Motorhome covers (1 Viewer)

Icepatrolman

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Hi all
With winter round the corner Iam thinking of
Getting a cover for the top of the van bad idea or good idea ?
 

Doctor Dave

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From what I gather (not from personal experience though) it seems to be a bad idea. Condensation and rubbing are just two of the reasons.

Dave
 
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I

Icepatrolman

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Hi Dave
My thoughts exactly thanks for the quick response regards Rob

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Wombles

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If you use a breathable cover, fitted just after washing the motorhome & secure it properly so no movement it is a good idea in our view. See thread http://www.motorhomefun.co.uk/forum/threads/motorhome-covers.116881/#post-1572025 for more details & photo. We keep getting asked if our 3 year old motorhome is brand new & after storing all winter & uncovering it only need to clear off a few cobwebs & ready to go :)
 

pappajohn

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Maybe a top cap to keep the roof clean but if could rub through on your solar panel/aerial/sat dish etc

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Wombles

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Think just a top cover with straps rubbing against the side of the motorhome isn't a good idea & wind more likely to get underneath. On the full covers after a couple of years the fabric can show wear from the straps & zips can get stiff but never seen any damage to any of our caravans or motorhomes from the cover & slowed down ageing considerably plus less washing off to do!
 

Wombles

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Glad this subject was brought up again as will steal the idea from @wingman (in last years thread) to use decorators extending poles with tennis balls on top to lift the cover onto the top of the motorhome (y) We currently use washing line props which aren't really strong enough.

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WynandJean

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A cover came with ours but never used it. The aforementioned friction/condensation potential put me off, as well as I understand they are a bit of a faff to get on and off.

p.s To get the most from the forum you will need to subscribe. It's well worth £15 and will allow you to continue posting as well as letting you into areas that non members can't access.

Wyn
 

Wombles

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Cheap price for tennis balls (4 for £2 delivered) here http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/HEAD-Inst...321685?hash=item281f72fe15:g:ePQAAOSwi0RXx~XW
Also found we have some old ones of these Amazon product ASIN B004KSHC22 so recycling them instead of buying decorators poles so 2 new stronger poles for putting on the cover for just £2 :)
61qmps4jOML._SL1500_.jpg
 

Lenny HB

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What about the hassle of taking off every time you want to use the van. Even if not using the van you need to take for a good run around every few weeks, worse thing you can do is leave a van sitting idle.

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Jun 16, 2013
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When we had the caravan we used a cover from protec. It was meant to be breathable but we found the condensation in the van was bad. Lots of it on the ceilings. It was a hassle to put on and take off even with the supplied poles. We ended up using a step ladder instead. Hated putting it on and taking it off. It was expensive to buy and coukdn't wait to tip it when the van was sold.

We would never have one, but do miss having a clean roof :-( we live surrounded by trees.
 

GWAYGWAY

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I reversed of the flat garden and down the drive, about 5 gallons of water cascaded over the screen, it must have been lying up there half an inch deep at least, I will look to using my ramps to stop that, but I would like a cover, Protec quoted a 7 metre a class one at £599 without extras. I declined the offer, that is three times the other for the same amount of material.
 

Wombles

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Covers aren't for everyone - if you use your motorhome all year then probably not worth the hassle of putting it on & off especially if yours is a big one! We don't use it in the summer if only a few days between trips but always if any longer. When we had caravans we tried various makes & the cheap but effective breathable Maypole covers have always worked well with no condensation or damp but then our caravans & our motorhome have all had lots of vents so always good air flow. We have a lot of birds in our area as surrounded by large trees so we would always be cleaning if we left it uncovered :(
Extra precautions are good drainage in the storage area so no standing water under the motorhome & maybe use a dehumidifier for a day or two (before covering over) when storing for a long cold period. We tried a heater on frost setting in the past but no real difference & even low consumption adds up so not necessary. The one downside is that the solar panel is covered over (can have a clear inset panel on expensive bespoke covers) by our Maypole cover so always on EHU to maintain the alarm & batteries.

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M1ke

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Well, I have just bought one of the Maypole 4 Ply breathable covers for my Autotrail and here are my thoughts on the subject now that it has been on for 3 weeks. It is not waterproof and water is visible dripping down the sides, however this is not the main problem. Because the cover fits tightly over the roof, water pools on top of the roof literally like a swimming pool as it has nowhere to go. I have resorted to putting a length of hosepipe on the roof and siphoning water off every time it rains. I have heard of people using beach balls and the like under the cover but I've not yet resorted to this. So overall not that impressed and I'm really not too sure its not doing more harm than good. If the water is dripping down the inside as I've mentioned, I'm sure there is a fair amount of water under the cover on the roof going mancky. I'm considering waiting for it to dry off and taking it off.
 

Wombles

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We took our cover off to take our Chausson for cab & hab servicing & first MOT & this is what our roof looked like after 10 weeks :)

DSCF6351.JPG
 

Wombles

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The Maypole covers work well by being breathable rather than waterproof. We once had a Riversway cover with a waterproof Tyvek roof which was the only time we got green mould build up on our caravan roof under the cover so we went back to the breathable version after that. Although some water goes through the dirt & debris are trapped by the fabric so still a clean motorhome underneath :) The golden rules are to make sure that the cover is put on just after washing the motorhome (still wet is fine & actually helps the cover slide on), to tension the straps so no movement, be parked in a well drained area & if the motorhome is at an angle that helps water to run off the roof whether it is covered or not. This is ours

DSCF6326.JPG

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