Black Diamond Lighthouse Tent 2-Person 3-Season

I was surprised that I had to seal the tent seams myself (for the price it should be factory seam taped), but I followed the directions to the letter. There were no leaks during 4 or 5 nights of rain in Patagonia the month after I got the tent. The following month the zipper malfunctioned after the wind in Utah blew that red sand into the tent. I called Black Diamond and was told that the zippers are not covered by a warranty and that they should be cleaned after every trip. To prevent the problem I had, I would have had to clean them during my trip. Black Diamond gave me the phone number of Rainy Pass Repair, who replaced the zipper pulls with some sturdier ones for about $75. The next time I used the tent about 5 months later it rained for 2 days. The tent leaked at the top seams, and I had to borrow a tarp to cover the tent. I wrote a letter to Black Diamond about the zippers and leaking seams and received no response. I called Rainy Pass Repair about taping the seams, but they said they can't do it if the seams have had seam sealer on them. If you really want one of these tents because of its light weight and want to avoid problems, you should send it to Rainy Pass before you use it or put seam sealer on it and have them tape the seams and replace those flimsy zipper pulls. It will probably cost you about $150, but it will be lighter and a lot less trouble than carrying zipper cleaner to clean the zippers if the wind blows and a tarp to cover the tent if it rains. Rainy Pass Repair's phone number is (800) RIP-STOP. Don't expect Black Diamond to stand behind this product.

I just used this tent on a weekend trip to Glacier Point, Yosemite during a winter storm in February. We were expecting blizzard conditions on Saturday night and I was a little worried about the Lighthouse tent holding up to this sort of weather because I had only used it in ideal conditions up to this point. Also, I was a little confused about the rating of this tent because Black Diamond describes it as a 4-season tent, while BC.com said it is only 3-season worth. In addition, some reviews here said that it is a good winter tent, but not if you “expect to get dumped on.� Thus, since I could not get a definitive answer, I decided to try it out for myself in blizzard conditions with 65-mile an hour winds. However, my brother and cousin did hull up their 10-Ibs REI Mountain 3 (4-season) tent. If the Lighthouse didn’t work out in the storm, my backup plan was to abandon the my tent and squeeze into REI Mountain 3 tent with my brother and cousin and ride out the storm. At about 6:30pm, in a blizzard at night using our head lamps, we setup our tents in a snow covered meadow. The lighthouse setup fast and I barely got any snow in the tent. I basically secured the 4-corners of the tent first and then quickly open the door, put in the poles in place, and zipped the door back up (I secured the tent to the ground first since I was afraid it would blow away with all the wind). I finished by setting up the guy-lines, which is what really make the tent wind resistant. Since I was tired, cold, and hungry this did not take long. Then I jumped in the tent and secured the poles to the velcro straps and that was it. I was in my sleeping bag and eating dinner while my brother and cousin were still out in the cold setting out their tent in the storm (also, cooking inside the tent works very well if you are using a JetBoil and open up the vents enough to allow the steam to exit the tent). I am very happy to report that the Lighthouse stood up just as well as a heavy duty 4-seasons tent. The REI Mountain 3-tent was completely covered with snow, all I could see were the guy-line strings. However, with the Lighthouse’s high upright walls, I barely had any snow on the top of the tent. But, all sides of my tent were surrounded by 3-feet of snow. I got very little condensation from the walls, about the same amount as a traditional tent with a rainfly. I was only able to unzip the door about a foot from the top; otherwise, the snow wall would have come crashing in. The tent held up amazingly well. I was able to slide thru the small door opening and dig out the tent. However, I did have to purchased after market snow stakes for the tent corner and the guy-lines. I highly recommend this tent for Summer and Winter backpacking. However, I wouldn’t recommend on using this tent in extremely wet or humid climates, it’s not designed for that. I would go with a Big Agnes Seedhouse SL2. This is truly a 4-season tent and I am extremely happy with my purchase.

Great tent, super light, easy to put up and take down - surprisingly roomy too. Give yourself time to seal the seams before use!

The only good thing I can say is it's light- but when you're tent-bound, and soaked, that's little comfort. Took the Lighthouse climbing (based on BD's website implying it's being used at altitude) and it became a sponge after one wet night at basecamp. Higher up, it was plagued with copious condensation when even partially zipped up. If you ever have to set it up in a hurry (i.e. stormy condtions), there's a good chance you'll rip the floor/ walls with the poles. Considering the price, lack of a vestibule, and the time wasted sealing seams, I feel this was the worst tent purchase I've ever made.

I love this tent. I was very sleepy when I used it and I fell right to sleep.

