Review: Comfortz Thermal Screen Cover

[MattBW]

We have been testing one of the thermal screen covers from the club shop this weekend. I do intend to cover in the isotop video coming soon but I wanted to drop a little review down on the forum for those who are interested. Proper photos incoming soon (sorry for phone pics).

They come in a variety of configurations and colours, namely black, blue, yellow, gray, red and maroon and if you want as per our example you can add eyes for a little bit of fun. The internal fabric is a reflective silver insulation material.


First impressions
Very high quality material , feels sturdy and well stitched but soft and flexible, it can be rolled nice and small. The grey colour material matches my 15 beach paint well too. I think V gave me a funny look when she saw it had eyes on but I have to say it has grown on me and makes my laugh when we come back to the van. I do think my van has a slightly sinister expression now though haha Obviously the eyes are optional.

Fitting
The screen goes over the top of the door on each side, around the mirrors and has a little velcro strap onto the door handle. You then fix to the central panel again via strong velcro. 2 minutes to put on and can be done solo.

How does it perform?
So onto the important stuff, the performance. It just so happened I was in Wales this weekend for a photoshoot so we took it for a test, to see how it would perform. I spoke to Nick and he informed me the fabrics have been carefully chosen as it is a little thinner and more flexible so that it can pack down nice and small. Some of the other screens on the market can be very thick which can add extra insulation but they then become larger packs and get in the way inside the Cali when travelling around. By the third day I was packing it down lovely and small and I am confident this material does the job well.

On one of the hottest April weekends in a long time in Tenby it convinced us it was a good idea. In the daytime it kept the temperature inside the van down nicely combined with the blinds in the van and gave the dogs a nice cool spot to hide when they wanted. The cover has a far more effective blackout effect than the stock curtains in our beach and I do think they will be left at home in future.

There is a full length velcro strip on each side so you can peel the cover back from top, bottom or sides as you wish to let light in or control it as you want. Worked well.

After a cool evening on our final night, we awoke to no condensation on the inside of the front screen in the morning, which after some reading online is the advantage of an external insulation setup. It felt lovely and cool inside the van and it was only when we went outside we realised it was already quite warm out there. So it seems good for keeping the heat in and out too. Obviously we haven't tested it in cold weather yet but I feel confident it will be better again than the standard VW curtains.

Pros
Very effective for blackout
Keeps heat in or out very effectively
Easy to fit.
Packs smaller than some alternatives
Adjustable (can be opened up or closed fully).
Fun designs optional, kids will love them!

Cons
Slightly bigger than the standard curtain pack but a very minor con for us. It rolled up small and could be put behind the bench seat without being noticed. Performs better too.

Verdict:
Does the job well, packs down small, easy to fit and work better than the factory beach "curtains". Great for keeping the heat in or out.
https://vwcaliforniaclub.com/shop/p...-customised-coloured-thermal-windscreen-cover

 

[MattBW]

Few phone pics

 

[Hotel California]

@MattBW , reading your fitting instructions .
Do you realy undo the three parts to fit ?
I got my cover also from the clubshop (a silver one) and never undo the parts ....
You just trow it on the front window , open a door and pull the cornerpart on .
Then put the cover further in place and then open the other door to hook the other cornerpart .
Lift up,the wipers and pull the screen under , thighten the velcros....

 

[jts46]

@hotel california that is exactly how i fit my silverscreens cover, and just fold down middle section during the day

 

[MattBW]

It may be my user error on my part I will try that next time. It was very tight to get over the second door when left in one piece so I undid one side slightly just to ensure it went on easy. This also meant it hugged the windows very nice and tight.

 

[Debra Lumsden]

It may be my user error on my part I will try that next time. It was very tight to get over the second door when left in one piece so I undid one side slightly just to ensure it went on easy. This also meant it hugged the windows very nice and tight.

I found the same when I fitted mine here in NZ the other weekend, it’s Autumn here now and can be a bit cooler at night.

 

[soulstyledevon]

A couple of cons which could be added.

1 - in heavy rain, it’s something else to pack away wet.
2 - with the screen on, access to the passenger and drivers door are limited, slightly.

Otherwise, nice little review Matt

 

[Docmark]

Suggest not putting it under the wipers - I did with our wrap (a padded one) and in very high wind and storm somehow it flapped and damaged the wiper-bade on one side! - unusual event I know - but now I leave it outside the wipers!!

 

[MattBW]

I didn't put mine under wipers, so I would agree. It didnt move much.

