Blinds up or down in van when not in use?
We have a new coachman and was told by the salesman not to close the blinds when not in use? We used to do this in our motor home and want to preserve the fabrics and furnishings from sun bleaching. What do others do if they have a new van and have they
been told this?
Comments
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SG - we were told when we bought ourcfirst van many years ago to leave the blinds up as if they're left down for any length of time it can affect the tensioning in the rollers. So that's what we've always done! We draw the curtains across to protect the
fabrics from the sun.Hope that helps!
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We always leave the sides down but have a full cover for the front. It both helps to keep the sun out but the outside of the van clean when towing and when not in use.
Never had a problem with the blinds down. But we do get alot of rain in Northants.
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I was told the same as well so I close the curtains across that protects the fabric on the seats from sun damage and stops the damage to the blinds and fly screens. SG2
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We have concertina type blinds and so have them two thirds covering and the remaining third with the fly screen. If the blinds are fully covering then the heat build up with the reflective blinds on the sunny side can damage the windows according to their
manufacturer.0 -
We generally leave the blinds open.
I've also heard the theory that leaving them down can affect the tensioning......but we do leave one blind down all the time (problem with the flyscreen that I haven't fixed yet and it suits us to do so) and it doesn't appear to be any different, tension-wise,
to all the rest of them.I'd just do whatever you feel most comfortable with.
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I leave the blinds down as do 95% of all the caravans in the storage facility I use.
done this for 6 years with no problem
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We have concertina type blinds and so have them two thirds covering and the remaining third with the fly screen. If the blinds are fully covering then the heat build up with the reflective blinds on the sunny side can damage the windows according to their manufacturer.
We also do the same + cover the seats at the front with a throw
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We alway leave the window blinds open when the van's not in use but close all the curtains. We do close the roof-light blinds, though.
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We leave the blinds up and have not had problems with the interiorrfading or bleaching. Blinds left down can affect the tensioning but you can retension them.
If the caravan is empty though leaving the blinds up can save you from thieves breaking in. If they can see it is empty they will generally leave it alone. With the blinds down they may break in on the basis you are hiding something.
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i can see the issue with roller blinds and tensioners....although we dont have any of these, and none of our MH have...we have the concertina type and always leave them closed to keep the heat and sun out of the van...we also have the same type on our large
windscreen....its described as a heat/thermal blind...i hadnt heard of the potential issue regarding window 'glass'..
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We also have concertina blinds on our motorhome but the manufacturers warn against fully closing the blinds for long periods. If it is hot and sunny the heat can build up and I guess could damage the blinds. We close them to about 75% then pull the insect
screen down to meet the blind.0 -
We also have concertina blinds on our motorhome but the manufacturers warn against fully closing the blinds for long periods. If it is hot and sunny the heat can build up and I guess could damage the blinds. We close them to about 75% then pull the insect
screen down to meet the blind.It isn't the blind but the plastic windows that can distort. My front ones were replaced on the previous 'van and I usually had the blinds closed. I think that the angle on the windows on the front make them more susceptible to heat build up.
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We also have concertina blinds on our motorhome but the manufacturers warn against fully closing the blinds for long periods. If it is hot and sunny the heat can build up and I guess could damage the blinds. We close them to about 75% then pull the insect
screen down to meet the blind.It isn't the blind but the plastic windows that can distort. My front ones were replaced on the previous 'van and I usually had the blinds closed. I think that the angle on the windows on the front make them more susceptible to heat build up.
Thanks for that clarification.
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My caravan is 12 years old. Blinds have always been left down without any of the problems listed above. Maybe it's because it's a German caravan.
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My caravan is 12 years old. Blinds have always been left down without any of the problems listed above. Maybe it's because it's a German caravan.
Mine's a German caravan and there are actually factory-fitted stickers on each window reminding one not to leave the blinds shut.
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Our windows have tiny little warning stickers in the bottom corners, indicating that heat builds up when you leave the blinds down on closed windows. With the big, front one-piece window, I believe it could cause warping.
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Our windows have tiny little warning stickers in the bottom corners, indicating that heat builds up when you leave the blinds down on closed windows. With the big, front one-piece window, I believe it could cause warping.
Same warning on our clubman
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Even without the sticker you only have to feel how hot they get even left part open as we do. At least in this configuration much of the heat can escape through the top section covered by the fly blind. I would be very concerned about potential damage if
I closed them fully.0 -
Even without the sticker you only have to feel how hot they get even left part open as we do. At least in this configuration much of the heat can escape through the top section covered by the fly blind. I would be very concerned about potential damage if
I closed them fully.very true steve, the side of our van that was in the early morning sun when in Spain, we had to make sure the window was open to let the heat out, the windows got very hot.
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We do similar, concertina blinds closed with a small gap left at the top to let heat out. Roof blind also left with a small gap.
If you have roller blinds and are worried about leaving them closed, you could make cardboard pieces to fit inside each window frame.
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In days of yore there was a second channel above the window into which a fabric blind could be fitted to cover the window. One often saw them on continental sites. Better in many ways as it stopped the heat 'before' it got into the van.
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The potential for damage may be down to the direction the front of the caravan points. Those facing South will get the most exposure and the sun at its hottest so may be the most at risk. If pointing North they get virtually no sun so should not be the same
problem.0
