Thule Omnistor Awning Questions (1 Viewer)

[DangerMousy]

Our new-to-us Carthago came with a Thule Omnistor awning but we've not had one before (preferring to just use a Sunshine Air Pro inflatable canopy and a length of awning rail stuck on the side of the MH) so I have a couple of questions....

I've heard so many stories of of wind-out awnings needing to be taken in every night, or if it gets windy, or if you go out. In fact last year we saw one blown over the roof of a van that had left it out and gone out for the day....it was a pretty sheltered campsite but the weather did get a bit gusty in the afternoon and possibly the awning wasn't pegged down. But there were plenty of other awnings still out, albeit with the large tie-down straps. I guess they're an essential purchase, but how effective are they? I'm guessing good enough for the odd gust of wind, but not for a full-on storm?

Our inflatable canopy can be left up no matter what the weather...its stood up to pretty strong winds with no problems so we're definitely keeping it for those times when we want shelter from the sun or rain but its a bit blowy. Which leads me on to my second question......

How to attach the inflatable canopy? I've read that the Thule awning has a channel we can feed the canopy's bead into, but I'm guessing its a different size so we'll need a figure-of-eight and kador strip. But what size? The awning rail we had on the previous MH was 8mm and I believe the bead on the canopy is 6mm. What is the size of the channel on the Thule awning (I can't find it mentioned in any of the documentation).

An added complication is that the Thule awning needs replacing (booked in for warranty work in June) so the inflatable will be our only awning for our upcoming trip(s) so I need to get this bit sorted asap. So does anyone either know the size of the channel on the Thule, or care to to share what size kador they use?

 

[mapman]

The omnistor does have a channel but when the awning is rolled in the outer section containing the channel rotates inwards to wards the van side and I doubt you could slide a bead in. The open ends of the channel are closed off by the end cap. I’m not sure of the channel dimension but it is smaller than a standard caravan one and we could not use a section of our old caravan sun awning as a sun blocker on the front of the omnistor. Even if you unfurled the omnistor sufficient to access the channel I think the potential for damage in windy conditions would still exist - with the stand-alone twisting the outer box section of the omnistor.

 

[Russell's Dad]

Ours has had no problems with tie down straps. They work well. I still take the awning in at night though, as the noise of it moving would keep me awake.

 

[DangerMousy]

The omnistor does have a channel but when the awning is rolled in the outer section containing the channel rotates inwards to wards the van side and I doubt you could slide a bead in. The open ends of the channel are closed off by the end cap. I’m not sure of the channel dimension but it is smaller than a standard caravan one and we could not use a section of our old caravan sun awning as a sun blocker on the front of the omnistor. Even if you unfurled the omnistor sufficient to access the channel I think the potential for damage in windy conditions would still exist - with the stand-alone twisting the outer box section of the omnistor.

That's exactly what I needed to know thanks.....the awning rail on our old MH was the same size as a caravan one (8mm) which took a 6mm bead. So the Thule is probably a 6mm channel, which will require a 4mm bead. I've definitely seen people attach drive-away awnings to an Omnistor so there should be enough space to roll it back in once the kador strip is attached. Anyway, I'm not worried about damage to the awning (at least for our early trips this year).....the whole thing is being replaced in June. And the inflatable canopy is very stable anyway so as long as the Thule awning is wound back in tight I don't think there will be any twisting.

Ours has had no problems with tie down straps. They work well. I still take the awning in at night though, as the noise of it moving would keep me awake.

Thanks, I shall put a set on our shopping list