I haven't used it in the rain but anything external has this same challenge, awnings, covers, toppers etc. Its a good point I hadn't thought about (because it was glorious weather).

 

[DrJuanKerr]

@MattBW, I'm in the market for a screen protector and one that specifically allows the central portion to be rolled down. I haven't found any others that have this facility.

"Packability" however, is an issue for me. Do you think this could squeeze in the tailgate with the chairs?
Cheers

 

[MattBW]

It can be split into 3 parts quite easily, should be easy to pack away. I’ll try tomorrow if you like?

 

[Moore288]

We bought the same one as reviewed minus the eyes. After 2 1/2 week holiday in France and Spain we found it excellent - easy to fit, packs down well, nice and dark inside, excellent at keeping the van cool in hot sunshine. 100% recommend.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Shuftie]

Yes you can, that’s where I’ve stashed mine!

 

[DrJuanKerr]

......based on @MattBW's review and the fact it can be stashed with the chairs in the tailgate as stated by @Shuftie I've bought the Comfortz VW T5 / T6 Thermal Windscreen Cover in black.

I didn't bother with the "eyes"

 

[LemonDrop]

We wouldn't be without ours too. WAY easier to put on than the VW supplied magnetic curtain things and black-out which is essential IMHO. Warmer at night and, I think, cooler during the day - but we'll be testing it on a road trip to the South of France from Thursday so will find out for sure!

Nick did a great custom job for us, if you want something specific give him a ring he was super helpful.

Quality is spot on.

 

[Calihunter]

Just a cautionary note if you put the screen under the wiper blades, as we still do.
Make sure you haven't inadvertently knocked the wiper stalk to the on position before turning on the ignition for any reason. I managed to do this once only. This resulted in the wipers dragging the screen cover half way up the windscreen with some force, before locking the wipers solid.. Luckily no damage as I was able to turn off the ignition quickly.
We have used our silver Comfort screen cover for a few years now and it has been excellent.
Just had a few minor niggles though:
The Velcro under the door mirrors has now degraded and isn't very secure.
We have had water drip down from the top of the drivers door soaking the door card in heavy rain.

 

[kp64zl]

I've got the same cover.

It's great at keeping the light out and I also like the fact that it means I have a bit more space on the front dashboard where the curtains hang down

However packed down I find it is quite bulky --- not sure how @MattBW managed to squeeze it in the tailgate seats.

Also, when wet -- although the main body of the cover dries quickly -- the sewn edges are absorbent fabric so take longer to dry

Not sure I don't prefer the original VW fabric magnetic curtains etc -- would definitely so if I could find blackout versions of those

 

[MattBW]

I haven't squeezed it into the tailgate that was @Shuftie , i just put mine behind the rear seat.

I am camping this weekend I will give a few places a try.

 

[DrJuanKerr]

.... I hope it does fit in the tailgate. That's the reason I bought it

 

[kp64zl]

.... I hope it does fit in the tailgate. That's the reason I bought it

I wasn't prepared to push as hard as @Shuftie probably was!

 

[MattBW]

I am pretty sure if you separate into the 3 pieces it would easily fit between the two chairs without any hard pushing required. I will be testing this weekend.

 

[DrJuanKerr]

Not sure I don't prefer the original VW fabric magnetic curtains etc -- would definitely so if I could find blackout versions of those

Get some magnets off Amazon and some blackout material. You've got the cloth ones as templates

 

[altvic]

The Velcro under the door mirrors has now degraded and isn't very secure.

I think this is a manufacture fault as it also happed to ours. The Club shop replaced velcro. Seems to me that the design is a little too tightly made for the T6 as the fit around the wing mirrors is very poor and this is why the velcro deteriorates when fastening under tension.

 

[Shuftie]

I've always figured it won't do more damage to the chair than my 90kg's sitting on it.. Just make sure you've squashed all the air out of the cover before you slide it between the chair back and seat.

I bought the T6 one and mine isn't a tight fit on the Velcro for the door handles, so perhaps that's now fixed?

 

[DrJuanKerr]

I can confirm what @Shuftie says with respect to fit. I too have the T6 one and the fit is excellent.

Upon opening the box, the first thing that hit me was the overall quality of construction. they feel excellent

With regards to fitting in the tailgate however, that isn't an easy task in my case anyway. I have the chair backs fitted as suggested in this thread so the screen only fits when broken in to its 3 constituent parts.

I would see no major problem in fitting in to the tailgate without the chair backs. In fact, I might try some "jiggery pokery" later and put the chair backs in with one chair and this with the other.