What size of marquee do I need?
DIY Marquees are so passionate about the Marquees they sell and the additional services they offer. With so with the many years’ experience in event planning they offer some professional sound advice on all aspects of purchasing a marquee and starting your own marquee company.
When wanting to start my own marquee hire business they were by far the most experienced company we dealt with and after we decided to go with their large product range and brilliant after sales service I am pleased to say we now have a successful marquee hire business. If it wasn’t for their assistance from start to finish we would not have exceeded.
Many people assume it’s easy to start a marquee company with the misconception it’s a simple to go and choose the marquees they want to use for hiring out. It’s not as simple as that. There are hundreds of different options and things to think about for example: weather, durability, marquee designs, what size marquee do I need? Etc. etc.
DIY Marquees have a fantastic blog whereby they share ideas and marquee planning advice.
I found this informative article on Marquee Heating, these are all things to think about and DIY Marquee will make sure they are covered.
During Spring and summer months heating is generally only required to take the chill off later in the evening. During autumn and especially winter you should heat the marquee for a reasonable time before guests arrive to ensure a successful event.
Do:
Use a heater with a powerful fan
Test the heating several days before the event (at the same time of day) to make sure it works and is sufficient for the space
In the winter have the heating on for at least an hour before people arrive. On arrival guests should walk in to a wall of warmth, if they walk in to a cold marquee they will not warm up for the whole function
If possible use several smaller heaters rather than one large one to create a consistent temperature in your marquee
Aim one heater towards the entrance, think of a high street shop - they have a heater above the door to ensure the temperature inside stays at a constant level
Don't:
Use a halogen heater, cabinet heater or any other kind of infra-red heater without a fan. They are not powerful enough for larger marquees
Have anything close to or touching a heater (sounds obvious but still worth mentioning)
DIY Marquees not only sell marquees they also provide lighting, heating and flooring options.
How to calculate what size marquee you need
What size of marquee do I need?
When looking to buy a marquee the first thing to do is decide what size(s) of marquee you need, only then can you decide which range of marquee is most suitable for you.
There are several ways of calculating this:
Measure your garden. If space is limited your guest list may be restricted by the maximum size of marquee able to fit in the space.
If your garden is an awkward size then consider using more than one marquee connected together to cover the space. Multiple marquees can take a little more thought in planning a successful party but please contact us, we're marquee specialists and are here to help.
If you need help in picturing the layout of a marquee then check out our interactive marquee planner and experiment with different layouts.
The following size guide shows the capacity (seated or standing) or each size of marquee. Size guides can vary greatly, this is due to the variety of ways a marquee can be used. For example a 6x12m marquee can seat 70-80 people at round tables but if you allow for buffet tables and/or a dance floor then the capacity is reduced.
If you would like to use or quote any part of this article please contact us for permission or licencing.
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Excellent value for money for premium quality marquees
This is in addition to marquee wedding articles written by us for confetti.co.uk
Furniture:
- Unlike marquees furniture is usually too expensive to buy so hiring is the usual solution
- Use 5ft 6inch round tables to seat 10 people not 5ft ones (which can be cramped with 10 guests)
- Use a mixture of smaller tables to create an informal atmosphere (see this article on seating)
- Use a long top table for a traditional feel. It would normally be positioned against one side of the marquee.
- Use a round top table for a more social and informal atmosphere. It would normally be positioned in the middle of the marquees with other guests all around.
- Use an oval top table for a more sociable option to a long top table. It would normally be positioned against one side of the marquee with seating on three sides leaving the front clear for guests to see the happy couple.
- Remember an easel for table plans (or two for larger functions)
- Allow somewhere for ladies to put their hats, either a table or clips around the side of the marquee
- Allow somewhere to put wedding presents (a table in the marquee or in the house)
Dance Floors:
- Like furniture dance floors can be prohibitively expensive to purchase to hiring or making yourself (18mm plywood screwed to battens and stained) are the most common solutions
- Alternatively if your marquee is to cover part of a patio or decking area that can be used as a dance floor
- Do you want dancing to be the centre of attention after the meal (in which case have it in the middle of the marquee) or do you want to have an area for people to sit away from the dancing? (in which case have the dance floor at one end)
- If the dance floor is in the middle it is often sensible to position the top table on the dance floor and then clear after using (top tables are rarely used after the meal as everyone is circulating)
- A dance floor (without top table on) makes an ideal emergency greeting area in poor weather
Other:
- Set the marquee up several days in advance and test the lighting and heating (if applicable) at the time of your function just to make sure both are sufficient.
