials that can handle A LOT of water. We have even used the Guana Equipment Wanaka roof top tent under the Costa Rican pouring rain with no issue whatsoever. But, nothing is perfect and just like wain can come through the window of your car or house if they’re left open, ot can come in through the window of a tent if left open, or through a zipper if exposed to the water.

Recommendations to prevent the tent from leaking:

• Close the windows and entrance door
• Cover the windows and entrance with the window awnings made on purpose to protect the zippers from exposure
• Waterproof your tent the moment you buy it, by pouring water over it and leaving it to dry in the sun. This helps “waterproof the canvas” (although not necessary it helps), and next time you know if has already been exposed and better prepared
• Make sure all seams have the interior waterproof tape
• Don’t leave any zipper exposed
• If you have a soft shell tent, always leave the rainfly on

What to do if your tent leaks?

The first thing to do is locate if there is a hole in the canvas or shell. Accidents can happen and a branch, dust, rocks, can pierce through the canvas and a hole might be leaking. If there is one, cover it with a waterproof tape or waterproof tent sealant, and pour water over it to see if it leaks.

If it’s not that, it likely can be an exposed zipper or a window badly closed. Leave the tent to dry, then when at home, close all windows and zippers, spray water over it with a hose, see if it leaks, if it doesn’t, you’re good.

If it does, you might notice a hole, or the interior waterproof seam that has detached and needs to be replaced. This can often happen if the glue gets old, or if the tent was exposed to extreme heat that literally fried the tape.

How waterproof are roof top tents?

Roof top tents are 100% waterproof. The canvas of the body of the tent is fully waterproof. The rainfly of soft shell roof top tents is also fully waterproof. Then, the hard shell of the tents is completely impermeable, as well as the PVC travel cover of soft shell roof top tents.

If any leaks occur, there might be a hole in the canvas, an exposed zipper, a window or door badly closed, or a defect on the canvas, which is rare.

Good news is, all the parts can be replaced or fixed if accidents happen. The even better news are that roof top tents simply don’t leak and you can camp even under pouring rain and be fine.