I’ve been camping and hiking in Wales and the Lake District for most of my adult life. I have a tent that I’ve owned for eight years — a three-season tunnel tent that has been on more trips than I can count and that I’ve maintained carefully because replacing it would be expensive and because I’ve never found anything I like better. Eight years of outdoor use, however, takes a toll on waterproofing, and last autumn I discovered that the toll had become significant.
The discovery happened on a wet weekend in Snowdonia. I woke up on the second morning to find the inner tent damp in two places — not catastrophically wet, but damp enough to be uncomfortable and damp enough to tell me that the flysheet waterproofing had degraded to the point where it needed attention. I came home, dried the tent thoroughly, and ordered Fabsil +UV Water Proofer.
Why Tent Waterproofing Degrades
The waterproofing on a tent flysheet is a DWR (Durable Water Repellent) coating applied to the fabric during manufacture. DWR causes water to bead and run off the surface rather than soaking through. Over time, this coating degrades — through UV exposure, through washing, through the physical abrasion of packing and unpacking, through the general wear of outdoor use. A tent that was fully waterproof when new will gradually lose that performance as the DWR breaks down.
The solution is re-proofing — applying a new waterproofing treatment to restore the DWR performance. This is standard tent maintenance that most outdoor enthusiasts know about but many put off until the tent actually leaks. I was in the second category until Snowdonia made the decision for me.
Why Fabsil +UV Specifically
Fabsil is the brand that outdoor retailers and tent manufacturers recommend for re-proofing. It’s been the standard in the UK outdoor market for decades, and the +UV version — which adds UV protection to the standard silicone waterproofing formula — is the right choice for a tent that spends significant time in sunlight.
The Fabsil +UV Water Proofer uses a silicone-based formula rather than the fluorocarbon-based DWR used in many spray-on treatments. Silicone waterproofing is more durable than fluorocarbon DWR and penetrates the fabric fibres rather than just coating the surface, which means it lasts longer and performs better under sustained rain. It’s the professional standard for a reason.
The UV protection was the additional specification that made the +UV version the right choice. UV radiation degrades tent fabric over time — it breaks down the fibres, causes fading, and reduces the structural integrity of the material. A tent that’s been used for eight years has accumulated significant UV exposure, and adding UV protection to the re-proofing treatment extends the fabric’s life beyond just restoring the waterproofing.
The 2.5L size was the right quantity for my use case. I have a three-person tunnel tent with a large flysheet, a groundsheet, and a porch area. The 2.5L bottle was enough to treat all of these thoroughly with some left over for future maintenance. The paint-on application method — rather than a spray — means precise coverage without waste and without the overspray issues that aerosol treatments can cause.
I found it in the Fabric & Upholstery Protectors and Household Cleaning Supplies collections, and also in the broader Household Supplies and Home & Garden ranges. It arrived two days after ordering.
The Application Process
I applied the Fabsil on a dry day in the garden. The process is straightforward: pitch the tent, apply the Fabsil to the flysheet with a brush or sponge, work it into the fabric, allow to dry. I used a wide paintbrush and worked systematically from the ridge down, ensuring even coverage across the whole flysheet including the seams.
The Fabsil goes on as a slightly milky liquid and dries clear. The drying time is about an hour in good conditions. I applied a second coat to the seams and the areas that had been showing the most wear. The whole process took about two hours including drying time between coats.
The water bead test — pouring water onto the treated fabric and watching it bead and run off — was immediately satisfying. The treated flysheet shed water exactly as it should, with the water beading into droplets and running off cleanly rather than soaking in.
The First Trip After Treatment — The Real Test
I took the tent back to Wales six weeks after treating it — a four-day trip in the Brecon Beacons that included two days of sustained rain. The flysheet performed perfectly. No dampness on the inner tent, no pooling at the seams, no sign of the degradation that had been apparent in Snowdonia. The Fabsil had restored the waterproofing completely.
I’ve since done three more trips in wet conditions. The waterproofing has held on every one.
Eight Months On — The Honest Verdict
Eight months since treating the tent. Here’s the honest report:
- The waterproofing has held through multiple wet trips. Four trips in wet conditions since treatment, including two days of sustained heavy rain in the Brecon Beacons. The flysheet has performed correctly on every trip. No leaks, no dampness, no sign of degradation.
- The fabric looks better than it did before treatment. The UV protection has improved the appearance of the flysheet — the colour is more even and the fabric looks less weathered than it did after eight years of UV exposure without protection. That’s the UV component working.
- The 2.5L bottle has enough left for another treatment. I used about 1.5L on the full tent treatment. The remaining litre will cover a maintenance treatment next season, which means the cost per treatment is very reasonable.
- I’ve treated other gear with the remainder. My hiking trousers, which had also lost some of their DWR performance, and a waterproof jacket that was starting to wet out rather than bead. Both have responded well to the Fabsil treatment.
- The tent is good for several more years. Eight years old and now properly re-proofed with UV protection. I’d been considering replacing it; I’m not considering it anymore. The Fabsil has extended its useful life significantly.
The Difference It’s Made
I kept my tent. That’s the honest summary. A tent that was leaking and that I was considering replacing is now performing correctly and will continue to do so for several more years. The cost of the Fabsil is a fraction of the cost of a replacement tent, and the result is a tent that performs as well as it did when new.
If you have outdoor gear — a tent, a jacket, waterproof trousers — that has lost its waterproofing performance, the Fabsil +UV Water Proofer is the treatment that restores it properly. Browse the full Fabric & Upholstery Protectors and Household Supplies collections for more options.
Pitch the tent. Apply it systematically. Do the seams twice. Then pour water on it and watch it bead.
You’ll feel very satisfied with yourself. You should.
Owen Griffiths is a secondary school geography teacher and lifelong outdoor enthusiast based in Swansea. He has been camping and hiking in Wales and the Lake District for twenty years, owns a tent he is very attached to, and is now evangelical about re-proofing outdoor gear before it leaks rather than after.
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