Canopy Reviews For Craft Shows..

[islandgirl]

As I had posted earlier, my EZ UP Embassy II was junk and I returned it.

Now am researching new tents for my outdoor craft shows..

Any reviews on these??

Quick Shade 10 x10 (Dicks)

King Canopy's (Dicks)

Quest Straight Leg (Dicks Sporting goods has this one)

EZ Up Dome II ( Supposed to be good in wind?)

Any reviews or suggestions/brand you own would be greatly appreciated.

TIA

[Love2Scent]

We have 2 of the King Canopy's and they are great. It is NOT a 2 person put it up in 5 minutes type of tent though (ours is 10x20). But I will say it is strong and sturdy and holds up well. We have had one of them for 5 years now the other for 3 and neither shows any sign of wear (some of the poles have some scratches on them but that is nothing).

We use ours for a 4 day festival in August each year, Relay for life (3 days) and any back yard get together. As long as you properly dry and stow the tarps you should be good.

Now, my neighbor at the festival used nothing but EZ-ups and has for the past 8 years. He swears by their durability and ease to put up/tear down

We had a quick shade when we first started out 10 years ago but they were kind of low and people kept hitting their heads on them..

HTH!

[Candybee]

I've got an EzyUp tent and have had to replace several struts as they bend and break quite easily. My next tent will definitely be a Caravan. I have asked quite a few fellow crafters their tent preference and Caravan tents were by far the number one recommended.

I have used them before too and like the extra features like the rings on the top corners for holding your sign, the wheels on the bottom of the poles for easy sliding on the ground, and they are more lightweight than mine.

I do have the blue canapy for mine thou. It keeps roughly 99% of UV rays from coming thru. Not all canopy tops are the same. Be careful what you order as you can get a sunburn with some that have little to no UV protection.

[islandgirl]

Thanks for the reviews... :smiley2:

After much research and a big headache,

I have decided to try the Caravan Alumashade II from Costco.... (On sale for $199.99 incl shipping. )

I like the fact it has a 2 year warranty, and Costco is close to me

I will post reviews on this one when I get it...

(If this one is a piece of junk, I think I will try King Canopy's next):rolleyes2

[fredron]

I've gone through 2 in 5 years doing shows. My first was a cheap one I bought at an auto parts store. It had no sides, so I made some from tarps. I plan on using it this weekend. The second, which I thought would be better was an EZ UP. It lasted 2 shows. The first, it leaked badly in the rain, and the second, I noticed the "x" trusses were bent in a couple locations. EZ UP won't even respond to E-mails.

I just ordered a Flourish unit, which hasn't been delivered yet. It was much more expensive, but it's the last one I plan on buying. (It better be).

Fredron

[Debra Phelps]

I used to replace the EZ every 3 years, now I am replacing them every year or sooner. They are junk compared to the old ones. Quick Shade is too. I think I bought a couple of other off brands and they fell apart too. Everybody is cheaping out now. I just hate it.

[fredron]

My Flourish canopy was delivered, and I've now used it on 3 shows. IT IS THE BEST!!!!!.

It's a little more complicated than the EZups, because it comes in individual pieces, and must be assembled, but it is so well engineered and so sturdy, it's worth the effort to learn how to do it.

I put it up in the driveway 1 time to make sure everything was there, and it all fit. That took 20 minutes without the top. 1 foot was mis drilled, and didn't fit, but they replaced that no questions asked.

At the first show, it was raining as I set up, and, being in a hurry, I made a mistake, getting 1 set of parts in the wrong place, and it wouldn't go together. After I ffinally figured it out, it went right up. That took 45 minutes from beginning to end, top & sides included.

The next show, 25 minutes, beginning to end.

Bottom line, there is no comparison between the Flourish & any other EZup style tent I've seen. The Flourish is the absolute best. It's solid & waterproof. All the parts fit & the canvas is well made.

However, a couple things; 1, It's heavy. The steel tubing & fittings add weight.

2, It doesn't just slide up, you have to assemble it, and your brain must be in gear to get the sequence right.

3, It ain't cheap.

But it's worth it. I spent the cost of the Flourish in trying to get two other tents the way I wanted them.

Fredron

[Crafty1_AJ]

I once got a cheapie at Dick's and despite taking good care of it, the frame was trashed in one season.

Then I got a Caravan. That was several years ago, and that dude is still going strong.

