6 Lowe's Finds That Will Elevate Your Next Camping Trip

Lowe's is the world's second-largest home improvement store and for good reason — you can find a number of unexpected services like solar panel installation and security system setup along with products tools and home decor. You can even rent a pickup truck to assist with any of your transportation needs. However, that's not all you can find at Lowe's.

With the weather cooling and bugs starting to die off, many people are finding themselves adventuring outside more. Camping is a popular fall-time activity that allows you to connect with nature and get cozy around a fire pit with good friends and tasty s'mores. Alongside these standard outdoor activities, there are gadgets from Lowe's that can upgrade your campsite. Based on products we deemed worthy for outdoor use and a couple of recommendations from personal use while camping along with customer reviews, here are six Lowe's finds that will elevate your next camping trip. A more in-depth explanation of our methodology can be found at the bottom of this article.

During a camping excursion, if you're out next to a water source, you don't have to use your drinking water for chores such as washing dishes. Instead, Lowe's sells the WaterPORT HydroSpray Accessory Kit for $230 which comes with everything you would need to make gathering, filtering, and using water as easy as possible. It only has two written reviews but both are positive concerning how well the pump works.

This kit comes with an eight-foot outlet hose, a five-setting spray nozzle, a filter, wrench, and an eight-foot power cord, as well as an eight-foot inlet hose with an attached filter. You can use either a 12V plug or a battery terminal for power. It does have a seven-amp draw, so make sure the power source is large enough to support this gadget.

This pump has a 406-pound water pump which can produce a max flow of 3.4 gallons per minute and a max pressure of 35 PSI. With those kinds of specs, you can even use it as an off-grid shower gadget — though, I would recommend heating up the water beforehand for a more comfortable experience.

Whether you're looking to circulate the air in your tent or cool yourself down on a warmer day, bringing a fan on a camping trip can be beneficial. At $12, the Wakeman Plastic Tent Fan is one of Lowe's more affordable options compared to fans sold by bigger tool brands such as DeWalt and Kobalt. It's also incredibly portable in terms of compatibility and size being foldable and 7.95 inches in length.

It is a simple fan with limited modes for both blade speed and lighting. The toggle on the fan's housing has a high/low option for the fan speed and an on/off toggle for the 18 LED bulb light. However, the light can adjust 360 degrees around the fan and there is a hook to hang it inside a tent or from a tree limb. Best of all, it is water resistant, so it can handle a bit of moisture — though, it is not recommended to keep it out in a rain storm.

Because weather can be a bit unpredictable, especially in the fall, there's a chance that wind or rainstorms can blow leaves and other debris around your campsite and on all your gear. That said, having a blower is a big help instead of trying to clean everything by hand. The DeWalt 20V Max Jobsite Blower has a 4.3 score from 430 reviewers and is a personal recommendation for a few reasons. 

It is small and narrow which makes the tool both portable and easy to store with other camping gear. Additionally, it is lightweight weighing only three pounds without the battery. I use a 6.0 Ah battery which does add some weight to it — however, the blower is still easy to maneuver, and I don't get tired. Furthermore, the runtime is impressive. I use my blower a lot and find I only need to charge it once every couple of months. However, keep in mind that the smaller amp hours the battery, the more frequently the battery will need charging.

This blower has a max airflow of 100 CFM (cubic feet per minute). That may not seem like a lot compared to other blowers on the market. However, for a campsite, it has proven time and time again for my personal use that it is plenty. It also has a three-speed variable speed switch and a trigger lock-on to help reduce fatigue. You can find this small blower for $159.

With the weather changes among us, having a reliable heat source while camping is important for your comfort and safety. The Mr. Heater Tough Buddy 9000 BTU Propane Heater is a widely popular choice and a personal favorite while only costing $80. It comes with a 4.5 out of five star rating from over 450 buyers, and according to Lowe's, over 1,000 people have bought this heater from the retailer in the last week (as of the writing of this article).

This heater uses propane for power. It can fit either a one-pound cylinder or a 20-pound tank with a hose and filter adaptor. Using a one-pound cylinder will get you approximately 2.4 hours of runtime on high with 9,000 BTUs and 5.4 hours on low with 4,000 BTUs. BTU stands for British Thermal Unit which is the measurement to indicate how much heat energy is needed to raise the temperature of one pound of water by one degree Fahrenheit.

What's most convenient about this heater is that it can be used both indoors and outdoors while heating up an area of 225 square feet or less, which is perfect if you're sleeping in a tent or other indoor space. However, as a safety precaution, we would advise you to use a reliable carbon monoxide detector as well. Furthermore, it also has a 30-degree tip-over detection, so it will automatically shut down if it is accidentally knocked over.

A lantern is a standard piece of camping equipment that many people enjoy using. Lowe's sells the Fleming Supply Solar Powered Lantern which has not one but four ways to keep the light powered and is retailed at $29. It takes three AAA batteries or you can use the AC adapter to plug it in. However, it also has a built-in hand crank which will give you 20 minutes of light per one minute of hand cranking. The last option is the solar panel, which has a charging time of six hours.

This lantern comes with 36 LED lights which illuminate 180 lumens — it's nowhere near as bright as a standard 60W lightbulb, but it can still give you a bit of light that won't attract attention. The company states that the bulbs will last up to 100,000 hours, so it will be a long while before a replacement is needed. Additionally, the lantern has a carrying handle to make transporting it through the campsite at night more convenient while also have a hook to easily hang it from your tent or the outside area. Even more, this light only weighs 1.55 pounds and is fairly small, so it's definitely kid-friendly.

A power station is an important component to bring out camping with you, whether to keep your phone charged or to power other camping tech to stay safe in the wilderness such as reliable long-range radios. For $259, the Bluetti 268Wh 600W Portable Power Station is one option from Lowe's that doesn't require a separate battery purchase. However, you'll want to make sure it's charged before leaving the house, or you can use one of the other convenient recharging options such as using solar panels or your car's 12V outlet.

It does come with nine outlets — two AC outlets, one 12V outlet, one Type-C outlet, two USB-A outlets, two DC ports, and a wireless charger. This power source is 600 running watts and 268 watt hours. This means that if a gadget uses 600 watts to run, it can only run for 0.45 hours, or approximately 27 minutes, until the power station is depleted. However, if you're only charging phones and powering small appliances that don't need too much power, you can get a lot of use out of this power source. We recommend just being aware of how much power your gadgets need to either charge or run to ensure you're not draining this power station too quickly.

The Lowe's products in this article were selected based on a variety of sources. First, each item has a purpose for any type of camping experience, whether you are overlanding in the backcountry or simply pitching a tent at a local state park. We also made sure to feature relatively affordable items — each item is under $260 and three of them are under $80. Even more, many of these camping gadgets can be used year-round.

After considering the items, we looked at customer reviews and ratings. Each product has at least a 4.3 out of five star rating with positive written reviews. There are a couple that, though they have five stars, the rating is only from a couple of people. However, Lowe's does have a 90-day return policy for the items listed and some even have a warranty through the manufacturer.

 Furthermore, some of these products are personal recommendations from an experienced outdoor enthusiast. That said, we do recommend you do further research to ensure these items will work best for your camping experience. For example, the portable power source featured here may not be big enough to power everything you want to bring. In the end, use your best judgment for your camping needs.