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What to use for an inside ground sheet (and how to use it)?

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Ralph

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I've read much about the benefits of an inside ground sheet and about the benefits of using both an inside and an outside ground sheet. For me, one of the "Fears while paddling or on canoe trips" is getting my sleeping gear and clothing we while in the tent in a heavy/extended rain . I currently use an outside ground sheet but I am considering the "belt and suspenders" benefits of using both. I have two questions for those of you who use inside groundsheets:
1. What material do you use for your inside ground sheet?
2. How do you deploy/attach, etc., the inside ground sheet ?
Thanks!
 
I use a piece of Typar (house wrap) under my sleeping pad, It comes in 3' wide rolls. Multi-purpose stuff so even my quite old and worn tent floor does not seep water. I will put a sheet under the floor when I'm in a seriously wet spot. I prefer it over Tyvek which is too slippery and also noisy.

www.homedepot.com

Typar 3 ft. x 100 ft. Housewrap 3234A-004 - The Home Depot

Reduce drafts in your home with this Typar Housewrap. This wrap protects your home against moisture damage, heavy winds and mold growth. For the perfect temperature, it allows your home to be cool or warm when you need it to be.
www.homedepot.com
 
A lot of house wraps are available 9'. eBay for sure. I've read often that a few cycles in the washer cuts down the crinkles and makes it softer. No personal experience.
 
Yeah the 9" rolls are great but kind of pricey if you only need a small amount. If you can find a construction/renovation job in your area you might be able to pick up some off-cuts or leftovers.

Typar doesn't crinkle and is "soft" unlike Tyvek.

I've used 3' taped together with Gorilla tape to make a footprint
 
Anti slide sheets would get my attention.. Nothing like a little slope to interfere with sleep. I don't want to slide on my other.
 
I've never used and innie and never missed it. Started camping before 10 yo and turn 71 this week. Too late to start I think. (Hoping I can hang food for rest of my time as well!)
 
I carry an inner ground sheet of 6 mil plastic. Used it a couple times just in case. It worked well in a very heavy downpour. A drawback is that it is slippery so you and a tent mate may be snuggling up.
 
I have a large Cabelas Outback Lodge tent that came with an inner floor of the same nylon tent material. It attaches with loops sewn into the corners.

I’ve been in all sorts of weather with it and never found any water or condensation between the layers when I’ve used it, so personally I’m not sold on the idea. I only ever use it for a base camp hunting and it does make cleaning up easy after the trip.
 
The purpose of an interior ground cloth is not just water protection, but is also to protect the floor of your tent from puncture from the inside of the tent. For example, the paws of your dog could puncture the floor. Or knives, eating implements or tools that you drop inside the tent. Or twigs or stones that get dragged in and stepped on. Or the legs of small chairs that fit into larger tents.

Some tent manufacturers (like Nemo) make interior "pawprint" sheets like they make exterior "footprint" sheets. These pawprint innies are typically made of brushed polyester, which is lighter, less crinkly, less noisy and less slippery than Tyvek or other plastic sheets. Yes, they are more expensive, but if you've already spent money on an expensive tent, a quality pawprint isn't much additional cost for a lifetime accessory.

If your tent manufacturer doesn't offer a soft fabric pawprint, you can just buy one from another manufacturer that is bigger than your tent floor. You can fold the excess up the sides of your tent or cut it to exact size.
 
Thanks everyone who has replied so far.
So far there are 3 waterproof possibilities -

Typar or Tyvek or perhaps some other house wrap - I'd have to do some research on which would be best for my purpose. It could be purchased in 3' rolls and taped together to make a sheet large enough to cover the bottom of the tent, or a 9' roll could be purchased and cut to fit.

Waterproof nylon/polyester. I looked up the Pawprints and, although they will protect the floor, they don't seem to be waterproof - perhaps I missed that part. Nylon/polyester could be sewn to fit and seam-sealed or maybe there is a source for waterproof tent floor liners??? Perhaps a tent footprint could be used inside? - anyone try this?

Sheet plastic is cheap and would likely keep me and my stuff dry. It could be cut into the right size. It is very slippery.

Please keep the thoughts coming in.

I really like the idea of some kind of loop or other attachment point a little way up the interior wall of the tent. Any experience with this or any ideas on how to do this?

Thanks again! Hopefully more to come.
 
I've been led to believe the house wrap materials are a little stiffer, less floppy, and stay up against the tent wall. Heavy enough poly might as well, but at the cost of more weight. I think of the nylon/polyesters as also floppy, at least my Copper Spur footprint is.

I think to make the house wrap practical you need to find a piece, not buy a whole roll. (I have thought of buying a roll and selling it at my cost on canoe bulletin boards.) Lowe's brand - 9' x 150' - is $118. The Tyvek brand at Lowes is $207 for same. Shipping may be as much as material.
 
For those using Tyvek or Typar as an innie, have any of you had an experience where after a major rain storm you removed the Tyvek/Typar innie to find water on the inside of the tent floor? Did the Tyvek/Typar keep that water from getting your sleeping pad, etc., wet?

The reason I ask is that these Tyvek/Typar fabrics are breathable and seem to be rated as water resistant rather than water proof. They are pretty much designed to be used in a vertical orientation where pooling water with weight on top of them isn't a concern as it would be inside a tent floor.
 
alsg said:
For those using Tyvek or Typar as an innie, have any of you had an experience where after a major rain storm you removed the Tyvek/Typar innie to find water on the inside of the tent floor? Did the Tyvek/Typar keep that water from getting your sleeping pad, etc., wet?

The reason I ask is that these Tyvek/Typar fabrics are breathable and seem to be rated as water resistant rather than water proof. They are pretty much designed to be used in a vertical orientation where pooling water with weight on top of them isn't a concern as it would be inside a tent floor.
Click to expand...
I have never used tyvek inside the tent, so I can’t answer your question. My use as a foot print was to have it take the abuse from ground contact rather than the tent floor.
 
I know Tyvek is intended or thought to not allow liquid water to penetrate, but dose allow water vapor to pass through it.

Maybe more relevant is I've read of many paddlers/campers who have used it as an innie and as a tarp on or dining fly and report only positives.
 
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