Travelling with the table in place? (1 Viewer)

[Nostrovia]

Hi all,

I have a (detachable) table on a dinette behind the driver, where my 2 kids sit. It is fastened to the wall, and has a single leg at the other end.

What do you all do when travelling? take it down and secure it somewhere? or leave it up?

I suppose that in an accident, it could become a projectile and dangerous(?). Then again, if it were just placed on the bed, then it's essentially the same.

What do you lot do?

Cheers!

 

[ambulancekidd]

There's no "maybe unsafe in an accident" it simply is dangerous.

So the simple answer is stow it properly away.

 

[mike mcglynn]

I had one like that in a caravan years back and it was secured by 2 sliding locking catches fitted underneath,check yours it may have them fitted.

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[Nostrovia]

I had one like that in a caravan years back and it was secured by 2 sliding locking catches fitted underneath,check yours it may have them fitted.

Yeah, that's what it is...

But, I do agree with @ambulancekidd, even with it locking into place. Just wondered what people did...

 

[pappajohn]

Being inside a fibreglass and foam box on wheels in an accident I think the last thing I would worry about is a table.
If it was to detach it would be so close to a seat occupant, inches in fact, it would have little if any damaging effect.

 

[Zigisla]

I leave mine in place. You do have to lift it up at the leg end to detach it from the rail grips on the wall though.
Can't worry about what if this what if that. How many accidents have you been in, in how many years of driving?

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[davidbaldam]

Hi and welcome to FUN, we remove our fitted table as it’s heavy and leave it behind and use a lighter collapsible one instead.

 

[ambulancekidd]

Can't worry about what if this what if that. How many accidents have you been in, in how many years of driving?

I agree with you up to a point, there's no use in being scared of your shadow & yes here comes a but, but, I spent a whole career picking up the pieces (sometimes literally) of careless people who thought "it'd never happen to them".

A table could be launched by something as simple as some heavy braking & is it really worth that risk?
Further more the law nowadays takes a very dim view of accidents, injury or even death which is brought about by careless actions & the prison population grows weekly with people who wouldn't dream of breaking the law...Think on please.

Here's a compilation of folks who refused to wear seat belts & travelling with a table in place is tantamount to the same thing!
I'm not trying to be moralistic here, its just that safety literally costs nothing.
Even the most careful of drivers can be injured by someone else's carelessness.

Warning, these clips are quite graphic.

 

[Zigisla]

I agree with you up to a point, there's no use in being scared of your shadow & yes here comes a but, but, I spent a whole career picking up the pieces (sometimes literally) of careless people who thought "it'd never happen to them".

A table could be launched by something as simple as some heavy braking & is it really worth that risk?
Further more the law nowadays takes a very dim view of accidents, injury or even death which is brought about by careless actions & the prison population grows weekly with people who wouldn't dream of breaking the law...Think on please.

Full Respect, but and here is my but, it is designed to be left up. If it wasn't, it would have a proper stowage for transit.

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[tinks703]

Hi, took ours out of the motorhome. We use a smaller table and take down and store when travelling. Gives us much more space when we swivel the chairs for relaxing and having a cuppa.

 

[ambulancekidd]

Full Respect, but and here is my but, it is designed to be left up. If it wasn't, it would have a proper stowage for transit.

Most motorhomes that I know of have a dedicated storage position for the table or tables.

 

[Speve]

Most Hymers I think have a fixed table bolted to the floor we took ours out as it’s in the way but there’s no way you can remove for traveling.

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[Jim]

We've always left tables up. Makes it easier to serve the meals and hot drinks cooked while travelling along the motorway..... I know, were probably not a good example

 

[mfw]

Got 2 tables with my van only ever travel with smaller one which slots with single tube in floor solid so always stays in use never move it unless i put it in the additional slot in floor

 

[Geo]

We've always left tables up. Makes it easier to serve the meals and hot drinks cooked while travelling along the motorway..... I know, were probably not a good example

What else is Cruise Control for Jim

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[Ridgeway]

Most motorhomes that I know of have a dedicated storage position for the table or tables.

