here's a quick demo on how to put up and pull down this rooftop tent with my thoughts on it as well. #roofnest #rooftoptent #overland #boondocking #travel
My wife and I have used this same model of RoofNest Sparrow for the past year or so. Our maiden voyage using this tent was a 30-day, 5,000-mile camping trip from Wisconsin to Montana and Wyoming and back. We stayed in state parks all along the way. We love our Sparrow XL! This year, we are planning a 6-week camping trip out West again. What you say about opening and closing the tent is spot on. It is great to be able to leave bedding in the RoofNest, but be careful about how much you keep in the tent and how you store it -- keep stuff away from the struts and under the high points of the tent. I also recommend using smaller pillows. The less bedding you have to compress when you close the RoofNEst, the easier it is to close. Foam pillows are generally not a good idea here, because they get really stiff and hard to compress when the temperatures are cool.. I will add these comments based upon our experiences: (1) Leave the front window cover rolled down about 1/3rd of the way. Roll it inward, toward the mosquito netting in the opening, so its stays in place when you zip the netting closed. This vent helps prevent condensation when it is humid, especially if you use a USB fan to circulate the air at night. Just hang the fan right next to the netting in the window and let it run all night. Recharge it the next day. (2) Leaving the front window open also has at least one additional benefit. It makes raising and lowering the RoofNest much easier because it allows air to move either into or out of the tent as needed. This small thing really helps in raising and lowering the Sparrow, which is surprisingly air-tight when it is all zipped up. (3) Small caribiners, D-clips, or even small loops of paracord help store your small gear when you are in the tent. There are a number of attachment points around the top panel of this unit. The more you can keep stuff (a) off the mattress, and (b) out of the storage net, the more comfortable you will be moving around in the Sparrow. (4) To ease the creaking and groaning when you are moving around in the tent, or even just driving, place 1/8" rubber strips between the base of the RoofNest and the crossbars on your vehicle. Lubricate them lightly, if you like, with WD-40 Dry Lube or paraffin-based lubricant, like Boeshield T-9. This will deal with the creaking issue quite well. Spraying a bit of the same lubricant on the latches also is worthwhile, but there is no need to overdo this or it will drip onto your car windows. (5) Get some small bungee cords to attach the pull down straps on the Sparrow to your car -- usually the front and rear windshield wiper arms offer a place to hook these cords. Just get the length of bungee cord you need to reach a suitable attachment point. Keeping the pull-down straps pulled tightly away from the RoofNest will prevent them from blowing around and slapping against the side of the Sparrow on a windy night. The amount of noise this makes is really annoying, even in fairly light breezes. (6) As you pointed out, getting the Sparrow XL up is easy and fast. Getting it closed is a bit more of a challenge, even with two people. My wife and I are in our early seventies; further, we both have to deal with rotator cuff issues. These made it harder for us to (a) reach, and (b) pull down the front straps to close the Sparrow. We choose not to crawl onto the hood of our RAV4, so I came up with another approach. I ordered two small, hard-plastic boat hooks from Amazon and screwed them to two short fiberglass broom handles. It is now easy to reach AND to pull down the front straps AND to tuck in the Sparrow's wall canvas, as well. These really help to overcome the upward force of the gas struts in the RoofNest and makes closing the tent much easier because we can use our body weight more efficiently to do it. And once we get the roof panel pulled down about a foot or so, overcoming the resistance of the struts, the rest is easy. All that is left is a bit of quick tucking around the sides and fastening the latches. This also makes it easier for a single person to close the tent, which is doable but challenging. Thanks for your interesting video, which got me thinking about and commenting on our shared experiences. Regards, respects, and best wishes!
Thanks for the great comment! Wish I had thought about the front window flap sooner, I'm definitely gonna do that! Yeah the pull downs I just folded the thing up a bit and used a zip tie to keep them from flapping around. super annoying. I didn't have the stones to cut them off b/c if I end up selling it someday the future owner may want them for some reason. Have a good one! Happy camping!
