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Topic: Wind out fixed awning or drive away awnin

Rainydavz

via mobile 29/3/2021 at 10:52pm
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Hi I've recently purchased a swift select 174. I am considering buying an awning for the camper but not sure of what road to go down. The wind out fixed awning or drive away awning like the idea of both but money only allows one at this time a bit of insight would be great thanks

Capt Lightning

30/3/2021 at 7:51am
Location: Turriff Aberdeenshi
Outfit: Romahome R30 Dimens

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I've got both and use neither! When the children were young and came with us, the drive away awning was great and provided much needed extra room.
Now the children have grown & flown, it's just an extra bit of kit to lug around.

My current van comes with a wind out awning - but that's all it is - a sun shade. You can get 'walls', but they're expensive (as is a roll out).
With a roll out, you also have to add guy rope to the corners in case it's windy.

So, it depends what you want. I would go for a drive-away - one with a detachable front.

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spiritburner

via mobile 30/3/2021 at 8:33am
Location: NE England
Outfit: Citroen Dispatch Campervan plus tents

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If I had a van that size a wind-out would be my priority out of the two. Bit of rain cover or shade for sitting & cooking outside.

franbee

30/3/2021 at 12:22pm
Location: Lancashire
Outfit: Leisuredrive VW T6 campervan

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We have a wind out, never had a drive away. We use it for sun shade or rain cover as when we are in France we cook and eat outside as much as possible. And always with a tie down kit, in case of gusty winds. We carry tarps with us, and have been known to peg a tarp on the side of the awning to protect from the weather.
If you get a Fiamma awning, they have lots of (not cheap) accessories you can buy. We invested in a rubber seal for between the awning and van, to stop rain dripping through.

chrisandsandra

30/3/2021 at 1:50pm
Location: Somerset
Outfit: Murvi Morello

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It depends very much on how you plan to use your van.

We've been vanning for over 16 years and tried both.

When we bought our first van I insisted on getting a drive away awning as I thought it would be 'essential' for extra space and shelter. In the event we quickly sold it as for us it was far too much faff and it took away the essence of the van - being able to sit with the big side door open to the view which, to us, is one of the joys of a campervan.

However they do give extra space for storing things and keeping them dry if the weather is bad if space inside the van is at a premium and afford some shelter for outdoor eating etc.

We've had roll out awnings on all four vans and have used them extensively. As said you do have to be careful about tying rollout awnings down and taking them in if the weather is very bad and do need a seal or gutter between the van and the awning box or you will get water dripping into the van doorway when it rains if the door is open.

We didn't bother with buying sides for it though I have made two from tent fabric which we can position anywhere around the awning to protect from sun or rain. They are especially useful for shade when camping in the south of Europe.

We have a folding table with a waterproof cover that we put outside the van. It takes minutes to set up. The chairs, cadac etc go under this if it's raining to save space in the van and we leave it on our pitch when we go out in the van for the day which saves packing them away.

My advice would be to find out how you plan to use the van and buy accordingly.

Fiona W

via mobile 30/3/2021 at 2:40pm
Location: Ayrshire
Outfit: Auto-Sleeper MHs

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Use the van for a while first to see what - if anything - you’re missing for your perfect trip. See what other MHs are doing on sites. A driveaway (tent) does take up space & weight allowance that you might need for something else (golf bag for OH). It also takes up time that you could use for something else. The great thing with a MH is that you drive up, plug in & go off for a walk 10 minutes after arriving. Add an hour for the tent that’s an hour not enjoying doing something more fun. And an awning may cost extra on some sites.
We rarely use the wind out, except to mark out the sitting space outside the door when people take a shortcut across the pitch to go to the toilets. It’s a bold person that walks under your awning to get to the standpipe.

