Screened in Tents

[jo79RI]

Hello All;  I am still in the process of deciding on buying Oliver Elite II.  One concern of my wife's is the space.

Is there a way to put up a screened in tent around the Oliver on one side, perhaps tied into the awning?

[Mike and Carol]

Clams are popular. In cold weather a propane fire pit keeps things warm. I’m not aware of anything that ties into the awning on the new Oliver’s. But, depending on your site you could position a Clam or other screen room close by. Keeping the awning deployed can be interrupted by wind and weather. Mike

[topgun2]

ScubaRx has a screen porch that he attaches to his Oliver.  Perhaps he will chime in with some details for you.

Bill

[Overland]

Steve has the Fiamma awning though, and the screens were a kit they offered.  Carefree had something similar but not as complete.  I don't know of anything that Dometic has, though they might.  

Maybe you could buy both Steve's awning and screens off of him - make him an offer he can't refuse. 🤪

[Overland]

Just realized that emoji looks like someone being hanged.  Don't lynch Steve for his awning.  

[topgun2]

Is this screen room for the Dometic what you were thinking about?

https://www.dometic.com/en-us/us/products/climate/rv-awnings/rv-awning-accessories/dometic-veranda-room-_-164343

 

Bill

[Overland]

That looks pretty nice, but the manual says it's only for awnings with a roller tube.  I looked for one that's made for the type Oliver uses but I haven't been able to find one.  

[SeaDawg]

Friends of ours bought a screen room in the early 2008 days. It was a huge production to install it, and break it down. They only wound up using it if they stayed somewhere at least a couple weeks. Changed my mind on the whole screen room idea. We bought a separate screen structure,  which was a little less of a pain, but we still didn't use it.

I'd highly recommend looking at a quick deploy screen room like a clam.

Sherry

 

 

[Mac]

In preparation for our upcoming trip And desire for an outdoor living space with bug and a little wind/rain protection, just bought a Clam product. It seems well constructed and thoughtfully designed.  It literally takes about a minute to pop it open, and would appear no more than another couple of minutes to stake it or tie it down. Takedown was simple too. The unit we purchased came with Velcro attachable weather panels for wind/rain. It has no floor, seems plenty of room for 4-6 lounge chairs, two large dogs and other stuff, including a regular size picnic table.  It comes in a long duffel bag. We looked at an REI version, and though less expensive, didn’t feel right for us.

[Trainman]

We have the six sided Clam and for us it works better that one attached to the trailer, or some would call it a second room, or added living area. The size is plenty big enough for eight and a table, goes up and down quickly, and the price is right. We did used it more when we had the Casita, but with the Oliver we have only used it once in the last year. The main reason for the Clam was to protect us from the mosquitoes, etc., but so far they have not been where we have been camping, I guess we just lucked out on that. I got tired of taking it with us and we started calling ahead of where we would be camping and asking if the mosquitoes were bad, or not, thus leaving the Clam home if not needed. Also it great for setting around with our Little Red Campfire going and keeping us warn, get the model with the wind covers included, or purchase the wind covers for the base model, either works well.

trainman

[Nan]

1 hour ago, Trainman said:

We have the six sided Clam and for us it works better that one attached to the trailer, or some would call it a second room, or added living area. The size is plenty big enough for eight and a table, goes up and down quickly, and the price is right. We did used it more when we had the Casita, but with the Oliver we have only used it once in the last year. The main reason for the Clam was to protect us from the mosquitoes, etc., but so far they have not been where we have been camping, I guess we just lucked out on that. I got tired of taking it with us and we started calling ahead of where we would be camping and asking if the mosquitoes were bad, or not, thus leaving the Clam home if not needed. Also it great for setting around with our Little Red Campfire going and keeping us warn, get the model with the wind covers included, or purchase the wind covers for the base model, either works well.

trainman

Do you think a 120# old woman could put your Clam up and take it down by herself??  Thanks.

[Mike and Carol]

We’ve got the brown 5 sided Clam, a little smaller to fit in the bed of the truck.  Yes, a 120lb woman would be able to put it up and take it down.  

[topgun2]

I've got the smaller (four sides) Clam.  While it is great for one or two people and as many as three can fit, it certainly will not fit over picnic tables.  However, its smaller size allows it to be stored in the Oliver closet.  Interestingly, it seems to me that this smaller Clam is slightly more difficult to put up as compared to its bigger brother.  I think that the reason for this is the length of the fiberglass rods is shorter in the little unit.  This causes them to be slightly less "flexible" thus requiring a bit more "oomph"  to get them to spring open.  Even with this I believe that a reasonably fit 120 pound human would not have trouble putting the smaller Clam up - once they mastered how to do it - see the YouTube videos on this.