C Brown here. Really love what you are doing. I’ll be following via TH-cam along the way so continue to post when you can. I’m hoping to see you when you make AZ....the door is always open. Love you bro.
Thanks for the real word demo of the Sparrow RTT. Going to check out your channel to see if you cover how you've hooked up your solar panel. Also, your voice is not boring :-)
Oh.. this looks nice !! very intersiting ! this is something that I might do/add to my build Xterra.. but first most important I need to redo my suspension
glad I found this channel, I've been on the lookout for a solid used Xterra myself, for extended live in and around it as a roving abode. especially the Southwest I was wondering on your previous video how much length is there for your inside truck sleeping. I'm 6'2.
My biggest problem with these type tent setups is if I'm set up at my camp and I have to leave ...fishing, store whatever unlike a trailer you can drop....these you have to pack it down again
Would you recommend this for campers who are not overlanders, like who just camo state parks 4 times a year? ..also would you ever consider doing gear reviews?
Yeah id definitely recommend it for that, just remember theyre pretty expensive so youd want to use it as much as possible to get your moneys worth. Also theyre a bit of a chore to get off and on and store them so unless you're ok with having it up there year round youll want to consider that too. Ha i considered doing gear reviews but don't have much gear so decided not too 😂
It's been two or three years now but I did a little bit during my road trip. I liked cracker barrels better. They were quieter. Technically you're supposed to have a toilet if you're gonna park overnight there but I probly did it about 20-30 times and nobody said boo about it
Didn't have to drill, definitely wanted to avoid that. The connecting cord from the panel to the jackery power bank is thin enough that it fits into the space between the body of the truck and the tailgate. It's a tight squeeze but it fits just fine. Otherwise I probably would have had to drill if that didn't fit.
I assume theres a bit of bend and give as I move about in the tent, nothing major though. I think it's reinforced fiberglass if I recall so it's pretty sturdy. Only thing I'll note is that it does creak a bit as I move around in it, but nothing that's so loud you'd wake up someone else in the tent unless they're a really light sleeper. Hope that helps!
I bought a cheap electric heater but it drained my power bank too quickly. So i bought an electric blanket and that has been a good option for me, i only use it sporadically, when overnight it hits the 30's. I have seen lots of videos with folks using small space heaters. I think if u research it enough you'd find a good sensible space heater option for sure. Hope that helps!
Yep I installed on the stock rack. I didnt do this but I would recommend getting longer bolts than what roofnest sends you. It would make it a lot easier as the crossbars on the xterra are pretty thick. Other than that youll be all set. Enjoy!
Hey man! Overall very happy with it still! Couple small quibbles but nothing major. Ill do an update video in next few weeks to give my impressions after 6 months of use. Overall id say try and find one used for cheaper if possible but if youre gonna use it a ton, buying new youll get your moneys worth. Hope that helps!
I just fitted a XL on my van. all i have to say is disappointing . how one person is expected to complete the task without a large step ladder and much gnashing of teeth is beyond me. I think the closing of the product is a big failure. Who wants to climb on the windscreen of a car. so a van at 6 feet is really tricky. I design methods of finishing plastic products. If I had left a task as tricky as closing the tent to my company I would be sacked. some ratchet straps would aid the process, removable once locked in. I will be modifying mine to make it work. If roof nest want to contact me for the solution, I will be happy to help........ lol
Think it would be ok for an outback. If you go to roofnests website theres a tool there that shows you what the tent would look like on certain types of vehicles. I dont have mine locked to the car, but ive seen that there are products that you can buy that arent too expensive that lock the tent to the rack. Hope that helps!
