Bug nets for hexamid solo plus etc....

[left52side]

Ok so here is something I am considering and trying to find the best option for cost per weight etc...
I have A hexamid solo plus tarp that I plan on using this winter for my florida trail thru hike as well as my 2017 NOBO AT thru hike.
I feel I will need bug protection in florida most of the time especially in the south florida areas.
I have A sea to summit nano bug net already and weighs about 3 ounces but doesnt fit well in the hexamid .(it fits ok just not A great fit).
I have played with some different mods with it and think I got it about the best I can to fit. But really dont think I will like trying to set it up after A long day on the trail and do not feel that I will need it all that much on my AT thru hike until summer hits,thus it will be just sitting in my pack.
Another option I was considering was A borah bug bivy at 6 ounces(Ouch) but would be more versatile.
The problem is and one reason I like tarps and quilts etc is the confinement I do not think I would like so much in the bivy .
Another option I was considering was MYOG A bug bivy sized pretty large using sheer curtains from chain store thus making it bigger to possibly avoid feeling constricted ... (although I think Ii would still feel constricted in it.
My final option I have tried to think up would be A bug suit or jacket and head net...
I found some on fleabay inexpensive and am considering it,if anything just the headnet seeing how most of my body will be covered etc.
I am looking for others insights or experience with bug protection they have used with there tarps or shelter camping etc ....
Thanks in advance.

[Wil]

I have A hexamid solo plus tarp that I plan on using this winter for my florida trail thru hike as well as my 2017 NOBO AT thru hike ... I feel I will need bug protection

I used the tarp with the matching bugnet for many years because of the flexibility. Probably 75% of the time I like to have the bug protection and probably less than 10% do I actually deploy the tarp. I thought this was the best setup, finally, after maybe 20 different setups over several decades.

Obviously you decided the zpacks bugnet was not for you?

[Sandy of PA]

Z-packs stopped selling the bug net for the solo+. They are shifting over to the new line of Plex tents, the twin is now discontinued also.

[swisscross]

MDL bug bivy?

[MuddyWaters]

I have the S2S bug net too.
Ive never used it on the trail.

I prefer a bug bivy under tarp to the S2S. By large margin


The asymetrical shape and stretchiness just has it draping everywhere. too much fiddling to use imo.

But it does match up to the zpacks solo groundsheet OK.

Under a higher longer tarp it probably works better, allow you to pull it tight.I was swimming in stretchy netting.

[Dogwood]

Since you already have the C2C Nano Bug Net making it work would likely be the most cost effective choice. Watch Shonyru's vid on how he adapted this net to his ZP SoloPlus. I did the same when I had my SoloPlus and currently employ it in the MLD Solo Mid XL. It works by way of adding a CF stick on mitten or loop hook purchased from ZP and some other commonly available accessories - micro bungee, mini cord locks, etc. I've been successfully using this system for heavy biting flying bug pressure employing the C2C Nano Net or similar Tulle fabric DIY offset pyramid netting on A frame cat tarp configurations for over ten yrs. It works. It's simple;not complex. It's cost effective. It's UL. It's adaptable. It's a component based shelter system. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y73uyGOyO5k

[left52side]

Obviously you decided the zpacks bugnet was not for you?

Unfortunately zpacks stopped making the hexnet...

Since you already have the C2C Nano Bug Net making it work would likely be the most cost effective choice. Watch Shonyru's vid on how he adapted this net to his ZP SoloPlus. I did the same when I had my SoloPlus and currently employ it in the MLD Solo Mid XL. It works by way of adding a CF stick on mitten or loop hook purchased from ZP and some other commonly available accessories - micro bungee, mini cord locks, etc. I've been successfully using this system for heavy biting flying bug pressure employing the C2C Nano Net or similar Tulle fabric DIY offset pyramid netting on A frame cat tarp configurations for over ten yrs. It works. It's simple;not complex. It's cost effective. It's UL. It's adaptable. It's a component based shelter system. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y73uyGOyO5k

Thanks dogwood.
I have watched shonryu video on youtube and where I got the idea from.
I ordered A cf mitten hook to attach if need be .
The set up is ok and I have tried what shonryu has done but am still getting quite A bit of sag,but looking closy at his video he has some sag in his as well.

[MuddyWaters]

Unfortunately zpacks stopped making the hexnet...
.

Dont know how things are currently at zpacks, i know they have cut back on custom work.

