First Motorhome - help with awning Please (1 Viewer)

LNJKCR

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Mar 24, 2015
4
0
wales
Funster No
35,564
MH
Rimor
Exp
2015
We have just bought our first motorhome. It has a Fiamma 45s awning and we were looking at purchasing a safari room. Lots of people seem to be saying that for a night or two it is a bit of a faf to put up.

I am looking for some help regarding one of the air awning and if anyone know what may fits my motorhome.

it is a Rimor Katamarano 7 2008

Thank You in Advance
 
Dec 11, 2011
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Hi LNJKCR - this isn't a reply to your specific question but a comment about awnings in general. If you are considering an awning look at the options very carefully. If you have only recently bought your motorhome then for the present DO NOTHING!! Wait until you've been to the sort of places you want to stay to confirm that you really do need some sort of separate enclosure.
Safari rooms tend to be heavy and bulky. Ignoring the issue of how difficult it may be to put up, do you have the room and the spare payload in your motorhome to store it?
We bought a good quality drive away awning (Movelite XL) about 3 years ago and I think we've used it on 3 occasions. In hindsight we shouldn't have made the purchase.
The newer air awnings appear easier to erect but I suggest you wait for some 1st hand feedback before deciding what to do.
Bill
 
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Jan 19, 2010
206
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C Class
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Since 2007
Hi LNJKCR - this isn't a reply to your specific question but a comment about awnings in general. If you are considering an awning look at the options very carefully. If you have only recently bought your motorhome then for the present DO NOTHING!! Wait until you've been to the sort of places you want to stay to confirm that you really do need some sort of separate enclosure.
Safari rooms tend to be heavy and bulky. Ignoring the issue of how difficult it may be to put up, do you have the room and the spare payload in your motorhome to store it?
We bought a good quality drive away awning (Movelite XL) about 3 years ago and I think we've used it on 3 occasions. In hindsight we shouldn't have made the purchase.
The newer air awnings appear easier to erect but I suggest you wait for some 1st hand feedback before deciding what to do.
Bill

My thoughts exactly. Our MH came with a complete Fiamma Zip. We've used it twice in 5 years. TBH we don't wind out the awning very much at all. Definately use it first and see what you need.
This is our 2nd van. Prior to getting our first we put a lot of thought into what we imagined we'd need. In practice it was very different.
Have fun finding out :)
Jill

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Oct 29, 2012
887
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20 years (unless you count my dads VW which makes it 52 years with a few gaps!!)
and if you do decide you want one, I and hundreds of others have practically unused ones sitting in their garage so dont buy a new one(y)
 
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Jul 2, 2011
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It really does depend on how you will use your MH and who will be travelling, we have a largish dog who much prefers the awning, plus it keeps the van cleaner, we would only put it up if we are staying for 3+nights. We do have enough room and payload though.

Having watched a few people using the blow up ones, I don't really see any time saving, ours has three poles that take 5 minutes, what takes the time is the pegging down which I think is the same on both types.
 
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LNJKCR

LNJKCR

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Mar 24, 2015
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Rimor
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2015
Thank You for all your comments. We have the room to store so that is not a major issue. We do like to sit out especially when the kids have gone to bed. This I suppose is our main factor for purchasing one.

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treetops1

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Feb 25, 2013
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We have a Safari room ,they are heavy and takes about 15 to 20 mins to erect but we tend to only use it if we go to a fixed site or take others with us for more than a week ,we would do the same with a cheepe .Before you buy ,give yourself time to asses if you need one and if you do i would buy second hand for the amount of use you will get from it .Wind breakers will come in useful for privacy and keep the wind off and are light to carry.LOL
 
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trekkin

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Sep 12, 2014
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5 years but still learning
Hi and welcome to the forum, loads of good advice here, we look forward to your posts and experiences

Wind blockers for us also, just to sit out in, no need for storage or extra living space

we bought our last MoHo that included a full safari room, the previous owner had never used it so included it unseen in the sale, we sold the Moho 5 years later having never used it and included it in our sale unseen. Only put it up once to see if it was all there, only too 1/2 hour but was a heavy maul getting into the tracks and required a set of steps, something else to carry.

as said try your MoHo first to see if you actually need one

Adrian

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Jun 16, 2013
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When we had our caravan we had different types of awning. But we holidayed differently staying put for a week. With our MH we haven't missed the awning at all. We stay a couple of nights at a time. We sit out and have kids. Love the fact that there is no faffing about when we arrive on site. Sound advice to see how you feel before buying.
 