FWIW -- Suburu Outbacks are one of the most common vehicles used with these tents, according to Tim at RoofNest. Outbacks have higher towing capacities than RAV4's, too. The two vehicles are otherwise very similar. Our RAV4 is about the same size as the Outback and and the RoofNest works great. Our grandson is going to use a RoofNest on his Suburu Crosstrek and I antipate he will have no problems. Just choose good quality crossbars sufficient to the weight of the tent. There are a number of these available, such as the Malone Aero Crossbars offered by RoofNest. They have a good weight capacity and they are, I believe, a lot less expensive than OEM Suburu crossbars. If your Outback has side rails, which I think it does, then these should work. Thule also makes several models that will work with the Outback. Happy Camping!
sorry for the delay in my reply! Nissan claims 150lbs max but in threads I researched people talk about going up to 250 or so. the tent itself weighs 145lbs and I've not noticed it budge one centimeter after driving with it in all conditions for several thousand miles. while stationary we've slept with two people in it without any problems either. hope that helps!
Do not buy the Adventure XL model. It leaks and Roofnest doesn't stand by their product. They also delete all of their negative reviews on their website and Facebook page. What a horrible company. At first they said they'd send me a new roof clam shell, then they said after they realized it was slightly used when I bought it, to put some jb weld on it and I was on my own even though it was less than a year old. . (I was upfront with their customer service from the start that I had bought it slightly used). I patched one leak, and a week later another spot started leaking. No damage to the outer shell, it's just a poor design that traps water in the roof rack rails.
My wife and I have used this same model of RoofNest Sparrow for the past year or so. Our maiden voyage using this tent was a 30-day, 5,000-mile camping trip from Wisconsin to Montana and Wyoming and back. We stayed in state parks all along the way. We love our Sparrow XL! This year, we are planning a 6-week camping trip out West again.
What you say about opening and closing the tent is spot on. It is great to be able to leave bedding in the RoofNest, but be careful about how much you keep in the tent and how you store it -- keep stuff away from the struts and under the high points of the tent. I also recommend using smaller pillows. The less bedding you have to compress when you close the RoofNEst, the easier it is to close. Foam pillows are generally not a good idea here, because they get really stiff and hard to compress when the temperatures are cool..
I will add these comments based upon our experiences:
(1) Leave the front window cover rolled down about 1/3rd of the way. Roll it inward, toward the mosquito netting in the opening, so its stays in place when you zip the netting closed. This vent helps prevent condensation when it is humid, especially if you use a USB fan to circulate the air at night. Just hang the fan right next to the netting in the window and let it run all night. Recharge it the next day.
(2) Leaving the front window open also has at least one additional benefit. It makes raising and lowering the RoofNest much easier because it allows air to move either into or out of the tent as needed. This small thing really helps in raising and lowering the Sparrow, which is surprisingly air-tight when it is all zipped up.
(3) Small caribiners, D-clips, or even small loops of paracord help store your small gear when you are in the tent. There are a number of attachment points around the top panel of this unit. The more you can keep stuff (a) off the mattress, and (b) out of the storage net, the more comfortable you will be moving around in the Sparrow.
(4) To ease the creaking and groaning when you are moving around in the tent, or even just driving, place 1/8" rubber strips between the base of the RoofNest and the crossbars on your vehicle. Lubricate them lightly, if you like, with WD-40 Dry Lube or paraffin-based lubricant, like Boeshield T-9. This will deal with the creaking issue quite well. Spraying a bit of the same lubricant on the latches also is worthwhile, but there is no need to overdo this or it will drip onto your car windows.
(5) Get some small bungee cords to attach the pull down straps on the Sparrow to your car -- usually the front and rear windshield wiper arms offer a place to hook these cords. Just get the length of bungee cord you need to reach a suitable attachment point. Keeping the pull-down straps pulled tightly away from the RoofNest will prevent them from blowing around and slapping against the side of the Sparrow on a windy night. The amount of noise this makes is really annoying, even in fairly light breezes.
