16.4.2015

The Coleman Instant 5 Dome Tent arrived today. The item arrived within the stated dates and was well packaged. Yes the tent is simple to both assemble/erect and collapse, there is even a handy step by step set up instruction manual sewn into the tents carry bag, a very nice touch from the manufacturer. The tent pegs supplied to be honest ( and as expected ) are not that great being a little flimsy. Sadly on the tent supplied,on one of the poles the middle locking mechanism appears to be a little faulty in comparison to the others. The poles are pulled out and a silver coloured tab locks the metal and fibre glass poles together, the metal pole being the lower of the two.The fault with mine is that it is very stiff and it is difficult to get the locking tab pulled up far enough into the correct position for it to lock correctly in place. I noticed that with it being a moving part the fibre glass appears to rub on the metal pole as it slides in and out and no doubt some wear will occur in time anyway no doubt making for a less tight fit , so I intend to lubricate in those places with silicon spray where the poles slide , perhaps this will rectify the issue. Should this joint fail in the near future I will ask for my money back or another tent. Otherwise so far I am very happy with the item, it has not seen any heavy rain so I can not comment here yet. The single skin makes for a very brightly lit interior through natural light , its large enough ( about 9ft square of floor space ) for a fishing bed chair , tackle bags , small table and much more . I am six feet tall ( sorry I only do imperial such as ounces , yards , feet , inches and furlongs e.t.c ) and I can almost stand up in the centre area . Being a single skin tent the two air vents MUST always be opened as no doubt condensation will form everywhere and drip if closed and air cannot circulate. The floor material looks ok for light use but to avoid any tears in this I am off to buy a few yards of carpet off-cut material to protect the ground sheet and also make the interior feel a little warmer.The door is small in comparison to some of the dedicated pukka carp angling shelters even so I have no problems entering the tent. For the cash spent ( apart from the issue with that iffy pole locking device ) in my opinion it is very good value. As for its durability only time will tell , just keep in mind that this is a light weight summer shelter and not a hard-core carp angling den it is not designed for any serious winter weather abuse. To finish this review the tent fits back into the carry bag very easily and another nice touch from Coleman are the two straps on the bag that help compress the tent and aid the zip to be closed very easily. ( I will keep this review updated regarding the tent leg locking peg fault and on its general performance with water proofing e.t.c )...UPDATE 21.4.2015...used the Instant Dome 5 last night, the air temperature dropped down to - 3oc and with no wind or even a slight breeze, with both top vents and the door fully open all night as expected condensation still formed on the tent inner walls although not enough for this to start dripping, sadly from my experience this issue is unavoidable with a single skinned shelter like this one as cold air meeting slightly warmer air causes condensation. The tent did not de-form or "flap" around too much in the afternoon wind although I would doubt its use in a proper Fen blow as the durability of those telescopic poles is still in doubt , Coleman informed me that these poles cannot be replaced . So far so good for £100 in my opinion being sold as a five person sleeper, for the lone angler or camper this is a decent very spacious shelter, also purchased the Coleman tent carpet this item complements the tent nicely. ( will keep this updated ) Review updated 23.8.2015.....I have been out at least one night a week in this tent , having spent an entire night in heavy rain I can say ( at least my one is ) it is water proof .....for those two readers who find this review not to be that helpful - up yours !!!!!....Review Update 6.10.2015......I paid £100 for this tent and it has been worth every penny, sadly I will be using a proper winter twin skin shelter from now on and I will miss the ease of assembly / erection that this excellent Coleman tent offers. 22.11.17 Yep...still here... tent has been used since April... only issue is the tape that seals the floor join parted company , but easily fixed with Gorilla tape. Material sleeves on pole joints was removed as I found these collected rain water and caused corrosion issues with the elbow screws. Many thanks for reading. Sadly sadly this will be my final with you I've had exceptional use from the tent can't fault it for the money it's been brilliant I've waterproofed it several times but now I think it's giving up the ghost leaking at the seams etc otherwise it's been brilliant 3 years of solid use on a weekly basis take care everybody.

