How do you put the tent back on your Quicksilver?

[chuck893]

We've had our QS 8.1, Rose, since June 2010. We are not typical weekend campers. We've taken a "Grand Tour" every year since we bought her. We are usually out 8 weeks or so, sleeping only in the camper. This year, Rosie's 5th full season, we were out a rather astonishing 14 weeks +1 day (99 days), in 30 different camps. We're pretty sure the Quicksilver was never intended for this kind of performance, but Rosie is a working testament to the toughness of these little campers, yet once in a while she needs a little maintenance beyond greasing the hubs.

We've only had to take the tent off twice, both times primarily because of a door zipper failure. We are in our 70's and not exactly in shape. Getting the tent off is not difficult, but I could not remember how I got the tent back on last time, except that I remembered it was a lots-of-very-bad-words trauma. Yesterday we managed to put the tent back on but it was waaaaaaaay difficult. There's just two of us, and I shouldered most of the load alone. I'm wondering what the "best" way is to get it back on. I know what I did, I just wonder what do y'all do?

[walt3]

Just a thought. Open up the bed ends, leave all the bimini bars down except the outside two. Lay the tent over the trailer. Connect the tent to the outside bars with the Velcro attachments. Snap down the corners. Now the hard part. Get inside the trailer and lift up the other bars. Connect all the straps and adjust. Sounds good in my head?!

[susieku99]

I have the hard copy and just downloaded the owners manual for the 10.0, which we own. I did not skim through it tonight, but pretty sure it tells (near the end) how to take the tent off for storage, and how to put it back on. the link for the manual is here:

https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/livinlite/files

If that doesn't work, message me and I'll send it to you. Maybe make it easier next time.
That said, hats off to you for enjoy your camper to its full extent!

[susieku99]

Another thought - I just replaced a couple of snaps on my tent. I bought and used some zip lube, and also used it on the snaps. What a difference. If you're having zipper problems I would highly recommend buying some. Its available online, and more than likely at your favorite rv dealer (oxymoron).

[susieku99]

Here is a snapshot of the instruction on how to put the tent back on. 

[chuck893]

Thanks, Larry and Jim! So that's why putting the thing back on is such a trauma! I have the owner's manual, but you expect me to actually read it?   (rofl) Seriously, the fact is that we don't take the tent off for the winter*, so we don't have a lot of experience taking it off or putting it back on. I actually have a hard copy of the manual that I take everywhere with me---and never open!  :-S The two times we've had the tent off I've left the lifting straps on the bars on the principle that it should have been easier to position them, but carefully reading the instructions it sounds as if this would work a lot better.

[font color="#1979e6" size="1"]...when you are ready to re-attach the tent, open your camper so the bunk ends are unfolded. Draw each bunk end bimini across the bunk end and let it rest on the mattress. Unfold the tent and lay it atop the camper, aligning the zipper with the doorway. Standing near a bunk end, fold the canvas back until you find the first set of Velcro tabs. Attach them to the bimini resting on the bunk end, making an effort to get the canvas centered from right to left. Move to the other bunk end and repeat the process. Now, pull the material under the bunk ends and fasten snaps. Going inside the unit, raise the remaining biminis and attach to Velcros. Adjust until canvas hangs evenly. Re-attach the long straps that run between the bimini bars and install the center
support pole. Go outside and fasten exterior snaps and bungees. Your unit should be ready for a summer of fun![/font]

*We live in a tiny over-55 apartment with limited storage space, so we have for four winters left the tent on with desiccant inside and gotten away with it. We knew we were supposed to take it off, but where to put it?  

[chuck893]

[quote source="/post/2712/thread" timestamp="1408250261" author="@jimandanna"]Another thought - I just replaced a couple of snaps on my tent. I bought and used some zip lube, and also used it on the snaps. What a difference. If you're having zipper problems I would highly recommend buying some. Its available online, and more than likely at your favorite rv dealer (oxymoron). [/quote]We have not had any tent snaps go (yet), but we just had all the snaps on the tonneau cover replaced as about half of them fell apart. I use a little silicon lube on the zippers but I'll look into something like Star Brite (PTEF). We don't have a zipper issue per se---but we use the camper so heavily, far more than it's probably designed for, that the "main" (left as seem from the outside) door zipper failed twice over 5 full seasons, separating behind the slider. The first time was a couple of years ago, and we took the tent to a local tent-and-awning guy who put on a better slider (he said the zippers were excellent but the sliders were not). That worked fine until halfway through this extraordinary 2014 season (99 days out) the "main" zipper went again. If you notice the picture on the cover of the manual, the original version of the camper had only one zipper, and if that were still true we'd have had a serious problem. As it happens, Livin' Lite changed the door so there are zippers on both sides, so I just pinned and whipstitched the left zipper with dental floss and we finished the tour using the "off-side" zipper. We just last week had the same tent-and-awning guy replace the "main" zipper with a much larger one (looks triple the size of the original). He did the tonneau snaps and a few other repairs for under $200, which I think is very reasonable for professional repair that I couldn't even attempt myself. I'm just not a handy guy. 

[spurscar]

Wait, you're supposed to take your tent off?

I doubt we'll span long between trips living in SC, but what's roughly the longest it should/can be stored on the camper?

[chuck893]

[quote source="/post/2729/thread" timestamp="1408304725" author="@spurscar"]Wait, you're supposed to take your tent off?

I doubt we'll span long between trips living in SC, but what's roughly the longest it should/can be stored on the camper?[/quote]Yeah, the manual (that I just reread) recommends removing the tent for winter storage, folding it, putting it in a tote or some such and keeping it in the proverbial "cool dry place." BUT because of lack of storage space we have been keeping our tent inside the closed-up camper for four full winters. The past two winters we have been lucky enough to arrange storage in a garage, but the first two winters the rig was outside in a Wisconsin winter, stored with a tarp over it (and we had no problems with mold or mildew, in reference to another thread someplace else). The first winter I worried all winter, but I put a bucket of DampRid (calcium chloride) on the deck inside the door and checked it every so often. It was working normally, absorbing a reasonable amount of moisture. When we opened the camper in the spring, everything was perfectly fine (and Wisconsin is often pretty humid) and not even the whole bucket of DampRid had been used up. 

So, every winter since, stored indoors or out, we've left the tent on, closed the camper, crossed our fingers   , put a fresh bucket of DampRid inside, and checked it every so often. Every spring we open it up and everything is fine. That is not to say that we recommend it! It's working for us (thank goodness, since storage is for us a challenge).