- People (mainly blokes) will always congregate around the bar. For this reason always position it near the evenings entertainment to avoid having two parties. Always aim to keep everyone in one place to maintain the atmosphere so avoid putting the bar in the house or a separate marquee
- Always have lighting on a dimmer, this gives you the flexibility to supply lighting to eat by and mood lighting to dance by
- In October to April you will need to heat the marquee (see this article on heating your marquee)- have the heating on for an hour before people arrive to ensure they walk in to a wall of warmth
- In May to September you might need a heater just to take the chill off in the seating area later in the evening
- Think of how your guests will arrive - a simple path of carpet with flower pots makes an attractive and inviting entrance to the marquee
- Think of how your guests will leave - it's likely to be dark so some form of lighting will be needed to guide people back to their cars
- You would normally allow one toilet per 40-50 guests. If you don't have enough available then consider hiring in a luxury toilet unit
- Give neighbours plenty of notice especially if you plan on partying until the early hours
- Notify the police, it may sound extreme but it allows them to give informed responses (such as finishing time) to any complaint rather than come knocking on your doors.
We are always happy to offer more customised advice especially Tips for evening party marquees events, please contact us giving a few details of the event you are planning (type of event, space available, number of guests and diagrams/photographs of the site if possible) and we will be more than happy to advise on your options.
If you would like to use or quote any part of this article please contact us for permission or licencing.
How often do marquees need cleaning?
DIY MARQUEE feel so confident with the quality of their products they have written several interesting articles on how to care your pop-up marquee.
Have a look at this helpful article recently written
How often do marquees need cleaning?
It depends on the frequency a marquee is used, the environment it is erected in, the material in question and the weather conditions but in general marquee hire companies will lightly clean a marquee nearly every time it goes up but do a thorough ingrained clean maybe twice a year.
By lightly clean I mean wipe down any marks or mud that may have splattered on to the sides, this can be done when the marquee is erected on site. By ingrained clean I mean using a power washer, a floor scrubber or brush and strong marquee cleaner product or getting a professional marquee cleaning company in. Ingrained cleaning removes the grey film that builds up on marquees over time.
There are three categories of dirt on a Classic DIY Marquee:
- mud splatters or other marks on the covers. These can be removed by light cleaning
- grey film that builds up over time, to be removed by an ingrain clean
- dirt and residue from trees. If it rains when your marquee is under a tree a lot of dirt gets washed off leaves on to your marquee, there may even be some sap on there too. The dirtiest marquee I ever saw was one erected under a tree. These need ingrain cleaning immediately as they won’t be good enough to hire out and leaving sap on PVC would not be good.
Different marquee materials, different cleaning methods:
- Canvas cannot be cleaned without removing it’s FR coating
- PVC can be cleaned as above; good quality PVC (like ours) will have a laminate coating to make it easier to clean.
- Clear PVC (window panels) must be cleaned very carefully so the clear material isn’t scratched.
- Poly/PVC you have to be careful as the PVC coating is a single layer than can be scratched off with aggressive cleaning.
- PE material can be cleaned similar to PVC though doesn’t have a laminate coating so will not come back as new.
The most important point of all – never put your marquee away when wet. A wet stored marquee will create mildew (PVC & PE) or may rot (canvas & the stitching in any stitched marquee).
Speak to DIY Marquee for further information on their stunning range of pop up party tents for sale
DIY Marquees have an amazing range of marquees for sale
Spencer King from DIY Marquees offers excellent advice for those wanting to set up their own marquee company; be it buying a pop-up marquee or one of the hundreds of different marquee available. DIY Marquees not only offer Marquees they also sell many accessories such as lighting, heating and flooring.
