Awnings on hardstanding

davetom
davetom Club Member Posts: 41
First Comment

Hi all, I am not new to caravanning but am new to pitching a awning on a hardstanding. I have a chance to holiday on a site with only hardstandings and hardly any grass. So the awning would be on the hard surface as well. My question is what do I need in the way of pegs etc which is different from what is used on a grass pitch. Thanks David

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Comments

  • EmilysDad
    EmilysDad Forum Participant Posts: 8,973
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    edited May 2019 #2

    You need steel pegs & a large hammer ☺

    I have some of These but others use screw in pegs & use their battery steady winder to put them in/out

  • davetom
    davetom Club Member Posts: 41
    First Comment
    edited May 2019 #3

    Thanks MollysMummy, Are all hardstandings capable of taking steel pegs? I really have no experience of these. Only ever pitching on grass.

  • JVB66
    JVB66 Forum Participant Posts: 22,892
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    edited May 2019 #4

    You will definately need steel pegs Aldi may still have some left from their promotion and a good lump hammer,to remove i have found if you twist the peg it is easier to pull out

  • davetom
    davetom Club Member Posts: 41
    First Comment
    edited May 2019 #5

    Thanks for your advice. I will give them a look. Sounds like I will need something a bit stronger than what I have got at the moment.

  • EmilysDad
    EmilysDad Forum Participant Posts: 8,973
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    edited May 2019 #6

    The trouble with various hard standings is that some are that compacted you have trouble getting  the pegs in & some are the complete opposite and the pegs won't stay in. Given the choice I'd have grass .... I loath hard standings.

  • EasyT
    EasyT Forum Participant Posts: 16,194
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    edited May 2019 #7

    I prefer a good claw hammer which also makes extraction simple. Dog ears under pin and tread on striking side of head and up comes the peg.

  • Rocky 2 buckets
    Rocky 2 buckets Forum Participant Posts: 7,101
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    edited May 2019 #8

    DT, I use an impact driver & coach screws. They do less damage to the surface, are more secure & take less trouble to put in.

  • Milothedog
    Milothedog Forum Participant Posts: 1,433
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    edited May 2019 #9

    Been using  THESE for a couple years now, Can be screwed in with the cordless or bashed in with the widely available special tool #Hickory 2LB if the ground is too compacted.

  • Rocky 2 buckets
    Rocky 2 buckets Forum Participant Posts: 7,101
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    edited May 2019 #10

    MTD, the coach screws cost £4.98 for 20, they’re stronger & last longer👍🏻😊, yup, that’s my Yorkshireness kicking in😂😂

  • Milothedog
    Milothedog Forum Participant Posts: 1,433
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    edited May 2019 #11

    But I'm an affluent southerner wink  

  • Rocky 2 buckets
    Rocky 2 buckets Forum Participant Posts: 7,101
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    edited May 2019 #12

    My mistake🤣🤣

  • davetom
    davetom Club Member Posts: 41
    First Comment
    edited May 2019 #13

    Thankyou all for your help. Something to think about.

  • pointthefingerman
    pointthefingerman Forum Participant Posts: 23
    edited May 2019 #14

    'Rock' pegs are good as are rebar pegs - we have a few different types to suit the ground. 

     

  • G Cherokee
    G Cherokee Forum Participant Posts: 402
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    edited May 2019 #15

    Rock pegs, the ones with the spiral on the shaft, (not really a thread), 3lb lump hammer, and titanium thumbs!!

    laughing

  • EmilysDad
    EmilysDad Forum Participant Posts: 8,973
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    edited May 2019 #16

    Best not to hit your thumb ..... 😉

  • jennyc
    jennyc Forum Participant Posts: 957
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    edited May 2019 #17

    Like most hobbies David, there’s a tendency to start out with the cheap and cheerful solution, then progressively buy better and better. Most awnings come with a bag of toy town pegs, which are best left at home. Bigger, thicker pegs come next, including some made of plastic. Skip the plastic ones, try the thicker steel ones, watch them bend, then go out and buy some rock pegs. These do work, with the occasional bend. Anyone who tells you how easy they are to remove, is either a weight lifter or a lot less experienced with tricky bases than we are. Ultimately, when you are tired of finding pegging in and out to be time consuming and hard work, you’ll look at an upgrade. This is the point where you make your most expensive purchase yet, and buy full size, steel, screw in pegs and a decent battery drill. OR save the interim money and learning curve by buying the above screw pegs from the start.