20.8.2016

Well, blimey, I think I have found my perfect forever tent :D Took 5 minutes to put up, probably even less to take down...on my own, and in windy conditions!! It was so, so simple, and required no physical strength whatsover, because of the simple snap/fold mechanism. Why can't all tents be like this? After I put it up it rained for three days solid, not a single drop came through and there was no condensation inside either, which is important to note if you're worried about it being a single skin tent. The tent fabric is very thick and canvassy, maybe that's why it performs like a double-skin.It was very roomy inside. I was looking for a tent that had enough room to stand up,

22.6.2014

Husband bought this tent after much research and I am so impressed with this tent I had to write a review. It is so quick and easy to assemble it's almost embarrassing. As a pretty inexperienced camper it took me under five minutes to assemble this with two small children getting under my feet. And about three minutes of that were putting the pegs in. No tempers were lost, no bits were missing. It really is genius. Disassembly was just as easy and it even fitted back into the bag! It's also light and not particularly bulky to carry. The mechanism is really very simple but if you want to see it done there are some fantastic online videos.Once up it is fairly generous.

19.10.2016

Whilst this tent is larger than most of comparable size when folded, the ease of use more than makes up for it. It really does take only a minute to erect and take down.Once up, it is very sturdy. I've had mine for a while, but only used it properly in October2016 in the lake district. I had extremely varied weather: very heavy rain, strong gusty wind, cold nights as well as damp conditions and beautiful sunshine. A good test for 3 nights.Be aware that condensation can be a problem with single skin tents. This tent does have large vents at the top, and despite it being cold at night and having me and my large dog in there, condensation was no worse than some double skin tents I've owned.

18.3.2017

Once you get the knack of how this goes up, it's a breeze - the first time was a nightmare, and getting it back down was impossible. By the 3rd time, I look like a pro and it takes just a couple of minutes. It even fitted back in the bag. Not bad for a middle-aged single woman ;o) The tent is well made and sturdy. I can stand up in the middle (I'm 5ft 7in) which is fab. I will use the rain fly from my last tent if the weather forecast is rough as this is only single skin and the door opens to the elements. The only other drawback to the tent is that the zip opens and closes at the bottom - you can't choose where to have the opening - I was figuring if it was hot,

23.11.2016

Instant pitch seemed like a dream. And it was to a certain extent - once I'd worked it out. (I'm not a tenty person) Putting it back in the bag was tough - as some reviews have indicated. Took two of us struggling pushing pulling etc. It is waterproof - I was in it for 3 days of almost solid downpour. However, condensation was a serious issue -as many reviewers have indicated. I wasn't sure whether to close the vents because of the rain or leave them open. But even when it stopped raining and with vents open, I still had condensation. There was only me in the tent for 5-6 hours each evening (over a 6 day period) and out side temperature ranged from 4 degrees to 14 degree at night.

25.4.2020

This review is based on our first attempt to put up the tent in our garden.Only takes a minute to pitch? Bit of a laugh. Watched Colemans video on the matter and leave out some information that would be useful. The initial unfolding of the legs was the easy part. Lifting up from the centre and letting go just had the tent collapse, so pretty bad if you're on your own. Pulling out the lower sections of the leg, was quite difficult, as legs seemed stiff. No mention in the video of a silver button you need to reach to pop into the hole on the leg, so that the lower leg stays in place. OK, so we're sensible enough to realise there was something needed. Once done we were able to stabilise the tent ready for peg out.Taking down was tedious.