[cbv1]

I found this thread because I had a terrible time at the beginning of June where the wind was horrible. I have a Caravan 10 X 10 and had 40 lb weights on each leg. The wind was horrible and gusty and at one point a huge gale force gust came up off the lake and it took 5 of us to hold my tent down. The legs along with the weights were off the ground! I was so freaked out I am now afraid to do another craft fair in fear of the wind. I guess I need heavier weights. What do you all use for weights and how heavy are they?

[islandgirl]

I found this thread because I had a terrible time at the beginning of June where the wind was horrible. I have a Caravan 10 X 10 and had 40 lb weights on each leg. The wind was horrible and gusty and at one point a huge gale force gust came up off the lake and it took 5 of us to hold my tent down. The legs along with the weights were off the ground! I was so freaked out I am now afraid to do another craft fair in fear of the wind. I guess I need heavier weights. What do you all use for weights and how heavy are they?

Wow... That must have been some wind!!!

I use about 35-40 lbs weight on each leg and have never had a problem.

But I have never had to experience gale force wind gusts either..

BTW: I love my 10 x 10 Caravan!!

[Candybee]

Using tent weights is the best you can do in gusty winds. For the most part they do the work of holding down your tent.

If it took 4 people to hold down your tent then that was an unusually strong wind and not much you can do in that situation but hold onto your tent.

I've been doing shows for several years and for the most part my weights are just fine. Super strong winds I still have to hold down my tent.

I have housecats so I took 4 empty 14 lb plastic litter jugs and filled them with play sand for weight. Then I hook them to my tent with adjustable pulley straps-- not bungee cords. The straps cost more and IMO do the job better.

[cbv1]

I guess the wind is unusual in this location because of the nearby lake. Last year the wind was almost as bad but this year was so bad I vowed never to do this event again. 3 years in a row with horrible weather, rain, cold, wind. It was just too much for me to take. It even hailed this year! They do this event the first weekend in June and I think it is too early for a mountain event by a lake.

[3lephant1]

Hi,

I had my second craft show this last week. I had a great time. I felt like I had entered a marathon after the 4th day on the field. I hope it holds up my next show is in October. (First-Up outdoor shelter, Straight wall Gazebo, 10X10.) from Wal-Mart. I'd like to add a little awning to extend it to 12x12.

[beekeeper_sd]

I found this thread because I had a terrible time at the beginning of June where the wind was horrible. I have a Caravan 10 X 10 and had 40 lb weights on each leg. The wind was horrible and gusty and at one point a huge gale force gust came up off the lake and it took 5 of us to hold my tent down. The legs along with the weights were off the ground! I was so freaked out I am now afraid to do another craft fair in fear of the wind. I guess I need heavier weights. What do you all use for weights and how heavy are they?

Just did a show where my neighbor had the best weight system I have ever seen. He developed and sells the weights himself. Go to the webiste www.ez-weights.com and watch the video of the weights in action. We have always tied down with dog pegs and straps but I just ordered my weights from Richard and I can't wait to get them.

We have never had any problems with our ez up but we also make sure we tie down very securely.

[shantillescandlecreation]

We have a 10X20 6 leg Canopy that we use. It's heavy duty and really takes a beating. We've got the side flaps for it so they provide some extra protection from weather, and securtiy, or put the poles on them and put them up and we now have a 20x20 It's been used for 4 years now. I use it for all my Antique shows, we use it for all the candle shows, and also for Family get togethers here at the house. MY wife bought it for me for our wedding anniversary from TSC. Goes up easy. I usually put it up myself.

http://www.tractorsupply.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay_10551_10001_34076_-1______?rFlag=true&cFlag=1 Link to the page it sells at.

[uglyduckling]

We use a Caravan tent. It's just like an EZ up but I have found that it's more steardy and the top is thicker too.

[CatlinPM]

We're on our 3rd tent. First one was a caravan that was lost in a storm we had with 70mph winds. It was thrown against a brick wall and snapped basically in half. The 2nd was an EZ-up, it was a design they had for awhile with support beams in the corners that folded out and snapped into place. In the area where those support beams attached, the metal on the tent broke in half. They must have had problems with that design because as far as I know they don't sell it anymore. Our 3rd is also an EZ up, and it's been holding up for a little over a year now, hopefully it will stay that way for a bit longer (fingers crossed)

[Candybee]

You know I had been waiting for my EzyUp tent to fall apart by now-- but its been holding up since 2006. Don't know offhand how many craft shows and how much weather it has withstood but it sure is holding up still. Like I mentioned earlier, I have only had to replace two struts so far.