Awning furnishing Issue
We recently bought a full air awning and furnished it with a table and chairs and other odd bits and pieces. All of these items including the awning are located in the caravan when travelling too and from sites. However, we have just had gale force winds that pulled heavy duty pegs out of the ground and the awning slid along the track. Even though storm straps were in place. To reduce the issue we took off each side panel to let the wind pass through. Then we strapped the whole awning with rope going over the roof which held it in position. However, all the furnishings were getting soaked but we had no where to store them all. If we had taken the awning down this would have been the right thing to do. But where would we store everything? Not inside the caravan as it just a two birth and lockers were already full. So should we have taken less bits and pieces away?
Comments
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Only yourself can really answer that question.
We have never had an awning, however personally, I would want to be able to fit said items in the tow car. Both from an overall caravan loading point of view and the ability to take the awning down when dry, rather than the last morning when it’s raining. When we caravanned the table and chairs, BBQ etc all fitted in the car. Although the type we chose did pack away very flat. Some I have seen folk using take up a large amount of space. The only large things we transported in the van were the fairly light aquarolls and waste master.3 -
When breaking camp the day before we leave, a lot of stuff ends up in the car. In fact when travelling light with no cycles on the caravan we now carry the table and chairs in the car so loading/weights are better distributed. Table and chairs are wrapped in an old tablecloth or sheet, put across back seat and held by the seatbelts.
If you cannot do this why not buy some oversize bin bags and double wrap them before putting under the van.
Colin
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Difficult to answer without knowing a bit more. We caravan as a couple and invariably now only use a sun canopy although we do have a full awning. We travel with the awning/canopy, groundsheet, chairs and table in the car so, when packing up or if it's too windy for the canopy, the furniture can either stay in the car or go underneath the van.
I like to be able to step inside the van straight away on arrival at a site without having to do a clearance job, especially so if it happens to be raining.
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We often are away for up to 4 weeks and like to have seating for 4 in the awning for non caravaning visitors. Likewise we like to have the car seats available. We do store the awning and table in the car on the last night with the back seats down. This would not be practical the rest of the time.
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Why not reduce the chairs to 2 and let visitors bring their own?
Try a table that rolls up into a bag and takes up minimum space in the car.
I think you're making life more difficult than it needs to be.
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Perhaps you are recoiling from a very recent experience which probably doesn't happen that often? If it is a situation that happens once or twice a year I think you have to be prepared to use the car as the only real option. Other than that could you not store chairs and tables under the van and perhaps put the awning in the boot if you want to retain seating in the car? I must admit that when we caravanned we gave up awnings in favour of a sun canopy quite a few years before we changed to a motorhome. If its nice weather we sit outside under the canopy and if the weather is not so nice we sit in the caravan/motorhome.
David
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Fully agree. Two people, two (fold away) chairs, fold away table. And get ones that are simple to dry out if they do get wet. The more clutter you have, the more difficult life can occasionally get.
If you do want to keep things neat and dry on site in a storm, then buy a beach tent, small but shower proof. In an emergency you can bung chairs, table, other bits in there in an emergency. You can get better quality waterproof ones.
A decent weather app on your smart phone will help as well. We have a pretty good idea of what’s coming our way a good few days in advance, and the one on my phone is fairly accurate.
When you do pitch up, look for signs of prevailing wind direction. If (and it’s a big if on Club Sites, due to rigid pitching restrictions) you need to use your van and vehicle as a bit of protection for awning. Won’t work somewhere like St Agnes, but might help in other locations.
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You may be right David it was horrendous. I have never seen the awning slide along the rail whilst using heavy duty pegs. They just all came out. It was a culmination of very boggy grass. I think we will store everything in the car and when we want to take friends out we short term load the caravan to allow the back seats to be used. We used the spiral dog pegs to fix the rope across the roof which worked surprisingly well.
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Put everything under the Van that’s not in use. Use ground anchors & double strapping for heavy winds. Check the weather(met office App) when storm warnings are given take awning down prior to it hitting you.