    To clarify - many bases, but not all, will take rock pegs easily. In my view, the effort required to bend a rock peg is too much. And we’ve had plenty of bends over the years. All bases will succumb to steel screw pegs. For the hardest of all basis, you will benefit from hitting screw pegs part way in, to help the screw take when you drill. In every case, removal with a drill is much quicker and easier than pulling/ levering/ using fulcrums etc.

  • DSB
    DSB Club Member, Member Moderator Posts: 5,875
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    edited May 2019 #18

    I have some of these too.  Went to Conkers C&CC site over the May Day BH.  The hardstandings here are super-hard and the screw pegs were as useless as a chocolate fireguard.  We had to resort to ordinary steel pegs and the trusty lump hammer!

    David

  • Milothedog
    Milothedog Forum Participant Posts: 1,433
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    edited May 2019 #19

    That's why I said you can bash them in as well, best of both worlds then as you can just unscrew them with the cordless when packing up.smile

    My approach is if they don't go in on the first or second attempt then out comes special tool #Hickory 2LB. wink

    They have not failed me yet and are a lot cheaper than buying those sets of 12 or so that come in a little case.

  • the degster
    the degster Forum Participant Posts: 12
    edited May 2019 #20

    if you find it hard to knock the pegs in do what I do get the wife to do it

  • davetom
    davetom Club Member Posts: 41
    First Comment
    edited May 2019 #21

    I have the cordless drill and the wife already so i'm well on the way ! All I need now is the pegs.

  • ABM
    ABM Forum Participant Posts: 14,578
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    edited May 2019 #22

    Good  to  see  you  are  obeying  the  Third Rule  of  Caravanning, DT  !!

    3 )  ALWAYS  take  the  OH  &  both  senses  of  Humour  innocent

  • DSB
    DSB Club Member, Member Moderator Posts: 5,875
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    edited May 2019 #23

    Oh I did try knocking screw peg in at Conkers - with a lump hammer.  The peg wouldn't go in, and I lost the bottom section of the threads.  I didn't want to ruin the other pegs, so as I was going to end up hitting them in I used the ordinary steel ones.  This is Conkers we are talking about - the hardest hardstandings I have ever experienced.  One step away from concrete - and not really sure of which side of concrete!!!  laughinglaughinglaughing

    David

  • EasyT
    EasyT Forum Participant Posts: 16,194
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    edited May 2019 #24

    Anyone who tells you how easy they are to remove, is either a weight lifter or a lot less experienced with tricky bases than we are.

    I am not a weight lifter nor unexperienced with extracting pegs from hardstanding. I always found it simple with a good steel shafted claw hammer amd no effort. Hook the ears under the head and stand on the striking head. No effort as body weight and leverage moves the peg easily no matter how tight. 

  • Milothedog
    Milothedog Forum Participant Posts: 1,433
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    edited May 2019 #25

    I think some people are a bit more practical than others. cool

  • jennyc
    jennyc Forum Participant Posts: 957
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    edited May 2019 #26

    When you’ve graduated to this;

    https://www.diy.com/departments/magnusson-steel-wrecking-bar-l-14-/1782727_BQ.prd 

    pivoted on a wooden fulcrum and stood on, and they are still hard to remove, we can explore the meaning of difficult.

  • Milothedog
    Milothedog Forum Participant Posts: 1,433
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    edited May 2019 #27

    That's a silly statement. what did you use to put them in with, a sledge hammer ?.  wink

  • EasyT
    EasyT Forum Participant Posts: 16,194
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    edited May 2019 #28

     A useless bit of kit really as with my method there is no effort. Just stand on the hammer head and, in my case 10.75stones of force is applied with no effort. I don't need a lever arm to apply force to

  • Milothedog
    Milothedog Forum Participant Posts: 1,433
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    edited May 2019 #29

    A bit confusing really ET, 

    JC's own quote from a post in this thread.

    "To clarify - many bases, but not all, will take rock pegs easily. In my view, the effort required to bend a rock peg is too much. And we’ve had plenty of bends over the years. All bases will succumb to steel screw pegs. For the hardest of all basis, you will benefit from hitting screw pegs part way in, to help the screw take when you drill. In every case, removal with a drill is much quicker and easier than pulling/ levering/ using fulcrums etc."

  • EasyT
    EasyT Forum Participant Posts: 16,194
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    edited May 2019 #30

    Certainly confusing Milo 

  • EmilysDad
    EmilysDad Forum Participant Posts: 8,973
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    edited May 2019 #31

     Should it really be that hard to put an awning up? My awning went up last week with the minimum of effort as I hammered my pegs into grass .... it's what all awnings should be put up on!