who uses them and what's good to get? i've heard some make things worse in the wind, while others have holes to avoid parachuting and are great. i'm considering ABCCANOPY from amazon
One thing they do if there isn't a breeze is absolutely stagnate the air under the canopy, creating an oven.
Oh, you want a steam room. Any pop-up will have a lifespan so... Your use and abuse will have a lot to do with its lifespan. At that rate, you may want to invest in a good pop-up and just hang cheap tarps if the weather gets wet enough. I'm not a fan of solid colored walls but clear tarps are kinda meh, also. The alternative is vinyl...$$$. Clear plastic sheets are disposable garbage and don't provide a means of fastening.
The canopy I use in front of my garage, with the sides, has been up for 2 years. The sun bleached out the front panel and I tore it. If you anchor it properly, it's pretty damn tough.
I dig mesh walls that go halfway down like those cool shirts from the 80s on hot days. Great when the sun gets low.
Best way to keep your canopy from being a sail/parachute is to tie it down properly and no, even a racebike isn't enough weight. That being said, keeping the wind from getting under the top does help a ton. Still have to have the sides secured properly as well.
someone's canopy flew into my car and dented/scratched it pretty bad. i've always 5 gallon buckets and fill them with water for each corner of the canopy. when it gets super rainy, i wanted to add some walls to keep the stuff inside dry
double up on the buckets and put a big ass nail in the ground through the canopy leg when you're on dirt, granted that is assuming it's tied to a trailer on one side too All in all 41-42 pounds of water per corner isn't much at all.
Somewhat depends on the canopy as well. The ones with vents at the top tend to have a less lift than those that do not. Yes, it is a trade off as the vents can let some rain through if the wind is blowing fairly hard, but if that is the case then the vents are probably the least of your "My stuff is getting wet" worries. I use a trailer on one side, Yamaha 3000iSeB on the windward corner and what ever else I have available on the other corner. Stakes, aka big ass nail, if I am on grass. Angle them so the wind pulls against them is better than straight up and down.
I use one of the abc 10x15 canopies and Im having decent luck. I have 3 side walls where I can enclose the the whole canopy with my trailer enclosing the 4th side. The canopy has lasted 3 seasons so far which is pretty good. it does seem to get more moisture in the inside and hold a little more water than my old King canopy. Most of the time I only use one wall to help keep shaded corner no matter where the sun is and then tie 2 sides to the trailer and use 2 5 gallon buckets with water on the other corners. If I dont get the wall tight enough on the legs the wind does puff it out sometimes, not a deal breaker tho