Gary
Hiring a marquee might seem like a daunting task but it really isn’t as complicated as it may at first appear. There are certainly plenty of factors to consider and lots of options to choose from – what type of marquee should you have? Where should you put it? How big should the marquee be? Dance floors, bars, lighting, heating….
Welcome to the first in our series of blogs entitled ‘The ultimate guide to hiring a marquee’. Designed help understand and navigate the choices and considerations involved in hiring a marquee for your event (How do I hire a marquee?).
First things first…
The first thing you’ll probably want to consider is the style of marquee that best suits you, your event and the space you have available. There are lots of different types of marquee out there. There are times of year at which certain types are more suitable than others and some marquees lend themselves best to specific types of events.
We’ll kick off the series by taking a look at Frame tents – one of the most commonly hired marquee types.
Also known as clearspan marquees. Frame tents are the most commonly seen variety of marquee. ‘clearspan’ refers to the uninterrupted space within the marquee and means that there are no supporting poles within the internal space, such as you would find with traditional pole tents or stretch tent marquees.
What sizes do Frame Tents come in?
Frame tents come in 3 or 5 metre sections
Frame tents are modular structures, making them very versatile. As standard they come in widths of six, nine or twelve metres. Their length is then created by using a series of three metre sections, known as ‘bays’. In theory there is no limit to the number of bays that you can add to a marquee – just space and stock availability.
Standard leg height is 2.4m though they can be extended up to three metres in height if required.
If you need something larger then frame tents can be constructed in widths of fifteen or twenty metres, followed by a series of five metre bays to create the length. Marquees using five metre bays always have a leg height of three metres.
Why choose a frame tent ?
Raised Wooden flooring
Frame tents are very versatile. The ‘clearspan’ within means that there are no obstructions to your guests lines of sight during speeches at events such as weddings. They also leave plenty of space for tables, chairs, bars and dance-floors.
Frame tents do not require guy ropes to hold them in place. They can therefore be installed in a space that almost exactly matches the footprint of the marquee itself, a real bonus when space is limited.
Because frame tents do not require guy ropes or internal support poles they can be installed on hard surfaces such as car parks, tennis courts and such like.
Marquee with Chinese Hats
Frame tents are usable all year around. Lifestyle marquees’s frame tents are rated for use in winds of up to 80mph.
Frame tents can be built onto a raised wooden flooring system, known as ‘Ringbeam’ (Sometimes referred to as cassette flooring). Ringbeam can create a perfectly level floor and is ideal for sloping or very uneven ground, it can also be used on very wet or flood prone ground. Wooden flooring is usually covered with carpet though a variety of other floor coverings are also available.
Frame tents can be combined with ‘Chinese hat‘ pagoda marquees to create an attractive frontage, a stylish entrance, reception or ‘Chill Out’ areas.
Key points
- Versatile
- Can be used all year around
- Require less ‘footprint’ space than other marquee types
- Can be used on hard surfaces
- No internal obstructions
- Works with raised wooden flooring systems (Ringbeam)
- Leg/wall heights can be varied
- Require internal lining to hide metal framework
- Combines easily with other marquee structures
- Solid plastic sides can be added to frame tent marquees
- Glass windows and doors can be added to frame tent marquees
- Suitable for creating house extension marquees
Did you enjoy our guide to Frame tents?
Why not read the rest of the series here:
- Part two: Pole tents
- Part Three: Pagoda & Stretch Tent Marquees
- Part Four: Choosing your marquee site
- Part Five: Extra space – Reception & Chill out areas
- Part six: Marquee Floristry
- Part Seven: Marquee Furniture
