we bought a new 10' x 10' free-standing canopy and are wondering the best way to keep it on the ground. should i invest in the weighted bags, or are 18" round stakes the better and easier choice?if you advise round stakes, what is the best way to employ them? rope or ratchet strap?? i'm new to all of this, so please dumb it way down for me. thanks in advance! :DBTW, here are the round stakes and weighted bags i'm considering:bags: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00F0GI2OU/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_S_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=35JIKTFTDH7LS&coliid=I3QTVWEPX9YGKLround stakes: http://www.homedepot.com/p/Weyerhaeuser-3-4-in-x-18-in-Round-Steel-Stake-06178/202094305

Unless it is really windy I have never staked mine down. 11 weeks this last trip and only once did the canopy come off. But that was my fault. I did not ensure the velcro strips were properly secured.

thanks for the reply Donn! :Bthis is a free-standing canopy i bought though. not attached to an RV. i am wondering the best way to secure all 4 legs to the ground. sorry if i wasn't clear on that.

I went to a hardware store and bought some long nails. 1 in each corner, no problems in 5 years

We've been using the 10x10 canopy's ever since our test camping days. We never anchor them down in any way. They are always free standing. If the wind gets a little testy, I'll use a simple strait nail type tent peg through the hole in the foot. If on asphalt or a hard surface, I'll put some kind of weight on the foot and wrap the leg to it with a bungie cord. This works pretty well.There are times you don't want to leave the canopy up: When it is real windy and when it is raining.When it is windy, the canopy is just not THAT strong. It's not like a stick-and-brick house. The wind will catch the cloth and blow it off, or rip it to shreds, or worse, pick up the whole thing and toss it across the campground destoying it and damaging everything in it's path. So when very windy, take it down.Second, when it rains. Rain will pool in the canopy. It will not all run off, once it starts pooling, it pools more and more and more until the shear weight of the water will collapse the entire canopy destroying it. We always take the cover off before we retire for the night and leave the frame standing. If the feet are anchored down, it's harder to lower the legs to get the cover off. But it's never left up over night. Too vulnerable to rain and wind. We had 1 Quick Shade for 15 years or more. The fabric finally just gave up and started shredding. We purchased 2 more to replace them and use them together for more shade. Always mobile so they can be moved around. The sun never sits in the same spot all day, shade is always moving, so the canopies are moved often too... another reason for not anchoring them down.

If you were to put 100 pound bags on each leg, and the wind was blowing hard enough (Mild breeze) to exert 1 pound per square foot, on that canopy, it would not remain in place (10 x 10 = 100 square feet but since it is a canopy there is more area than that) .. I would screw anchors into the ground if at all possible. The kind you screw in hold my awning in breezes up to 50 MPH (or more so far) do not ask me how, but they have held for 2 years now.

10' x 10' Canopy : Round Stakes or Weighted Bags to secure?

32 Replies

Effy
Explorer II
Aug 11, 2016
I would avoid the weight approach simply because you'd have to store them and transport them, They take up space and are now part of your cargo. Stakes take up very little room or weight and from a strength perspective probably offer more there as well.

But in a strong enough wind, it won't matter what you use. You essentially have a parachute.
Blackdiamond
Explorer
Aug 11, 2016
We just bring Home Depot buckets use motorcycle tie down straps from the top frame to the bucket handle, buckets travel empty then we use water or dirt/sand to weigh them down. Also take off the canopy at night or whenever it is unattended. We get crazy 30-50 mph winds all the time in the desert and colorado river.
rgatijnet1
Explorer III
Aug 11, 2016
Has anybody mentioned what the insurance companies have to say about covering any damage caused to your RV or another RV from your canopy blowing away?
BarryG20
Explorer
Aug 11, 2016
We use the dog chain screw in type they work great take up little space are light weight and easy to get in and out of the ground have one yet to pull out. If they do get tough to put in you can use a bar to go through the handle for more torque. Ours are 16 or 18 inches long.
bob213
Explorer
Aug 11, 2016
It depends on where we are going.
If sand is available we use the eco friendly canvas grocery bags filled with sand and attached with a bungee cord.
No sand...I bring 5 gal. buckets, fill with water and attach with bungee cords. Cheap and easy.
I do like the bags you linked to though.
roam1
Explorer
Aug 10, 2016
Johno02 wrote:
If you are going to but a hammer, get a short handle one instead of a regular long sledge type. I have a ballpeen one that has about a 1 foot handle, and weighs about 3-4 pounds. It is handy for a lot of things. I use the long nails, and found some of these that just fit the nails.

I use those to, found then for a few bucks each on amazon
Johno02
Explorer
Aug 10, 2016
If you are going to but a hammer, get a short handle one instead of a regular long sledge type. I have a ballpeen one that has about a 1 foot handle, and weighs about 3-4 pounds. It is handy for a lot of things. I use the long nails, and found some of these that just fit the nails.
roam1
Explorer
Aug 10, 2016
I use 3/8 lag bolts 18"
use a hammer drill to insert them
when a storm is coming, add 4 more about 12" out fron corners and cinch wirh 1" straps with cam locks

survived 35+ mamy times
JayGee
Explorer
Aug 10, 2016
May have been said already, but a few buckets filled with water will help. Easy to store when you pack up too, they fit inside each other.
FIRE_UP
Explorer
Aug 10, 2016
DutchmenSport wrote:
New thought just hit me.

You can use 1 gallon plastic milk jugs, fill them with sand, put the cap on. Set up one on each corner and use a strap, rope, ratchet cable, anything and attach to the canopy and the handle of the milk jug. Get sand from Lowes or Home Depot where they sell concrete mixes. Cheaper than play sand for kids.

Well, yeah I guess you could use one gallon jugs. Who cares what the cost is for filling them, IT'S ONLY A GALLON! But, If you read my post above and I would have used one gallon containers, those would have ended up in the next county along with my canopy. So, it all depends on the potential for wind and gusts in your area.
Scott