Dimensions
Eagle (Large)
- Sleeps 2 adults plus 1 child
- Interior: 55″ wide by 82″ long
- Exterior: 58″ wide by 85″ long and 11.5″ high when closed (the EYE is 12″ high).
- 37″ tall on inside
- Width (left-right) between Roofnest mounting rails: 32″
- Minimum distance (front-back) between your rack’s crossbars: 33″
Sparrow and Sparrow EYE and Sparrow X
- Sleeps 2 adults
- Interior: 46″ wide by 80″ long
- Exterior: 48″ wide by 82″ long
- Sparrow is 10.5″ tall, Sparrow EYE is 12″ tall, and Sparrow X is 16″ tall (when closed)
- 36″ tall on inside
- Width (left-right) between Roofnest mounting rails: 24.5″
- Minimum distance (front-back) between your rack’s crossbars: 30″
Weights and Roof Racks
The basic Eagle (large) dry weight is 135 lbs
The basic Sparrow (small) dry weight is 115 lbs
The Sparrow X dry weight is 150 lbs
The Sparrow EYE dry weight is 120 lbs
The Eagle EYE dry weight is 140 lbs
Many customers want to know – “will this work with my vehicle?”. The simple answer is YES! Most vehicle roof racks are rated to carry over 125 lbs as a Dynamic Load. When you’re driving and the Roofnest is closed, most roof racks can easily support the load of the Roofnest whether your speeding down the highway or driving around town.
When you’re parked, the load on your roof rack is a Static Load. The forces on your roof rack are completely different than a dynamic load and a rack’s ability to support Static Loads is many times greater than Dynamic ones(some estimates are as high as 10 times as much).
There is a lengthy but complete discussion of the dynamic weight rating vs static weight rating of your car or truck’s roof rack here: Roof Loading and Roof Top Tents
These kind of roof top tents have been in use in Australia and Europe for more than a decade and campers put them on all kinds of vehicles and racks without damaging their car or the Roofnest. Just make sure that your roof rack can support the weight of the Roofnest when empty and you shouldn’t have any problems.
Materials and Construction
Fiberglass Shell
The outer shell is a reinforced structural fiberglass with an aerodynamic design that decreases road noise and improves gas mileage. The inside of the fiberglass shell is coated with a soft foam to further reduce interior noise and give the inside a soft “feel”. The lower shell has an aluminum plate glued and bolted into the base to provide stability and rigidity.
Wall Material
The wall material is a polyurethane-coated polyester and cotton blend with a waterproof rating of 3000mm (for comparison a typical waterproof rating on a backpacking tent is 1000mm). The fabric is much thicker and tougher than a typical backpacking tent – more like a heavy-duty wall tent. The material provides additional warmth and is quieter during a wind storm due to it’s weight.
Doors and Windows
All Roofnests have two mesh windows at the front and back with canvas zip closures. In the basic model (Eagle and Sparrow), there is a doorway with a mesh screen and zip closure on either side – the canvas doorway can be turned into a small shade awning with the included poles. The Sparrow X has doorways on either side with mesh and canvas and has a shade awning on one side only. The Sparrow and Eagle EYE but have a mesh window on either side with a zippered canvas closure as well and one, large doorway at the rear of the tent (the mesh windows in the EYE models can be unzipped as well in case entry from either side is a must).
Ladder
All Roofnests are shipped with a sturdy and lightweight 8′ telescoping ladder for access. The ladder collapses and comes with its own heavy duty storage bag. The ladder can be attached to the edge of the Roofnest for additional safety if desired.
Built-in Mattress
Every Roofnest comes with a built-in, custom-shaped 6cm foam mattress. What a dream to sleep on! This is not your typical camping mattress, it feels like a real bed. If you’ve had difficulty sleeping while camping those problems are going to be a distant memory after a few nights in a Roofnest.
Build Quality
Roofnests are made in China in a factory with over 20 years of experience building outdoor products. Manufacturing in China has come a long way and I’m very pleased with the workmanship and professionalism of the Roofnest factory. I’m confident in the materials and build quality of all our roof top tents and I know you’ll be happy with your purchase.
Warranty
The Roofnest Limited Warranty
When you buy a Roofnest roof top tent we want you to have an excellent experience purchasing, installing, and using your roof top tent. We provide a one year warranty to the original purchaser against manufacturer defects covering workmanship, parts, and materials which fail under normal use.
During this initial period Roofnest will correct the issue through repair or replacement at no cost. After the first year, we will repair and/or replace parts, materials, etc on a case-by-case basis for failures due to normal use. Roofnest does not cover problems due to user error, neglect, or acts of God. We will, however, work with you to get replacement parts and help with repair wherever possible.
If you ever encounter an issue with your Roofnest after the warranty period is over you can count on excellent customer support. We can get spare parts (struts, awning poles, zippers, etc), help suggest fixes, and generally work with you to keep your Roofnest in top shape for years to come!
What are our customers saying about Roofnests?
11 Reviews for Sparrow Eye
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The Sparrow Eye opens from one side only and provides a more sweeping view of the sky than the basic model. It will sleep two adults comfortably and is about 80″ long x 45″ wide on the inside. The telescoping ladder, mounting hardware, and 6 cm HDF mattress are all included.
Please check out more photos and of Sparrow Eye roof top tent below and the tabs at the left for more information about this awesome roof top tent.
Shipping is a flat $249 to anywhere in the lower 48 states or come pick one up in Denver for free! Please see our Installation, Shipping, and Pickup page for more information.
