How to Break Down Your Tent

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[00:00:00.43] Text L L Bean. How to break down a tent. In a forest, a tent. From the inside a women zips open a tent.

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[00:00:07.80] Hey, my name is Mackenzie. Have you ever put together a tent and wondered, how am I going to break this thing apart? Well, you're not alone. Every tent's different, but I'm going to show you the six basic steps you need to break down a tent, store it, and get it ready for your next camping trip. Plus, we're going to do it pretty quickly. Let's go.

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[00:00:25.07] Step 1 clean out and unzip your tent.

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[00:00:27.00] First things first, clean out the tent. Remove all of your gear. Don't forget to check pockets for things like keys or glasses, or you're not going to get far from the campground.

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[00:00:36.36] Tip, check for important items. Step 2, remove the fly.

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[00:00:41.07] If you did use a rain fly, pull the stakes out, pull it off the tent. And this is important-- let it dry. Putting away a wet tent is like putting away wet laundry. Not only is it gross, but it is the worst thing you can do-- one of the worst things-- you can do for the material. If you do have to put it away in a rush-- it's raining-- when you get home, make sure you take the tent back out, let it dry completely before putting it away.

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[00:01:07.96] Text, step 3, remove and bag the poles.

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[00:01:11.69] All right. Moving from the top down, next thing we need to tackle are the poles. Some poles clip. Some poles go into sleeves. Whatever you did to put the tent on, you'll do the opposite to take it off. And you'll let the tent just fall right to the ground. Boom.

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[00:01:24.71] Mackenzie moves around the tent while pushing the pole sleeves down. From the floor, she raises a pole. The tent collapses. She removes the poles from the tent and ground. She twirls around the poles. Step 4, remove and bag.

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[00:01:39.29] Now that the tent isn't going to catch wind and blow away, unstake the tent, bag the stakes, and then put the bag with the stakes into the bag with the poles.

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[00:01:47.93] Slides clamp over the bag string.

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[00:01:50.01] OK. This is a little bit like folding a fitted sheet, except there's one important thing for you to remember. Your tent and your fly should be fitted to the same size as your poles. Your storage bag is fitted to your collapsed poles. So if your tent and your fly are fitted to the same size as your poles, it should fit the tent too.

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[00:02:09.11] A dashed line measuring the width of the bag is the same width as the folded sheets.

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[00:02:14.63] As you roll the tent and fly around the pole bag, keep everything super tight.

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[00:02:18.48] From a short end, she rolls the tent and fly forward.

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[00:02:21.63] Look. As you do this, air bubbles are going to pop up. Just squish them down or have someone squish the air bubbles for you.

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[00:02:28.72] The folds deflate.

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[00:02:30.80] There we go.

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[00:02:32.04] Text, step 6, pack everything away.

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[00:02:36.57] Everything is rolled up to the right length, so it should slide right into your storage bag-- usually. It doesn't have to be pretty. You can always pack it up again later, and you should if you put anything away wet.

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[00:02:46.28] Zips bag.

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[00:02:47.31] So there you go. Work from the top down. Make sure everything's dry. And roll it all up so it fits. Now you have a perfectly packed tent for your next camping trip. Thanks for breaking this down with me. For more tips and outdoor inspiration, visit our Get Outside Guide at llbean.com/outside.

[00:03:01.98] [UPBEAT MUSIC]

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[00:03:03.97] She smiles and leaves. The campsite with the tent constructed. Nearby a picnic table is set with a table cloth and amenities. Overhead a towel rests on a line. Chairs surround a smoking fire. A hammock spans two trees.