Nearly all professional marquee hire's use diesel or gas powered heaters. When using one of these to heat a marquee personally I would always put a carbon monoxide tester in the marquee too. They’re cheap, easy to fit and give peace of mind to both you and the customer. Not only that it makes you look (even more) thorough and professional. All fumes from a diesel heater should be kept outside from the chimney but what if the wind blows it straight back towards the marquee?
L B Whites have a very useful heating app that’s worth looking at and illustrates why electric heaters are just not man enough for any serious size marquee.
Inputting a 6x12m commercial (3m apex height) marquee with a rise of 30 degrees C (they do metric, I can’t!) gives a requirement for approx 100,000BTU’s or 30KW of heating. Had we designed our marquees to have a higher apex not only would they be less wind resistant they would also require far more heating – the requirement goes up to 40KW.
The maximum an electric heater can supply is 3KW of heat. If you wanted to heat one of these marquees using electric heaters you would need a whopping 10-13 of them and a very large generator to power them all!
Stick to diesel (indirect) or gas (lbwhite) and fit a carbon monoxide detector.
Click here for more in DIY Marquees range of pop up party tents for sale
DIY Marquees Raising Marquees to new heights
Pop up Marquee are most suitable for those who want a strong shelter that's quick and easy to erect. Ideal for market stalls or anywhere that needs a temporary shelter quick to put up and take down. A pop up marquee will never be as strong as if you buy party tent or marquee.
POP UP MARQUEE IS EASY TO ERECT
DIY Marquees pop up marquees are as strong as the folding design will allow but when you buy party tents or marquees you are buying a stronger rigid frame and covers who's main function is to be durable and watertight rather than flexible and shower proof.
Marquee lighting, linings and flooring are all available to purchase separately either at the time of buying your marquee or in the future. If you have bought a DIY Marquee then you can always buy marquee lighting, flooring or linings for it in the future. Indeed spare parts are available for the complete range of DIY Marquees.
DIY Marquees have a large range of commercial marquee for sale, they will give you the best advice in terms of your requirements and what they have on offer. They can advise on lighting, flooring and planning. Their team have many years in the marquee industry and will give you the best advise around.
Contact Spencer the owner of DIY Marquees and he will direct you to the right staff to speak to.
Dreaming of a white Christmas?
Spencer King owner of DIY Marquees share some interesting ideas, news and advice on his blog, he has been passionate about Marquees for many years and with all the experience he has had with starting his own business he is very happy sharing his knowledge and expertise especially with passionate individuals wanting to start their own business.
Whether its marquee lighting or whether you need advice on buy party tent Spencer is you man.
Spencer has thanked everyone for visiting their stand at this year’s Showmans Show.
Showmans Show 2015 – review
“Thank you to everyone who came and visited our stand at The Showmans Show 2015. I grew up on stands at various outdoor shows and as I’ve said previously The Showmans Show is so much better organised and so much more exhibitor-friendly than any other show we have exhibited at it is a joy to be a part of.
The atmosphere among the marquee hire trade in general is so much more positive and upbeat than just a few years ago.
Our newly designed demi-marquees seemed to go down very well, they are based on a concept we developed years ago but it’s nice to at last produce a more polished model. The deluxe version will be available early 2016 with a commercial model to follow.
The best part of the show is meeting people. Whether it’s meeting new start-ups with the energy they bring or existing customers that we have dealt with for years. There are also a number of past customers who pop in having moved on to the bigger machinery-erected structures that intimidate and impress me in equal measure!
Thanks for visiting us, I hope to see you at next year’s show.
Spencer “
Read this excellent blog on Selling used marquees by a man called Ben Dawson who has written a really interesting blog post on Linkedin: Selling used equipment – marquees especially
‘For those who don’t know Ben he’s the man who set up curlew.co.uk which is simply the place to sell second hand marquees or associated equipment. He’s a very, very knowledgeable person on marquees and I can only agree with all the points he makes’.
How much is a second hand marquee worth?