Michael Mowery –
I had an itch to Meander, so for June,July,August I sublet my place and traveled to California, Colorado and Wyoming. I spent 70+ days in my Roofnest (Sparrow). I am now back under a single roof and already miss it. Click here http://meander.me/roof-nest/ and scroll down to see photos of my meanders with my roofnest. Initially during my research, I considered getting a van, but I decided against it because of 1) Gas Mileage (I have a hybrid now) 2) Didn't want a van AFTER my travels 3) Not as nimble, my little crosstrek got me on remote 4wd roads where a van could not. The bed is amazingly comfortable. A couple times when I was in hotels, I wish I had my RoofNest bed. The biggest advantage of a roofnest over a tent is ease of use. 90 seconds and I have it popped up and ready. I did have work late on occasion and I was so happy to get to my camp place late at night. No fumbling around setting up a tent in the rain in the dark. Don't get me wrong, I love backpacking, but I save that when I am deep in the woods. It is surprisingly warm as well, several nights it was below freezing and I was snug in my nest. If I had a complaint it would be the ladder that comes with it. I was able to work around one section of the collapsable ladder that did not expand and the hooks broke off. I used a small clamp to secure it to the nest. Tim from Roofnest has been a great person to work with from my initial questions to on going support. Thanks Tim for making my Meander.me an amazing success!
Mark Willis –
My new Roofnest is awesome I slept in it 12 of the first 14 nights, even when I was at my cottage. On our trip east we were in torrential rain storms, in Illinois flash flood warnings, and everything – we slept like babies which is a bit of a shock, my wife isn't really the outdoors type but she loves it. I picked it up in Montana on Thursday with intention of heading back north to catch a flight to Toronto on the Saturday. But once I had it on there, said screw it just started driving . Nothing but my passport jeep and my roofnest. Best trip we have had. We absolutely love it! Was in Toronto by Saturday for my best friends surprise birthday party... I did so much research james baroud, autohome, Ursa Minor. And all the bag tents as well. The roofnest stood head and shoulders above the rest on bang for the buck. One thing I really liked about a hard shell is I didn't lose any mileage after install where as some of my buddies with tepui and other bag tents. Lose as much as 5 - 7 miles per gallon with that big leather block on their roof.
jon cameron –
Loving our Eagle! We've been on the road for nearly a month now with another month to go as we drive across Canada. Calling our Eagle "home" has already paid for itself compared to campsite fees or hotels. Biggest advantage about this style of RTT is setting up camp in about 2 minutes, especially after long hours on the road!
alex barnes –
I've had a Roofnest for about 2 months now and have nothing but good things to say about it. It takes literally less than a minute to set up, and once you get used to it, about 2 mins to take down solo. Usually when I'm camping I wake up at the crack of dawn because of the quality of sleep I'm getting but with this thing I could snooze all morning. It's also fairly lightproof with all the windows shut. Like sleeping in a memory foam cave. I have also not seen a substantial decrease in my MPG, which was a huge concern for me. I thought it would have an impact, but with conscientious driving habits you likely will only see a very minor difference.
Matt Berend –
We love our Roofnest. Since we made the purchase, we have taken the tent out as much as we can. It makes camping super convenient and helps us to enjoy the outdoors. It fits perfectly and easily on top of our 4Runner and we look forward to using it as much as we can going forward. It's super easy and goes up and down no problem. It's comfy to sleep in and a thousand times easier than a tent, and way more comfortable than the back of my 4Runner.
Larkin Carey –
Roofnest has totally changed the way I car camp. The top-box tent is incredibly comfortable, and easy to set up. And because it fits on the roof I can still access the tough-to-get to areas I like to camp at with my 4runner, with the amazing comfort of a bed ready to go minutes after arriving. Tim, and the Roofnest company have been incredibly helpful throughout the ordering, delivery, installation, and adventuring process. He truly cares that I have a great experience, and it's obvious he's as psyched on roofnest adventures as his customers. It's truly been a joy to use, and I look forward to an adventure and comfort filled summer!
Patrick Turner –
After owning two other RTTs that folded over, I got tired of the lengthy process of setup/takedown, especially in a cold rain. I got rid of my other tents and decided on the Roofnest due to the easy pop-up and pull down process and the price point compared to other hard shell RTTs. We used the tent for the first time in Moab this past weekend and it worked great. My wife and two kids slept comfortably and the net and hooks inside were very handy. So far, the quality seems good and I'm happy with my purchase.
Brent Roberts –
I went camping with my Roofnest at the Pawnee Grasslands east of Ft Collins Colorado. We had strong winds and rain that night. The Roofnest held up great, no rain inside the tent and it held up great to the wind. My wife and 2 dogs slept great.
Brian Young –
I have the Sparrow in White! I took it on road trip to Santa Cruz from Denver. I slept in it for 11 days. It's freaking awesome.
Tessa DuBois –
RoofNest has made such a difference in how my husband and I travel—it fit both our adventure needs and budget. Once assembled, the bed is very spacious, comfortable, and practical with its added accessories of pockets, hooks and storage bins. I'll admit I'm not a tent person when it comes to camping, so being able to pop up the comfy RoofNest in less than a minute had me hooked. Plus, the bed is very comfortable!
zack smith –
My truck needs to be a Swiss Army Knife. For my business I need a ladder rack and truck bed to shuttle equipment around. For play I throw on the Roofnest and go. This frees up the entire truck bed to be a kitchen with plenty of gear storage as well. The whole transformation takes about ten minutes and I'm gone.