Re-waterproofing Tent Fly

During my last camping trip my tent's rain fly finally started letting water penetrate through. I've been looking at different products that claim to 'waterproof' the fabric because it would seem that the top part of the tent has de-laminated.

The fly is polyester and the canopy is nylon. The tent itself is a North Face Talus 23 tent.

Does anyone have any experience/suggestions for any products on the market?

Thanks.

Nikwax Tent and Gear Proof Is what I
use on such things. Good stuff

Try contacting TNF and ask them whether this might be covered under warrantee. A lot of the better known manufacturers have an excellent repair or replacement policy, especially on more recently made stuff. Not sure about TNF but I know that Sierra Designs still stands behind gear that was made in the 70's. Worth a try at any rate.

I had a similar issue with a Mountain Hardware when they first came out with the 'room with a view'. I wasted some money trying to waterproof it. I finally gave up and sold the body of the tent to a kayak camper friend. He used the body under a tarp and loved it. In retrospect I should have sent it back to Mountain Hardware and asked them to replace it. Part of the intial cost goes toward the warranty when you purchase a product that has a lifetime warranty against defects. I think you should contact TNF if the tent has been properly stored and cared for and ask them what to do.

If you don't have any luck getting it replaced under warranty, try McNett TentSure. I've never done a whole tent fly with it, but have used it with satisfaction on smaller articles.

http://www.campmor.com/outdoor/gear/Product___98891

a bit confused with your post as you mention a separate rainfly, and that 'the top part of the tent is delaminating' <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" /> Seems contridictory to me, in that if the nylon tent body was/is laminated that would not breath and condensation would make the tent unusable. Also since the tent's rainfly is polyester, and coated(presumably) then it is the part 'delaminating' and not the tent top. If this is the case then you must have packed it wet enough for mildew to separate the layers in the polyurethane coating from the polyester fabric of the rainfly. 'Wetting out' of the tent body's nylon material and causing it to 'seemingly leak' would be suggest to me there is no delamination of the nylon but that the rainfly is in contact with the tent body due to age or stretching over the course of years of use. If you can physically see the delamination of fabric and urethane then that is not covered under most tent warranties I am familiar with.

Re-proofing the rainfly with a product like Tectron spray once a season may help in this case. I have used Tectron successfully in the past waterproofing many items.