Are internal roof toppers the real deal? (or pants)

[Amarillo]

Your thoughts appreciated.....

We have an external roofless topper, and have twice camped in stormy weather. We leave the external bolts in place on the awning rail, and with them in place the topper only takes a few minutes for me to fit, which I do solo. At 6' tall I can just about manage without standing on anything, but I do now cart about a step, and this helps.

The topper certainly helps keep the canvass dry, and inside it is noticeably warmer with the topper installed. The roofless version flaps about a bit in strong winds, but there are included two bungee cords to run across the roof, and with these fitted, the flapping is greatly reduced.

If I were buying again, I would certainly buy the external one for the protection against wind and rain it offers to the canvass and roof mechanism. I might consider a roofed topper with a window for the solar panels to further reduce the flapping.

 

[larrylamb]

I can see why there are no draughts as it covers the roof vents. At least with a Topper there is a 3-4" gap between Topper and vent to allow some air movement. Just saying.

How tight the fit is to the roof lining is up to the individual, gaps can be left for ventilation or just unzip the openers as we plan to do. How much we open the windows will depend on external conditons.

 

[briwy]

Do few wrinkles really matter.??
How much time do you spend with the roof up anyway. Some of that will be dark so perhaps 5-10% of the time the van is in use.
Each to their own of course but if I was buying again then I would have another Comfortz one.

 

[hirsty]

Another honest review from a Comfortz owner. We could really do with real-life photos of the brandrup product to assess if the isotop does fit better than the Comfortz or if simply their advertising photos are better, and once installed, appear equally baggy.

I feel bad pushing this, but £350 is a big chunk to swallow and be disappointed. It's only slightly better than spending £500 and being disappointed

You need to invite yourself round to Chez @Borris
Iso top Mk3

 

[TwoDogs]

I'm with the OP on the look of the Comfortz version. The Brandrup looks much neater based on the photos in the shop.

And looking at the photos earlier in this thread, I'd agree....but I guess that's what you'd expect from a cheap knock-off. The Brandrup one fits way better than that...no wrinkles at all.

 

[larrylamb]

The Brandrup one fits way better than that...no wrinkles at all.

Was it easy to fit?

 

[TwoDogs]

Pretty straight forward...no drilling required (at least on SE, but I may have read that on beach you do need to?). Mines been in place for 2.5 years and still looks as new. I'm not with the van for a few weeks but can post pics then

 

[Hotel California]

All Brandrup items have a perfect fit thats why you pay the money , lots of aftermarket stuff are copies of the Brandrup range...

@2into1 , you are not making it easy on yourself

 

[2into1]

@2into1 , you are not making it easy on yourself

I don't want this to turn into a slang fest, but I do want to know where to spend my hard earned cash.

 

[BerndRos]

I fitted an isotop 4 a few weeks ago and am not happy with the fit. Have tried to adjust but no luck getting a better fit.

However, I suspect it's not the fault of the isotop but rather the fit of the actual canvas, years ago I had a replacement canvas and I think maybe it's not been fitted quite correctly.

 

[zerofour]

As @Seaside Sussex said we have the Brandrup one. Installation is easy in principle but time consuming, it takes a bit of faffing to get the best possible fit. You have to stick some self adhesive velcro around the bottom edge of the upstairs when the ambient temperature is over 18.5 degrees. Leave it 48 hours then fit the internal topper. The end result really depends on how well you fit it – I'm 95% happy with what I have done but I'm a bit of a perfectionist. I will try and post some pictures for you.

Regarding whether it was a worthwhile purchase, like all the Brandrup products they seem to be the best but you have to pay for them. We got ours from the Netherlands as it worked out cheaper. In use it keeps upstairs darker and warmer making it feel less exposed up there. We had a night of rain and I definitely felt the topper was worth it. It stays in place when the roof is lowered which is a plus. I would definitely recommend one but please note I can't comment on it's long term performance or compare it to an external topper.

 

[larrylamb]

From what I can work out the velcro fixings etc are much the same with either make. Brandrup looks a bit tighter fit but I would expect a better product from them and £150 more. As the mans says "You pays yer money".

What I do like though is buying from someone associated with the forum, I have no doubts if I encounter a problem or need an alteration/spares etc. that Nick and his team will sort me out. That is a tad more difficult out of warranty with Brandrup. IMO.

We camped a few weekends ago and had the external topper fitted. It was blowing a hoolie and cold. I slept upstairs and didn't sleep well at all, topper was flapping about and for the first time I was cold. Decided to try a Comfortz internal topper after many recommendations, a few wrinkles in the fabric doesn't bother me, it's not that bad in the flesh, not a permanent fixture so easy to remove. I think we will be a lot cosier when the weather is rough and that is the reason for buying it, not aesthetics.

 

[Borris]

I can't comment on the Comfortz product as I haven't seen their internal liner either in the flesh or fitted. It wasn't available when I bought the Isotop. However I would be surprised if it wasn't very good like all of there other products.
Here are some photos of our SE top deck with the Brandrup Isotop fitted. It's now been in place for two years and I am very satisfied with it. These snaps were taken today when it was very bright outside. Unfortunately I had to use flash so you won't be able to gauge how well it keeps light out.