(6) As you pointed out, getting the Sparrow XL up is easy and fast. Getting it closed is a bit more of a challenge, even with two people. My wife and I are in our early seventies; further, we both have to deal with rotator cuff issues. These made it harder for us to (a) reach, and (b) pull down the front straps to close the Sparrow. We choose not to crawl onto the hood of our RAV4, so I came up with another approach. I ordered two small, hard-plastic boat hooks from Amazon and screwed them to two short fiberglass broom handles. It is now easy to reach AND to pull down the front straps AND to tuck in the Sparrow's wall canvas, as well. These really help to overcome the upward force of the gas struts in the RoofNest and makes closing the tent much easier because we can use our body weight more efficiently to do it. And once we get the roof panel pulled down about a foot or so, overcoming the resistance of the struts, the rest is easy. All that is left is a bit of quick tucking around the sides and fastening the latches. This also makes it easier for a single person to close the tent, which is doable but challenging.
Thanks for your interesting video, which got me thinking about and commenting on our shared experiences.
Regards, respects, and best wishes!
Thanks for the great comment! Wish I had thought about the front window flap sooner, I'm definitely gonna do that! Yeah the pull downs I just folded the thing up a bit and used a zip tie to keep them from flapping around. super annoying. I didn't have the stones to cut them off b/c if I end up selling it someday the future owner may want them for some reason.
Have a good one! Happy camping!
C Brown here. Really love what you are doing. I’ll be following via TH-cam along the way so continue to post when you can. I’m hoping to see you when you make AZ....the door is always open. Love you bro.
Thanks for the real word demo of the Sparrow RTT. Going to check out your channel to see if you cover how you've hooked up your solar panel. Also, your voice is not boring :-)
Hahaha thank you!
Take the kaleidoscope ladder into another realm.
Oh.. this looks nice !! very intersiting ! this is something that I might do/add to my build Xterra.. but first most important I need to redo my suspension
ha yeahhhh first things first... lol
glad I found this channel, I've been on the lookout for a solid used Xterra myself, for extended live in and around it as a roving abode. especially the Southwest
I was wondering on your previous video how much length is there for your inside truck sleeping. I'm 6'2.
yeah you'll be able to fit as long as the front seat is folded forward. I'm 6 feet even and I've got enough room. Good luck!
My biggest problem with these type tent setups is if I'm set up at my camp and I have to leave ...fishing, store whatever unlike a trailer you can drop....these you have to pack it down again
Yeah agreed, i think down the road ill probly upgrade and do a truck camper. Thats as big a rig as id want to do tho
Nice video 👍🏼
Would you recommend this for campers who are not overlanders, like who just camo state parks 4 times a year? ..also would you ever consider doing gear reviews?
Yeah id definitely recommend it for that, just remember theyre pretty expensive so youd want to use it as much as possible to get your moneys worth. Also theyre a bit of a chore to get off and on and store them so unless you're ok with having it up there year round youll want to consider that too. Ha i considered doing gear reviews but don't have much gear so decided not too 😂
Thank you! The slowest struts on TH-cam! Lol
Do you ever overnight in places like Walmart or Cracker Barrel in your rooftop tent?
It's been two or three years now but I did a little bit during my road trip. I liked cracker barrels better. They were quieter. Technically you're supposed to have a toilet if you're gonna park overnight there but I probly did it about 20-30 times and nobody said boo about it
Could you also use your ladder to bring it down to make it easier?
Hey yeah that could definitely work! Ill have to try it thanks for the suggestion!!!
there is no rack on the roofnest sparrow.
How did you attach a solar pannel on it?
Ha i saw another video about it and they just used duct tape and heavy duty velcro so thats what i used. Not super sophisticated but got it done
How did you run the solar panel cable into the truck? Did you have to drill into anything?
Didn't have to drill, definitely wanted to avoid that. The connecting cord from the panel to the jackery power bank is thin enough that it fits into the space between the body of the truck and the tailgate. It's a tight squeeze but it fits just fine. Otherwise I probably would have had to drill if that didn't fit.