I'm often asked how much a marquee is worth.
The simple answer is as much as someone is willing to pay for it.
There are many factors that you should consider; here are a few...
Who made the marquee
There are a few factors that I've got to take into account.
1) Unknown manufacturer (The customer has no way of knowing the quality of the marquee frame or covers)
2) They will not be compatible with existing stock (Roder, Tectonics and Custom Covers).
3) I don't know how much they cost new so may assume they are cheaper that they really are.
Imagine you were buying a car, which would you buy... a BMW, or a car made by Guangzhou Automobile group (China). There is no question. They may or may not be of equal quality, however, I know which one I would buy.
Again using the analogy of used cars a second-hand 10 year old Ford keeps more of its value than a BMW. Possibly because there are more cheap spare parts for a Ford or more people want a cheap run-around than a big old gas guzzling luxury car.
Still, considering buying cars, people will pay much more for a car from a main dealer than a back street garage. And again less if the car is sold privately.
Profile Size
The same width of marquee can be made with different sizes of profile.
It makes sense to have one profile for different number of widths of marquee. This means that for example you can have a 12m marquee on a small profile that is one third of the weight of the heavy profile.
Generally heavy profiles are more expensive to buy new and you receive less money when you sell them second hand.
This is because the heavy profile requires more material to make however is less attractive to a smaller marquee company who generally prefer marquees that are easier and quicker to put up. As well as much easer to transport.
Condition is King!
As an item gets older apparent age is more important that it's actual age, for example if something is 10 years old and looks new then it will be worth more than a new marquee that looks 10 years old!
This also applies to how you present your marquee for sale. If the photos look like they are from a wedding magazine your marquee is worth much more than if you can't be bothered to stack the marquee neatly and it looks like you are looking at scrap parts.
Timing
The price should be based on the price you can buy the equipment NOW not the price you bought it for.
So if prices rise or fall with inflation or exchange rates so do second hand prices.
There is more demand leading up to the summer season than just before Christmas!
However it's just after Christmas when I get the most people looking at the website. However many of them take time to get into the buying mood. I have always said customers have to smell the chocolate of Easter eggs before they buy marquees. However Marquees do sell all year round. And if your marquee is not on the site customers can't buy it.
Service
In my experience the marquees that sell quickly are the ones where the vendor offers just a little bit more....
For example
- Help with delivery
- It will be cleaned before we sell it to you
- Advice on using the marquee
- Training in the correct erection of the marquee
- Complete installation
- Ongoing support running the business
- Offer to take back the marquee if they are not happy with it
The last item on this list may seem extreme. However customers are averse to taking risks, often you will not be able to see the condition of the marquee until you have bought it.
When I was selling marquees I used to give this following offer. "If you don't like the marquee when you put it up for the first time, just give it back in the same condition that you bought it in and I will give you a full refund, less the price of a hire" In 15 years of selling marquees I never had one come back (however all my marques were in as described condition)
Depreciation
I have made the following table.
This assumes you lose 25% of a marquees value as soon as you have bought it. Then 10% per year....
Some sizes of marquees hold their value better than others i.e. 9M wide marquees hold their value better than 3m x 3m marquees.
The age something looks is more important than it's actual age. (if your kit is 2 years old but looks 10 it's only worth 26% of it's original value!)
Conversely - If your marquee is 15 years old, and you have looked after it and it still in a 4 year old condition, then it's still worth 50% of what you bought it for!
