PVC Tarpaulin or Polyethylene (PE) Tarpaulin for Tents: Differences and When to Choose Each

5 days ago

5 min read

Updated: 1 day ago

Covering a tent, jaima or a demountable industrial structure means choosing a fabric that will shape the result for years. The two materials most often compared are PVC tarpaulin, meaning polyester fabric coated with PVC, and polyethylene (PE) tarpaulin, a woven laminated polyethylene sheet. Both keep out rain, but they are built for different jobs. This guide looks at weight, strength, UV behaviour, waterproofing, fire behaviour and price logic, without giving cost figures or lead times, so the choice can be made on technical grounds.

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What each material is

PVC tent fabric is a high-tenacity polyester fabric coated on both sides with a layer of PVC. The polyester provides mechanical strength, while the PVC provides waterproofing, weldability and weather resistance. It is produced in different weights and in opaque, translucent, transparent and stretch versions, and supplied both as made-to-measure pieces and in long rolls.

PE tarpaulin is a woven fabric made from flat polyethylene tape yarns, laminated on one or both sides with a polyethylene film to close the weave. It is lightweight, cheap to produce and widely used as a general-purpose protective tarp: covering building sites, protecting goods, agricultural use or short-term cover. It is not designed as the outer skin of a permanent fabric structure or for repeated professional use.

Weight and strength

In general terms, PVC tent fabric is produced in heavier weights, typically between 650 and 850 grams per square metre, on a high-tenacity polyester base. That weight and that textile base give it tear and tensile strength designed to stay tensioned on a structure for its whole working life, withstanding wind, handling and repeated assembly and dismantling. PE tarpaulin, by contrast, is usually rated in grams per square metre on a much lighter woven-tape base, with lower resistance to localised tearing and weaker performance when kept under continuous tension over long periods.

Durability and UV resistance

PVC coating, especially with a finishing layer that includes UV protection, is formulated for continuous outdoor exposure over years without an immediate loss of flexibility or colour. That is why it is used on tent roofs that stay up season after season. PE tarpaulin, on the other hand, degrades more visibly under prolonged sun exposure: the plastic becomes more brittle, loses flexibility and tends to tear over time, so its working life as a permanently exposed cover is shorter than that of PVC tarpaulin.

Waterproofing and seam finish

Both materials are waterproof on their own, but the weak point of any tarpaulin is where the panels join. PVC tarpaulin allows panels to be joined by high-frequency or hot-air welding, a process that melts the PVC on both faces and creates a continuous seam, with no needle or thread, keeping the seam as watertight as the rest of the panel. PE tarpaulin, not being weldable in the same way, is usually joined by sewn seams reinforced with adhesive or heat-sealed tape over the stitching, a workable solution but one that leaves needle perforations as a potential water entry point if the tape lifts or ages.

Fire behaviour

PVC tent fabric can be produced in formulations that pass fire reaction tests and supplied with the corresponding certificate; in Plastold's case, the fabric carries a European T2 fire certificate (UNE-EN 15619), delivered together with the material. Each European regulatory system uses its own tests and its own classes; these are different tests from one another and are not automatically interchangeable, and it is the local authority or event organiser who decides what documentation it accepts in each case. General-purpose PE tarpaulins, given their composition and usual purpose, are not normally manufactured or marketed for use at public events that require fire-reaction certification.

Price logic: why PVC tarpaulin costs more

Without going into figures, the price logic between the two materials follows their composition and expected working life. PE tarpaulin, being a lighter fabric with a simpler manufacturing process, has a lower starting cost, which makes it suitable for one-off or short-life cover. PVC tarpaulin, with a stronger textile base, a coating that performs more functions, and a working life designed for years of repeated professional use, has a higher starting cost that, over time, translates into fewer replacements and a cover that can be repaired and put back up season after season. Anyone who assembles and dismantles the same tent many times usually finds that PVC, bought by the piece or by the roll, is the option that best pays back that repetition.

Typical uses of each material

When PE tarpaulin is usually used

Temporary covers on building sites, material stockpiles or one-off protection of goods outdoors.
Agricultural use or short-term storage, where starting cost matters more than working life.
Single-use or short-life tarps, with no certification or finish requirements.

When PVC tarpaulin is usually used

Event tents, wedding marquees and structures assembled and dismantled many times a year.
Jaimas, industrial tents and demountable fabric buildings that stay up for months or whole seasons.
Any installation where fire-reaction documentation or a translucent, transparent or stretch finish may be required.

Why professional tents, jaimas and industrial tents use PVC

A professional tent, a jaima or a demountable industrial building is assembled, folded, transported and put back up many times over its working life. That use calls for a material that withstands repeated handling, can be welded and repaired if it tears, and keeps its seams watertight through years of outdoor exposure. It is also why, when a cover reaches the end of its working life, the usual approach is to replace only the fabric and not the whole structure: a made-to-measure PVC replacement cover lets you keep using an aluminium or steel structure that is still in good condition without replacing it.

How to choose in practice

If the need is a one-off cover, for a short time and with no regulatory requirements, PE tarpaulin does the job at a low starting cost. If, instead, it is a tent, jaima or industrial tent that will be assembled and dismantled repeatedly, that will stay up for months, that may need fire-reaction documentation, or that requires a specific finish (opaque, translucent, transparent or stretch), PVC tarpaulin is the option built for that professional use. Weight and base fabric, seam type and fire behaviour should be weighed together rather than separately, because a material that looks cheap to buy may not be cheap if it needs replacing often.

Next steps

At Plastold we manufacture PVC tarpaulin for tents, jaimas, industrial tents and made-to-measure structures, in weights of 650 and 850 grams per square metre and in opaque, translucent, transparent and stretch finishes, as well as replacement covers for existing structures. If you want to check the feel, weight and finish before deciding, you can request our fabric sample book with no obligation. For any question about which weight or finish suits your project, you can get in touch with us and we will advise you on your specific case.

Real project: PVC grandstand roofs and 288 tent side walls, made in Málaga for a major motorsport event in Madrid. See the project