Well-insulated MH. (Is there such a thing?) (1 Viewer)

[Van Diesel]

Hello, All.

I am looking for a small, one-person MH, for one small person to live in through the (UK) winter. Is there one noted for being really well-insulated hence not too expensive to heat?

Thank you, and may your pitch be tranquil.

Van Diesel.

 

[jonandshell]

I can't help you with your question, but welcome to the site!:thumb:
In general, though, you need to look for internal water tanks and plumbing to avoid freezing. This is a bigger consideration for winter use over gas economy. In general, contintental MHs have better winter performance, but I can't name any single-berth small vans in their ranges!

This should bump you back to the top!

 

[Terry]

Hi and welcome :thumb: A few more requirements may be needed ?you say live in so I presume you want shower/loo ?hot water etc, how much do you have to spend ? just how small ?If you do not require shower then Bongo type vans mat be ok or a small Romahome. They have 5 gallon bottles under sinks etc so inside :thumb:Afew more details please
terry

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[jezport]

A double floor van would be a good point to start at, the tanks will be internal which is an important thing if you are wanting to use it in winter.

 

[rainbow chasers]

German vans are usually 'winterised' and the build quality surpasses UK build quality by some way.

Differences are quite astounding, as heating one in the winter involves boosting the gas on for half an hour, and then turning off for the next 2 or 3 hours - they do hold their heat - in the summer, they are cooler.

Dethleffs, Adria (swedish iirc),Hobby (Looked at one a while back, and the table is 3" thick!) Fendt, and other similar brands are good.

Our dethleffs is set for -46. The most strangest thing with it is the water system, I do electrics and this had my curiosity raging - the water comes out of the tank and is heated on its' way out, goes off to a cooler baffle and then to the cold supply - the hot goes straight to the water heater and then off to the hot supply.

Never seen pre-heated water before! Certainly works well, and the water comes out ice cold even in the hottest weather!

German vans are the way to go!:thumb:



One other thing - if you are going to live in it, don't go too small!!!!

Golden rule is to make yourself comfortable! I have seen single full timers struggle in 3 berth c -classes!

 

[JeanLuc]

Very hard to advise without more parameters. What is your budget? How much space do you need? Will storage for accessories / living junk be required? etc.

As a starter, I would look at German manufacturers for best insulation - particularly if you are buying an older van. British ones may have got better recently, but German vans generally have always been well winterised.
If you want the smallest size for maximum living area, I would suggest a small A-class as this will allow you to stow away the bed (above the driving seat) during the day. Anything made before about 2000 will not have an Alko chassis with double floor. These are good for winterisation, but not essential if you buy a good German van as any external tanks should be insulated and heated (not so with British vans).

Brands to consider: Hymer, Burstner, Dethleffs, Eura Mobil. There are many others but some do/may not make A-class vans, or are at the very premium end of the market and tend to be large. The earlier mentioned Adria are made in Slovenia and offer good value for money - they only started making an A-class recently (2007 I think).

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[Gromett]

If funds allow I would go Eura mobil myself.

I went self build. At least in my van I know how good the insulation is :thumb::thumb:

 

[Carol]

Hello and welcome to Motorhome Fun, before our present van we had a Eriba Car, a small motorhome made by Hymer, very compact with a pop top but when it is down I could still stand up I am just 5ft 1. It had a toilet wash room was very comfortable and cosy and fully winterised it had been used for sking in really cold condtions. I am talking of models around 1990, if your budget is not £25K plus, could be worth googleing to have a look.
Ours was on a Renault base and very reliable.

 

[Van Diesel]

What a lovely welcome from so many friendly people. Thank you!

My budget is up to £25,000. However, if I could obtain an old vehicle for substantially less and see how I feel through a harsh winter I may spend 'proper' money next time. (I'm likely to be on t'moors so a properly winterised m-h is essential.)

Thank you, all those who've given specific makes and models. Were I to go German could you further suggest, please, where I'm likely to find them? I'm in the S.E. Midlands but am content to travel widely.

What I require is, essentially, a small, warm, mobile office-with-bed. I'll be doing only the most rudimentary of cooking i.e. microwaving some ghastly thing or other!, and using a lap-top computer during the day. So I daresay I'm looking for something with a generator, too. (I'll be wild-parking, largely.) Do excuse me if such a thing doesn't exist: this is all new to me (as, I suppose, it must show).

All the best and thank you again,

Van Diesel.

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[pappajohn]

a general rule of thumb.......

German built vans are built for northern winters.....

UK built vans are built for southern summers.

 

[Xabia]

What a lovely welcome from so many friendly people. Thank you!

My budget is up to £25,000. However, if I could obtain an old vehicle for substantially less and see how I feel through a harsh winter I may spend 'proper' money next time. (I'm likely to be on t'moors so a properly winterised m-h is essential.)

Thank you, all those who've given specific makes and models. Were I to go German could you further suggest, please, where I'm likely to find them? I'm in the S.E. Midlands but am content to travel widely.

What I require is, essentially, a small, warm, mobile office-with-bed. I'll be doing only the most rudimentary of cooking i.e. microwaving some ghastly thing or other!, and using a lap-top computer during the day. So I daresay I'm looking for something with a generator, too. (I'll be wild-parking, largely.) Do excuse me if such a thing doesn't exist: this is all new to me (as, I suppose, it must show).

All the best and thank you again,

Van Diesel.

Hi,

Have you thought about importing from Germany. Obviously it would be LHD but that is not a problem (I always buy LHD A class Hymers which are obviously bigger and no difficulties at all).

If interested have a look at www.mobile.de.

 

[jonandshell]

It doesn't have to be German!

We did persistent -5 to -20 celcius in Val Thorens in February at 2300m altitude with no problems.

Our MH is a French-built Chausson. They are much better value than German vans and most now come with diesel heating which will save lots of worries over gas bottle exchanges!:thumb:

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[jonandshell]

Look out for Pilote and Rapido too! They also offer good winter specs.

 

[JeanLuc]

A couple of suggestions. The first has quite a lot of lounging space and is 6 metres long. Slightly over your budget but they might negotiate. We bought from this dealer and had a good experience.

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And the second is a little longer at about 6.5 metres but is spot on your budget and has a 'bar' layout with a kind of workstation table and swivel seat - might suit your lifestyle.

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[Van Diesel]

Not just friendly people on here but prepared to share their experience and judgment, too: I'm speechless.

Plenty of research to do but at least now I know where to start.

Thank you again,


Van Diesel.