| Depreciation table - | -25.00% | Then | -10% per year | ||||||||
| Price | 100 | £1,000 | £2,000 | £3,000 | £4,000 | £5,000 | £6,000 | £7,000 | £8,000 | £9,000 | £10,000 |
| Years | |||||||||||
| 0 | 75 | £750 | £1,500 | £2,250 | £3,000 | £3,750 | £4,500 | £5,250 | £6,000 | £6,750 | £7,500 |
| 1 | 68 | £675 | £1,350 | £2,025 | £2,700 | £3,375 | £4,050 | £4,725 | £5,400 | £6,075 | £6,750 |
| 2 | 61 | £608 | £1,215 | £1,823 | £2,430 | £3,038 | £3,645 | £4,253 | £4,860 | £5,468 | £6,075 |
| 3 | 55 | £547 | £1,094 | £1,640 | £2,187 | £2,734 | £3,281 | £3,827 | £4,374 | £4,921 | £5,468 |
| 4 | 49 | £492 | £984 | £1,476 | £1,968 | £2,460 | £2,952 | £3,445 | £3,937 | £4,429 | £4,921 |
| 5 | 44 | £443 | £886 | £1,329 | £1,771 | £2,214 | £2,657 | £3,100 | £3,543 | £3,986 | £4,429 |
| 6 | 40 | £399 | £797 | £1,196 | £1,594 | £1,993 | £2,391 | £2,790 | £3,189 | £3,587 | £3,986 |
| 7 | 36 | £359 | £717 | £1,076 | £1,435 | £1,794 | £2,152 | £2,511 | £2,870 | £3,229 | £3,587 |
| 8 | 32 | £323 | £646 | £969 | £1,291 | £1,614 | £1,937 | £2,260 | £2,583 | £2,906 | £3,229 |
| 9 | 29 | £291 | £581 | £872 | £1,162 | £1,453 | £1,743 | £2,034 | £2,325 | £2,615 | £2,906 |
| 10 | 26 | £262 | £523 | £785 | £1,046 | £1,308 | £1,569 | £1,831 | £2,092 | £2,354 | £2,615 |
Spencer and his team would like to wish all their customers a very happy holiday this festive season and looking forward to doing business with you in 2016!
Contact Spencer by clicking here Pop up Marquees
Having a party?
THE SHOWMAN'S SHOW 2015
DIY Marquees specialise in marquee Lighting and buy party tent and just had notification that we will be on stand 262 Avenue Eat this year’s Showmans Show. Come out of the entrance marquee, turn right and then first left – we’re halfway up on the right as usual and opposite the excellent Arcotherm (well worth a visit for marquee heaters). Please do pop in and say hello, we’ll be launching our new range of demi-marquees as well as exhibiting our always popular walkways and other marquees including Pop up Marquees.
The marquee hire business I built up got to a sufficient size that I could not be on site for every job. We would be running several teams of erectors with me and another site foreman running between each site. I turned up one afternoon to find a team nearly finished. The marquees were up, the flooring and linings were fitted and they were just setting up the furniture.
The quality of finish was excellent. They proudly stated the only thing left was the walkway to the house “and they’re easy”. Walkways are easy to erect, indeed our current model of walkway is the easiest one we’ve ever designed. They are not easy to erect if you don’t leave enough space for it – as this team had done!
The lesson to learn from this is when connecting marquees to houses always always start building from the house outwards. Build the walkway (or one of our demi-marquees, details coming soon) first and then butt the main marquee(s) up to it. That way you know you’ve allowed enough space or know you’ve got to do some adapting to make fit before you get too far in to the build. As for the job in question it was solved using a hacksaw and PVC welding to still give an excellent job but it turned an early-finish day in to a late night one for everyone.
Moving marquees to greater heights
DIY Marquees offer the largest range of heavy duty party tents and marquees to buy from stock in the UK. 24 different sizes in various different ranges means there is the ideal marquee for you - whether you are looking for some temporary party tents to put up at home or a heavy duty marquee for commercial hiring.
When looking for heavy duty party tents or marquees to buy it is important to look at many factors. Many suppliers will list the thickness of covers used as a sign of quality when in fact quality of build is far more important and even the weight of material is misleading as there are a wide range of qualities within the same weight category of PVC and PE covers used in party tents and marquees to buy.
Have a careful look at the features of the structures in question and this will also give an indication to the build quality - a marquee that includes additional bracing (eave braces, gable uprights etc) will not cut corners elsewhere in the build quality. A marquee or heavy duty party tent that has cut corners by having the Georgian window printed on rather than the more time-consuming rounded cut may well have cut corners elsewhere that will only come to light when the marquees or party tents are in use.