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Oct 25, 2014
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Cambridge
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Dethleffs A 7870-2
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Newbie, caravanner since 2008
The safari room you tube video put me in a coma and it may have been on fast speed!
We've bought a Vango Airbeam Kela II tall awning......which we haven't used yet, but I can let you know how it went (on 2/3 sites) in a couple of weeks. Hopefully it won't be destined for the Funsters awning group graveyard.
Purchased it to (maybe) hold our wet/muddy coats and boots, bikes and possibly a table for eating (messy/sticky) stuff 'outside', when it's a bit cold/windy.
 
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hilldweller

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Dec 5, 2008
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Maybe look more towards windblockers only take a few moments to put up and are very effective.

An excellent "halfway house". As it say on the tin, they block wind and are very easy to erect, cheap.

But if you are the type to stop a week or more in one place then a proper job awning is the way to go.

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Apr 27, 2008
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Awnings have many disadvantages, and I have only ever had one on a motorhome. This was on a pcv and was needed for sleeping in.
Otherwise they restrict your movements and if you're taking one you more or less need to put it up because of the space it takes up.
They will make the mh very hot in the summer by restricting airflow.
I suggest windblockers too. A set for the longest fiamma awning fits in a carrier bag and weighs very little. They give a bit of privacy while still allowing air flow.
 
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May 7, 2011
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Hi, We've had a couple of awnings in the past, only used them a couple of times before deciding to sell on.fine if you want to stay put on a site for a week or so but remember if attached to your m/ho and you need to travel to the shops or go somewhere to visit while staying on a site the mo/ho is your transport (unless you take a car/ bike etc with you).
Like you we have fiamma 45s roll our awning again goes everywhere with us , mostly not used , due to the sun is very rarely in the right direction to get shade , also you need to think about if the wind gets up it can start to flap & if not pegged down securely can/could cause damage to the mo/ho.
 
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musson

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Dec 25, 2013
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I had a new outlook airbeam awning and sold after using it twice,if it rained the shape of it filled the floor with water when you unzipped it to get out also I modified the flap that sticks near the door to make stand up better
 
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Gorse Hill

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Feb 2, 2013
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Hi LNJKCR - this isn't a reply to your specific question but a comment about awnings in general. If you are considering an awning look at the options very carefully. If you have only recently bought your motorhome then for the present DO NOTHING!! Wait until you've been to the sort of places you want to stay to confirm that you really do need some sort of separate enclosure.
Safari rooms tend to be heavy and bulky. Ignoring the issue of how difficult it may be to put up, do you have the room and the spare payload in your motorhome to store it?
We bought a good quality drive away awning (Movelite XL) about 3 years ago and I think we've used it on 3 occasions. In hindsight we shouldn't have made the purchase.
The newer air awnings appear easier to erect but I suggest you wait for some 1st hand feedback before deciding what to do.
Bill
I would agree with this, we bought a vango airbeam early last year thinking we would use it (having had a caravan always used an awning) been to France and all over the UK and still not used it todate mainly because with a M/H we tend to stay for a day or two and then we're off exploring which is obviously far easier with a M/H than a caravan
So good advice given regarding buying one until you have used the M/H for a bit you might find,like us, you don't need one(y)
 
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Murphy

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Jan 31, 2015
92
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Mansfield
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We have a Thule a Safari room as pictured, we tend to use it when on a pitch for a week or more, gives additional room and normally takes about 20 minutes to erect, if they suit there fine, not to everyone's taste though !
image.jpg
 
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Oct 29, 2008
5,024
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PVC
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since 2008
I tried all sorts of awning room before designing panels myself. Other people saw them and wanted them so I am now in business selling them. We wanted a 100% waterproof awning that let lots of light in, that didn't take long to set up or take down was lightweight and packed away small. you can see more information on my website. We love using ours and use our awning a lot since we started using out panels.

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Mousy

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We have a full set of blue liliy pad windblockers for sale from our last Moho. Have a look in classified.

They were really great and we will definely buy a set for the new Moho awning. Up in minutes.

We never managed to put them up with out a marital tiff, we'd be divorcing if we had an proper awning to erect :rofl:
 
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Oct 20, 2013
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We use ours all the time , with the exception of our last trip out. We left it at home to prove to ourselves that we didn't really need it................we were wrong!
DSCF0264.JPG
 
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RowleyBirkinQC

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Sep 20, 2014
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This is a "horses for courses" scenario in my opinion. As has been said, I think it wise to use the van first, see if you then identify a need for an awning/safari room or not. We have previously used a Movelite XL and have recently purchased a Kampa Motor Rally Air (only test erected, not used in anger yet) because we sometimes have 3 dogs with us, so the additional space is useful. However, if we are without dogs, we tend not to bring those awnings and just use the wind out if external cover is required.
 
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