PS-I’ve not been inconvenienced using these guidelines👍🏻😊
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I remember we were once at Kessingland and used one of the pitches on the small beach side section. It was getting very windy so we took the awning down but the van was still shaking as the wind was so strong. I should have realised that it was going to be bad when I saw the warden taking his awning down!!! It was getting a bit frightening so we decided to move to the inland part of the site. Very gingerly we moved off complete with part cooked casserole in its pot jammed in the sink. It survived and so did we.
David
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I am always amazed at the clutter people have in their full awnings especially if they are on a seasonal pitch. We were pitched next to one recently and the awning had a sideboard, drawer unit, settee ( not an inflatable type!), additional fridge etc .
Numerous photos were shown on Facebook last week of awnings destroyed and the remains of similar interior furniture. During our couple of weeks in early May in Cornwall, on two occasions we had taken down our lightweight awning before the forecasted winds arrived. Many on Facebook were asking "Can my awning withstand 50mph gales?" not realising if it can't, they would never be able to collapse the awning in such high winds without running a severe risk of damage to their van or themselves.
It seems like the days of low key camping have disappeared and the modern camper requires everything including the kitchen sink.
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Have you considered whether you could be exceeding your payload by carrying all that "outdoor stuff" in the caravan while travelling?
How much payload do you have still available once you have accounted for the battery, bedding, clothes, kitchen stuff, food, bathroom stuff etc etc?
As far as awnings and furniture are concerned, we have a canopy with sides and use a roll up aluminium table and aluminium chairs with removable seat pads, so it does not matter if it rains on them. Otherwise we have a small pair of steps and a coolbox out there. Coolbox can come inside or go in the car if necessary.
Awning and table and chairs are lightweight, and travel in the car.
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Unfortunately Mikey on leaving the site in Shaftsbury, there was hardly any wind. We spent about 4 hours visiting Frome about 1/2 hour away without wearing a jacket. Much to our amazement when we got back the gale and rain was at its worse. Before going out we checked the weather forecast app and it just said it would rain with light winds. I decided not to try to take the awning down but took off the sides instead to let the wind go through but still the awning was trying to take off as was the carpet. I tied a remaining awning upright to the handle on the caravan front, and the other to my car. The table and chairs came in handy to keep the carpet in place.
Now in our late seventies we don't leave the site very often so we like to have an alternative space to use. We are not into sideboards etc.
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Awning Photo showing the situation after weather had improved. Notice awning wrapped around front handle and the ropes across the roof. On the floor is the total furnishings I spread between car and caravan when travelling.
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A lot different to awning we used to use with our van. It threaded onto van side from the bottom corner. Not sure how many chairs in there in total, possibly 6? Two lafuma type, and four to sit round table? And one or two tables
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Why not buy a pair of awning rail stops to prevent the awning travelling along the rail?
Kampa Dometic Pack of 2 6mm awning rail stops stop stoppers AC0301
Keith
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Why not use the (double) caravan step instead of the decorators platform to thread the awning on? That’s one item less for you if you can manage.
You haven’t got a lot in there to be honest, compared with some of the awnings we have seen. All bar the shoe rack probably shower proof, certainly if shoved under caravan. Why not ditch the canvas shoe rack for a lightweight plastic box to put wet shoes in, this will be waterproof if left outside? We used to leave our walking boots in such to dry out. Box used for storage when travelling? (Just trying to think if you could take less, but depends on your needs of course🙂)
It sounds like you just got caught out by a severe storm, we have probably all been there down the years. Some awnings are more susceptible. If you use a rope, put sponges underneath the rope at the top of the awning so it doesn’t rub and damage the awning👍
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Sue and Keith I think that is a great idea and will buy some.
Takethedog if it happens again you are right we should have used sponges, if we had had some and we were not trying to fly a kite, whilst getting the rope in place. We do already use plastic containers under the caravan used to carry food to the site and then hold all the bags for the awning/carpet etc whilst on site. When we used to have my wife feeding the awning into the rail I used the step to pull the awning along the rail. Sadly due to my back issues we have had the reverse roles and the steps were too low for her. I daren't ask why we need so many shoes
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