Regarding the ventilation issue, if there isn't enough air coming in around the gap at the top then open one or more of the three enormous vents in the Isotop and roof canvas. Simples.

 

[Hotel California]

If i now see both , they "look" very much thesame speaking beeing baggy or loose...
I think the internal topper is very much a plus!

And and as for changing the original looks of the Cali...who sees this and when?
Only you looking up sitting below and before the light goes out at bedtime ...

 

[zerofour]

A couple of snaps of the ISO-TOP in our T6. It looks more creased than when I first fitted it, I think it's where the roof has been down. You can see on the rear photo on the left there is a crease and light is entering – I need to re-affix the topper to get rid of this which is just a case of stretching and re-attaching.

 

[Broch Hunter]

I have the Comfortz version and cannot fault its functional performance. I don't know (or care) whether it has a few more creases in it than the Brandrup version, all I know us it does the job I want it to do; fit and forget weather proofing and insulation.

 

[WelshGas]

Regarding the ventilation issue, if there isn't enough air coming in around the gap at the top then open one or more of the three enormous vents in the Isotop and roof canvas. Simples.

Doesn't that defeat the object of the Internal Topper, having both windows open, even a little, will allow a draught or rain in + light?
With the External you retain ventilation and have a 3" air gap between canvas and Topper + no rain can gain access.

 

[2into1]

If i now see both , they "look" very much thesame speaking beeing baggy or loose...
I think the internal topper is very much a plus!

And and as for changing the original looks of the Cali...who sees this and when?
Only you looking up sitting below and before the light goes out at bedtime ...

Wim, I'm 1.93m tall, and will be cooking in the Cali with the roof bed raised and my face opposite the topper. Each time I enter and leave the Cali I'll see it.
I can't understand that a forum that's so intolerant of a bit of carpet on a wall would settle for a baggy topper, no matter who made it.

 

[Bellcrew]

Doesn't that defeat the object of the Internal Topper, having both windows open, even a little, will allow a draught or rain in + light?
With the External you retain ventilation and have a 3" air gap between canvas and Topper + no rain can gain access.

I think the internal topper gives maximum flexibility, you can, as you say open the windows to suit wind direction for extra ventilation and light. There is always some air movement from the upper bellows fixed ventilators, the topper is not a perfect seal just better than nothing.
The easy access to the front bellows window (ocean/se) was brilliant during the recent hot weather, kept out the snow storm of poplar/willow seeds with decent air flow to keep interior ventilated whilst we were away.

 

[cpjb@btinternet.com]

Save £150 and go for the Comfortz internal liner product. It's by far the best accessory I've bought for the Cali in nearly 5 years of ownership.

I can't see me bothering with putting the external topper on again unless in really extreme conditions, and probably wouldn't put the roof up at all then.

 

[Borris]

Doesn't that defeat the object of the Internal Topper, having both windows open, even a little, will allow a draught or rain in + light?
With the External you retain ventilation and have a 3" air gap between canvas and Topper + no rain can gain access.

My post was rather tongue in cheek as I have never needed the large vents open. We also have a Comfortz external topper and very good it is too. However we don't use it that much because:
1. I find it just that bit too much of a faff to fit especially in a breeze.
2. The roof canvas on our SE seems to dry out quickly anyway.
3. With the Isotop you don't really need it.

We do use it if we are staying somewhere for several days and it's either going to be very cold or very wet or both.

In my experience there is no issue with ventilation.

 

[RichardH]

Are you sure you really need either? Having now spent the combined equivalent of about a year sleeping in ours, since we bought it new in January 2014, almost always sleeping upstairs, we've never felt the need for one. Even in sub-zero temperatures, above the snow-line, when the wind has been blowing hard, the van is well enough insulated to be comfortable without the heater on all night (although we don't turn it off till we are cozily under the duvet and additional faux fur "wolf", and we certainly don't get up till its's been on for a while). It's not at all as cold as a tent can be - presumably the insulation in the roof panel helps reduce heat loss. I worried at first that the canvas would leak in Yorkshire / Scottish horizontal rain but it's not been a problem so far.

 

[MelanieW1]

I've recently been through this process of choosing. I started off with the Comfortz version which my very patient husband fitted. The fabric is lovely however it was just too baggy. In particular, there appeared to be too much material on the front with the large arch window. It was harder to shut the hatch after lowering the roof too as there was so much material. In the end, I couldn't live with the look so Nick very kindly refunded the money and I bought the brandrup version instead from him. Husband commented that it was easier to fit, the fixings themselves appeared stronger and it is nowhere near as baggy. In fact you'd hardly notice it was there. Exactly the same colour as the roof canvas.

Kids slept up top last weekend and loved it. Certainly darker. We're very pleased with it.

 

[B J G]

Opted for the Brandrup for the reasons you stated.
In daytime use (bed up)the lining gives a plush feel to the cabin as you aren't looking at canvas.
Closing the top needs more care as more material to tuck/tidy at the front before closing the hatch.
I bought from VWCampervShop using my Euro French account so the price was closer to the Comfortz option.

No regrets on purchase cost or product quality.

 

[jet4415]

We opted for the brand up and are delighted. It fits well, looks good, makes van much warmer, cosier and it's darker in the morning. Definitely worth the expense.