How to Protect the Tent Floor from Cot Legs

A common issue with cots, though, is that they might cause damage to your tent floor. Moving your cot across the floor can cause scratches, and sleeping on the cot can cause the bed’s feet to dig and tear into the floor’s fabric. To help avoid these issues, you can make use of the following methods:

In this article, we go into more detail about using the methods mentioned above, including some DIY alternatives. Hopefully, you can find at least one of these methods helpful when you go on your next camping trip.

Ways You Can Protect Your Tent Floor From Cot Legs

Felt Furniture Pads

Felt furniture pads are square or circular pads used to protect floors from scratches, scuffs, and damage caused by furniture. These pads usually have strong adhesives and are attached to the underside of the legs of beds, cabinets, chairs, refrigerators, and other types of furniture and appliances.

Furniture pads will also work well for protecting the base of your tent from cot legs. To apply them, you will first have to clean the bottom of your camp bed’s legs. Then, peel off a felt pad and stick it to the bottom of one of your bed’s legs. Do this for all of your cot’s legs.

A tip is to make sure you first measure the size of the feet of your camp bed. In this way, you can get furniture pads that have the appropriate fit.

Caster Cups or Furniture Cups

Another good covering you can use for your cot’s legs is caster or furniture cups. You can use furniture cups to protect various surfaces, such as hardwood, tile, vinyl, or even your tent’s base. These cups are usually made of rubber, so they are soft enough and provide great cushioning while providing enough friction, so your cot doesn’t slide or skid.

Unlike furniture pads, caster cups don’t use any adhesives, so they are not permanent fixtures. You can remove them anytime from your cot’s legs when not in use or when you’re not camping out. Also, furniture cups are relatively cheap and come in various sizes, so you should be able to find some that fit your camp bed’s legs.

Foam Puzzle Mats

Foam puzzle mats are another viable option for protecting your tent’s bottom from your cot’s legs. What makes using puzzle mats better than other methods is that they are multi-purpose. First of all, they are thick enough so that they keep your bed’s feet away from your tent’s bottom. And, depending on the size of the puzzle set, you can even cover the whole of your tent floor.

Also, because foam mats are soft, it can be pleasant to walk over them instead of walking over what is essentially solid ground. Foam mats also provide insulation for your feet when temperatures get low, and the tent floor becomes cold. Because of the puzzle nature of these mats, you can adjust the area they cover by adding or removing squares.

You might not even need all of the puzzle’s squares; you could just use four – one for each cot leg. In any case, transporting foam puzzle mats is very easy because they are very lightweight and can be easily disassembled and reassembled. Puzzle mats are one of the best choices you can get for protecting your tent floor from cot legs.

Rubber Leg Tips

Rubber leg tips are similar to caster cups in that they don’t use adhesives and are easy to attach to the bottom of your camp bed’s legs. Leg tips act like caps, so to apply them, you simply insert each of your cot’s legs into a rubber tip.

Leg tips come in different materials, but rubber ones are the best. Materials such as plastic can break easily, but rubber is not so fragile. Also, rubber provides excellent cushioning between your tent floor and camp bed while providing enough friction, so the bed doesn’t slide or skid.

Also, since rubber tips are attachable and fit firmly to the bed’s legs, you don’t have to store them separately from your cot. You can leave them on when you put away your bed.

An excellent tip for you is to drop a washer in each leg tip. In this way, your cot’s legs won’t cut into the rubber, and the rubber tip can last for a much longer time. Also, before buying leg tips, make sure you first measure the diameter of your bed’s leg to get the right fit.

Outdoor Carpet or Rug

You can also use outdoor carpets to cover your tent floor and protect it from the legs of your camp bed. Outdoor carpets or rugs are very soft and comfortable to walk on, which is a big plus. Rugs also provide excellent insulation between your feet and the tent floor, especially for colder nights.

Outdoor carpets differ from regular carpets. They are lighter and easier to clean, making them excellent for camping use. And although you can’t disassemble it like a foam puzzle mat, you can instead cut out squares on an outdoor rug. You can then move around these square cuts to cover areas you want to.

Wood Boards

Another way you can protect your tent floor from cot legs is by using wood boards. Wooden planks are easily accessible. You can purchase them at a furniture store, or you might even have some lying around at home.

You can cut wood boards to smaller sizes, so they match the diameter of your cot’s legs, which will also make them easier to carry around. Wooden planks are also helpful for leveling your cot, particularly in campsites with uneven ground.

A tip with using wood boards is to make sure to file the corners first, so they don’t tear into your tent floor.

Camping Tarp

If you want to make sure that you don’t have to face problems with your tent floor, you can use a camping tarp instead. With tarps, you don’t have to worry about your base being damaged by cot legs because there is no floor to begin with.

Using camping tarps comes with a couple of advantages that tents don’t offer. For example, tarps can cover much more space, making it easier to move around. Camping tarps are also relatively lightweight and easy to set up, as long as trees or posts are present. Tarps also offer excellent ventilation, and you can freely cook under one.

A con to camping tarps is that they don’t provide enough protection against wind and harsher weather. Also, tarps don’t provide much insulation and can be challenging to set up in areas with no trees or posts. But, depending on your circumstances and how you plan to camp, the advantages that camping tarps offer might far outweigh the disadvantages.

Footless Bed

Instead of looking for methods to protect your tent floor from cot feet, you can instead choose a camp bed that does not rest on legs in the first place. There are beds available that rest on foldable bars, lacking corners that might potentially damage your tent’s base. Footless cots might also be a little bit easier to set up; you don’t have to pull out individual legs, only a couple of bars.

DIY Alternatives

You don’t have to buy specific items from stores to protect your tent floor from cot legs. You can make your own protective coverings using materials you can easily find at home. For example, you can cut out squares from old rugs, clothes, towels, and blankets and place them underneath your bed’s feet. You can even use the extra material for leveling your cot when your campsite has uneven terrain.

You can also use tennis balls as a substitute for furniture cups. All you have to do is cut a tennis ball in half. You will then have two “cups” you can put under two of your cot’s legs. The number of tennis balls you need will depend on how many legs your bed has.

Conclusion

You can use several ways to protect your tent floor from getting damaged by your cot’s legs. And some of these methods even come with other advantages, such as added insulation, comfort for walking, and enhanced ventilation. So, you might want to choose a method that provides the benefits you value the most.