User Review: Black Diamond Skylight

Black Diamond Skylight
Above: The current Skylight, which may differ slightly from the version reviewed.

Reviewed March 7, 2007 by Aviprk

Rating:
Design: three-season freestanding dome
Sleeps: 2
Ease of Setup: Moderate to Easy depending on one's experience
Weight: 6lbs 5oz with footprint.
Price Paid: $315

This tent is very light and very spacious compared to many 3-person tents. You are actually able to place three regular pads (20in width) side by side without having them overlap each other.

So we decide to take three of us on a two day trip. However, on the trip it rained both days at night only. Epic by Nextec is billed as water-resistant and we learned why. When the three of us slept in it the two people next to the walls pushed the walls with their sleeping bags making the water - read carefully - LEAK RIGHT THROUGH THE FABRIC!

We made sure the seams were well sealed (which by the way it doesn't come taped as most decent tents but you have to do it yourself with a tube of silicon and syringe). Even after all that the tent leaked through the fabric. However, when we were just inside the tent the fabric repelled the water fine. The fabric just leaks when it is being pushed, stretched so to say, by someone leaning against the walls or with their sleeping bag as was the case with us. It is impossible to have three people and not push the walls as the width is not wide enough to make that happen.

The Skylight is a great idea and I had a hard time returning it due to its space and lightness but the cons outweighed the pros in this tent. I would definitely purchase again if the fabric was more water resistant and Black Diamond actually sealed the seams for you. For MSRP of $435 that is just ridiculous. They could just pay a Chinese worker to do it as the tent is made in China and it wouldn't cost them that much more.