I got this tent a couple of years ago when it first came out and have really enjoyed camping with it. Living in Utah we don't get a great deal of rain, but on the occasions when I've been tent bound for up to eight hours during a rainstorm, I didn't have any problems with the tent leaking. Water was even flowing under the tent and still no problem. The tent is rather small for 2 adults plus gear, so the vestibule is a nice addition. The main drawback I can see is the price, at $300+ it's rather hard to swallow.

I Bought this tent for my son who is involved in scouting. He is 13 and has no problem setting this tent up. He can pitch this tent in 2 to 3 minutes tops. It was spacious enough for him and a buddy. It held up quite well in some pretty nasty thunderstorms and it did not get too stuffy on a warm humid night. My son indicated he got it dirty and would need to wash it off when we got home. This was not a problem as the dirt just seemed to roll off the fabric. This tent packs down very small a nice feature when space is an issue. I am very pleased with this tent. I don't think I could find a simpler tent for my son and a quality one at that!

All reviews target the possibility of getting wet in a tent. All tents leak eventually to some degree. It is a matter of fact. I spent ten hours in the "Best Little Tent" in continuous rain in the Sierra Nevada 2006 October. I got a little wet. It's not a double wall. For three pounds, I'd do it again. I have a North Face Expedition double wall that stays much dryer and it's ten plus pounds. I have a Sierra Designs double wall and it keeps you dryer and it's six pounds. You can't have it all. Also, both of those tents have vestibules which I love. "The Best Little Tent" at three pounds has no vestibule but I wiil not take another tent unless I go to the rain forest. It has room for two, plenty of headroom, good ventilation, freestanding, easy setup, a giant door, darn near four season, packs micro small, cheeeery color when hanging, water tight floor, and finally my only beef, only one door. Another door would increase the weight by several ounces. Can't have that! If ya don't have the Lighthouse, ya don't have "The Best Little Tent", period.

All reviews target the possibility of getting wet in a tent. All tents leak eventually to some degree. It is a matter of fact. I spent ten hours in the "Best Little Tent" in continuous rain in the Sierra Nevada 2006 October. I got a little wet. It's not a double wall. For three pounds, I'd do it again. I have a North Face Expedition double wall that stays much dryer and it's ten plus pounds. I have a Sierra Designs double wall and it keeps you dryer and it's six pounds. You can't have it all. Also, both of those tents have vestibules which I love. "The Best Little Tent" at three pounds has no vestibule but I will not take another tent unless I go to the rain forest. It has room for two, plenty of headroom, good ventilation, freestanding, easy setup, a giant door, darn near four season, packs micro small, cheeeery color when hanging, water tight floor, and finally my only beef, only one door. Another door would increase the weight by several ounces. Can't have that! If ya don't have the Lighthouse, ya don't have "The Best Little Tent", period.

This lightweight tent is great for times when you know the weather is going to be not so bad, and you don't want a full on heavy four season tent. It'll handle a bit of snow or rain, but I wouldn't take it out if I expected to get dumped on. I also hear it's a great tent for higher altitude mountaineering, where you need some protection from the wind and snow, but again need to go light. The big front door makes it feel roomy and is perfect for warmer weather.

Best winter tent I've used. If you're worried about the rain getting through, bring a silnylon tarp and drape it over the tent, or guy it out overhead. The tent plus a tarp still weighs less than a normal tent, and you can always use the tarp for a vestibule. The tent packs down to the size of two Nalgenes. On clear nights, you can unzip the entire wall for ventilation (though this does end up with a lot of unruly fabric). Lots of headroom.

I used the lighthouse on 8-day Baja motorcycle trip, and it worked great. Packed small, quiet in the wind, and easy set-up. I have not tried it in rain. I packed the footprint also because of the price of the tent, which I usually would not have. This makes it close in size and weight to a two-layer tent, so did I actually save any space?

As with any single wall, the lighthouse is good and bad. It is a nice tent with ample room for two people and gear. We spend most of our time in GSMNP which in notoriously wet and humid, and it shows with a lot of condensation inside, but we had that problem with double wall tents too. The light color keeps the interior light. At a little over 3lbs, it helps keep pack weight down. It has held up well so far, and appears sturdy for the long term. The pole set up takes some practice, but then it is quick (we stake the tent out first, and then insert the poles). In heavier rain I insert small pole, jump inside, zip up, and then assemble the two long poles. Black Diamond/Bibler: Please seam seal your tents.

I used the Lighthouse at Yosemite at the beginning of October. Unless you are an extremely small person I would definitely opt for the larger Lighthouse over the Firstlight. If you wanted to fit two people in it you could, but the extra space for gear, my dog Jack, etc. is nice. The tent can be erected easily with one practice run. I did rather object to the extra step of self seam sealing, but it really wasn't too much trouble and it's not going to leak. The tension involved in the framing did cause me some concern. That is, a concern of having one end come loose with tension while you are putting the tent up and having it rip the side. I put a very small piece of electrical tape over the ends to obviate any concerns for sharp edges and I think it worked fine. I used it with a ground cover which I pegged in place with the supplied pegs. Why spend so much for a tent and not buy the ground cover? The tent kept me warm and dry and is amazingly small and light. Hiking Yosemite Falls was absolutely no problem. Didn't even know the Lighthouse was there. I am extremely happy with the Lighthouse. It's worth every penny.

