Outwell 12V Squall Tent Pump

During a camping a 4x4 weekend I decided to take my spacious Robens Vista 400 inflatable tent.  It comes with a manual pump that works really well, but due to my somewhat sedentary 'sit-on-my-bum' writing lifestyle, I found myself absolutely knackered, with a racing heartbeat that's not so good in what Muddy Madam calls 'my heart attack years'.

The best thing for me to do would be for me to get off my bum and do some regular cardio exercise, but why go for the hard option when the easy one is just a click or two away, so I ordered the handheld Outwell Squall Tent Pump.

Although it’s designed for Outwell’s range of inflatable tents, it also works with Robens, though it was a tad fiddly to begin with.

Weighing in at just 1.3kg, it features an LCD display for easy settingm, and automatically stops when it reaches the set pressure, which prevents over-inflation, and ensures a rigid frame of up to 16psi.

Powered by a 12v car power supply cable that stretches to a very usable 16ft, it’s really handy for some campsites where you can’t camp directly next to your car.

It comes supplied with 2 different nozzles and takes all the effort out of inflating tents, and awnings.

I did find it a bit noisy, but I can forgive that because it was very effective, inflating a beam to 9psi in only around 30 seconds. Obviously it would be quicker for smaller inflatable tents.

I'll definitely be using it in the future, it's a nice solution for putting your tent up without all the sweat and strain.

I'm off now to do some cardio.

price: £85 (spotted for £49.95 at www.attwoolls.co.uk)

more at » www.outwell.com