Coleman Gold Series Instant Up Tent Maiden Voyage Review

By Jo Kopelke of Camping Queensland.

I took my new COLEMAN GOLD SERIES INSTANT UP for its maiden journey on the weekend.

My new Coleman Gold Instant Up 4 tent in the wild.

Very impressed with the new heavy duty polyoxford PVC flooring. Feels nice underfoot. There was a fair amount of dew around this morning. I was expecting it to need some sun. Alas, not so much as drop of condensation inside or moisture underneath at pack up. I usually find drying off tents the most time consuming part of packing up after camping. This was a breeze this morning.

Pitching my new Coleman Gold Instant Up 4 Tent

With all the new features, my very favourite is the thicker and heavier fabric used in the fly. It was so much darker inside. So much so, I slept till 7.30am. I could get used to that.

The instructions say it requires 2 people to erect. I disagree. 

I always put my old model up by myself. 

This model is fundamentally same design. But in saying that, the thicker, heavier fly fabric makes it a little harder to use the wind to pull the fly over the top. The Instant Ups are quite tall and dragging a fly over the peak is a chore if you don’t have someone to hold the far side in place. I struggled with this for about 3 mins. Walked around it twice, then decided to drop the 4 corners back down and put the fly on whilst it was down. I then erected it again and it was easy as. Done. You can easily have this tent up in 2 mins by yourself, if you remember this tip.

The Coleman Gold Instant Up 4 tent inner fully pitched,  hold this space!  It goes down again in a moment.

Lowering the framing on the Coleman instant up 4 gold tent makes it easier to get the fly over on your own.

The only complaint I ever had with the standard Coleman Instant Up 4 model was no lower level ventilation. The new model has 2 extra air flows, plus the front door. Perfect for those sultry summer nights when every bit of air is precious.

The carry bag on the Coleman Gold Instant Up 4 tent is heavy duty, and very large making pack up easy. 

The flys now been thrown over my instant gold 4 tent, now just need to peg it out!

Pegged out!  Just about time to relax,  just the guy ropes to go.

The other bonus is the heavy duty carry bag. It is huge. I was able to lay the fly on the ground, place the inner on top of that. Roll it all up and throw it in the bag. I didn't even have to push little bits into corners; whilst attempting to pull the zipper. Nothing worse than taking longer to put a tent back in a bag, then it took to erect and pull down combined.

Drove away from camping feeling pretty pleased with my new purchase 

smile emoticon

I chose the Coleman Gold Series Instant Up 4 but they are also available in 6 person & 10 person.

*Coleman Gold Series Instant Up design - sets up in under two minutes
*Front door can be pitched out as front awning with two poles (included)
*Detachable oversized 3 pole (included) awning which can be attached to both left and right sides (so you can follow the shade)
*Coleman Circle Ventilation for added air flow
*Integrated internal storage hammock and organisers
*Power cord management system
*Convenient welcome mat to help keep tent clean and dry inside
*Heavy duty carry bag

Fabric:
75D/ 185D Polyester rip-stop inner
3000mm PU fly
Heavy Duty Polyoxford PVC flooring

Frame: Steel (includes 5 awning poles)
Weight: 12.7kg
Size: 240w x 240l x 190h cm

Side shot of my Coleman Gold Instant Up 4

Why do I get condensation in my tent? How do I avoid it?

Condensation is a problem most campers will experience to some extent in their camping life.  But often it can be avoided!

In this article I hope to explain simply,  why condensation occurs and then how to avoid it.

The first time you experience condensation inside your tent,  the natural reaction is to think that it's leaking and possible faulty.  After all,  there are many litres of water inside my tent?

Usually,  this is not leaking at all but is condensation.

The simplest way to test if that is the case is to set your tent up at home, and thoroughly water it with your garden hose.   For hours if you like.

I recommend doing this prior to taking your new tent camping.  This if you get wet you know it was condensation, and can plan to solve it the next night.

Sometimes,  during this process you might find your tent is leaking slightly from a stitching point.  This is normal to solve this the easiest way is to use some McNett Gear Aid Seam Grip Seam sealer.
Setting up your tent at home for the first time is a great way to familiarise yourself with your new tent.  Setting it up at home also means that if you need to you can deal with any problems you may find with the tent prior to heading on holidays.  Just make sure you pack away everything back in to the bag!

It also means you can set your tent up at the camp ground like a boss! Making even the most inexperienced camper look like a veteran!

I DO HAVE GOOD NEWS!  Condensation can be mostly avoided,  if you just take these simple precautions:

Never close all of your tent windows.   Keep as many open as possible at all times.  To avoid condensation,  you want to try have the inside air temperature the same as outside.

Any good Australian tent will offer loads of ventilation options that can be used in all weather conditions.

Please remember,  tents are not designed to help you stay warm, but they are designed to protect you from the wind, rain, insects and to provide you with privacy.  To stay warm, the best thing is a good hooded sleeping bag,  thermal underwear and maybe a beanie.

I hope this post helps you understand how to best use your tent, and avoid condensation!