Lesson Learned, warning to newbies & advice please

[ejmoore]

We were down in north Devon a couple of weeks ago. Left the van with the awning out, well tied down with the straps & stakes, & went out walking on the South West Coast Path. Lovely day, until 15:30, when suddenly a ferocious thunderstorm came on, when we were at just about the most remote place on the walk. We got soaked to the skin despite waterproofs, & it took us a couple of hours to get back to the campsite.

To my horror, the awning was all twisted-looking with a massive ponding of water in the middle, despite having left it with one leg dropped a bit. I don't know how it hadn't collapsed under the strain - probably due to the super-strong staking-out. With some difficulty we managed to get the water to tip out without soaking ourselves, but the awning looked stretched & baggy. However, after a day or two it went back to normal & is now fine.

I found this quite reassuring, actually - it's stronger than expected. It's all very well to say always wind the awning in, but if you've got the awning sides up, as we had, that's a major exercise. Also half the point of having the awning is for rain protection.

I don't like to drop the leg down too far, as it must put a strain on the struts. I suppose the best thing is to get one of those bracing poles to reduce the risk of ponding.

 

[cwriggy]

Just as a note on it being a sun screen rather than a rain protector. As you wind out the screen you will no doubt have noticed there is a join where the material is welded together. If you leave your sun shield out in the sun it can split at this join. There are a number of posts about this on the internet including a letter someone got from thule admitting there was a problem. It seems this mostly happens above 30 degrees possibly more 35 ambient temp. So not massively likely to happen in the uk. But did happen for us in the french alps after a hot trip down.

So don't use them in the rain, wind or sun but at least it does make the Cali look the part

I and several others (according to google) have had the awning replaced under warranty for this.

 

[jts46]

Just as a note on it being a sun screen rather than a rain protector. As you wind out the screen you will no doubt have noticed there is a join where the material is welded together. If you leave your sun shield out in the sun it can split at this join. There are a number of posts about this on the internet including a letter someone got from thule admitting there was a problem. It seems this mostly happens above 30 degrees possibly more 35 ambient temp. So not massively likely to happen in the uk. But did happen for us in the french alps after a hot trip down.

So don't use them in the rain, wind or sun but at least it does make the Cali look the part

I and several others (according to google) have had the awning replaced under warranty for this.

We have a Fiamma awning, it doesn't split as it is one piece material.
Done 104mph in ours fully loaded on A71 in France

 

[Victor]

If the wind out awning is not designed for rain then why do Thule make a dedicated safari room for the California awning ?

 

[Rich20]

If the wind out awning is not designed for rain then why do Thule make a dedicated safari room for the California awning ?

Same account always. R &D do not test in the real world, they leave that to the buyers and then offer a warranty when it goes pear shaped.

 

[WelshGas]

Just as a note on it being a sun screen rather than a rain protector. As you wind out the screen you will no doubt have noticed there is a join where the material is welded together. If you leave your sun shield out in the sun it can split at this join. There are a number of posts about this on the internet including a letter someone got from thule admitting there was a problem. It seems this mostly happens above 30 degrees possibly more 35 ambient temp. So not massively likely to happen in the uk. But did happen for us in the french alps after a hot trip down.

So don't use them in the rain, wind or sun but at least it does make the Cali look the part

I and several others (according to google) have had the awning replaced under warranty for this.

No problem with my VW awning with the seam. Survived 3 summers in Italy with temperatures significantly above 30c.

 

[WelshGas]

If the wind out awning is not designed for rain then why do Thule make a dedicated safari room for the California awning ?

Basically because they can and people will buy.

Still doesn't alter the fact that that the VW awning, in fact all makes of awning similar to it, are in fact fair weather awnings.

 

[andyinluton]

If the wind out awning is not designed for rain then why do Thule make a dedicated safari room for the California awning ?

When the safari room is fitted it adds an awful lot of structural rigidity with additional aluminium supports, the fabric of the blind is also clamped for the full length of its sides.

With those extra bits a central roof rafter and a couple of storm straps at 45 degrees from the front you end up with a very strong structure with no where for the wind to get underneath.

In my view the comfort sides actually add more load to the awning without increasing the strength.

 

[ejmoore]

The awning sides are quite heavy and the added weight would reduce the risk of the awning lifting in winds. But if there was a wind strong enough to stand any chance of lifting it, as in Skye & Lewis recently, we wouldn't risk the awning at all - partly because if the wind direction changes, it's useful to be able to reposition the van - it was that bad!

 

[hirsty]

There's no way any conventional "awning" (as we understand it) could ever be engineered for every scenario from a Hebridean winter storm down to a Mediterranean summer heatwave without being so heavy that it'd tip the van over.

All things in moderation is the answer as usual, but speaking as an dimwit / 'victim of a misfortune' I think these occasional reminders are useful to newer owners that some care is needed to avoid trouble.

 

[ejmoore]

Absolutely. Be careful, but don't panic!

 

[ejmoore]

Actually our key reason for using the awning (with or without sides) is just to stake out a bit more private territory, rather than sitting outside the van just in a field. We then sometimes end up sitting out away from the awning to get the sunshine! In Britain, that is.