Internal or external thermal window screens (1 Viewer)

[Demellis]

hi
I'm a newbie and wanted to know which is best, internal or external thermal screens? Also which is the best make? We have a compass avantgarde 400rl on a Peugeot boxer chassis

Thanks in advance

David

 

[Boringfrog]

External, Taylormade or genuine silver screens.

 

[daveandsan]

External, avoid the condensation.

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[TheBig1]

absolutely the external genuine silverscreens are by far the best

 

[colyboy]

You don't need both. I would go for external as this will stop 95% of condensation. An internal will not stop condensation. Silverscreens have a good name.

colyboy

 

[Gorse Hill]

External = no condensation, never used internals but the ones I've seen keep falling off
I use sliver screens excellent and you can even buy slight seconds from the manufacture which I did at a 30% saving

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[Zigisla]

Another tick for externals. You can use them inside as well if you really need to when wilding etc

 

[Spidey]

Agree external are the best. Couldn't believe how much condensation there was when we left them off one night!

 

[irnbru]

Externals for us too but not when wilding alone.

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[Whitebirdyman]

hi
I'm a newbie and wanted to know which is best, internal or external thermal screens? Also which is the best make? We have a compass avantgarde 400rl on a Peugeot boxer chassis

I agree with the above that external is best in cold weather but internal are good enough if you are trying to keep out the sun in summer. Sometimes in winter I have stayed snug by using both internal and external. You would not want internal if you have blinds fitted.

I have had both Silver Screens and Taylormade and found them of similar quality. I now have Hinderman external covers and think the quality is better, there are other makes too, eg Soplair, but I have not tried them.

 

[Raybreck]

Another vote for external,we have Silver Screens but as has been mentioned,if on aires ect we have a throw thing for furniture ( almost blackout ) we use which works well as you may need to leave in a hurry. Not that we have ever had a problem but best to be safe.
Ray

 

[trophychap]

Silver screens for us! No condensation even in the depths of winter, but in the summer we generally only use the concertina blinds.

I see a number of people saying "we don't use them if we are parked somewhere we may have to leave in a hurry" my question is why would you park there in the first place if it's a bit iffy?

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[Zigisla]

Silver screens for us! No condensation even in the depths of winter, but in the summer we generally only use the concertina blinds.

I see a number of people saying "we don't use them if we are parked somewhere we may have to leave in a hurry" my question is why would you park there in the first place if it's a bit iffy?

A quite idyllic spot down beside a reservoir, soon turned out to be a boy racer's track later in the evening. Time to leave, as the cars are now racing very close to the MH. Easy to remove the screens from the inside, then risk getting out with the unsavoury tearing around.

 

[Minxy]

We have external ones which we only use if we're on a rally, at a show etc, as when we're on holiday we wild camp or use aires all the time so just use the fitted cab blinds, therefore we usually don't have them with us anyway.

I do however carry a set of adapted internal blinds which can be used sandwiched between the cab glass and the cab blinds to give some insulation if we're up a mountain somewhere where there's snow so it's blooming cold overnight! They also are very useful when we're somewhere hot as they help to keep the interior of the camper cool as it's surprising how much heat the fitted cab blinds let through, I also have pads which I made for the roof lights again which serve a dual purpose.

 

[Duck Truck]

Hi David
The exact answer depends.
First do you have any sliding screens fitted to the inside of your van already.
if you do they are great for privacy and will prevent a lot of condensation in late spring summer and early autumn.
If you leave your can sliding windows down by an inch over night that too helps prevent condensation.
However external covers are the first ones you should buy. They are really good at keeping the warmth in an really do help prevent condensation.
If you can afford it get the ones that have a flap that drops down on the windscreen. That way if you have a nice view you can lower the flap and appreciate it without taking the whole cover off, If you go out in winter get both external and internal covers. You can make the internal ones to save some money easily enough .They dont' take the hammer like the external ones have too. I have made internal ones for every window as we go away in temps down to -25.
The covers help prevent condensation
kev

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[Duck Truck]

err can
should read cab
unless it's a Heinz tin with engine and wheels

 

[Chris51]

I have lined curtains behind front seats and across back doors -van (PVC) is spray foam insulated (self build) and I find very little condensation up front but dont use van winter .