The tent was great, right up until I found a small rip in it. I'm not sure if it was the fabric, but it looked like a run in the nylon. It eventually got bigger. Since I only used this on grass, I was very surprised to see such a rip. It seemed like it was a defect that was there and probably got bigger when the tent was used. However, the actual tent itself was great and I am sending it back for another one of the same.

I have been backpacking for over 30 years and have always tried to get my pack load down to as little as possible. I guess you may call me minimalist. I do take a few luxeries along on a trip, but at 50+ I now NEED to keep my pack weight load down. This tent is the best purchase I have make in many years for my trips. It weighs little, sets up in a wink and kept me dry in a downpour for a couple of hours down in the San Juan Mountains on a trip just after purchasing the tent. I was amazed at how this single wall tent stayed dry even after the rain when condensation should have been a problem. The footprint is somewhat small and two may find it somewhat tight. I found it roomy for just one. But if I look back on my old a frame tent from the 70's - it was small too. I would recommend this tent to anyone who can enjoy the outdoors and keep the equipment to a minimum weight.

We were in heavy rain for about 8 hours in the Lighthouse Tent. The first two or three hours were fine—lookin' good, but after that rain started to mist through the tent fabric. It stopped raining for about an hour in the middle of the night and it quit misting inside during that time. We were soaked come morning. Condensation was only a slight problem. We did like the wide door and roomy interior.

Used this tent on numerous occasions in the past 8 weeks: Smith Rocks, Shasta, Leavenworth. The tent excelled on all occasions until Squamish. After 2 hours of normal rain, water started to seep through the fabric and drip. Fourteen hours later practically everything in the tent was wet. Most water initially penetrated through the very top (above the seams) and the sides about a foot to 2 feet off the deck gave out later. The silicon impregnated nylon vestibule did much better!!! I would not consider this anything but an alpine tent unless I was going to bivy within the tent, then it would go further.

Absurdly light. Absurdly small. My first single wall, but I can't believe how small this is. Ordered this for solo camping cause I'm 6'4", instead of Firstlight. When shopping, wanted smaller front door to save weight, but I find I like the big one--both for ventilation and breathtaking views. Very breathable, though I haven't tested in EXTREME conditions. At 4 plus lbs with ground cloth, not as light as had hoped, but still 2 lbs lighter than old MH ultralight tent. But it is ridiculously small. Made conversion to lighter but not ultralight hiking, this tent makes room in my pack. Not easy to pitch. MH double wall faster and easier. As poles go inside, impossible to pitch in heavy rain w/out getting interior soaked. But I can't see how they could make it easier, and this minute of annoyance is worth it to shave lbs and cubic inches. You don't get something for nothing, and this minor headache well worth it. Won't hike without a freestanding tent, this is the best option instead of bivy or tarp. Best tent I've ever owned, bar none. HIGHLY RECOMMEND, though haven't tested extreme heat or cold yet. Don't know about condensation yet, but this beast is DEFINITELY waterproof.

I was impressed with the tent's ability to keep out the rain and to keep the moisture from forming inside the tent. Can't wait to see how it works over time. Setting up the tent is easy, but I would not want to set it up for the first time in the middle of a driving rain storm.

Just used this on a week long trip and was very impressed. In many ways I liked it better than the Bibler Ahwahnee I have had for years. Light, spacious, and storm worthy, this may be the best value for a high mountain ultralight shelter. The nysilk floor is very slick and even Thermarest's latest "sticky" pad (Prolite 4) material crept around a bit but it wasn't too bad. Just pick a level spot when you set it up. I loved the huge door and window for cross ventilation which kept condensation to a minimum. My only complaint with single wall tents - and I have slept in a half of dozen of them from various manufacturers, is the frozen condensation that drips when it melts as the sun warms the tent. ToddTex fabric is a little better in that regard but it only becomes a problem when the wind blows and you have to really button the tent up. A vestibule would be nice but I have learned to live without one so it isn't a big deal. If you are going high and light you could spend more but may actually get less. Overall a very nice shelter for the money.

Great tent. It has a great weight/space ratio and is free-standing. Plenty of room for 6 footers. The Epic material compacts well and is very breathable/water resistant. The first couple of times setting it up was a challange due to its internal pole system and placement of pole pockets [there is a slight possibility to tear the floor if the poles don't catch in the floor corner pockets]. My only gripe is that the netted door is seperate from the Epic door, not allowing you to access the door when the netted door is closed. Overall, great tent.