But I know one person they made a hexnet for, long after it was discontinued from site. Ask joe before disregarding possibility.

SMD Serenity will work under hexamids too. Todays is a bit heavy at 10 oz, but its a good net tent. With 30d floor I bring no other groundsheet with mine so that saves a couple oz. I use this occassionally in AT shelters by myself to create mouse -free zone. Its fun to knock mice off it and send them flying across shelter.

And john at bearpaw has made many net tents for them as well.

Im pretty sure you can just have joe add perimeter net to your tarp too, which is only a couple oz.

[left52side]

SMD Serenity will work under hexamids too.

And john at bearpaw has made many net tents for them as well.

I had thought of these but do not want to go with them for the weight penalty of something that will likely sit in my pack most of the time.
I had spoke with Joe and Matt and they can no longer make the hexanet and do no more custom work,
I even ask about the permiter netting .
I will continue to play with this nano net and if I cannot get it to my liking the Ii will start looking at bug bivys or just A head net for bugs or jacket etc...

[Dogwood]

I have the S2S bug net too.
Ive never used it on the trail.

I prefer a bug bivy under tarp to the S2S. By large margin


The asymetrical shape and stretchiness just has it draping everywhere. too much fiddling to use imo.

But it does match up to the zpacks solo groundsheet OK.

The stretchiness and draping can be addressed by making the groundsheet, like polycro, not minimalist sized stupid light with the netting held down and stretched out more on the edges with gear wanted/stored on the polycro groundsheet rather than outside the net off the ground sheet. The height of the interior/under the tarp plays into how the the C2C Nano Net drapes but having a short length of micro bungee adjustment with a mini cord lock at the apex of the C2C nano net as Shonyru's vid depicts also aids in adjusting the apex height/net tautness. Personally, maybe because I'm more accustomed to using the C2C Nano Net than higher priced bug bivies, I find the Nano Net to be just as if not a faster setup, than the bug bivies I've used.

Google bug bivies and you'll get so many different ideas including some worthy DIY cost effective designs.

[MuddyWaters]

The stretchiness and draping can be addressed by making the groundsheet, like polycro, not minimalist sized stupid light with the netting held down and stretched out more on the edges with gear wanted/stored on the polycro groundsheet rather than outside the net off the ground sheet. The height of the interior/under the tarp plays into how the the C2C Nano Net drapes but having a short length of micro bungee adjustment with a mini cord lock at the apex of the C2C nano net as Shonyru's vid depicts also aids in adjusting the apex height/net tautness. Personally, maybe because I'm more accustomed to using the C2C Nano Net than higher priced bug bivies, I find the Nano Net to be just as if not a faster setup, than the bug bivies I've used.

Google bug bivies and you'll get so many different ideas including some worthy DIY cost effective designs.

Im sure it works better under taller tarps.
My hex has attached netting
I tried it under deschutes that is several inches lower

Its a total fail under a deschutes imo, your swimming in net.

[Dogwood]

Not speaking from totally having thru-hiked the FT but as a 14 yr resident who did hike some of the FT I would guess most wanting protection from insects could appreciate protection from the ground dwelling ones as well - fire ants, centipedes, cockroaches, venomous spiders, chiggers, ground wasps, ticks, etc - so perhaps consider a bug bivy with incorporated bathtub floor?

[Dogwood]

Im sure it works better under taller tarps.
My hex has attached netting
I tried it under deschutes that is several inches lower

Its a total fail under a deschutes imo, your swimming in net.

Again, what height was the SMD Deschutes tarp erected when you say it was a total fail? Was the net stretched slightly as Shonyru's vid depicts? Where was the apex of the net hung from and how far down from this attachment point was the net's apex? I ask because perhaps it wasn't as much the SMD Deschutes or C2C Nano Net that failed but the failure of the user employing this combination to make it work.

Details are important.

[Wil]

I had spoke with Joe and Matt and they can no longer make the hexanet and do no more custom work

There is a 3FUL net that is pretty much exactly the size of the hexanet. But sinylon, so a few ounces heavier. About 11-12 oz. I bought on at about $40; this one looks to be the same one and about $15 cheaper:

https://m.aliexpress.com/item/32473563124.html#autostay

I cowboyed most of the time when I was younger but I got sick of the bites. With the hexanet, and when it wore out the 3FUL, I still feel like I'm "outdoors" at night but sleep better.