Never seen one so far and i'd bet that the MH manufacturers would say that safe storage is in fact being left out where it is, fully erected.

These tables are very light (the material is a laminate with a honeycomb interior) so i'd doubt they'd be as affected by inertia as you think and if the speeds were high enough that they were then you'd certainly have other issues to worry about. Correctly positioned and latched is where i'd leave mine.

 

[two]

Welcome.
I leave the table up...
and the kids at home.

 

[Speve]

Never seen one so far

Autotrail Tracker has one

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[ambulancekidd]

Never seen one so far and i'd bet that the MH manufacturers would say that safe storage is in fact being left out where it is, fully erected.

In this photo you can just see the tables in their safe storage position, just behind my snoozing wee mutt.
There were two sizes & both stored in the same way. Once set up for driving they were covered over & out of sight too .
Most motorhomes store them in the toilet compartment or in the wardrobe or in the case of most that I've seen have them in an actual cupboard especially for the table or tables.

 

[ambulancekidd]

We've always left tables up. Makes it easier to serve the meals and hot drinks cooked while travelling along the motorway..... I know, were probably not a good example

Ah now where food is involved it makes perfect sense to have the table out lol.

So here's another conundrum, why do motorhomes not have seat belts in the loo, I mean surely we should be safe when we're propped up on the throne reading the sunday papers at 60mph?

 

[Ridgeway]

Our 2nd table is way to big to be stored in a cupboard, bet it's 60 x 50cm. The large one is more like 100 x 50cm.....

Honestly never seen any place on a Euro van where these go and never seen anyone move them for travelling.

Our large one does latch down when folded (perhaps that's what was meant by storage ?) but i reckon the children would have something to say about that if we collapsed it, might as well just be in a car without the table.

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[Mrsambulancekidd]

We've always left tables up. Makes it easier to serve the meals and hot drinks cooked while travelling along the motorway..... I know, were probably not a good example

Your just a rebel.....with a cause of course....

 

[ambulancekidd]

Your just a rebel.....with a cause of course....

More like a rebel without a clue.

 

[Nostrovia]

Thanks everyone! Interesting and lively discussion...

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[Minxy]

Most motorhomes that I know of have a dedicated storage position for the table or tables.

... you need to have a nosy at more MHs then as lots don't have any place to store them. Ours is meant to be left 'in use' mode all the time so never gets taken out.

 

[Minxy]

What else is Cruise Control for Jim

... I didn't know you could get cruise control to cook meals for you ... I thought in the case of Jim the 'cruise food control' was called Sian!

 

[JJ]

Not only do I leave my table up when travelling... but I also leave most things on it too.

The only person I put in danger is myself.



When I was taught to drive, the instructor told me that if I could drive with a two thirds full (StrongBow type) bottle standing upright on the passenger footwell and not have it fall over, then I was driving well. Nice and smoothly, with no harsh acceleration or braking...

These days, my table is that bottle...


JJ

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[yodeli]

Nice and smoothly, with no harsh acceleration or braking...

Opposite to me as most friends know..... mmmm AND I have never ever thought about putting the table down or away.

Surely such a table can't move that easily, and if so, it means that a lot of other things can fly away in my motorhome, or over cab bed fall on my head.

No way for me to worry about this, but after all.... not surprising coming from one of those frenchie froggies... sod them!

 

[tonyidle]

As long as it's close to the (within two or three feet) of the back of the cab seats it will do no harm even if it does break free of the wall or floor.

 

[Allanm]

We had two British Vans, an Autosleeper and a Swift. Both had free standing tables and dedicated storage places for them. Our Swift also had a fold out table between the two bench seats at the back that was kept in place by magnetic catches.
In the event of a collision violent enough to get a clipped in table moving forward with enough force to cause an injury, I would be more worried about the fridge and cooker coming past me through the windscreen!