How to Use Vinyl Tarps

You can use tarps to cover a wide array of items.

Tarps are used for covering a larger item to protect the item from moisture and dirt. Tarps can be placed on the ground to protect items above the tarp from wet or muddy surfaces, or placed on top of items or surfaces to protect them from leaves, rain or other material. Special vinyl tarps are made for trailer beds, while some tarps are made from other materials and simply coated with vinyl.

Things You'll Need

• Hook ended bungee cords
• Tie-down stakes
• Rubber mallet

Instructions

Ground Cover

1. Use a tarp to cover the ground where you wish to place an item, such as a tent, to add extra moisture protection, or to protect air mattresses from twigs or sharp rocks that may puncture the mattress. Clean the area of debris like large stones and tree branches.

2. Lay the vinyl tarp down on the ground where you intend to place the tent or other item. Unfold the tarp and make sure it is laying flat without any large wrinkles across the surface.

3. Secure the tarp to the ground so it does not slip out of place or bunch and wrinkle in certain areas. To secure the tarp, use plastic or metal tie-down stakes attached to the rivet holes in the edges of the vinyl tarp.

Covering Other Items

1. Cover other items and objects--such as sand piles, truck beds, tents or stacks of lumber--by draping the vinyl tarp over the objects or items.

2. Use as many tarps as necessary to cover the entire item or group of items. Be careful how you overlap the tarps so you do not leave an opening that water can travel through to get into the objects.

3. 

   Most tarps will include rivetted holes along the edges for tightly securing the tarps to objects.

   Secure the tarp so it does not catch in the wind and blow off the objects or items. Use either hooked bungle cord cables or stake the tarp to the ground as described in Section 1 above.

Floor Protection

1. Lay a tarp on your carpet or other types of indoor or exterior flooring to protect the flooring while you are painting or staining interior or exterior walls. A vinyl tarp works well for this purpose because it will not slide on slick floors, so you can easily walk across the tarp.

2. Clear furniture from the room and lay a vinyl tarp onto the floor below where you are painting. Be sure to straighten the tarp to eliminate wrinkles to prevent tripping.

3. Cover the furniture you cannot move with vinyl tarps as well. The vinyl tarp is non-porous and prevents the paint from seeping through onto furniture or floors.

References

• Tarps Plus: Vinyl Tarps
• Natural Handyman: When Painting, the Wrong Tarp Can Be Worse Than No Tarp!

Resources

• Camping Tent Guide: How to Choose and Use Tent Tarps