Protection for underslung spare wheel
New van has spare wheel suspended under the van
Cannot decide if it is better to leave it exposed, thereby getting wet and dirty but drying out quickly, or getting a waterproof bag to enclose it
As it is inspected very rarely there is a risk that a "waterproof bag" may be subject to condensation thereby causing unseen deterioration
Opinions and recommendations please
Comments
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Every time, (very rarely), I take my spare wheel from the Alko carrier under the van I'm surprised how clean the wheel has kept therefore I would suggest that yours should stay the same without a cover.
Modern caravans usually have mud flaps and these obviously help keep muck from getting to the underside of the caravan.
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Hi MeatHome, I would first suggest a dry run at home in getting the wheel out and off the underslung carrier, when I tried mine it was such a messing about I never put it back and carry it in the boot, because in an emergency you need it swopping quickly.
So mine stays dry and clean etc0 -
The underslung spare on my 'van is removed once a year at its service and it remains fairly clean. As far as getting the whell out if I have a puncture, I will leave that to the Mayday operator.
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I keep mine under the fixed bed in a nylon bag I liberated from our local tip. Saves the weight of the Alko carrier as well.
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It keeps reasonably clean in the carrier but as has been mentioned it will be a struggle to remove and even more difficult to put back. Still, in 30 years of caravanning and about 60,000 miles I never had a puncture so despite the accessibility issue I would
leave it out of the way and underslung.0 -
Since I bought the caravan, I had been pondering whether to stow the spare wheel elsewhere. Whilst the servicing man was servicing the caravan in the winter, I made a decision, and as he was working in the area of the spare wheel I asked him to remove it
from the carrier. The air was blue as he struggled to remove it! One of my (rare) good decisions! It is now in a bag kept over the axle inside the caravan whilst we are in transit.0 -
Alko wheel carriers are the work of the devil. We stopped using ours and carried the spare wheel in the car with the last two caravans we had.
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If you have a fixed bed I would follow cyberyacht. It will be readily available and clean if needed. Never thought of putting the spare in a bag but doubt it is worth the effort.
When it comes to removing a wheel that is punctured and covered in road grime a bag could be handy! In our Yaris the road wheel would not fit easily in place of the skinny spare and so we have a very large, very strong plastic bag on top of the spare for
such a pupose0 -
Agree with Hitchglitch - in 35 years of towing a van I've never had a puncture and the tyre comes out once a year - if indeed they bother at service time! Wouldn't bother covering it and if we do puncture its definately going to be someone elses mucky hands!
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I've often wondered why Alko have not made the cradle to be accessed from the back of the caravan. It would mean that the nose of the caravan could be tipped down and provide very easy access regarless of which side of the road one was driving on.
The general design could be similar, just a bit longer with an added retaining cross-member to hold the free end. Now there's a business opportunity! I'll take a modest commission if someone does it ! You've seen the idea here first.
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Paul56, likewise 35 plus years of caravaning without a puncture until this year in Germany on stretch of the auto bahn teeming with rain at first then stood still in traffic jam, A Chap behind knocked on my window to inform me I had a big bleb in the caravan
tyre. It was obviously too dangerous to travel far and needed changing. We crawled in traffic jam a few miles to a rest area and changed the tyre, fortunately I had decided before we went away to put the spare in the boot. Traffic moving, all changed we made
our site before closing. Had we to wait for breakdown or whoever to come to our aid it would have been very late, The campsite next day took us to a nearby tyre company who replaced the tyre. So as we thought, it was better to be prepared for the unexpected.
Taking the tyre off the carrier on my drive at home was a complete bxxxs ache and I would have hated to do it in Situ.0 -
Unlike a lot of other 'vanners - I have had TWO tyre destructive blowouts in the last four years - the last time Mayday had to move the 'van quite a way from the kerb of hard shoulder to remove the Alko Underslung carrier - putting himself in more danger
than would do normally .That's when I took the decision to remove the carrier - flog it on Ebay - and now carry spare in nice wheel cover and travels over the axle inside the van - on site just roll it it out down the step and stow under van till going home -
Haven't had a puncture since !!!
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It lies flat on the floor and awning sits on top of it- ain't moved yet !!
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Agree with Hitchglitch - in 35 years of towing a van I've never had a puncture and the tyre comes out once a year - if indeed they bother at service time! Wouldn't bother covering it and if we do puncture its definately going to be someone elses mucky hands!
Write your comments here...I was pleasantly surprised that my spare was indeed inspected at the van's annual service, unfortunately it was found to have a split valve. But as I needed two new main tyres I at least got the valve done for free
The tyre man said that an underslung spare is best protected with silicone spray, apparently that's what they use in the business.0 -
Well I have had one monumental blow out on the nearside tyre just coming off the Pyrennes In Southern France.
Luckily at the time I was towing an Avondale Osprey and the spare wheel was sitting snugly and pristine in its dedicated wheel well. All I had to do was raise the hatch in the caravan floor, roll it out, and fit it. The actual exercise helped also by the
fact the spare was so clean.I have never understood why once Avondale went bust, other manufacturers didnt pick up that torch. It was so good!
TF
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