Roll out awning

[Candapack]

I have seen lots of these where the legs attach to the van rather than being pegged down on the ground.
What are the respective merits and demerits of each method please.?

 

[2657]

Legs attached to van easier to set up and retract, no pegs but can get in way ie walked into

Storm straps for either method if breezy, always retract in stronger winds and overnight.

Oh and can be used on hard standing if legs attached to van.

 

[Shrimp]

On most Aires you are not supposed to ‘camp’.
Meaning that you are not allowed to put anything on the ground-chairs, tables, mats, step, even in some cases levelling blocks (we got told off by a Gendarme once for using levelling blocks) that includes awning legs.
Aires are purely for stopping to rest, site-see, sleep and spend money in the local shops (if you can find any still open)
Mind you all of the above doesn’t apply to any Frenchman, they will even camp under a sign that says ‘No Parking’!!!

 

[TerryL]

Very handy if you can't peg the legs to the ground and it gets a bit breezy, although I agree they can get in the way if you're on a restricted pitch. We often use ours if we just want to put the awning out a short way to either a/ protect the fridge from the sun, or more likely b/ provide a sort of rain shelter porch so the dog can sit out if he wants.

We always retract our awning if the wind gets up, even if we do have tie-downs. I was once felled by an itinerant leg trying to take the awning in when a sudden storm came up! Fortunately others quickly came to help and there was no injury or damage.

Just replaced our side mount clips due to breaking one - they are plastic and get brittle with age (don't we all?). Easy enough job to fit but you'll need access to the inside wall as they have a spreader plate. Also some proper sealant as you're drilling through the wall. Ours are Fiamma and got the replacements (full fitting kit) from Johns Cross.

 

[2657]

On recommendation from a well respected member in the trade I screwed our side mount clips direct to the plastic skirt and trim without the backing plates on our PVC.

I wouldn't leave the awning out in windy weather or unattended anyway but if using storm straps well pegged down they take most of the load anyway.

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[Reallyretired]

We always use the legs to the van wall. Its more stable and dogs leads don't get tangled round the legs as they do if they're on the ground

 

[Candapack]

Thanks all for replies, very useful.