Kampa awnings
hi there spent Tuesday & Wednesday at the NEC,and we bought a Kampa Rally Pro Air 390 XL awning .Anyone got any experience with these awnings? If so would like to hear your comments ,good or bad. Thank you.
Brian & Jo
Comments
-
I gave up on mine (actually a 400 ... near enough though) in Southport the other week. We were on the new bit & the wind was directly on the large part of the awning. Despite inflating it as much as I could, & using huge home made storm strap ground pegs it just kept being pushed flat against the ground/caravan. The loose gravel hard standing didn't help as even double pegs were pulled out of the ground. I like the awning, but not sure I'd buy another ..... 😞 I've had a standard metal pole awning up in some pretty strong winds in the past with more success.
1 -
Agree with MM that heavy wind seems to be a problem with air awnings. We were on Wirral CP on Monday in very strong wind which pinned our neighbour's air awning to his caravan and it took three of us to pull it away and get it down. Having said that it also ripped apart a small framed porch awning!
1 -
My experience suggests the opposite! I love our Kampa Air awning (the 400). It seems much more stable in windy conditions than our previous (Kampa 390 poled version). The air awnings are heavy inasmuch as they are the combined weight of poles and 'canvas', but once threaded through the awning channel are a breeze (pun intended) to erect. Any awning in very high winds will not fair well. I am sure, Tiffin, that you will not regret your purchase.
4 -
But the steel pole awning I had on my previous caravan suffered slightly bent poles due to the wind pressure against the largest side ..... but it stayed up with the help of a storm strap, which is more than could be said of my air-awning.
Wind direction must play a part. Another Kampa awning a few pitches from us in Southport stayed up, but the wind was hitting the smaller surface of the end.
0 -
I agree that my Kampa air pro seems more stable in winds. It seems to flex with the wind if necessary. Mine threads through awning channel fairly easily but they are bulky when packed as you are rolling the air tubes as well. There is a definite technique to pegging out. My two outer tubes tended to twist because I was pegging the guy strap at 45 degs but I’ve learnt to put it straight out from the front now and it’s better. Great for weekends as they are up much quicker than poled awnings.
2 -
We bought an Ace Air 400 earlier in the year. We love it although had some initial quality issues. Of the five panels three have been replaced as they were faulty and we’ve just had to have the Breeze pump replaced with the Wind pump. Apparently the Breeze had some issues so they scrapped it and introduced the Wind!
Its heavy to pull the through the channel but so easy to erect.
1 -
It seems to me that it was a question to ask before your purchase.
We have a Kampa Rally Pro Air 330 that's now two year old. We have used it in heavy rain and high winds without any problems although we do use the storm straps in bad weather.
It takes me about 15 minutes to unpack it and thread it through the awning rail and pump it up with a it's hand pump. The pegging time is ground dependent, and takes up to an hour. I've just brought a set of screw pegs that work (I hope) with an electric drill to ease that task.
0 -
We've had an Air Pro 390 for 2 and a half years - been out in all weathers - including winds up to 50mph with no problems whatsoever. Yes, they do flex in the wind - but that's all - and, of course, there's no danger of damage to the van as there might be with some pole awnings.
We did have a slight problem with the original one which, after three months failed to inflate properly, at the start of our two week holiday in Devon. Whilst two phone calls - to the dealer and from the Kampa Rep couldn't solve the issue, the Rep was most apologetic and wanted to rescue our holiday so a new one was sent by overnight courier arriving first thing the following morning - all at no cost to us. What brilliant customer service.
I am thinking of swapping it for the latest version which will be lighter to get on the awning track since I believe all the doors and side panels now unzip completely.
Another tip - I bought an electric pump - called a "BP12" (Google it) - which although expensive at £85, inflates the awning in three minutes and has a pressure switch and automatic shut off. Much better than the equivalent Kampa one which, by all accounts, takes about 20 minutes to inflate the awning!
0 -
I'm afraid I have to disagree with "dmiller555",,,
If we'd gone to the show first we probably wouldn't have bought one as we were overwhelmed by the vast amount of choice.
We actually bought ours ten days before the show,,tried it with great success, but had a couple of questions, and who better than the team on the Kampa stand.
1 -
When I purchased our caravan this year (second hand) it had a lot of pole rash from awnings which spoils what is a very nice van. I have on my list next season to purchase an air awning simply to avoid pole damage. I think if high winds are forecast I would give any awning a miss.
On another note my work pal is on a seasonal pitch most years, he got a phone call last week from the site informing him the awning was almost flat, flapping around in the wind and would he come up and remove it.
I am amazed that anyone would leave it up all season? surely you would take it down before heading off home?
0 -
I have a related question. I have a Kampa fiesta Air Pro 390. I was expecting the panels to unzip - damn sure the catalogue indicates it does this - but it does not. The zips do not detach. So you basically unzip the panel, but it remains attatched at a bottom corner. In fact the catalogue indicate you can attach annexes etc, but this would seem to be impossible. I bought it in 2016 as a new item.
Any thoughts?
0