 

[Tykatem]

External for us, even though we have sliding internal blinds (great for the occasional overnight stay), I still prefer to use our external silver screen. I even bought a secondhand one to use when parked up in storage....

Pete

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[Devon Sue]

We invested in Taylormade external last year, well worth getting, we got the slightly longer ones that cover the vents on the bonnet as well. We usually put each side on first, then the screen which makes it easier than trying to fit the whole lot at once.
In warmer weather we use the concertina blinds, or the curtains that we have installed behind the cab seats for privacy.

 

[Paul and Kate]

We invested in Taylormade external last year, well worth getting, we got the slightly longer ones that cover the vents on the bonnet as well. We usually put each side on first, then the screen which makes it easier than trying to fit the whole lot at once.
In warmer weather we use the concertina blinds, or the curtains that we have installed behind the cab seats for privacy.

Will try this method later today as we have the same cover and always put it on in one go thanks for the tip

 

[Poursay]

External are the best. Just after we got our first van, we camped over Christmas and couldn't believe the amount of condensation on the inside of the screen. Bought a Silver Screen and used summer and winter, helps keep the van cooler in summer too. Changed vans last year and first purchase was another Silver Screen with the drop down front. If a summer one nighter would use the fitted internal screens but never when the temperature drops, put ours on several weeks ago whilst stored on drive.

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[Lenny HB]

Last van was a Fiat cab, had Taylormades when they clapped out bought Silver Sceens, the Taylormades were awkward and bulky compared to the Silver Sceens.
Bought external sceens for the current van but only used them a couple of times as the thermal curtains & blind are very good.

 

[John&Kate]

We inherited a Silver Screen when we purchased our MH this year, when we went to France in the summer we just used the fitted consatina blinds, (obviously) no condensation, but on a couple of recent outings to the NEC a couple of weeks ago and another Autumn trips we had a mass of condensation behind the blinds.

Last week we spent a few days in Great Yarmouth and as the forecast was dry we decided to try out the silver screen .. .. Its bloody brilliant.

I can see why there is such a large number of wanted classifieds for these items, I know they aren't cheap, but they do the job they are intended for. We left ours on for 3 days (day/night), it does have a section of the windscreen which you can fold down, we choose to leave it up and the cab remained private for the duration.

 

[RogerThat]

Yet another vote for external

I've actually used both so can safely add to the testament that others have made here about the condensation buildup with my internals vs externals.

My external Taylormade's have zero condensation, and I type this from a very cold and wet site in Knutsford tonight, with bone dry interior windows

In terms of fitting the externals, I always leave the passenger door and windscreen sections attached to each other. So I fit the drivers door on its own (first), then kinda 'wrap' the passenger door and windscreen in one go

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[GWAYGWAY]

Do not leave externals on too long in the wet as they will leak in the end through the thread holes making the difficult to pack or dry. They do really keep up the temperature inside when the outside temps drop right down.

 

[The Cruisers]

Another vote for external Taylormade. We have the longer ones which cover the vents on the bonnet and has a drop down front. Our first winter with our new to us MH last year we hadn't got the Taylormades and there was about 2 pints of condensation that we collected in our Karcher window vac!! This year we bought the screens - no condensation at all and felt warmer inside.

 

[TheBig1]

Do not leave externals on too long in the wet as they will leak in the end through the thread holes making the difficult to pack or dry. They do really keep up the temperature inside when the outside temps drop right down.

that is only true of taylor made screens in my experience. I inherited one particular set of genuine silverscreens that had been left on a van all winter under a tree and were disgustingly filthy. 5 minutes using a pressure washer with them laid out on the drive, they were good as new. hung them over the trailer to dry and half an hour later were dry.

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