Kodiak Canvas Experiences

[Firehawk]

Been eyeing this accessory, aside from the obvious....why is it such a game changer? As in, how does it change/help the way you use the tent? Haven’t pulled the trigger yet because unsure if the added weight/bulk/setup was worth it or not.

Having a legitimate place to store items, put up a chair and table, and not be in the place where you sleep is worth having. I find myself "lounging" in the vestibule area during the day and in the evening before turning in. For me, that is so worth it. It is a great place to put a cooler, totes of gear, a dog kennel etc.

 

[Eldoradotim]

I'm working on a deal for a used 10x10 flex bow. I'll be wanting a piece of indoor/outdoor carpet as mentioned. I'm also looking to see how people are heating, I've always thought I'd go with a wood stove but I've also thought about the vented Nuway.

I like the idea of a vented stove as well, but honestly the mr. buddy heater has worked excellent. It heats the tent up to too-hot pretty easily. Spent a day in the tent in October in Idaho with snow all day and we hung out with chairs & magazines and some beer with the heater cranking all day and it was toasty. Just saying, don’t be afraid to start with/try the mr. buddy also.

 

[Eldoradotim]

And thanks for the response Firehawk.

 

[Where's Bruce?]

Anyone add a stove jack to the roof? I’ve only seen them on the side wall, I was thinking the Nuway stove in/near the center of the back wall and out the top would work well and leave room for cots on side walls and still room for small table.

Also, for those that haven’t....get an outdoor carpet/rug for the inside! I got one of the grey or tan ones from home depot for $20, totally changes the interior, no more cold floor, wet floor, muddy floor, wrinkled floor, etc etc. Boots can stay on and you‘re not paranoid about bringing everything into the tent on the bottom of your boots. When its time to pack up, 80% of the mess is on the carpet, just shake it out.

The wing (with a tarp under tent and wing) gives you a mud-free front door. The 3500 size stove works perfectly.

 

[ganghis]

Through the roof! 2 hunting deployments in 2020 w no issues yet (other than gouging my hand putting the top frame together - be careful and maybe have quick clot handy). DIY silpat stove jack installed with standard sewing machine w polyester upholstery thread.

 

[Glendon Mullins]

Love my Kodiak Canvas 10x14, had it out camping in eastern montana -9 degrees , winch chill was worse, big buddy heater kept me warm and cozy and had plenty of room for everything

 

[LongCarabine]

Can anyone with a VX model tell me if the end windows would still allow you to have enough wall space to put a stove jack in the side?

I’m debating between the 10x14 flex bow deluxe or the VX. The extra two windows sound nice but I’d like to put a stove jack in someday too. I guess I could put it in the roof like Ganghis... (thanks for the pics and ideas, that might be the tie breaker idea)


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[Where's Bruce?]

Can anyone with a VX model tell me if the end windows would still allow you to have enough wall space to put a stove jack in the side?

I’m debating between the 10x14 flex bow deluxe or the VX. The extra two windows sound nice but I’d like to put a stove jack in someday too. I guess I could put it in the roof like Ganghis... (thanks for the pics and ideas, that might be the tie breaker idea)


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I have both 10X14 models, I would not put a stovejack in a VX, just a MrBuddy Heater. For icy conditions I run my NuWay 3500 stove all night in the non VX model. A VX not built for that.

 

[LongCarabine]

I have both 10X14 models, I would not put a stovejack in a VX, just a MrBuddy Heater. For icy conditions I run my NuWay 3500 stove all night in the non VX model. A VX not built for that.

Ok, thanks for the insight. Tough choice. I might have to solve it the way you did by just buying both, haha. I’m leaning towards starting with the VX and use a buddy heater. If I feel the urge for a wood stove or a NuWay I’ll think about picking up the other.


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[Where's Bruce?]

The NuWay 3500 with one burner lit on the lowest setting kept the tent at 63* in 13 degree weather. I had deer licking the melting snow off the tent at night. <g> In the morning I cranked both burners up and in twelve minutes it was 85* in the tent. Was having trouble getting a youth outta bed to hunt so I cooked his ass. LOL

 

[shtrbc]

My sons and I have both the 10x10 and the10x14 VX models. They purchased the 10x10 initially and I followed up with the 10x14 in case all 3 of us wanted to go on a trip together. If one of us does a solo hunt, we use the 10x10. No matter what we always have a small table and at least 2 bag chairs deployed in the tent at night too. Plenty of room in the 10x14 for 3 guys with cots, a small table, and a extra chair. The solo setup is like a palace.

In regards to the floor topic, we use the liners sold separately and a couple 2x2 carpet squares inside the door. Shake out and brush off the squares as needed. Then when you are packing up, shake out the liner really well and 90% of the clean up is done.

Vestibule setup we use adjustable awning poles sold by Kodiak's main competitor, Springbar tents in Salt Lake City. These poles allow you to infinitely adjust the awning pitch so it will shed water no matter what. We drilled additional holes in the poles for even more adjustment options. Works great!