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2024 = 20 sites / 41 nights. 2023 = 9/23. 2022 = 13/35. 2021 = 11/29. 2020 = 4/20. 2019 = 13/35. 2018 = 20/33. 2017 = 10/22. 2016 = 19/33. 2015 = 15 sites / 27 nights. Didn't count 1976 to 2014.

martin734

30/3/2021 at 2:52pm
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We use a driveaway awning with our Bongo, it doesn't take up much space in the van but gives us much more space when it is up. It means we can just use the van for cooking and sleeping in and use the awning for sitting, eating and relaxing. Ours has a wide opening on the front and one side and takes about 20 mins to erect.

Oswestry Ed

via mobile 30/3/2021 at 7:15pm
Location: Marches
Outfit: POSSL 2Win

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We have both and use both on our 6m pvc. We have the inflatable vango kella3 but only use it if staying a minimum of 3 nights. Plenty of room to store stuff and eat in, also provides sleeping accommodation for daughter and family when they want to come with us. At 17kg it's a fair lump, and I've mastered the art of putting it up (20 min) and putting it away wet. But we like it.
We also have a fiamma wind out awning it came with the van, we do use it when touring (weather permitting) but never leave it out overnight even with tie downs. If I were buying a new van I don't think I would have one and save on the extra weight. But that's me.

David Klyne

30/3/2021 at 8:51pm
Location: Milton Keynes
Outfit: Bailey Alliance 66-2 Motorhome

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On both our motorhomes we have had Fiamma wind out awnings. Generally they have only been used as sunshades and wound in overnight. I suppose it depends on your style of touring, if you spend a week on site as opposed to a few days, it might be worth having a drive away awning but don't forget you have to think about your payload. Some modern awnings are very heavy.

David

fiona f

via mobile 30/3/2021 at 10:35pm
Location: Didsbury Manchester
Outfit: Trigano Randger FC Autocruise Jazz

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With our VW T6 we are had an inflatable driveaway awning, easy to put up but very big & heavy, only used it 3 times. We adapted a Decathlon Tarp to attach to the awning rail & used a Decathlon pop up storage tent which we still use now with our small PVC with wind out awning, used when the weather allows.

Fiona

Vampgirl

01/4/2021 at 9:29am
Location: Hampshire
Outfit: Carthago A Class

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We have never had a wind out awning - we considered getting one fitted when we bought our first MH but decided to live without for a while to see if we really needed one. In the end we decided against it because you need to be really careful if the wind gets up, and unless you're parked somewhere really sheltered you need to put it away each night.

Instead, we stuck a length of awning rail to the MH and sewed a length of kador strip to a Decathlon tarp. It takes about 15 mins to set up with poles and guy lines but can be left up in all but the strongest of winds. As well as sun protection we've often used it in the rain, and even a couple of times in snow. One time it unexpectedly snowed overnight so it built up on the tarp and partially collapsed it, but because its so flexible there was no damage at all.

We've now bought an inflatable caravan sun shelter which should work in the same way but be even easier to erect.

themarsh

01/4/2021 at 10:24am
Location: Suffolk
Outfit: La Strada Regent L

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Having had both over the years, I would not entertain another drive away awning.
My current one has been used 3 times in as many years.
My previous van had a Fiamma wind out awning which I used every time I was away in the van even one nighters.

spiritburner

01/4/2021 at 11:34am
Location: NE England
Outfit: Citroen Dispatch Campervan plus tents

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We do very occasionally use our wind-out as a proper awning with the addition of sides but normally it's to give me shade or the pair of us a bit of shelter from rain or drizzle when it's otherwise warm enough to sit outside or inside with the door open.

Rainydavz

via mobile 05/4/2021 at 8:59am
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Thanks to everybody for some great input think we'll see how we get on in our hopefully first season in the camper stay safe everybody

Campernewby

via mobile 15/4/2021 at 9:13pm
Location: Devon
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I'm not sure what your vehicle is..
Another option is a pop up tent / event shelter. We have a brilliant Quechua 'seconds' base tent which is tall enough to stand up in like an awning, store stuff, big enough for kids to play in if it's raining. Also handy for getting dressed/ washing etc - and during a pandemic having your own loo!

Personally I think something not attached to the van is better so you can drive somewhere with much less faff.

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