Does your rtt flex a lot?
I assume theres a bit of bend and give as I move about in the tent, nothing major though. I think it's reinforced fiberglass if I recall so it's pretty sturdy. Only thing I'll note is that it does creak a bit as I move around in it, but nothing that's so loud you'd wake up someone else in the tent unless they're a really light sleeper. Hope that helps!
Have you had to heat it yet? Would a portable heater be safe up there?
I bought a cheap electric heater but it drained my power bank too quickly. So i bought an electric blanket and that has been a good option for me, i only use it sporadically, when overnight it hits the 30's. I have seen lots of videos with folks using small space heaters. I think if u research it enough you'd find a good sensible space heater option for sure. Hope that helps!
Did you install directly on the stock X roof rack? I have a '13, I was wondering if the roof rack could handle it
Yep I installed on the stock rack. I didnt do this but I would recommend getting longer bolts than what roofnest sends you. It would make it a lot easier as the crossbars on the xterra are pretty thick. Other than that youll be all set. Enjoy!
Looks like you posted this six months ago. After this time do you still recommend it? Thanks.
Hey man! Overall very happy with it still! Couple small quibbles but nothing major. Ill do an update video in next few weeks to give my impressions after 6 months of use. Overall id say try and find one used for cheaper if possible but if youre gonna use it a ton, buying new youll get your moneys worth. Hope that helps!
@@overlandproject3653 Awesome, thanks, man! Always good to hear some feedback for a big purchase.
I just fitted a XL on my van. all i have to say is disappointing . how one person is expected to complete the task without a large step ladder and much gnashing of teeth is beyond me. I think the closing of the product is a big failure. Who wants to climb on the windscreen of a car. so a van at 6 feet is really tricky. I design methods of finishing plastic products. If I had left a task as tricky as closing the tent to my company I would be sacked. some ratchet straps would aid the process, removable once locked in. I will be modifying mine to make it work. If roof nest want to contact me for the solution, I will be happy to help........ lol
To big for a Subaru Outback? Also can you lock it?
Think it would be ok for an outback. If you go to roofnests website theres a tool there that shows you what the tent would look like on certain types of vehicles. I dont have mine locked to the car, but ive seen that there are products that you can buy that arent too expensive that lock the tent to the rack. Hope that helps!
FWIW -- Suburu Outbacks are one of the most common vehicles used with these tents, according to Tim at RoofNest. Outbacks have higher towing capacities than RAV4's, too. The two vehicles are otherwise very similar.
Our RAV4 is about the same size as the Outback and and the RoofNest works great. Our grandson is going to use a RoofNest on his Suburu Crosstrek and I antipate he will have no problems.
Just choose good quality crossbars sufficient to the weight of the tent. There are a number of these available, such as the Malone Aero Crossbars offered by RoofNest. They have a good weight capacity and they are, I believe, a lot less expensive than OEM Suburu crossbars.
If your Outback has side rails, which I think it does, then these should work. Thule also makes several models that will work with the Outback.
Happy Camping!
how many pounds that roof rails can hold ?
sorry for the delay in my reply! Nissan claims 150lbs max but in threads I researched people talk about going up to 250 or so. the tent itself weighs 145lbs and I've not noticed it budge one centimeter after driving with it in all conditions for several thousand miles. while stationary we've slept with two people in it without any problems either. hope that helps!
Do not buy the Adventure XL model. It leaks and Roofnest doesn't stand by their product. They also delete all of their negative reviews on their website and Facebook page. What a horrible company. At first they said they'd send me a new roof clam shell, then they said after they realized it was slightly used when I bought it, to put some jb weld on it and I was on my own even though it was less than a year old. . (I was upfront with their customer service from the start that I had bought it slightly used). I patched one leak, and a week later another spot started leaking. No damage to the outer shell, it's just a poor design that traps water in the roof rack rails.