Slant leg canopy tents are cheaper than straight leg tents because they use less material. Since 2015, I’ve tested camping shelters and large car-camping tents on weekend trips involving more than a dozen families, and I have talked to dozens more about their tent travails. Over the years, I have evaluated gear for magazines including Wired, Popular Science, and National Geographic Adventure, where I was a senior editor. It’s also important to note that nearly all recreational-grade tents — no matter if they’re straight leg or slant leg — use thin steel frames, which are significantly weaker than anodized aluminum frames of similar weight. Aluminum tent legs not only have a larger leg diameter (1” for steel vs. 2” for aluminum) but the thickness (or gauge) of aluminum is twice that of steel. Though all of these shelters are self-standing and staking them may not be strictly necessary in calm weather, it’s wise to always do so in case the wind picks up unexpectedly.
I have lost a couple of drain caps in my day which makes the cooler unusable until a replacement arrives. A lower roof makes this shelter feel notably smaller than our top pick, but it’s also durably made and ready to pair with a superior rain fly (sold separately). Getting our hands dirty with the top-rated 9×9 Neso Grande lightweight beach canopy tent. We typically see pyramid frames built with flimsy trusses and thin struts and reinforced (if you want to call it that) with cheaply made plastic joint connectors, and unfortunately this 10×10 Ozark canopy is no different. The biggest issue in all of this is the inability to withstand any rotational pressure during medium and high impact weather conditions as the joints become unstable and collapse at the mid points. In windy conditions high stress is applied to each side and the frame begins to break down at the unreinforced joint connectors.
In this camping tent guide by Academy Sports + Outdoors, you’ll learn how to choose your next tent. We are committed to finding, researching, ozark trail chair and recommending the best products. We earn commissions from purchases you make using the retail links in our product reviews.
Overall, we think the Ozark Trail canopy serves its intended purpose – a value brand 10×10 instant shelter that caters to price conscious consumers looking for an affordable shade option. And compared to some of the tents in the EZ-Up lineup, it sells for almost a 70% discount. One could, in theory, purchase a new Ozark canopy every year (which they might need to!) and still come out ahead over the years vs. purchasing a more expensive alternative. We’re more than just custom pop up tents — TentCraft is a premium fabricator of all things experiential marketing and outdoor advertising.
We manufacture and sell professional-grade, custom structures at prices that likely aren’t in the budgets of consumers who are shopping for a 10×10 pop-up tent in the $100-$300 range. Those are recreational-grade tents that wouldn’t hold up to the type of use our customers demand. We simply want you to get the best bang for your buck, even if you are shopping for recreational-grade pop-up tents.
We tested the Coleman 10 × 10 Instant Screened Canopy and Walmart’s Ozark Trail 10′ × 10′ Instant Screen House during our first round of testing in the winter and spring of 2016. These two shelters are the same size and shape (7-foot peak height, 17 pounds) with an almost identical design. The cap-like roofs on both models provided far less shade than we wanted, especially in the beating desert sun. The mesh walls do have a ribbon of polyester at the foot, but even carefully staked they can leave gaps at the ground; if bug protection is your main concern, these tents would likely fall short. We also tested and liked the Coleman Mountain View 12 x 12 Screendome Shelter; it was an also-great pick until Coleman discontinued the model.
The Woodlands Screen House uses six lightweight aluminum poles, just like the Screen House Shelter. Like the REI model, the L.L.Bean tent uses polyester (ripstop, in this case), which is more resistant to UV damage and absorbs less moisture than nylon by weight. The Woodlands Screen House also has the advantage of eight guylines, whereas the Screen House Shelter includes none. In addition, this model has the same bug-deterring flap of fabric along the base as the REI tent, but while the REI’s flap is about 9 inches wide, the L.L.Bean’s flap is about 10.5 inches wide.
Before staking out a tent, make sure all of its doors are zipped closed to avoid staking it too tightly and straining the zippers. Like regular camping tents, these camping gazebos are not intended to be left up for extended periods, as the fabrics are susceptible to UV damage. L.L.Bean’s Woodlands Screen House is remarkably similar to our top pick, REI’s Screen House Shelter; the two canopies have an identical footprint and pole structure.