3.11.2014

Fantastic bit of kit for an impromptu weekend camp. First time I put it up took me 7 minutes, but that included extracting it from the Amazon outer packaging! Subsequent goes showed it really will go up in 1 minute (although that doesn't include fixing the guys, but I'll let them off). This will fit 2 double airbeds or equivalent with room to spare. Telescopic quick erect system is straightforward and clever, and feels reassuringly solid. Being a single skin tent there will be condensation but they have provided two ventilation holes in the roof. The addition of an electric hookup entry point is welcome. It is very light and will fit into the smallest of cars with ease.The only downside is the lack of porch or similar cover outside for storing boots,

8.8.2016

just used this for a camping trip, I've also got the coleman instant 4 that I've been using for about 4 years that has been through the worst weather possible and has held up to everything thrown at it 80mph winds. Got this one because its a bit bigger so i can fit 2 double air beds in. This tent has been just as good as the instant 4, same to put up same to take down. I got 2 of the Coleman Comfort Double Flocked Surface Inflatable Camp Air Bed, they fit but bulge out the sided of the tent a bit, very comfy tho. Not been tested in winds yet because it wasn't very windy but it did chuck it down and we all stayed dry. Never use the pegs supplied with a tent they are useless, always use real pegs like i do.

26.9.2016

Overall a great tent and good value for money. Very compact and lightweight and actually quite quick to setup. The slow but is pegging it in. It is what it is though - i.e. it doesn't have a front awning which when we spend enough time in one spot, you really need to purchase separately and use. Condensation is epic. I kept a small microfiber towel and used it to wipe out the inside in the morning before we packed it up every day. Also, it is not a "full-on" serious camping tent. In the Scottish Highlands, the winds were strong enough to give it a fair lean - not a problem, but just something to be aware of.But overall, the value, quality, ease of pitching etc.

2.6.2016

Received tent the very next day just in time to put it to the test at motor bike rally. Really light weight and compact package, although a little long so we couldn't ride between slow motorway traffic so put a bit of time on journey. However, all was forgiven as it literally took 1 minute to pitch! Well happy ?. Weathered torrential rain storm with not a drip inside n really quick to get in D shaped door. Massive inside, my fella is 6:2 and hunky and he could stand up and move around really comfortably.... Two slight negatives was there was a little condensation inside in morning and we missed door not having fly screen. But only slight negatives overall, super design, really big inside,

11.8.2015

I think this tent may have saved my marriage... With some other tents that we have owned, we end up arguing about what pole goes where, what side is up. With this tent, you take it out of the bag, extend the poles and stake it down. That is really it! It goes up in about a minute (5 minutes for us since we have kids and dogs running around). We were the envy of our friends who arrived an hour before us and were still putting up their tent when we were setting out our chairs! While the inside space is not huge, we use this for sleeping only and use our Coleman event shelter for the living area. I highly recommend this tent for anyone who wants to enjoy their camping trips and not start out

20.4.2015

Delivered on time. Used the tent for a quick wild camp whilst driving through France a few days ago. Tent was a doddle to pitch, genuinely going up in a minute or so, and enabled to get a few hours of decent kip. Stacks of room, easily allowing me to stand up, and plenty of space for air beds. Easy to take down too. There is a knack to getting it back into the bag and zipping it up though. First time using a single skinned tent but no problems with condensation or water ingress ( yes it rained). Put the tent up again yesterday to air it, and found that it deformed quite a bit in breezy conditions, so I'd be careful about pitching it anywhere too exposed.

30.8.2016

I recently used this tent for a camping trip in North Yorkshire and I'm very pleased with it, especially when pitching, as advertised you can literally get it set up and pegged in a minute and the same goes for taking it down. The first night was clear and cold and in the morning there was a lot of dew around, but the inside of the tent stayed nice and dry. There was however quite a bit of condensation build up on the inside of the tent, I think an added "fly sheet" would help avoid this on cold nights, however there doesn't seem to be one available for this model, hence only 4 stars. The other nights were rainy, with spells of heavy rain and wind, and the tent held up well.

26.4.2017

Pretty happy with the tent ,it took me a little time to do my first erect...but will get it down to I reckon five minutes next time round..One downside concerns the locking indent the keeps the second height poles locked in place, on mine the small indent that has to lock the pole in place was seemingly so low in height the pole does not lock unless you fiddle around with it...It lets down an excellent item .I plan to drill a very small hole through the top section pole and have a small cotter pin to slide through hole and secure the secondary height in place of these raised indents on all the four poles .

Coleman Instant Dome 3 - Reviews

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