Even though I think that the Clam has better features and is made from slightly better materials, there are other "clam like" screen tents on the market - like the Gazelle.  With slightly thinner fiberglass rods it would be likely that the Gazelle would be even easier to put up.  Unfortunately, this would probably also mean that the Gazelle would not stand up to winds and overall use as well as the Clam.  Having said this, while in West Yellowstone this past summer I (along with four other Oliver owners) road out a heavy thunder storm inside a Gazelle with no significant issues.

Bill

[Mattnan]

We purchased a Clam while on the road and had it delivered to the campground.  It was very easy to put up and take down.   It fit easily in the bed of the truck. It works well.  I agree on getting the side panels. It increases the usability. 

[Mainiac]

We bought the Gazelle from 'Sportsman Guide' with the optional 3 panels. With the screen being tight to keep the "no-see-ums"  out, it also keeps the heat in, so be aware on a hot day. On a beautiful calm day you might be tempted to just set it up.  Stake it down. A little 'breeze' can turn it into a parachute type thingies that is hard to catch. You can guess how I might know that. Also we now carry some heavier tent stakes for sandy soils, as those little aluminum ones don't hold.

This all being said, it is well worth the investment. Easy to set up and take down. Light weight and easy to carry and put in the bag. It fits easily into the back of the truck, if the truck is packed right. The way we set up under the awning might make it awkward to have screening on the awning, especially if we had to tip it for a rain event.

[Trainman]

On 3/23/2020 at 12:02 PM, Nan said:

Do you think a 120# old woman could put your Clam up and take it down by herself??  Thanks.

This video pretty much says it all,  I purchased mine from this seller,  https://www.landmsupply.com/clam-quick-set-escape-1660-six-pack-screen-tent-green-9281   excellent service, I did purchase the side curtains, two sets of three each. I would buy some of the metal stakes from a sporting goods store, the plastic stakes are pretty much useless in hard and rocky grounds.  

trainman

Edited March 26, 2020 by Trainman

[Patriot]

We jumped on the “Clam wagon” 😄and ordered the (5) sided Venture Shelter and two privacy sides. This size will fit in our TV and will fulfill our needs for two people. 
 

 

Edited July 16, 2020 by Patriot

[SeaDawg]

11 minutes ago, Patriot said:

We jumped on the “Clam wagon” 😄and ordered the Venture Shelter and two privacy sides. This size will fit in our TV and will fulfill our needs for two people. 
 

 

That's really nice. And, big. The skirting on the bottom is really important, as is the no-see-um mesh.

We have a more inexpensive screen shelter that we rarely use. I've told paul that I  should add a skirt at the bottom. The bugs just fly thru any gap. 

Or, just buy a clam. 😁

[Mike and Carol]

11 minutes ago, Patriot said:

We jumped on the “Clam wagon” 😄and ordered the Venture Shelter and two privacy sides. This size will fit in our TV and will fulfill our needs for two people. 

 

That’s the one we have.  Plenty of room for 2 or more.  It’s an outdoor living room!

[Patriot]

10 hours ago, Mike and Carol said:

That’s the one we have.  Plenty of room for 2 or more.  It’s an outdoor living room!

We decided on this one based on your suggestion of it fitting in the bed of our TV. We also ordered the (4) privacy walls. 👍🏻 It’s all we need. Thanks Mike!
 

Edited July 16, 2020 by Patriot

[Mattnan]

We purchased a clam also in Feb. while camped in Florida.  It is easy  to set up and take down.  Seems like a good product.  

[Patriot]

Ordered this camp light for our Clam shelter arriving this week. It’s USB chargeable, high and low setting and overall a really decent light. It comes with an S hook so you can hang it on the Clam shelter light loop. Thought I would pass it on, a decent LED camp light with strong reviews.
 

 

[SeaDawg]

Cute. Brighter than most tent lights. Heavier, too, at half a pound, but not that heavy. 

Love that it's rechargeable. And, I  like the red light capability for preserving night vision.

Good find.

Sherry

[Patriot]

16 minutes ago, SeaDawg said:

Cute. Brighter than most tent lights. Heavier, too, at half a pound, but not that heavy. 

Love that it's rechargeable. And, I  like the red light capability for preserving night vision.

Good find.

Sherry

Great point the red light capability I forgot to mention....agreed it’s a nice night vision feature. Hopefully it will hold up well. 

[SeaDawg]

1 minute ago, Patriot said:

Great point the red light capability I forgot to mention....agreed it’s a nice night vision feature. Hopefully it will hold up well. 

All essential lights in our boats have a red light switch setting.  Important  sailing at night. 

The older I get, the worse my night vision becomes.  

Thanks for sharing.

Sherru