Being that we have the VX models I agree that there isn't enough room on the end walls for a stove jack. At best, I believe it would end up in the corner. Not sure how well that would work. But again, just my opinion. We use these tents in all 4 seasons in MN and ND so the weather can range from +100* in the summer to -40* in the winter. I was really torn on the heat topic as I REALLY wanted to run a wood stove in the worst way. Have done the Big Buddy thing a few times. Works fine especially to run for short periods of time to take the chill off. I believe over a period of a few days in cold weather (below 20*F) you may start to have some condensation issues. So when it became evident that a wood stove wasn't in my future, we researched other options and came up with the Chinese diesel heaters as a great option. If you have never heard about these, I would encourage people to do a Google search and check it out. I had never heard of them until my boys told me about them. We ended up mounting one in a aluminum under frame tool box for trucks. It's completely self contained including a 10L fuel tank. It requires 12V power and diesel fuel to run and works just like a furnace in your house. It is a heat exchanger type unit that blows warm/hot air into the tent, camper, van, whatever. We simply set the box outside the tent and run the heat duct tube in through the lower corner of a door opening opposite the side we use for a entrance. The only 2 things coming inside the tent are the heat duct tube and the wiring harness for the heater controller. We use a deep cycle marine battery with a solar panel to provide power. Also have the option to clamp on vehicle battery posts if need be too. Overnight on a med low setting the unit burns about 2 quarts of fuel. There are a variety of different heaters being sold on Amazon. Some are completely self contained sans the battery. Some, like the one we purchased, came as a kit that was originally designed to be installed in a camper van. We opted to mount in our own box in order to make it bulletproof and completely self contained. The heater design was originally developed in Europe or Russia I believe. The name brand heaters made by Webasto and Espar are both well north of $1000. The chinese units are less than $200. Total cost in our whole setup is about $400. I hate to buy the Chinese stuff but without knowing how it would work for this application, I wasn't willing to shell out over $1500 to test the water. I can also use this unit as a backup heat source for my house if the power is out or the zombies are coming. So far we have had zero issues with our heater and everyone that sees the setup is amazed at how well it works. Dry, warm/hot air at your fingertips for not alot of cash.

Sorry for the long post but thought it was worth mentioning the diesel heater option too.

 

[LongCarabine]

Shtrbc, great info. I had not thought to use a diesel heater. Sounds essentially like what the military uses for their large Drash tents. I’m going to research that now

On the VX model, is there a reason why you couldn’t put a stove jack into the roof? Seems like most everyone puts it through the wall but I think I saw the picture the other day of someone putting one in the roof. I suppose there might be a bit more concerned with rain getting in…


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[eddielasvegas]

I have camped in my 10x14 flex bow deluxe in single digits (2019) and 20F (last year) and while the Buddy heater can work, the heat from it is not circulated in the tent so here's my solution to try later this year.

I'll need to do some Dremel work so it'll fit/rest atop the heater, but this should create enough circulation to get the hot air all over the tent. I did try battery powered fans but they did next to nothing since they cannot be close to the heat source.


Eddie

 

[shtrbc]

Eddie...that is a great DIY mod for the Buddy. ALot of guys that use them for ice fishing around here do that mod. Seems to be pretty legit. The only negative I have seen is they are fairly fragile. But once its set up in a camping situation shouldn't be a issue.

 

[AlleghenyMountain]

Thanks for all this info. I've decided on using the Buddy heater in my 10x10. I'll be watching to see how Eddies fan modification goes.

 

[DLIP]

I just purchased the 10x14 for truck camping. Local canvas company is going to make & sew in stove jack for $125. Probably could have saved a little bit by doing myself but would rather someone else do a good job on it than me screw it up. Going with the Nuway propane stove since I'm lazy. Should be a great setup for winter fishing/hunting.

 

[Tips n Tails]

I figured I’d jump in on this thread. Last year in Idaho I used my 10x10 Flexbow with a Mr. Buddy Heater to take the chill off at night before bed and in the morning. It got down into the teens at night (frozen my contact lenses).

Since then I also purchased the 12x9 Kodiak Cabin Tent deluxe with awning which I’m debating about adding a stove jack to the side wall to use a Nuway 3500.

My main concern last year running the buddy heater was carbon monoxide poisoning. I plan on buying a carbon monoxide detector this year as well in the event, I opt out of the Nuway.

 

[slowelk]

Love my Kodiak Canvas 10x14, had it out camping in eastern montana -9 degrees , winch chill was worse, big buddy heater kept me warm and cozy and had plenty of room for everything

Did you run the buddy heater all night? Window cracked? CO2 monitor?

 

[wind gypsy]

Did you run the buddy heater all night? Window cracked? CO2 monitor?

I ran a sunflower heater and a lil buddy heater through the night once last year to keep water liquid. No CO2 monitor but all windows/doors cracked.

Might need to buy a nuway so I’m not tempted to do that again.

 

[granite7]

I camp in a Kodiak 10x10 with the vestibule. I love the vestibule to block wind and weather from the opening. If I always had someone with me, I would want the larger tent. Since it is usually just me, I like the 10x10. The smaller footprint is also nice for summer trips in campgrounds with because it fits on their tent platforms.

I use a buddy heater and a carbon monoxide detector. I have the deluxe version that has vents in the top. I open the vents and leave a crack in the door. This means the floor of the tent has ice cold air, but at cot level it is toasty warm. When you get up to get dressed, the hot air up high is magnificent.

I can run the buddy heater all night long on low and the detector always shows 0 ppm. I was one who would vehemently argue against running a heater in the tent, but the buddy setup just plain works.

The 10x10 is comfortable for two people. We could fit a third cot, but it would be tight. We have the kids and dog sleeping on the floor.

You guys that don’t like the floor should try a piece of carpet. I set up a chair in the vestibule to sit down and take off wet boots. Step into the carpeted tent in your socks. This was a game changer for me because it insulates the feet against the cold ground. Even when you come in covered in snow, the heater dries things out quickly.