I’m not a smoker, but I know a lot of people who are. One of the things they complain about is having to smoke outside, whatever the weather. When at home they would simply light up inside, but what do they do when they are comping. Can you smoke in a tent? I decided to look into it and find out.
You are able to smoke in a tent, but you will need to make sure you take the relevant safety precautions in order to ensure you don’t make yourself sick or damage your tent. Read on to find out more about how you can smoke in a tent safely.
Smoking in a tent safely
Your safety is very important when smoking in a tent. Below are some things to consider before you decide if you think it is safe or not.
Airflow
It is important that you get adequate airflow into the tent.
Second-hand smoke inhalation or passive smoking can lead to long term health issues for anyone you are in a tent with. If you are camping with young ones, it is particularly important that you make sure you have adequate airflow. This will help the smoke to drift out of the tent.
To ensure adequate airflow, you will need to keep the door of the tent open to allow the smoke to escape. The air vent in the tent should be open as well. This will help the smoke to leave the tent as well as help with condensation inside the tent.
Fire safety
Whilst tents are fire-resistant, they are not entirely fireproof.
Having any sort of fire inside your tent is not advisable unless you are extremely careful with how you do it.
For smoking inside your tent, make sure you use ashtrays where possible to avoid ashes touching the side of your tent. Also make sure any other flammable materials, such as gas canisters and clothing is not too near any lit cigarettes.
It is also a good idea to bring some water with you for extinguishing cigarettes. This will significantly reduce the danger of a lit cigarette butt from catching fire on flammable materials.
Disposing of ashes
Make sure you dispose of any ashes in a safe way.
Using an ashtray is a good start (as tempting as a beer can maybe, it isn’t very sturdy and could fall over).
Ensure that you dispose of your ashes safely, using any bins provided where you are camping.
Protect your tent
It’s not just you and your friends or family you should think about when smoking in a tent. What about the tent itself?
Scorch marks
If you are not careful when smoking in a tent, it can be easy to accidentally touch the side of your tent with a hot cigarette.
Burning the tent with a cigarette could potentially burn your tent down, but if your lucky it will only lead to holes in the tent wall. This will have a serious impact on the life of your tent and you may need to replace it much sooner.
Stale smoke smell
If you have ever been in the house of someone who smokes inside, you may notice that stale smoke smell.
Smoking inside a tent will have a similar effect as smoke does on a sofa or curtains in your house. The fabric of the tent will absorb the smoke and eventually start to smell of smoke. Unfortunately, this will make your tent smell pretty bad and you may need to wash it to remove the smell.
Alternative to smoking in a tent
If you have read the above and thought that smoking inside your tent is not a good idea, then all is not lost.
You could construct a tarp covering over your camping area so that you can still smoke without getting wet.
The benefits of using a tarp instead of smoking in your tent are:
- You still keep dry
- You will have sufficient airflow to blow the smoke away
- You don’t risk burning your tent with a cigarette
- Your tent won’t smell of cigarette smoke
Conclusion
So, can you smoke in a tent? Yes you can, but you should make sure that you do it in a safe manner and really consider the impact it will have on the life of your tent.