Bungee belt and braces

[ChristopherW]

Hello all. First Thank You for all the invaluable advice and shared experience on this forum.
I thought the following might be helpful to share which I devised after a near-miss when the near-side rear part of our bellows flipped out in the last stage of roof lowering (in spite of the bungee and usual precautions).
I've tied a couple of loops of nylon guy rope to the side window zipper tags on each side. Prior to closing the roof zip the windows closed so that the zip tags are in the far rear end position: this creates an attachment point internally on each side close to, and at the level of the rear side folding reinforcements. You then attach a bungee to each loop so that it puts an inward tension on the sides of the bellows at the back. I used an elastic camping clothes line adjusted to a suitable length.
Works fine - no problems with it so far. It's simple and does not involve any modifications to the canvas.
Clearly this is not a substitute for vigilance, but It's given me a bit of extra confidence when putting the roof down in windy conditions. Also - a minor thing, the orange nylon loops on the zipper handles makes them easier to see and grab.
Only warning: remember to unhitch the bungee before pushing the bed/ceiling up.

 

[Hotel California]

We had that discussion a while ago here
https://vwcaliforniaclub.com/threads/pop-up-roof.13977/
Had this thing on my Hannibal rooftent on my Defender.

 

[ChristopherW]

Thanks - I did look at this thread although I missed 2CV67's post. Nevertheless I'm suggesting a simple refinement that is simple and easy : the point is that if the side zips are positioned at the rear the tension is applied exactly at the midpoint of the folding rear reinforcements thus providing additional protection for the rear part of the bellows. And although Its seems prudent to disconnect the bungee before raising the bed, the bed only rises to the level of the attachment points anyway so it shouldn't cause a problem if the bed gets pushed up so long as one uses slim plastic type hooks for the bungee attachment